Ha! Further to my New Year's Resolution, I can report that I have made a little progress...
I saw the headline on the front page of the Daily Mail on my way back from Benediction, and then read about it online (H/T to Aaron at Indolent Server)A school provoked fury last night by ordering a devout Catholic schoolgirl to remove her cross necklace because it posed a health and safety risk.
Teachers demanded Samantha Devine remove her chain and tiny crucifix despite allowing Muslim and Sikh pupils to wear symbols of their religion.
Her family have vowed to fight the decision "all the way" claiming it discriminates against Christians.
The case mirrors the row which engulfed British Airways and forced the airline into an embarrassing climbdown after it threatened to sack an employee who insisted on wearing her cross at work.
In the latest clash, 13-year-old Samantha was left in tears after her form teacher told her she must remove her tiny half-inch crucifix and chain.
But her furious family yesterday pointed out the school - Robert Napier in Gillingham, Kent - allows Muslim pupils to wear headscarves and Sikh students to come to lessons with turbans and bangles.
Samantha even claims staff routinely fail to crack down on youngsters wearing non-religious jewellery, including large necklaces and earrings.
Her parents are concerned she is being singled out because she is a Christian. The youngster last night vowed to continue wearing her necklace to school - even if it means being expelled.
Her stand now threatens to spark similar confrontations in schools up and down the country.
I keep meaning to re-tune my radio away from the BBC's Radio 4. However, at night, it switches automatically to the World Service - difficult to imagine a radio station closing down for the night in these days of 24-hour shopping and television! I grew up hearing the World Service in the middle of the night as my mother was a real night owl, and she would listen to the plays (they still did those back then, rather than the continual re-hashing of "news" which isn't really.)
There is a Catholic Alphabet Meme doing the rounds. No-one tagged me (*hangs head in shame*) but that has never stopped me before. However, I found it a little too saccharine-sweet for my personal taste (and filling out 26 items, one of which had to begin with X, was a little too much like hard work!)
...one incident in which the phone went off during the homily. The priest went down and took the call, saying "sorry, your friend can't talk to you at the moment: he's in Church. By the way, why aren't you here?"
It is vital that you continue to pray, do penance and offer your Communions, for the intention that the Bishops of England and Wales consent to re-consecrate our country to the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary, following the example of the act carried out by the US Bishops on 11th Nov 2006.
The position now is that Mgr Keith Barltrop of CASE (Catholic Agency for the Support of Evangelisation), who has excellent relations with all our Bishops, has drafted a letter, which it is proposed will be sent out jointly with Mgr Graham Leonard, the former Anglican Bishop of London, to the Apostolic Nuncio, Cardinal Murphy-O'Connor and Archbishop Nichols of Birmingham.
Mgr. Barlthrop is awaiting the response of Mgr. Leonard, who has agreed in principle - hence the urgency of offering prayer, penance and the sacrifices involved in fulfilling the ordinary duties of one's state, for this intention.
I am sure I do not need to tell you how greatly we need the intercession of Mary Immaculate in our country, to raise up the Church and avert present evils.
If the three prelates then agree to make the consecration, the intention is that all other Bishops will be invited to join in the act by sending in a signed copy of the prayer to be recited in the act, which will be placed on the altar, as was done in the USA.
May hearts everywhere be raised up in prayer to the merciful Lord for this intention.
I nearly crashed the car this morning... I was listening to an item on Radio 4, concerning yoga as an alternative treatment for infertility.
I'd seen Andrew's Profile Picture a few times in various com-boxes, but have, to my shame, only just had a peek at his blog. And what a treat was in store: he really likes his Papal Photos, does Andrew. And I especially enjoyed the captions.... | My Fortune Cookie told me: People are beginning to notice you. Try dressing before you leave the house. Get a cookie from Miss Fortune |
I love to sing. I've got quite a good voice (not trained, nothing special, but I'm loud and I can hold a tune) and so I really like this time of year when I can belt out all the favourite Christmas Carols which I learned at school (back then, *peer through swirling mists of time,* Christmas was still called Christmas, and state Primary Schools put on Nativity Plays, and everyone sang Carols whether they believed in God or not!)
Yes, I am delighted to be able to report that my car is safely back on the road. I have had to suffer the vagaries of public transport for the week, and am heartily pleased to be able to put my recently acquired Oyster Card into storage.
And here is a rather good photo of the five members here in England (and yes, that is Fr Tim Finigan in the middle!)
Today I had the dubious pleasure of using public transport to get to morning Mass.
I managed to get to Mass on time, but only just. The return journey was of a similar length (without the chemist shop interlude) but one of the bus drivers thought he was in training for Brands Hatch and kept accelerating off at high speed, only to screech to a halt at the next bus stop about two minutes later. There was also a diversion because of roadworks, which meant that the bus driver had to negotiate "proper" speedbumps (the type that go across the whole road.) Needless to say, he didn't bother slowing down, and so the bus see-sawed in quite an impressive fashion!
Ever wondered what would happen if you woke up in a parallel universe? Well, I think it's a safe bet to say that, even in a parallel universe, hell would have frozen over before you'd see any of this lot happening...
I had planned to go to visit my sister (and see my new nephew) this afternoon. The drive would have taken a couple of hours, but I was looking forward to the journey. Then my car started to make an odd screechy sound. Fr Tim (of Hermeneutic of Continuity fame) heard it, and assured me that noises "like that" were only minor problems.
...Now, as anyone who has met me will readily acknowledge, I am not exactly svelte. Far from it. Actually I am probably three svelte people rolled into one. To complicate matters, I have a dodgy left knee from a road accident (and subsequent surgery) in my long-distant youth, and a dodgy right ankle from when I broke it falling down the sacristy steps 18 months ago (made slightly worse by the car crash I had a year ago.) Getting from the driver's side over to the passenger seat was, well, interesting... it would probably make a good yoga position from which to recite the prayer of the frog. At one point, both feet were on the dashboard... you don't want to know where the rest of me had got to!
