On The First Day Of Christmas...

Customer Relations Department

Ye Olde True Love Gift Shoppe

Santa's Grotto, North Pole

Dear Sir,

Thank you for your recent order for the super-deluxe partridge/pear tree combo.

We regret to inform you that it has not been possible to dispatch the item at this time, as the partridge sustained serious head injuries after being hit by a falling pear.

We apologise for any inconvenience caused, and hope you will continue to shop with us,

Yours faithfully,

Miss L. Toe

Our Saviour Arrives...

As I have mentioned before, this is, for me, the most heart-stopping moment of the whole Mass, and especially at Midnight Mass. Now, in the silent watches of the night, the Word is made flesh, and He consents to dwell with us, in all the tabernacles in all the churches in the world...

The Crib...

I put up a couple of photos of the Crib when it first went up. Obviously, the baby in the manger was missing. So now he has arrived, here's another photo...

With Very Best Wishes...

...for a blessed Christmas to all my blog readers.

Christmas Preparations Back On Track...

There were several children at Mass this morning, and I could sense the rising excitement, which was, I have to admit, infectious. I was, as a result, feeling less Scrooge-like than I did after yesterday's débacle. Nevertheless, the thought of battling against hundreds of highly excitable children and their exhausted and frazzled parents meant that I set out for Bluewater with more than a little trepidation!

My favourite car park was pretty full, and there were several cars circling, like barracuda round an inflatable dinghy, but a quick prayer to St. Joseph resulted in me finding a prime spot, much to the disgust of another motorist who had also spotted it, but who was trying to sneak in by driving the wrong way... as I had the right of way, I scooted in. Hah!

There were a few items I knew I had to buy, and I headed for those shops first. Some places were running sales already, and I couldn't resist buying a few little treats for myself... after all, I was saving so much money by buying stuff which was on special offer... But, although the mall wasn't as crowded as I had feared, I still didn't have much in the way of inspiration for several of my presents, and I ended up working my way right around the whole of Bluewater, dumping stuff in the car boot, and then going back for round two. (That picture of the shopping centre isn't from today, by the way...)

After four and a half hours' intensive shopping, I decided that I had earned a little rest, and headed towards the Krispy Kreme Donut shop. Having given up chocolate for Advent, the sight of all the chocolate toppings made me go weak at the knees, but I was able to resist, and had a snowman jam doughnut (I confess he had a couple of chocolate flavoured buttons) and an apple and cinnamon doughnut, along with a spiced apple and cinnamon steamer. This drink tasted a bit like an apple-flavoured lemsip, without the gritty tablet taste, and it was surprisingly delicious.

Then, feeling a slight twinge of guilt at the stuff I'd bought for myself, it was time to get back home. I even remembered to stop off to buy some milk, which cheered me up... though I have no doubt that I will discover I've forgotten something.

It was quite a relief to get all the bags inside. Sylvester came and had a sniff, and then walked off in a huff when he realised that there were no cat biscuits or toys, and no meat products.

It's now 5pm, and, having had a cup of tea to refresh the flagging spirit, I have a little time in which to change some sheets, wrap the presents, (before I forget who gets what) empty the bin, feed the cat, and then get myself ready for Mass (this takes longer than you might think... when I try to get myself prettied up, it requires more plaster and paintwork than the Sistine Chapel ceiling! At least the hair and nails were done yesterday!)

I hope that everyone else's preparations go as smoothly. Merry Christmas to one and all !

Christmas Preparations On Hold...

I'm not very successful when it comes to preparing for Christmas - preparing in the physical sense, that is. While I enjoy shopping, I do not enjoy food shopping, or shopping when I have absolutely no idea what I want to buy, and I loathe large crowds.

So Christmas shopping is particularly irksome, especially when trying to buy presents for male relatives. As a result, I always leave Christmas shopping until the last minute, because I keep hoping for inspiration... or, at least, a few clues from the male relatives' spouses!

I had planned to go shopping today as it was payday. I got up early, did some chores, and then went to collect some dry cleaning. I attempted to pay for it using my debit card. Ooops. No dice. Card declined.

Now, I knew that today was payday. I had received the payslip on Monday. So I rang my bank. After waiting for over half an hour, I was told that the BACS system had crashed overnight, and so there was a delay in crediting accounts. No idea when the late credits would be completed, though it was guaranteed for later in the day. How much later? Would the shops still be open? No idea. No offer of help.

My planned shopping trip had to be put on hold - luckily I hadn't gone all the way to Bluewater before finding out that there was no money in my account. I kept ringing the bank to check my balance, just in case I could still get to the shops.

In the meantime, being stuck at home, I settled down to finish writing my Christmas cards (every cloud has a silver lining!) Finally, at 2pm, the money went through. I immediately scooted out back to the dry cleaners, the bank, the post office, the chemist... and then it was time for my appointment with the hairdresser, so no chance to get to Bluewater.

For me it was just mildly inconvenient - after all, I can go shopping in Bluewater tomorrow (though shopping on Christmas Eve must surely count as a penance, if not as grounds for sectioning under the Mental Health Act!) But I feel sorry for the people who have had shopping orders and delivery times (organised weeks in advance) cancelled because payments didn't get through in time.

The banks are very quick to charge customers who go into the red, through no fault of their own, because an expected payment was delayed, perhaps by no more than a day. It will be interesting to see what compensation will be offered to customers adversely affected by this error. I won't be holding my breath! I will, however, be considering whether I want to stay with Abbey/Santander in the New Year...

More Inconvenient Truth...

No, not climate change. Stem cells. Adult stem cells.

And it's very good news, which is probably why we haven't noticed a huge celebration in the mainstream media.

A chap called Russell Turnbull was practically blinded in one eye when ammonia was squirted into it. He was treated using stem cells from his other eye.

So, let's get this clear. This is yet another example where adult stem cells have actually succeeded in a clinical treatment programme. No ethical dilemmas involved. Not some hypothetical, jam-tomorrow, treatment-maybe-in-the-future which involves the wanton destruction of human life, with the possible added complications of tissue rejection or cancerous growths.

But, for some strange reason, the funding nearly all seems to focus on embryonic stem cells.

What happened to evidence-based scientific research?

Twitch of the mantilla to John Smeaton.

A Date For The New Missal...?

A friend alerted me to the following, which he described as "a scooplet." I'm not entirely sure about that, but here is the information anyway...

Archbishop Mark Coleridge, the Chairman of the Bishops Commission for Liturgy, told the meeting that it is now anticipated that the new Missal will be published in early 2011.

In preparation for the publication of the new Missal an international catechetical resource is being developed. The multi‐media resource, to be used by English speaking nations around the world, is being prepared by Frayneworks, a work of the Sisters of Mercy in Melbourne.

Its preparation is under the direction of Fr Peter Williams, the Director of the National Liturgical Office.

Entitled “Become One Body, One Spirit in Christ”, it will be completed by the end of 2009 and will be launched in London this month by Bishop Arthur Roche, Bishop of Leeds and Chairman of the Leeds Group (of English‐speaking Bishops’ Conferences).

It will be available for distribution throughout the English‐speaking Catholic world by the end of February 2010. The resource will be launched in Australia at the national representatives in liturgy gathering to be held in Perth in early February 2010.

I'm not convinced that we need any catechetical resource other than the admission that the previous ICEL translation was seriously deficient, and that the new translation is much better.

It's not rocket science...

Britain Soldiers On Valiantly Despite Adverse Weather... (Not!)

I should be used to it by now, but the British inability to cope with slightly adverse weather conditions never fails to amaze me.

We had warnings of snow last week. After February's fiasco, I expected better preparation. Silly me!

On Wednesday, while I was out on break duty, (Sod's Law in operation) it started to snow. However, the flakes were tiny, and didn't settle. On Thursday afternoon, there were severe weather warnings being issued for the South-East. We were assured that the gritters were out in force, and there was plenty of rock salt to go round. Thursday night, while I was in the Parish club, the snow arrived.

After chucking a couple of snowballs at a passing cleric (well, it was his fault for trying to take a photo of me clearing the car windscreen) I drove home carefully. There was very little evidence of any gritting having been done, but because the snowfall was fresh, it was easy enough to drive slowly through it.

Friday saw a major freeze, and this meant that there was more danger from ice. The main roads were now fairly reasonable... but the side roads were a joke, and none of the pavements appeared to have been treated... so walking anywhere other than the middle of the road was pretty much impossible.

Meanwhile, other parts of the country were hit by snow. Airports were closed, which one can understand, but the Eurostar trains ground to a halt for hours in the Channel Tunnel, which seems bizarre. Apparently it was the wrong type of snow: too fluffy.

The weekend was cold, but there was no more snow in our corner of the world. I had a lazy day today, as I was planning to get to the evening Mass at Blackfen. At about 4:45pm I heard a lot of revving of an engine, and a squealing noise. I stuck my head out of the window, and saw that there had been a fresh snowfall (onto all that slushy ice) and a bus had ground to a halt just at the top of the hill on my road - it is a very steep hill, and winding as well...

I immediately left the house. This was just as well, because I then encountered a traffic tailback which meant that a journey which normally takes 10-15 minutes took two hours. No evidence of any gritting, and soft fluffy snow on top of ice or slush, meant that several cars were fishtailing, and quite a few were unable to go anywhere at all.

I made it to church just in time for Mass - which was sublime. Luckily the journey back only took 45 minutes, as most of the rush hour traffic had gone.

The bus was still stuck on the hill though!

Pro-Life Video & Song...

John Smeaton, National Director of SPUC, alerted his readers to the following video - not sure I agree with him on how great it is - I think the music grates, and I'm not too keen on the lyrics!

However, the message conveyed is vitally important, and the images of the developing baby are amazing... and besides which, I have lousy taste in music, so other people may actually like it...

Monday Madness...

Blackfen's Crib...

Our Crib has been set up, all ready for the arrival of Jesus...

Children's Crib Service...

This afternoon saw the Children's Crib Service at Our Lady of the Rosary. St. Francis of Assisi, credited with organising the first "live" Christmas Crib, has much to answer for...

Seriously, though, this is a great occasion, organised by the Children's Liturgy team from the 9am Sunday Mass. There are readers (usually the older children) a sensible girl is picked to play Mary, a reasonably sensible boy is asked to be Joseph, a more or less tractable baby is identified as a possible candidate to play Jesus, and then the other youngsters are invited to attend as shepherds, angels and kings.

It makes an interesting study... little girls never want to be shepherds. They don't really want to be kings either. Calling them "wise men" doesn't make them any more appealing. It's definitely a girly role being an angel... Anyway, there are no rehearsals, and so it's all done by careful marshalling and prompting, with carols sung in between the readings.

The children usually show up early in order to get changed. I heard blood-curdling yells, and went into the small hall to investigate...

Various angels were behaving in a most un-angelic fashion, though most of the noise was actually coming from the kings and shepherds... Once inside the church, the angels seemed keen to have their photos taken...

The shepherds, on the other hand, didn't seem at all concerned with fame and glory. One shepherd was wielding a particularly hefty stick, but, under his mother's eagle-eye, didn't seem to be inclined to use it on any of the other shepherds... The youngest shepherd appeared fascinated by the reader...

One of the kings needed a little coaxing to join the others...

... and then needed a little more pastoral encouragement to stay put!

Joseph was looking somewhat boot-faced: I think the girl he had hoped would play Mary didn't show up...

... and yes, Baby Jesus is dressed in pink. Boy babies cannot always be guaranteed in time for Christmas. At least she didn't howl the place down.

Eventually, all the children got to go up for the final prayers and the blessing. One year, a couple of shepherds decided to settle old grievances by bashing seven bells out of each other. This year was somewhat more peaceable... although one of the kings couldn't resist chasing one of the shepherds around the choir benches... and one of the shepherds started to chew on his sheep...

It was all fabulous fun... made all the more so because I didn't have to organise any of it!

Congratulations to all involved.

Fourth Sunday In Advent...

Advent is drawing to a close. Now that school has finished, I'm starting to feel a bit more Christmassy. The start of the holiday has been a bit frenetic: visiting a friend, going to the cinema, and, today, practically a whole day spent in church... at least I get a lie-in tomorrow.

However, for some strange reason, I still haven't managed to write my Christmas cards.

Tomorrow. Definitely tomorrow.