Big Brother...

I was just sitting at the computer, blogging away, when I suddenly became aware that I was not alone... I was being watched...

Ember Saturday...

We were privileged to have our usual monthly Missa Cantata on Saturday, with our visiting schola. It was Ember Saturday in the Octave of Pentecost, and so there were five readings before the Gospel... it seems that, traditionally, men would have been ordained to various ministries: doorkeepers, acolytes, exorcists, deacons and subdeacons among them... 

We didn't have any ordinations, but one of our servers was acting as MC for the first time, so I took the opportunity to take a few photos. I was impressed to see that, despite several of our usual servers being away, we were still able to field four torch-bearers for the Canon...

I'm not quite sure what happened to the lighting levels in that last photo...

Time For A Bit Of Fun...

One winter morning a husband and wife in Portland, Maine were listening to the radio during breakfast. They heard the announcer say, "We are going to have 8 to 10 inches of snow today. You must park your car on the even-numbered side of the street, so the snowploughs can get through."

So the good wife went out and moved her car. A week later, while they were eating breakfast, the radio announcer was heard to say, "We are expecting 10 to12 inches of snow today. You must park your car on the odd-numbered side of the street, so the snowploughs can get through."

The good wife went out and moved her car again. The following week they were again having breakfast, when the radio announcer said, "We are expecting 12 to 14 inches of snow today. You must park...."

Then, the electric power went out. The good wife was very upset, and, with a worried look on her face, she turned to her husband, "Honey, I don't know what to do. Which side of the street do I need to park on so the snowploughs can get through?"

With the love and understanding in his voice that all men who are married to blondes exhibit, the husband replied, "Honey, just leave it in the garage this time..."

New Bible Translation...

According to Anna Arco, the Bible is in the process of being translated into LOLCat... That's cute for about one minute... maybe one minute, thirty seconds... after that, it gets seriously irritating (or should that read "srsly irrtating"...?)

I think I'll stick to the Douay-Rheims...

More Lourdes Photos...

Here are some of my photos taken at the Parish Church in Lourdes.

Fr. Charles and Fr. Tim didn't require much encouragement to pose for a shot beside Monsignor Peyramale's statue. I was actually blocking traffic at this point, but the motorist concerned absolutely insisted that I take the shot before he drove forward and parked just by the bollards. The driver behind him, however, was less amused...

I had a very stark opinion of Monsignor Peyramale from what I'd read and seen a few years back, and was therefore surprised to find so many places in Lourdes named in his honour. It was only after watching the excellent films by Jean-Luc Delannoy that I really appreciated how Monsignor Peyramale had been sceptical only at first, and, once having been convinced that the Apparitions were genuine, he then defended Bernadette fiercely against her detractors. That, together with the reports of his kindness to his parishioners, explains why he is remembered at Lourdes.

I could only get this one picture inside the parish church, as Mass was already underway when I arrived. 

The Crypt chapel was austere, but had a beauty about it too... the stained glass was gorgeous (just at street level outside... we could see people's legs as they walked past) and the acoustics (which I mentioned before) were amazing. I was busy singing the propers of the Mass, so didn't manage to get my usual number of photos, but I did get the important bits...

More Pictures From Lourdes...

Just a few more photos...

Here we have some shots of the outside of the Rosary Basilica, and the altars to the left of the entrance...

Bloggers Of The World, Unite...?

I mentioned previously reports that Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor was apparently going to accept a position in Tony Blair's Faith Foundation, as well as a Peerage in the House of Lourdes.

I assumed it was a done deal.

Scorn in the Catholic Blogosphere was plentiful... so much so that I didn't pay too much attention to it all.

However, it seems that the Cardinal has decided against accepting any such post. I saw it on EF Pastor Emeritus first, but there were no sources given. Damian Thompson has now added a couple of sources.

So, let's see what happens to the Peerage...