Requiem...

I've only just remembered that we're having a Requiem for the war dead at our High Mass tomorrow, as it's Remembrance Sunday, and there will be absolutions at the catafalque and all the trimmings...

Pretty stirring stuff.  I better go and check that my mobile phone is fully charged!

Generosity...

You bloggers (and blog readers, naturally, are included here!) are a decidedly generous bunch when faced with a good cause... I remember being heartened by the response to the last appeal of the Sisters of the Gospel of Life for prams, buggies and baby-related items.

This time, the Good Counsel Network is in need of your generosity.  They help women in much the same sort of situation as do the Sisters, only south of the border!  They plan to have a Christmas party for young mothers, and are appealing for donations of small gifts (wrapped nicely) which can be given to the young women as presents (Joanna Bogle has suggested each gift should be worth around £2-3, more a morale-booster than anything else) items of household goods or baby-related items which could be added to a parcel given to each mother, and donations of money to help buy more such items would be even more helpful.

Send your donations to Good Counsel Network (Party Appeal), c/o 15 Maple Grove London NW9 8RD.

BTW, it sounds obvious, but I would discourage sending cash through the post, especially at this time of year!

Twitch of the mantilla to Auntie Joanna Writes.

A Little Surprise...

After yesterday's depression-inducing marking session, today proved to be quite trying.  Reports are due in tomorrow, and as some of the baseline data necessary for the completion of the reports (well, more a detailed grade card, really!) wasn't available until yesterday, I (and several other teachers) have been playing catch-up.  So, after a full teaching day, I needed to stay behind for a few more hours to complete the reports.  Tomorrow is another full day, and I won't have time before the deadline.

I made my way home, feeling more than a little weary, and, trying to avoid treading on the cat, I promptly trod on a piece of mail.  Luckily, it was a small, squarish piece of mail, and it didn't make a crunching sound, from which I deduced that it was either a packet of charity Christmas cards (though it was a very small packet, which worried me a little) or it was a book.

The latter proved to be the case.  There wasn't a note, and I didn't recognise the handwriting on the envelope, or the address on the back (which was smudged by rain) but a quick postcode search revealed that the book was from a friend in Cambourne!

A Primer on the Absolute Primacy of Christ, by Fr. Maximilian Mary Dean is a little book about some of the work of Blessed John Duns Scotus.  Fr. Dean is a Fransiscan of the Immaculate, the order which is, in the south of England, very involved in the wonderful Day with Mary apostolate.  And the Scotist position on the Incarnation is one which is dear to the Faith Movement, so I am really looking forward to reading this.

You can find out more about the book HERE.

Frustration...

I'm marking end of half-term exam papers for my A Level Biology students.  I had to come and play with the computer for a few minutes to vent my feelings... I am finding it extremely frustrating to note that so few of the students concerned have bothered to listen to anything I told them...

(Little things like "Now, you need to know the general structure of an amino acid, so make sure you learn it by heart, because you may be asked to draw it in the exam..." and "You must be able to identify the R-group on an amino acid, because that often comes up in exams...")

My one consolation?  They obviously haven't listened to the Head of Biology either, because they got his questions wrong too...

Did I Mention That I Like Coffee...?

... and chocolate!  I adore both coffee and chocolate... separately, or together.  I seem to recall that I've mentioned it before...

... And yet, it's Fr. Tim who get's the packet of Mystic Monk Coffee in the post!

Check Your Charities...

This point came up in the combox of my post about charity Christmas cards.  How does one know if the charity of one's choice actually supports anti-life policies such as stem cell research, euthanasia, prenatal genetic testing, abortion and so on?

SPUC have produced a helpful guide: the Charities Bulletin 2006.  It doesn't claim to be exhaustive, and charities do change their policies (especially when potential donors contact them to explain why they no longer can support the charity concerned) but it's a pretty good starting point. You can find the document HERE.  Twitch of the mantilla to Marita for reminding me!

Mildly Amusing...

While looking up Fr. Aidan Nicholls' odds for next Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster for the last item, I spotted another little bet which made me smile.

It seems that, given all the publicity by atheists on the buses for the non-existence of God, someone decided to place a bet on it...

However, the folk at Paddy Power aren't very patient, it seems.  If no scientific proof for the omnipresence of God is forthcoming by 31st December 2008, all bets are off.

They're also not feeling too generous, either.  Odds that there is a God are currently at 4-1.

Advent Approaches...

I was asked to mention the following by Joanna Bogle (of Aunty Joanna Writes fame.) There is a festival of Catholic culture next Saturday, November 8th at Westminster Cathedral Hall.  Kick off is at 10am.

Fr. Aidan Nicholls is speaking at 11am.  In case anyone's interested, Paddy Power have him at 20-1 for next Archbishop of Westminster...  Fr. Nicholas Schofield (Roman Miscellany) is down to speak at 12:30pm.

There is also a workshop on Gregorian chant (sorry, I don't know what time... wish I did!) and lots of bookstalls and displays from various Catholic organisations.  There will also be lots of Christmas cards on sale, just in case you didn't follow the advice in one of my recent posts...

I understand that tours of Westminster Cathedral will be going on, and plenty of refreshments. Sounds like an excellent day out!

Faux Pas...

I was out for a really great meal this evening... alas, I made a bit of a faux pas.  Deciding that, as my first and second choice of dessert were both unavailable, I'd go for the cheese platter instead, I merrily carved off a slice of cheese and popped it straight into my mouth...

...not realising that it was actually a pat of butter!  Great merriment for my dinner companions...

Sadly, it seems that you can take me anywhere twice: once to go, and once to apologise.

November Musings...

The more I reflect on the Church's liturgy, and the liturgical cycle in particular, the greater my awe at how amazingly it all fits together...

Of course, I shouldn't be surprised... Liturgy is, after all, not what we do for God, and not even what we do to worship God, but it is what we have been given, through the Church, by God, for our benefit, to enable us to worship God.

November, the month which sees the end of the Church's year, is marked out as the month of the Holy Souls, and the readings at Mass reflect the ending of the year by reminding us of the four last things: death, judgement, hell and heaven.

Fr. Ray has obviously been casting his mind over the first of those last things.  In an excellent post, he has declared his desire to have black vestments worn at his funeral, a black pall draped over the coffin and unbleached candles... mind you, he hasn't actually stated that he wants Mass in the Extraordinary Form...

My SD has told me that I need to make a will to ensure my wishes with regard to my own funeral are actually carried out.  I always thought that wills were read out after the funeral (that's what happens in all the murder-mysteries I've read!) which makes that a bit of a tricky one: oooh, Aunty Mac actually wanted a Trad funeral... whoops... better go and retrieve the ashes then!

But yes, I know he's right, so I will do it soon... the tricky bit will be working out to whom I should leave my overdraft!

In the meantime, I shall re-state my own preferences, in the hopes that, should I shuffle off this mortal coil before I get round to seeing a solicitor, there's a record of my wishes...  I'm also upping the ante, somewhat, as I've decided that one should always ask for the best where liturgy is concerned...

1) All celebrations to be in the Extraordinary Form.  All vestments to be black.  All candles to be unbleached...

2) Coffin to be brought to the church the day before, and draped in a black pall.

3) Solemn High Mass if at all possible (I once heard it described as Mass with three gentlemen and much smoke: sounds about right!) - and, on reflection, most of the priests I know are younger than me, and I've been careful to cultivate plenty of seminarians (remember all those drinks bought at Faith Conferences, chaps?  Well, it's payback time... so, brush up on your Latin!) so they should be able to rustle up three between them!  Like I said, I'm upping the ante...

4) Sermon exhorting people to pray for my soul to be sprung from Purgatory.  As I've already signed away all rights to any plenary indulgences obtained, I expect to be there for quite a while, but sooner or later, if there are enough prayers, I figure that my number's going to come up... eventually...

5) The Dies Irae.

6) Absolutions at the catafalque.

7) Cremation.  Having visited our local crematorium, I'm quite keen to be reduced to air pollution... especially as I've been forced to teach GCSE modules on "Air Quality" !  It also means I won't have a grave to be neglected by non-church-going relatives...

8) A wake.  After all, with all that time spent in church, the mourners will be in need of nourishment... and I believe that there's plenty of Vitamin B in real beer...

Ok, that's sorted then... unless there's anything anyone else can suggest...