Hurrah...

...the Towards Advent Festival in Westminster Cathedral Hall was a big success...thus enabling my family to affirm their annual cry of "We told you it would be all right!" Oh, it was wonderful: Cardinal Cormac spoke warmly and enthusiastically, the choir of La Retraite School from Clapham sang a glorious Gaudete, the bookstalls flourished, there were stacks of lovely things on sale and display, the Association of Catholic Women sold cups and cups of tea and stacks of sandwiches and cakes, Fr Aidan Nicholls spoke about restoring the Faith in our country, Fr Nicholas Schofield - in the attractive setting of the Library at Archbishop's House, kindly loaned for the occasion - told the story of the Westminster Cardinals, and Jeremy de Satge led a rousing workshop on Gregorian Chant to round off the day...it was a grand Festival, and well up to the standard of its predecessors in what is now an 8-year-strong tradition and looks set to flourish for many more years...

It was an extraordinary day at Westminster, because Britain's massive Polish community was gathering at the Cathedral for a great celebratory Mass to mark the 90th anniversary of the resurgence of Poland's independence. (1918). We were aware of this, and had timed our own events so that things would not clash...the crowds at the cathedral were so huge that they couldn't all fit in, and an overflow stood on ths steps and into the piazza...after the Mass, in the evening lamplight it was grand to see the Polish procession, with red-and-white flags and some magnificent national costumes, gathyering in Ambrosden Avenue. All this, and on the same day the Lord Mayor's Parade was making its way through the City,ans culminating in fireworks, further down river...and earlier there had been commemorative events for the start of the Remembrance weekend. So a rainswept London was thronging with people, and on the bus travelling home we were warned by the driver that it would takes ages and ages to pass through the thick traffic across Westminster Bridge...