Starting A Trend?

My profile photo is definitely taken from my most flattering angle, namely the back of my head! Now I see that Northern Cleric has taken a leaf out of my book and posted his own profile photo... and rather snazzy it looks too! I particularly like the cloak...

Lenten Meme

The Catholic Warrior has tagged me for this one: I am happy to oblige...

1. What is your favourite Sorrowful Mystery?
"The Agony in the Garden." It reminds me of the inspiration which came to me when I first returned to the Church... Jesus knew all the sins I would commit, and he still went ahead and died for me... even if I had been the only person to be saved as a result of his Passion and Death, he still would have died for me... and he faced up to the awful truth of what sin is and what it does to the whole of Creation right there in the Garden of Gethsemane. And it was so horrible, it caused him to sweat blood.

2. What is your favourite Station of the Cross?
More difficult... I think if I had to choose one, it would have to be "Veronica Wipes the Face of Jesus." In view of what Jesus was suffering, and what he still had to suffer, Veronica wiping his face must seem somewhat pointless. The immediate response, for a cynical soul like me is, "...And like that's gonna help like how, exactly?" And yet, the image of Our Lord's face was left on the veil. And the tradition of Veronica's veil was considered important enough to be passed on through the centuries. It's hugely encouraging: no matter how small and insignificant our actions, sacrifices, resolutions, no matter how much we feel that our protests against immorality and suchlike are ineffectual and feeble, Christ values each little effort made for his sake.

3. Do you fast during Lent?
Ummm... depends what you mean by "fast." If you mean "give up stuff you really like," then yes, I fast. If you mean fasting as in "Ash Wednesday is a day of fasting" then only Ash Wednesday and Good Friday... though my SD did happen to mention yesterday that fasting on bread and water on Fridays was a salutary exercise. *sighs* Ok, ok, I can take a hint...

4. What is your Lenten Resolution(s)?
I've got a few... Lent is about penance, prayer and almsgiving (twisted by the liberal brigade into the convenient lie, "you don't have to give something up, do something positive instead!" No, my wishy-washy friend, do something positive as well! And anyway, giving up things you enjoy as mastery over your physical desires and as spiritual training to resist sinful desires, as well as sacrifice for the love of God is something positive!!) I don't particularly want to go into full details, but giving up chocolate is one of my penances.

5. Do you use Holy Water during Lent?
Only for blessing myself, heheheh! St Teresa of Avila said that nothing was more effective at frightening off the devil when he came, and so it seems to be a peculiar suggestion not to use it... Hmmn, I wonder where that idea originated...

6. How many times do you go to Mass during Lent?
Every Saturday and Sunday, and during the school holidays, and every other day that I can manage to get to Mass.

Ok, who to tag next? So many of my fellow bloggers have reduced their blogging output for Lent... right, I tag Fr. Tim, Ttony and Northern Cleric.

UPDATE: Ashley is stuck on bedrest for a possible 12 more weeks... now that is definitely taking Lenten penance too far!! And so, to pass the time, I am adding her to my list of Tagees. Ttony and Northern Cleric have posted their memes... Fr. Tim is obviously too busy gloating over having passed the 100,000 visitor mark!! Enjoy!

Lots of Prayers Needed

Ironic Catholic mentioned that a friend of hers is having a bit of a problem pregnancy, and has been ordered to stay in hospital for complete bedrest.

So far, Ashley has completed 23 days - now before any of you student-types get excited at the idea of spending 23 days lounging around, think about this: 23 days stuck in a hospital bed? Where you can't just get up and go for a walk to the local pub with your friends? Same four walls. No choice. AND the worry about how the baby's doing...

I don't know how long she has got until she can get up again, but I think that a few prayers wouldn't go amiss in the meantime. And pop over to her blog and say hello, it'll help to pass the time (especially as so many at St. Blogs have given up blogging for Lent!)

On a related note, Dominican Idaho reports that Sophia (the 7-year-old who had a brain tumour) is making good progress - she's out of Intensive Care, and is starting to walk. She's still got a long road to recovery, and I'm not sure what the situation with her eyesight is, but it is looking very encouraging!

Our Lady of Guadalupe

I brought one of my TAN acquisitions with me to read while at Ampleforth... trying to keep my luggage to a minimum meant that I didn't want to bring the Sermons of St. Alphonsus (too big) and so I picked out the slim volume on the apparitions at Guadalupe.

"The Wonder of Guadalupe" by Francis Johnston is a fascinating book, and it is extremely readable. It starts from the arrival of the Spanish forces in Mexico in 1519, which helps to give some background within which to understand the apparitions. In particular, Johnston describes some of the practices of the Aztecs in their worship of gods and godesses.

It is fairly common knowledge that Aztecs had human sacrifices where a person's heart was ripped out while the victim was still alive. Because it's usually glossed over by those who extol the culture of the Aztec society (and castigate Christian - mostly Catholic - missionaries who dared to interfere with native traditions and "impose" Western values), it is less well known that these victims were not usually willing participants who rejoiced at being "chosen" as the sacrifice - I have heard them described this way, and even compared to the Catholic martyrs! In fact, these victims were usually prisoners of war or slaves... and 20,000 of them might be sacrificed at the dedication of a single temple. Not only that, but having your heart ripped out was considered to be the most merciful of options: the Aztecs also went in for flaying their victims or eating their victims alive.

The mightiest of the Aztec gods was Quetzelcoatl (the feathered or stone serpent); the great Mother god, Tonantzin, whose head was a mass of writhing snakes, had formerly had a temple at Tepeyac, the site of the apparitions. Our Lady called herself "te coatlaxopeuh" using the native language, which translates as "she who will stamp out the stone serpent" but which was mistaken by the Spaniards who listened to the accounts of Juan Diego and his uncle Juan Bernardino for "de Guadalupe" since the Spanish shrine of the Virgin of Guadalupe was well known.

Juan Diego, a simple Mexican peasant, had been baptised at the age of 51. Our Lady appeared to him in 1531 when he was 57. He was told to go to the Bishop of Mexico City and tell him that she wished for a shrine to be built at Tepeyac. As noted in the apparitions at Lourdes, Mary spoke to her chosen messenger in his own language, and with the utmost love and courtesy.

Juan Diego was not believed at first, and, during a fourth apparition, Our Lady caused roses and other flowers to bloom in the frozen soil. Juan Diego gathered them up in his tilma (a cloak made of plant fibre) and Mary arranged them, instructing him to show them to no-one until he saw the Bishop again.

When Juan Diego was finally admitted to the Bishop's presence, he opened his arms to release the flowers from the tilma, and as the flowers fell to the floor, the image of Our Lady appeared on the cloak.

The natural life of the plant fibre which makes up the tilma is about 20 years. Despite having been handled by thousands, being exposed to damp air and smoke from innumerable candles, having nitric acid spilled over it, and even having a bomb explode directly beneath it, the image has survived in pristine condition for nearly 5 centuries.

The miraculous aspects of the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe are only really becoming clear with the developments in scientific knowledge which have happened since the start of the twentieth century. Infra-red radiation photography has shown that there are no brush-strokes on the image, and no underlying preliminary drawing, indicating that the image has not been painted. In 1936, fibres of the tilma were subjected to chemical analysis by the Nobel prize winner in Chemistry, Richard Kuhn. He concluded that there was no colouring of any kind in the fibres, and the materials used to produce the colours in the image were unknown to science, being neither animal, vegetable or mineral dyes.

In 1951, an image was noted in the eyes of the Virgin. Examination of the image revealed it to be that of Juan Diego (by comparison with an early painting of him) Further examination of the eyes of the Virgin Mary in 1955 revealed that there were actually three faces reflected in the eyes. By enlarging the image, the two other faces can be seen to resemble those of the translator Juan Gonzales and the newly appointed general administrator of Mexico, Bishop Fuenleal. Experimentation with photography and optometry suggest that Our Lady was standing directly behind Bishop Zumárraga while he was facing the other three men (whose images would therefore be reflected in her eyes) and it has been postulated that the tilma acted as some sort of colour film which photographed the Virgin (who was invisible to the human eye) !

There have, I believe, been more recent investigations into the image, but I haven't had a chance to look them up - the one problem with the book is that it only goes up to 1981!

Exploring the web a little, I came across this website of the Mexican Shrine (at least, I think it's the Mexican one... my grasp of Mexican/Spanish is pretty much non-existent!) And for the slightly more adventurous, I think there is a multimedia download about the apparitions available here.

A more sinister issue struck me as I explored the web for suitable images for this post. It appears that there is a resurgence of interest in the Aztec Mother-goddess Tonantzin, presenting her as nothing more than the embodiment of the "feminine"... whatever that might be. I don't think it's pure coincidence that this goddess who required human sacrifice has made her reappearance at a time when thousands of babies are killed by abortion under the guise of "a woman's right to choose."

Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for the unborn, pray for us.
St. Michael the Archangel, pray for us.

But What About Sundays...?

Ok, now I'm confused. I found Jimmy Akin's blog and his posts on Lent, and in particular what constitutes fasting and abstinence...

If Lent starts with Ash Wednesday, and lasts until the Mass of the Lord's Supper on Maundy Thursday, then there are clearly more than 40 days. Someone, somewhere, at some time told me that Sundays and Solemnities are supposed to be "feast days" and if they occur during Lent then those days are considered to be days "off" from whatever penance one has undertaken.

Now, I like this idea...

...I like this idea a lot...

...but I'm beginning to notice that this view is not universally accepted. I've been happily assuring my friends that we can, with a clear conscience, feast on Sundays, (in fact, one year I saved all my Sundays up and celebrated them in one week so that I could enjoy a pilgrimage to Lourdes) but I am now a little confused...

Anyone care to comment?

And Another New Arrival...

...this time in the form of a new blog! Mrs Jackie Parkes MJ has been putting up comments on other blogs for a while now, and she has finally succumbed to the blogging bug... her own blog proudly proclaims her vocation: "Catholic Mom of 10"

Pay a visit and say hallo... it's terrifying when you start a blog because you assume that no-one can possibly be interested in what you have to say...

...after a while, of course, you don't really mind, and just blog it anyway!

Stations of the Cross

The traditional devotion associated with Lent, particularly on Fridays, is the Stations of the Cross. Every Catholic Church has the Stations somewhere around the walls, though the form which they take can vary from simple crosses on the wall to elaborate carvings.

The Stations at Lourdes are really stunning: I've done them a few times in the past but alas, my knees can't cope with the very steep incline and gravelly ground any more - the way down at the end is actually more hazardous than the way up!!

The Lourdes Magazine describes the new Stations which have been erected opposite the Grotto for those with mobility problems... I haven't had a chance to try them out yet, but look forward to seeing them on the pilgrimage in May.

You can pray the Stations yourself at home, meditating on each one, but there is something special about joining a group to pray them. Just in case there is anyone stumbling across my blog who is unfamiliar with this devotion, there are traditionally 14 Stations (with a possible 15th if you include the Resurrection!)

I Jesus is condemned to death
II Jesus receives the cross
III Jesus falls the first time
IV Jesus meets his Blessed Mother
V Jesus is helped by Simon of Cyrene
VI Veronica wipes the face of Jesus
VII Jesus falls the second time
VIII Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem
IX Jesus falls the third time
X Jesus is stripped of his garments
XI Jesus is nailed to the cross
XII Jesus dies on the cross
XIII Jesus is taken down from the cross
XIV Jesus is laid in the sepulchre

Pastor in Valle is putting up pictures of carvings of the Stations which he has at his church... they're not quite my cup of tea, though I do find something intriguing and attractive about them...

Catholic Online has some meditations suitable for use when praying the Stations.

I love thee, Jesus, my love above all things. I repent with my whole heart for having offended thee. Never let me separate myself from thee again; grant that I may love thee always, and then do with me what thou wilt.

Time To Call A Spade A Shovel...

Today's SPUC email newsletter highlighted the awful case of a young teenage girl who was forced to have an abortion by her mother (reported in LifeSite). The girl herself is now in a psychiatric ward because she wants to kill herself as a result of the "choice" her mother made on her behalf.

The author of the article points out that, in a clear case of the young girl wanting to choose, feminist "pro-choice" groups were deafeningly silent on the matter.

People who call themselves "pro-choice" and declare that they are in favour of a woman's "right to choose" need to get real: they are not any more pro-choice than the rest of us, what they are is "pro-abortion."

Aggie Catholic has an excellent article on this - read it HERE.

Ash Wednesday

Surprise, surprise! Lent begins here. It doesn't matter how "well" I prepare for it, it always seems to sneak up on me.


Those of you who know me personally will understand that chocolate and I have a love-hate relationship... I love chocolate, but I hate what it does to my hips. Unfortunately, I only remember what it does to my hips when I go clothes shopping, and then I get so depressed at the lack of anything suitable to wear that I eat some chocolate in order to cheer myself up...

Before Advent, on being encouraged to do something penitential by my SD as preparation for Christmas, I did ask about giving up alcohol - he wisely pointed out that, since I don't tend to drink that much on a regular basis (I will not drink at all if I am driving anywhere, and I nearly always drive), giving up alcohol alone wasn't actually much of a sacrifice. Before I stopped to think, I blurted out "Oh, if it's something I'll really miss, it has to be chocolate then..." and then sat there wishing that I'd kept my mouth shut! But, the promptings of the Spirit and all that...

So, it seems obvious that chocolate is one of the things to go during Lent. And only on Ash Wednesday do I wake up dreaming of chocolate... Blogging has made things much, much worse. I have lost count of the pictures of chocolates I have drooled over today! Nearly every Catholic blog refers in some way to what the blogger is going to do for Lent: however, this is also really encouraging, because out there in the big, bad, secular world, if you say that you have given something up for Lent, you often encounter pitying glances (from atheists and agnostics) or downright hostility (from liberal Catholics, who say things like "Oh, how very hard-line... Lent isn't about giving things up, it's about doing something positive...")

I have to confess to a certain lack of charity when presented with that view... yes, Lent isn't just about giving something up, but it is about observing all three areas of penance, prayer and almsgiving. And penance is meant to be a sacrifice, for the love of God. That is positive. It also forms part of our training for "spiritual warfare" where we exercise mastery over our physical passions. Also positive. Since I can't find a hairshirt in my size, penance will, by necessity, involve cutting out the treats I enjoy. Giving up Brussels sprouts isn't really an option, since sprouts, in my humble opinion, rank just above cockroaches in the order of creation...

Anyone else who has a smidgeon of faith (Muslims, Jews, Anglicans etc.) will accord you silent respect for observing some sort of sacrifice. Other Traddies will, of course, eagerly compare notes about what, exactly, you are doing, and how many times you've slipped up, and whether Sunday counts...

So to all of you out there contemplating the start of your Lenten penance: Good luck, and God bless!

Not Quite The Maker's Instruction Manual...

Mantilla-twitch in the direction of Cally's Kitchen.

More To Be Thankful For...

Just for a change, today appears to be a really good news day.

I posted a prayer request for Sophie, a 7-year-old girl who was due to have major surgery to remove a brain tumour. Checking Dominican Idaho for an update, it seems that:

Yesterday the results from the MRI came back. This was the follow up test that would tell if the tumor was completely gone, and thanks to our loving God, there’s nothing left ! Everything else looked also normal. Sophia is going to be in anti-seizure medication for a couple of days.

Not quite out of the woods yet - and the question of damage to her eyesight still isn't certain - but it looks encouraging... keep up the prayers for Sophie and her family.

Just In Time For Lent !

Mary Elizabeth has finally arrived. Ma Beck left it to Pa Beck to make the announcement.

Baby Beck looks cute as a button (and may turn out to be a mousey-blonde, so I shall have to be careful with the blonde jokes from now on...)

Congratulations to the whole family are in order, I think!

Cat Quote

Checking out cats and all things catolick, I discovered the following quotes, which I feel I would do well to heed:

"Do not meddle in the affairs of cats, for they are subtle and will pee on your computer."

"In ancient times, cats were worshipped as gods. They have never forgotten this."

And finally, "Cats seem to go on the principle that it never does any harm to ask for what you want."

Something to Celebrate!

The 10th Baroness Howard de Walden, a Roman Catholic, decided this week that abortion clinics would not be allowed in Harley Street, her private property. The list of procedures which cannot be carried out in Harley Street clinics will also include cloning and euthanasia.

There aren't any direct abortion clinics in Harley Street at the moment, so nothing is being "closed down" but I think that this quote from Anne Quesney, director of pro-choice group Abortion Rights indicates that it is very good news indeed:

"This decision is reminiscent of the US, where abortion clinics are being driven underground, closed down or attacked.

"There, the anti-choice lobby's tactics have severely impacted on women's access to abortion - driving them to desperate measures.

"Forty years after abortion was legalised in Britain, women's rights continue to be under threat from those who oppose abortion and want to impose their personal beliefs across the country."

Nothing personal about wanting to stop murder...

You can read the full article HERE. Mantilla-twitch to Sir Jack.

Bella

There seems to be a new film coming out... I'm intrigued, because I hadn't heard anything at all until I spotted a description on American Papist.

In his review, Thomas says that the producer, Leo Severino, told of leaving a prosperous career as Latin American business mangaer at Fox studios to begin Metanoia Films (Greek for conversion). "I wanted to make films that if the Virgin Mary sat next to me during the screening, I wouldn't have to cover her eyes." Now that's what grabbed my attention... I'm tired of having to judge how much sex, nudity and bad language I'm likely to have to tolerate when choosing a film to watch.

For me, one of the best quotes in the trailer has got to be the last line: "If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans." Sooo true!

You can see the trailer for the film HERE - but be warned... it doesn't exactly explain anything!!

I hope it finds its way to the UK...

More Cat Stuff

I am very fond of this poem... I used to know it off by heart, but alas, no more! However, I think, given the profusion of cat posts popping up everywhere (Northern Cleric started it, Simon Peter joined the fray and Stephen Wikner made up an unholy trinity), that it is time to resurrect Eliot's classic...

The naming of cats is a difficult matter,
It isn't just one of your holiday games;
You may think at first I'm mad as a hatter
When I tell you a cat must have three
different names.

First of all, there's the name
that the family use daily,
Such as Peter, Augustus, Alonzo or James,
Such as Victor, or Jonathan,
George or Bill Bailey--
All of them sensible everyday names.
There are fancier names
if you think they sound sweeter,
Some for the gentlemen,
some for the dames;
Such as Plato, Admetus,
Electra, Demeter--
But all of them sensible everyday names.

But I tell you,
a cat needs a name that's particular,
A name that is peculiar, and more dignified,
Else how can he
keep up his tail perpendicular,
Or spread out his whiskers,
or cherish his pride?

Of names of this kind,
I can give you a quorum,
Such as Munkustrap, Quaxo or Coricopat,
Such as Bombalurina, or else Jellylorum--
Names that never belong
to more than one cat.

But above and beyond
there's still one name left over,
And that is the name that you never will guess;
The name
that no human research can discover--
But The Cat Himself Knows,
and will never confess.

When you notice a cat in profound meditation,
The reason, I tell you, is always the same:
His mind is engaged in rapt contemplation
Of the thought, of the thought,
of the thought of his name:
His ineffable, effable
Effanineffable
Deep and inscrutable singular Name.

UPDATE: Histor has been Wise enough to jump on the cat-bandwagon, and has posted another great cat poem (though I respectfully disagree that it is the greatest of all cat poems, obviously, else why would I have posted the above?)

FURTHER UPDATE: The Roving Medievalist has contributed another cat poem written by a 9th Century Irish Monk...

The Battle of Wills

Looks like Northern Cleric has been misguided enough to try and take on Presbytery Cat in a battle of wills...
...foolish, foolish man. I told him he didn't stand a chance, not when the issue is food... Or comfortable sleeping places...

...or anything, in fact! Sure enough, he lost.

Tony Blair's Bioethical Legacy

On Friday, ZENIT reported an excellent interview with John Smeaton, Director of SPUC, in which he details the truly dreadful state of affairs in Britain with regard to pro-life issues. If anyone needed proof that hell will freeze over before Tony Blair becomes a Catholic, they could find it here...

...Damascus-Road conversion excepted, naturally... (God works in mysterious ways, his wonders to perform) - but it would have to be a pretty public conversion in order to avoid giving scandal to a great number of faithful Catholics.

And yes, giving scandal is a serious sin... Check out Matthew 18:6-7. (Need I point out that the Douay-Rheims translation appears to be the only one using the verb "to scandalise"?... other versions have the more boring "causing to sin" or "causing to fall"... which is probably why people forget that causing scandal is a sin in the first place!)

I can't link directly to the interview, but go to the Archives from the ZENIT Main Page - dated 16th February 2007, one of the two interviews on that day: "Tony Blair's Bioethical Legacy."

Oh, and yes, before you ask, I am the "Miss McLernon" John Smeaton refers to! Heheheh... I've made it on to ZENIT !

UPDATE: The direct link to the interview can be found HERE.

Prayer Request

While checking out Simon-Peter's blog, I came across a reference to Sophia which mentioned that she was having surgery. On further exploration, it appears that Sophia has a brain tumour. She is very small for her age (7 years) - the tumour was discovered a couple of weeks ago by doctors who were trying to figure out a cause for her small stature. The tumor is wrapped around her pituitary gland and her optical nerves. They expect that it will take three operations to remove the tumour, and she is probably going to lose some or all of her eyesight. The first operation was scheduled for Tuesday, 13th February. From what I gather, Sophia appears to be making good progress, though there have been one or two scares along the way.











There was a request to pass this on to anyone who is willing to join in prayer for her. Pray for a miracle for Sophia. Pray for her team of surgeons.

Updates also seem to be being posted HERE.

Sylvester

Stephen Swikner over at CSSML asked to see Sylvester...

...and I'm happy to oblige:





Stephen's blog is worth a visit - I particularly liked his beautiful shot of Ely Cathedral (of which he is the Bursar) in the snow - and although his profile proclaims that he's had a presence on Blogger since November 2006, his earliest post is actually one on the Ely Madonna. At the risk of souring ecumenical blogging relations, I have to confess that I find the statue to be hideous...

Simon-Peter has outed a Sylvester imposter who is also doing weird things to computers... You can find them HERE. The music is a little trying (after a while).... oh, for some Gregorian Chant!

DIY Escapades

My old computer used dial-up, and I had a separate phone line in the spare room just for internet access. My new broadband connection, however, is in the sitting room, and so I've had my new computer perched on top of a small table so that I can blog and email to my heart's content, albeit by balancing the keyboard on my lap. I'd intended to get an extension for the cable, and move the computer into the study where it belongs, but hadn't quite managed to get myself organised...

However, the table on which I have been perching my new computer did not react well to the extra load, not helped by the fact that Sylvester cannot see a horizontal surface without wanting to jump on it. One of the castors came off. I need some more shelf space anyway, and there are some rather good computer workstations in Argos. So, yesterday, I went along with a friend to see what they had available.

I was very pleased Angela had come along with me - the instructions inside the flatpack boxes warned that help might be needed (practically the only written information given... the rest is in picture form... and far from idiot-proof!) We spent most of the evening trying to figure out what bits went where... losing several screws in the intricacies of the carpet design didn't help!!

Sylvester approves of the new shelving... he has spent a fair amount of time weaving in and out of all the little sections. Now all I have to do is transfer the computer to its resting place...

UPDATE: I haven't transferred very much stuff yet... this is a temporary spot... but I'm happy to say that it's an improvement on the small-table-and-lap arrangement !

Comment Moderation

I seem to be getting a number of nuisance anonymous comments, and sitemeter tells me that they're from the same ISP... I'm looking into what to do about them, but in the meantime I've decided to change the comments options so that you have to register with Blogger before you can comment.

Apologies for any inconvenience for my genuine "anonymous" contributors.

Proof...

...that there are some seriously warped people out there!

(I came 43rd...!)

The First Technical Helpdesk?

On the way back from Ampleforth, Edmund regaled us with comments about stupid questions sent in the direction of computer technical support departments...

...is this one of the earliest examples of helpdesk support?


Mantilla-twitch in the direction of Overheard in the Sacristy.

Makes You Proud To Be Catholic !

We've had this shown in the parish, and I've seen it in a few places, but it is worth seeing again... and it brings a lump to my throat and a tear to my eye every single time...


Mantilla-twitch in the direction of Ironic Catholic.

Blog Awards... The Latest !

I feel that I have been very restrained... apart from an initial plug for the nomination categories for the 2007 Awards, I didn't go all out to beg to be nominated...

...to be honest, I didn't expect any nominations, so was maintaining a discrete silence so as not to make a complete pillock of myself. To my surprise, I found that I had been nominated for Best Individual Catholic Blog... admittedly, it looked as though the world and his cousin had also been nominated, but I was touched...

I didn't nag you all to vote... though I have to confess that this was because I was out of blogging range during most of the voting period! I only just managed to get my votes in!

However, I'm delighted to say that, subject to final verification, the results are out! You can read them for yourself HERE.

(I didn't win my category - no surprises there - but somehow I did manage to get 5 votes! Not much out of the total of 871 votes, but 48 blogs got fewer votes!)

More Blogs To Explore

I'm not sure if I mentioned the blog "Bashing Secularism," although it's been on my UK blogroll for a while. However, I had the great fortune to meet the author, Richard, at the Symposium, and he travelled back to London with us, which made for an entertaining journey home. It is great fun meeting fellow bloggers "for real" !

When going through my comments, I found that I had a new and appreciative visitor in 4HisChurch of Dymphna's Well (not to be confused with the equally good Dymphna of Dymphna's Road!)

And finally, while I've been away, G. Thomas Fitzpatrick of Recta Ratio appears to have stumbled upon my blog. Check them out when you get the chance.

Faith Symposium - Ampleforth 2007

I'm now fully refreshed after my sojourn at Ampleforth. It was my first Faith Symposium (half-term at Ampleforth having failed to coincide with mine in previous years) and I enjoyed it enormously. Of course, I was most at home with the last two talks - Edmund Nash on "Studying Evolution in the 21st Century" and Fr. Dylan James on "The Definition of the Human Person in the Context of Bioethics."

Almost more fascinating than the talks was the opportunity to listen to the discussions after each session... the ideas were being bounced back and forth, and various aspects ironed out... normally I loathe after-talk discussions, but you got the impression that this was a genuine opportunity for developing trains of thought, not just stating entrenched opinion.

Fr Tim has put up several posts on the Symposium already (Benedictine Hospitality; Faith Symposium I; Views from Ampleforth; Symposium Ia; Faith Symposium II; and The Nature of the Faith Symposium) ...however, he cheated by posting from the computer in the Hospitality Office. To be fair, the availability of the computer was clearly stated in the notes to guests left in each room... but as I was fairly certain that Fr Tim would be hogging the machine, (and writing far more lucid accounts of the proceedings into the bargain!) I decided to take the moral highground, and declared my stay a "blog-free zone."

The twitchy fingers eventually relaxed, and I used my spare time to read one of my recently acquired books, the one describing the Marian Apparitions at Guadalupe. I'll post on it shortly.

Again, my photos are not as brilliant as the ones on Fr. Tim's blog - but I managed to capture one or two moments on the phone camera.

Fr. Nesbitt gave the opening talk. Discussion on where exactly angels figure in the grand panorama of Creation (before or after the Big Bang) proved to be an eye-opener for me...








It was Fr. David's birthday, and half a century is just too important to ignore... so here we can see Fr. Dylan presenting a chocolate cake, while we all sang "Happy Birthday." Unfortunately, I wasn't as quick off the mark as I'd have liked, so Fr. David blew out the candles before I could capture the moment for posterity...



A lack of communication meant that several people had brought cakes, which kept us going throughout our stay. I bagsied what I thought was a chocolate rose... a rose by any other name might smell as sweet, but while this one looked gorgeous, it was made of some sort of fondant icing, and tasted like cement...

I was privileged to get to a Traditional Rite Mass each morning. The St. George's Chapel had a window facing Eastwards; when Mass started the window was in darkness (7am) and it gradually filled with light... awesome!


I was delighted to be able to catch up with Brother Philip - we'd originally met at the London Faith Forum meetings when they were held at Spanish Place. I'd forgotten he'd shaved off his beard when he entered Ampleforth... Brother Philip is shown here talking to Sr. Andrea of the Sisters of the Gospel of Life... and one of the Faith priests can be seen in the background reading what must class as the orthodox equivalent of pornography...






...and then there are the opportunities for discussion: here Fr. Tim is talking to Fr. Stephen Boyle... Fr. Stephen (brother of South Ashford Priest) told me he wants to appear on as many blogs as possible without the trouble of actually running a blog himself!













Fr. Mike seen here talking to Fr. Luiz outside the Grange...






...and then there are the late night discussions over drinks...

Fr. Stephen (again), Fiorella and Fr. Greg (I didn't manage to catch them unawares... but you can hardly tell!!)










The South Ashford Priest himself.

















...and finally, Fr. Stephen (a different one), Fr. David (also a different one) and Fr. Tim.









Just to prove that I did occasionally go outside for a breath of fresh air...

...the main abbey grounds seen from the Grange.

The Grange itself (where we had the talks, and where most of us were staying.)

The Abbey Church. I just loved the glimmers of sunshine through the trees...

This one shows the building more clearly, but misses out the sunshine!

Return of the Mac...

Heheheheh! I'm back again. It's late - I've been visiting some of my favourite blogs just to get back up to speed - but normal blogging service will resume later today.

Incommunicado

Aaarghhh ! I don't think I will be able to cope... I shall be in a blog-free environment for the next four days. I can feel my fingers going into spasm just thinking about turning the computer off...

I suppose the advantage is that I'll have more time to pray for all of you...

...I'll be back on Thursday.

Getting In The Habit

Moneybags has put up an excellent post on the wearing of habits by female religious. I experienced a huge disappointment when visiting St. Bernadette's convent in Nevers on discovering that the sisters no longer wore "proper" habits, favouring instead the type of skirt and cardigan ensemble usually sold by Marks and Spencer's...

I described my feelings to a young priest friend a few years ago, and he took great delight in regaling me with the following anecdote. I have no idea if it is true... if not, then it ought to be...

Apparently, (so the story went), the good sisters of Nevers wanted to make St. Bernadette appeal to the tastes of modern misses. They proposed to kit the saint out in their new habit when the old one needed to be changed (I'm not sure if her clothing decays.) When the time came to undress Bernadette, her limbs - normally so supple and pliant - completely stiffened, making it impossible to remove her clothing...

...whether the story is true or not, it is an indisputable fact that she is currently in the habit traditionally worn by the Sisters of Nevers...

More Posters

Heheheh !

In case you thought I'd been too slushy in my recent choice of motivational posters, how about this demotivational one:


Mantilla-twitch to Happy Catholic

The Screwtape Letters on Film

Oh wow... one of my favourite books is to be made into a movie. I don't know whether to shout for joy or weep inconsolably... on the one hand, the film is going to be made by the same studio that produced "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" and getting the Screwtape Letters out to a wider audience is desirable... on the other hand, I am usually disappointed by the mangling given to my favourite books by the film industry; I don't know how well the letters will translate to the visual medium; and finally, there is the possibility that it's just jumping on the bandwagon of all the unhealthy interest there seems to be in the occult (think of all the TV programmes like "Charmed", "Angel" and so on...)

Still, I shall remain hopeful...

Twitch of the mantilla to Esther.

Intelligent Blonde Joke

Three women go down to Mexico one night, get drunk, and wake up in jail, only to find that they are to be executed in the morning, though none of them can remember what they did the night before.

The first one, a redhead, is strapped in the electric chair, and is asked if she has any last words. She says, "I am from Steubenville University, and believe in the almighty power of God to intervene on the behalf of the innocent." They throw the switch and nothing happens.

They all immediately prostrate themselves, beg for her forgiveness, and release her.

The second one, a brunette, is strapped in and gives her last words, "I am from Harvard Law School, and I believe in the power of justice to intervene on the part of the innocent." They throw the switch and again, nothing happens.

Again, they all immediately prostrate themselves, beg for her forgiveness, and release her.

The last one, a blonde, is strapped in and says, "Well, I'm from the University of Alabama, Huntsville and just graduated with a degree in Electrical Engineering, and I'll tell you right now, you ain't gonna electrocute nobody if you don't plug this thing in."

A Different Anniversary

Today it is exactly 23 years since I was hit in a road traffic accident. It wasn't a hit-and-run, though the driver, by all accounts, was possibly going too fast. However, you don't expect to see pedestrians crossing a six-lane dual carriageway at night, still less do you expect to see one picking herself up off the floor in the fast lane! Apparently I dented the car when I landed first on the roof and then on the bonnet... luckily for me, I don't remember it.

I broke my leg in three places, my pelvis in four places, my shoulder-blade, I had head injuries, and needed a transfusion of six units of blood (that's about five pints or so out of the eight we normally have!) I then developed a fat embolism which hit the lungs, but they couldn't give me any blood-thinning agents because of the bleeding. And I woke up a week later.

I do feel rather sorry for my Guardian Angel... He certainly drew the short straw when they were allocating the souls to be looked after! But at least that time he had Our Lady of Lourdes to help him!