Thursday Jan 10th

DVD matters

I am very keen indeed to see the new film about Pope John Paul 11 which is being sold through Ignatius Press. But we can't get it here in Britain!!! Ignatius informs me that it's not for distribution outside the USA.

When will a British distributor come forward?

Does anyone have any knowledge about this?

I am aware that DVD restrictions are a bore. In this connection, does any American reader of this blog want a nice DVD of a classic American film? It's called "Cheaper by the Dozen" and I bought it while in the USA. I saw the film at school as a child (it was very old even then - we were occasionally given film-afternoons as a treat and I remember us all weeping over "Mrs Miniver".....). I was thrilled when I saw it all nicely boxed up as a DVD in America, and bought it....only to find that of course I can't view it here. Up on the screen comes just an annoying little statement saying that viewing is blocked.

I am ready - this is a serious offer! - to post it to any American who would enjoy it! I hate to see something wasted. And it cost me nine American dollars. I could have spent that money on sweets or something. (Well, OK, maybe not sweets as American chocolate doesn't taste quite right, and some of their other sweets are simply horrid. But maybe a lavish ice-cream or two).

New Book: "The Tide is turning"

I have been sent a copy of a paperback"The Tide is Turning Toward Catholicism" by David J. Hartline (publ. by something called "Catholic Report"). It is upbeat and cheerful, and has reports of how the new mood in the Church in the USA is definitely one of theological orthodoxy, young people rallying to authentic teachings, colleges such as Franciscan University of Steubenville, Thomas Aquinas College in California etc all doing well, etc etc etc.....all of which is true. But I don't think this sustains its central thesis, which is that the tide in society generally is turning towards the Church. I think the actual trend is more interesting: things are undoubtedly moving in a good direction within the Church (and more so in America than in Britain, and more so in Britain than in mainland Europe). But meanwhile the trend in western society is increasingly against the Church. It is precisely the clash - between a re-invigorated (albeit numerically smallish) Catholicism, and a general opposition to Christianity in a rich and godless west - that is the reality before us in the next decades. The crunching noise that is made when these two clash - which not be one big crunch but a lot of grating and discomfort spread over a period of time and involving different people and events and experiences.......that noise will be the noise of the first part of the 21st century for many of us.

Feature in Catholic Herald

The latest Catholic Herald has a short feature by a friend of mine, Sara Mellor, who is blind. She makes some pertinent points about some specific needs of blind people. Travel is difficult and complicated - taxis are expensive. The days can seem very long and quiet when you are alone in a house. What many people in this position want more than anything else is just some companionship - a visitor telephoning or dropping in. Sara lives some way from London, and in a rural area. The Association of Blind Catholics and St Cecilia's Guild do a great job in providing tapes on Catholic subjects but......nothing beats simple human friendship, and for a Catholic it's a special delight to be able to talk about things of deep interest....but hard to do so if it's just too complicated to catch a couple of buses or trains to get to a meeting, retreat, or conference.
Sara mentions specifically that she would love to go on a retreat, but in a strange (often large) building it is difficult to navigate alone. She needs to be accompanied. I have accompanied her to a number of events....is there anyone out there who might be prepared to join the team from time to time? This might be something for an older (retired?) person with some spare time, and who would enjoy the chance to attend a meeting or conference......send a message to this blog (in confidence) and we could follow up.....