Friday May 18th

Yesterday at Westminster Cathedral, evening Mass was a glory of Latin, glittering candles, flowers...larger numbers than usual for a weekday Mass so probably quite a number of people assumed they were celebrating Ascension Day....what a great pity we weren't!

I met a number of friends there, and afterwards lingered agreeably over coffee in one of the innumerable eating-places on the new Cardinal Place opposite the piazza. You get the most fabulous view of the cathedral from there. The buildings near Victoria station have now all been ripped down, revealing the pleasing facade of the station, and this too is to become part of the whole new look for the area. It's all about time: for decades this was such a shabby part of London, for all its nearness to Parliament and the Abbey and so on.

I spent the morning with members of the Catholic Women of the Year committee - the Luncheon is in October and plans are well under way. We have had a huge number of nominations for the Women of the Year, and there are so many magnificent stories of service, courage, neighbourly service, and goodwill. Many letters say something like "She'd be appalled if she knew she was being nominated..." "She would be so embarrassed to be thought of as special...." etc. The CWOY project began in 1968 and has gone from strength to strength - in the past couple of years we have had a number of new young members on the committee which has proved a great boon.

EWTN.....

Home late, and then sat up watching a preview of a new EWTN programme which I made with a team a few months back and has now been beautifully edited and put together with the right music etc etc...it brought back memories of the week we spent on location, the hard work and the rain and the great fun and the laughter, the planning and the researching and the re-takes and the utter enjoyment of the whole thing. I am actually thrilled with the results...But I won't give the details on this Blog until I know when it is all to be broadcast.

Thursday May 17th

BIG SUCCESS

A really successful Summer Drinks Party yesterday at the home of a kind friend in Chelsea - to raise funds for the Association of Catholic Women's education work (of which more later) and Nicole Parker's excellent London Fertility Care Centre. Wine, nice sausages rolls and savoury things to eat (we had to rush out and get more, as so many people came), lots and LOTS of lively talk, a packed room of young people simply enjoying each other's company. There are a number of Catholic groups in London that meet to pray, hear talks on the Faith, and also help with various projects, and they all seem to link with one another by e-mail and social contact, so the result when you run some Catholic event is that LARGE numbers turn up and the buzz is just splendid. It was fun opening the door to one group of newcomers after another - "Emma sent me an email" "I heard about this through the Adoration group...."

Thursday May 17th

ACROSS AMERICA, AND MUCH OF EUROPE, IT'S ASCENSION DAY TODAY

Weekday Mass at 10 am in our parish is always well attended anyway,so anyone attending specially because it's Ascension Day will feel perfectly comfortable.

One of the arguments that has been used to defend the idea of moving Ascension Day to a Sunday is that people find it hard to get to Mass on a weekday. They don't. It's easier than ever. If you are elderly and live in a country village with limited transport, then getting to Mass might be difficult - but for most Catholics in Britain, in suburban churches with morning and plenty of evening Masses, in busy city churches with plenty of lunchtimes Masses, getting to Mass on a feast-day has never been easier. City-centre churches are always packed for several Masses on Holy Days, often with people in the porch or round the door as every space inside has been taken...and, of course, figures for Mass attendance in Britain have been rising (all those Poles? Well, for whatever reason, numbers are up) so why not ride on the crest of that wave and enjoy the rising morale and sense of hope?

Another thing: unity. By accident or design, our Bishops have emphasised by their actions that of course one can still mark Ascension Day by attending a Tridentine Rite Mass, and presumably a number of people will. But should the Bishops be deliberately fostering the idea that some thus celebrate a feast on one day, and some on another? Until now, this has not been an issue - why create one? It runs absolutely contrary to the need to live out a "hermeneutic of continuity".And this at a time when, with the new Motu-thingummy from the Holy Father, the T. Rite is - or I thought this was the plan - going to become a normal option and part of Catholic parish life.

One of the best things about the Church is that normal, muddly,look-we-are-just-Catholic-and-go-to-Mass families are part of the same Church as the seriously-devout-I-know-how-to-find-a-special-Mass types. Why drive a wedge between them?

Wed May 16th

CATHOLIC WRITERS' GUILD

Last night Rt Hon Ann Widdecombe addressed a meeting of The Keys, the Catholic Writers' Guild of England and Wales, at our Guild Church of St Mary Moorfields in London. Mass first in the church, then an agreeable and very talkative supper in the crypt.

At the start of her talk, Ann presented the 2007 Catholic Young Writer Award to Bernadette Pfang, of South London, whose essay on St Thomas More was judged the best of this year's field of entries - Bernadette wins a shield which she will keep for one year, a cash prize, and a stack of books. These are traditionally presented by Catholic writers and publishers, and this year they include the beautiful illustrated book on the Rosary,just produced by St Omers Press at Stonyhurst.Second prizewinner is Thomas Carver of Durham, and joint third prizes go to Elizabeth Parkes of Birmingham and Elena Cahill of Nottingham. A number of certificates of merit were also awarded, notably to pupils at the Sacred Heart School in Camberwell and Oaklands Catholic School in Hampshire, and to an entrant from the USA and one from Australia!

It was fitting that the young prizewinner had wriiten about St Thomas More as Ann Widdecombe's talk was on "Law and Conscience". It tackled specifically the ways in which recent legislation has restricted the rights of us all to live and work according to our deepest beliefs and convictions, and cited, specifically, ways in which the Government's (horrible!) new Sexual Orientation regulations will work. She read aloud an exchange of correspondence with the Secretary of State Ruth Kelly - who had replied to the letter only after the new laws were introduced: it is clear that some one who, for example, runs a printing firm and would rather not print publicity material for a homosexual-lobby rally would face serious legal penalties for refusing. This is scary. And it is up to the Church to speak out and stand up for what is right.

Incidentally I note that in Italy families have held a big rally to stand up for marriage and family values - in the face of planned new legislation which will effectively create a form of "civil partnerships" for various sorts of relationships including homosexual ones. In Britain, we seem to have been able to produce rallies n issues such as hunting...

ASCENSION....

What will you be doing on Thursday? I shall be doing what Catholics across Europe will be doing - attending Mass. True, our Bishops have announced that in England the Mass for Ascension Day is not to be celebrated on its proper day, but arbitrarily and bleakly switched to Sunday. But there is nothing to stop me - or you , or all your friends - attending Mass on what most of the rest of the world, and notably our nearest Catholic neighbours, will be enjoying as Ascension Day.

And no, I don't mean that you have to seek out a Tridentine Rite Mass and go there - though generally I'd be in favour of people going to that if they want to do so. But not on Thursday. That will only serve to let our Bishops claim that Ascension Day, or any other special and important feast-day, is now for people who have specific tastes, WHICH COMPLETELY MISSES THE POINT. The whole point is that we want to celebrate with the whole Church, with people in - for example - Poland and Germany, Switzerland and Spain (who even get a holiday from work on this day).

Go to Mass on Ascension Day - preferably at your nearest Cathedral. I'll be at mine. Pass the word, and join in. And while you're about it, mark your diary: June 7th, Feast of Corpus Christi.

Saturday May 12th 2007

MARRIAGE

To Brompton Oratory, where couples from various central London parishes were gathered for a day of talks etc as part of Marriage Preparation. My task is to speak from the perspective of a married Catholic...then there's a time for discussion which is guided to explore issues like the values and virtues that should guide our lives, and how these relate to our hopes and plans for marriage. The day is part of a full programme which includes talks week by week on topics ranging from the place of prayer in our lives to the discovery of Natural Family Planning.

It was pouring with rain, and Father Charles Dilke, who was there to be part of the discussion and lead a prayer at the end, hurried off to lend me a large cycle cape - - which was immensely useful as I cycled off to Kenington High Street to a rather grand hotel where the

TAMEZIN YOUNG JOURNALIST AWARDS

were taking place. I have mentioned Tamezin elsewhere on this blog - an excellent initiative, it is a magazine for teenage girls, written by and for young people. Its readership is growing rapidly - you could join in by simply taking out a subscription - and the Young Journalist Awards ceremony was the culmination of the various talks and Journalism Workshops I and others have been giving in schools. A team of top journalists were there to hand out the Awards and certificates, led by Cassandra Jardine of the Daily Telegraph. The young writers had been invited to do an interview with "some one inspirational" and there was an excellent field of entries which gave the judges a good deal of work. Prizes included a week's work experience at a TV station, including a chance to watch the News being broadcast live, and a week with a national newspaper. Looking out at the sea of faces in a packed room - with a delicious tea to follow, and an atmosphere of great celebration - made all the work of running those workshops in schools worthwhile. Among the schools that I have visited which produced winners and certificate-winners for the Award were Babington School in Kent, Wilmington School in Kent, and Prior Park College in Bath.

I cycled back along past Kensington Gardens and the Albert Memorial - which on this cool spring/summer evening looked simply splendid, glittering in gold. It's one of my favourite London landmarks. Have just been reading - and have reviewed for the current issue of the Catholic Times - the excellent biography of one of Victoria and Albert's granddaughters, Grand Duchess Ella of Russia, who was slaughtered by the Bolsheviks and is honoured by the Orthodox Church, and rightly, as a saint (new biography by Christopher Warwick, Wiley books £16.95p, hugely recommended).

RELAXING
at home with emails and trawling through the Internet I looked up the latest on the Holy Father's visit to Brazil and came across this lovely picture (connect and then scroll down) which shows him in a wonderful hug with four happy children...and they are clutching COPIES OF THE CHILDREN'S BIBLE DONATED BY AID TO THE CHURCH IN NEED!! For years, people have been generously giving money so that children could have copies, of their very own, of this delightful children's Bible with its bright red cover and lovely illustrations, produced in innumerable languages and distributed across the globe. It's very, very satisfying to know that the Holy Father was himself giving out this little gift, and the small recipients were responding with a glorious hug. Supporters of ACN across BRitain, please, please do take a look at this pic! Launched initially as part of the International Year of the Child, and expanded year on year from there, this project has meant that many, many children who have never owned a book and had had no prospect of owning one, have recieved this most important book of all....and all through the simple system of encouraging people to give one to a child in Britain (where children also need Bibles!) and make a donation to fund a couple of books overseas...

Next time you hear a grumble about charities being over-bureaucratic and the whole thing getting too complicated, remember ACN and this simple but magnificent project, and those children in Brazil (pic taken, incidentally, at a drug rehabilitation project also partly funded by ACN....)

Wednesday May 9th

EDUCATION ISSUES

Newsletter of the Campaign for Real Education - excellent organisation which promotes and defends educational standards in Britain. Depressing news - one result of the new arrangements in Northern Ireland looks like being the demise of the 69 grammar schools. Govt regulations threatened the end of these fine schools, and now their fate is in the hands of the new system in the province, which has handed over the education department to the Sinn Fein party which is committed to their destruction. Also depressing news about the merger of schools in Kent and in Lincolnshire, two places where grammar schools have been doing good work. And there's something called "Personalised Learning" which is being foisted on teachers and pupils, funded by top banks, and is committed to "deep learning" (????) which is "the transformation of full personalisation". It's all a gloomy picture. Looks as though the only children who will get a fair chance of a decent education in the immediate future in Britain are those whose parents can afford to make private arrangements. It's as though all the gains made by the 1944 Education Act are being undone. It's all so thoroughly unfair.

ST PATRICK'S SOHO SQUARE
A happy morning atthe School of Evangelisation at St Patrick's. Cycling through the streets of Soho and meeting this lively and delightful group of young people in the basement, ready for me as the guest lecturer, gave one something of the feeling of a Roman Christian meeting a group in the catacombs! I spoke on the Church's calendar of feasts and seasons - they were lively, attentive, and engaging. AS we finished, they invited me to join them for the Rosary in their small day-chapel. Then they went up to Mass in the main church, while I had to cycle off to deal with various other tasks....St Patrick's is a centre of good Catholic activity and lots of prayer - a church with a fine history and a magnificent presence in London. But it desperately needs funds - damp and with massive need for repairs and redecoration - everything from basement up needs attention, some of it urgent. There are lots of American readers to this blog - if you really want to help the Church here in Britain, look up the St P's website and give it some thought. Incidentally, Archbishop Fulton Sheen had this church as his base when in London and the parish is proud of its links with him.

TYBURN

Last night (Tues) to Tyburn for the annual Tyburn lecture. This convent is a shrine honouring the memory of the English Martyrs, and stands near to the site of the great Tyburn Gallows where many of them, including St Edmund Campion, gave their lives. The annual Tyburn Lecture is part of the sisters' commitment to being a part of Catholic and community life in London, and attracts a large invited crowd each year.There is always a guest speaker, usually a man or woman prominent in public life, who speaks on his or her chosen topic - to honour the idea of genuine debate and free speech in a spirit of courtesy and open enquiry. But I think people mostly go simply because of the nuns - their serenity, their joy, their hospitality, their faith. The Blessed Sacrament is a centre of veneration and prayer here hour after hour - even while we were all at the lecture in the main chapel, the sisters took it in turns, as always, to pray with Our Lord in a temporary chapel specially set aside for that purpose. Later - while of course some of the sisters still prayed, the routine unbroken - we were all entertained to wine and refreshments and it was a wonderful opportunity to meet old friends, to chat, to engage with all sorts of people. BTW, a note for readers who are not Catholic, the sisters, wile having the Catholic Faith at the centre of their lives, always pay due tribute to all of sincere conviction who lost their lives in a tragedies of the Reformation in our country, and the message of the shrine is one of reconciliation and hope, not of point-scoring or any sort of religious bigotry.

I am always touched, at Tyburn events, to see the way in which the sisters, always beaming and welcoming, arrange for everyone to have lovely things to eat and drink but quietly never have anything themselves. And I love their traditional habits, white veils for novices etc, and the quiet purposeful feel of their convent.

If you ever have toothache, or heartache, or exhaustion with a wakeful baby, or something, in the middle of the night, there's a sort of solidarity in knowing that nuns are praying and praying, there at Tyburn.

Monday May 7th

SPRING SUNDAY

The fine spring weather was much too good to waste, so with Jamie spending the day playing cricket, I packed some sandwiches and walked all the way to Carshalton (bike has puncture, so couldn't use it). Stopped at a local parish for Mass on the way. Packed church, lots of young families - much very well-intentioned and extremely noisy music led by a hearty dad with a guitar...This is the sort of style that seems to work well for young married couples and their children, but isn't terribly appealing to young singles (although of course, in the London suburbs, these do have the option of going elsewhere, esp to one of the big London churches with a v. different style). These families are exactly the sort with whom I get on best - they're the ones whose values I share, whom I meet at Catholic events, to whom I give talks and who buy my books. They support the pro-life movement and are active in lots of good things in the local and wider community. They are there in force at big events like "Celebrate!" where they enjoy family-based activities, inspiring talks, calls to evangelise neighbours, and a sense of mission. The church notice-boards were crammed with items promoting EWTN, Days with Mary, a retreat at a traditional-style monastery, information on vocations to the priesthood, pro-life material. But the guitar throbbing, the microphones, the beat, the sheer noise....Can't we get something going in the spirit of Sacramentum Caritatis, to get people singing some Latin, and enjoying something of a great heritage of music that belongs to the Church and us all? Is this guitar-beat enough to sustain a generation's faith in what could be very tough times ahead?

CARSHALTON HOUSE
I met Mother as planned outside Carshalton's old church (where there was a wedding going on, which was nice) and we enjoyed an afternoon looking round Carshalton House. THis is an 18th century house with some lovely rooms, open to the public on guided tours from time to time - and I was at school here, St Philomena's. As we passed the swimming-bath, I rushed to see if my name was still there, carved into one of the bricks and it is, it is!!! It took me some while to do it, one summer term when I was in the Lower V1, and we used to spend lunchtimes sitting and talking on the steps in the sunshine.

We visited the Hermitage in the grounds - which we girls used to call the Grotto, a lovely 18th century folly, set into the rise of the hill overlooking what used to be the lake (I have a picture of my sister posing as a saint in one of the niches there!). This corner of the grounds is badly in need of some care - massively overgrown and if water did start to return to the lake, which is sometimes does depending on the water-table, it would just be a mess because it's all filled with grass and trees and tangled growth. Difficult to get funds to enable maintenance work to be done on the scale needed - and in its wildness it was all rather glorious anyway.

The tour finished in the Water Tower, which M. and I had visited last week. We had tea there and I got chatting to the Chairman of the Friends of Carshlton Water Tower - would like to help with their fund-raising etc.

Friday May 4th 2007

A HAPPY EVENING

To the parish of Our Lady and St Joseph In London N1, nearest tube: Highbury and Islington. I arrived as Father Nicholas Schofield was preaching at the evening Mass, honouring the English Martyrs. It was something of a rallying-call to us all to think about our country...then followed a Holy Hour as it was the First Friday. Glowing candles on the altar, people praying the Rosary, a good number of people with a wide range of ages and races, a sense that being a Catholic means belonging to something that goes on from century to century...

After this, the meeting at which I was to speak. The parish has regular gatherings with guest speakers, under the title of the "William Lockhart Society", Fr Lockhart being a contemporary of Newman, and a convert shortly before him, later a Rosminian priest. He worked here at O.L. and St Joseph's, before going on to St Etheldreda's, Ely Place, then newly re-acquired as a Catholic church after centuries of other use.

Theme of my talk was "Celebrating Traditional Feasts and Seasons", explaining the Christian calendar and how it all fits together (Lady Day is 9 months before Christmas, St John the Baptist's Birthday at midsummer, Lent and Easter, fasting and feasting, etc etc etc). It's the quirky bits of information that people enjoy - the Tube Station that commemorates the Annunciation (The Angel, Islington - named after a pub of that name which dates back to Medieval times and depicts the Angel greeting Mary); the flowers and herbs named after Our Lady (marigolds, rosemary); the traditions for Maundy Thursday; the origins of words and their links with one another (eg simnel cake from the Latin similia, same word as the modern Italian semolina)...etc....etc....

(Interested? There's LOTS more in my "Book of Feasts and Seasons" (send me £7.95p or equivalent in US dollars, plus say £1 for postage: Mrs J.Bogle, c/o 34 Barnard Gardens New Malden Surrey KT3 6QG).

The meeting was well-attended and the atmosphere was great: friendly, chatty, talkative, neighbourly. This must be a v. good parish. Afterwards a hugely enjoyable supper with Fr Nicholas and friends.

Home v. late, happy after a lovely evening...waiting at local bus stop, the joy rather evaporated as hordes of adolescent children streamed out, shouting, vomiting, swearing. One lad sat next to me eating chips and drinking from a can: he looked about 14, but presumably must have been older as he and his mates had clearly spent the evening in the pub. None of these young people looked at all as if they had been having a happy time. Police hover about, and there is an air of menace. No, nothing special - just a Friday night in a prosperous London suburb. Depressing.

SPRINGTIME AND THE POPE

A glorious spring day and a train trip out of London, alighting at Bicester North...my destination was the extremely agreeable book club run each month by Breff and Jill Kelly at which I was to be this month's guest speaker. Topic: Pope Benedict XV1 and if you haven't bought my book on him, simply send me an immediate comment to this blog INCLUDING AN EMAIL ADDRESS WHERE I CAN REACH YOU and I'll arrange for you to get one...

The room filled up in a friendly atmosphere, freshly-brewed coffee was served,and it was a delight to speak in this pleasant sunny room to an eager audience. I hugely enjoy talking about Papa Benedict, dispelling the media-myths, explaining about his books, his teaching work, life in post-war Germany, and more...afterwards I was entertained to a delicious lunch out on the terrace, seated next to an adorable Kelly baby grandson, lots of talk and laughter...oh, the best, best possible way to spend a day...

Breff K. has a delightful story about Papa B: when, as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, he came to speak in Cambridge, Breff attended and found it basolutely fascinating. He later wrote to the Cardinal to say so, adding that it had happened to be his birthday and the talk had been a perfect way to mark the day. He didn't expect a reply but....the next year, on his birthday, he recieved a card from Cardinal Ratzinger!

THE POPE'S BAVARIA

And then, in the evening, a meeting of my Catholic Cultural Group, at which the guest speaker was Fr Nicholas Schofield,: I had invited him to speak on "The Pope's Bavaria" as he has made several trips to that land, and indeed has just returned from one. He really made it all come alive for us - glorious baroque churches, and tasty sausages, and all. He spoke at some length about the heroic priests of Dachau - about young Karl Leisner, secretly ordained in this concentration camp and now beatified by the Church - surely a patron saint for today's young men training for the priesthood...If you want to catch some of the flavour of Fr Nicholas' talk, visit his own blog which has pictures and lots of descriptions of his travels...

As it happens, on Friday I am guest speaker at Fr N's parish, which rounds things off rather nicely.

Tuesday May 1st

HURRAH!

Some happy news from Australia. A longstanding family friend, Mgr Peter Elliott, has just been appointed auxiliary Bishop of Melbourne. This is very good news for the Church and for Australia. Father Peter is the author of several books - his first was in the early 1970s when he produced a delightful "Thoughts of Jesus Christ" to counter the "Thoughts of Chairman Mao". He has long experience of parish life, and also of work in Rome where he was for some while at the Pontifical Council for the Family. While in Rome, he'd often visit Britain, and stayed with us amid cheerful chaos when we were just moving in to our present house - sleeping on a put-you-up bed next to a not-yet-fully-unpacked refrigerator. I remember some happy days out to all sorts of places, including an unforgettable day with Malcolm and Kitty Muggeridge in their Sussex cottage...memorable talks, walks, exchanges of ideas, laughter...

LONDON...

...is horrid in hot weather, and one can feel things warming up for the long stretch of summer heat ahead. Current fashion rules dictate very tight, black trousers, or of course tight denim jeans, for women and girls - they all look dreadfully hot. Waiting at Clapham Junction today I surveyed the crowded platform opposite. How same-ish and dreary we all look, compared to the way things used to be when there was a much greater variety in dress: today black or blue trousers are the rule for virtually everyone, except for a few, very very few, men in suits (but most men who wear suits at work leave them at the office and travel home in jeans). A woman in a dress is a rarity in a London crowd - some do wear skrts and shirts (as I do) but the summery look of a light-coloured dress is very rare. Will people still feel obliged to be in black and dark blue trousers throughout June, July, and August?

Monday April 30th
Young people from the School of Evangelisation at St Patrick's, Soho Square, were at Westminster Cathedral for the Chrism Mass in Holy Week with the idea of showing support for priests - and a team of us from the Association of Catholic Women had had the same idea and we joined forces with great joy : at last week's ACW committee meeting we enjoyed pix of the event and we will certainly be returning next year. Henry from The School of Evangelisation has now sent me a nice note (see COMMENTS to this blog) asking that I publicise their blog, which I gladly do. I have been invited to give a talk at St Patrick's later this term and am looking forward to it.

OLD SCHOOL....

Yesterday a delightful visit to my old school, St Philomena's in Carshalton. Well, not officially a visit to the school....in the grounds is a magnificent and unique water-tower, built by a former owner of the property, Sir John Fellowes, in the early 18th century. (He made a great deal of money from the South Sea Bubble scheme, bought Carshalton House and lived there in some style...much later, it was bought by the Daughters of the Cross, and they founded a school there in the 1890s). Cycling past the Tower, on my way to meet Mother for a walk and cup of tea, I saw a notice announcing that it was Open to the Public (admission 75p!)...so of course we went there.

Oh, nostalgia...the main room, which was originally an orangery, was the room where I first attended school: oh, I remember a rocking-horse, and little blue tables and chairs...and dear Miss Gibbons, who presided over the Kingergarten...and next door was the next class, called Transition, with Sister Mary Kevin in charge...

But what I hadn't known was that this unique building housed a magnificent water-pumping system, used to pipe the clear fresh water from one of Carshalton's many springs. There is a superb tiled bathroom, each tile hand-painted, and with steps going down to a glorious deep bath - it would be so enjoyable to have a swim in it! Of course all this was boarded over when we children ate our (horrid, horrid) lunches in that room years ago.

The nice volunteers in charge invited me to contribute memories for their Newsletter, which I'll do with pleasure. My memories of the Tower are, apart from the nasty meals, very happy ones. There is now a group called the Friends of Carshalton Water Tower (136 West St, Carshalton SM5 2NR tel 020 8 647 0984). The whole building has been beautifully restored - the Orangery is not unlike the one at Kensington Palace and it really is well worth seeing and the whole place be hired out for sociual functions etc. I do most warmly recommend it.

Sunday April 29th

In hot sunshine yesterday, to Fulham, where I got caught up in the massive football crowds. It was good to escape and settle down at my destination, the pleasant study where I handed over the entries for the judging of the Catholic Young Writer Award, sponsored by The Keys, the Catholic Writers' Guild of England and Wales. A winner and two runners-up will finally be chosen - no, I'm not giving their names until they have been personally notified - and the winner will come to the Writers' Guild meeting in a couple of weeks' time, to recieve the shield, cheque, and certificate. A number of Certificates of Merit were also awarded, including several to one particular school which sent in a good number of entries. In fact, the enthusiasm shown by this particular school, was such that it was decided to award the school itself a certificate - the first time we have done this.

Discussion on this blog re home-education, ie families not sending their children to school but teaching them at home. Of course this is an excellent thing for families that want to do it - and was standard for daughters in middle-class and upper-class homes throughout the 19th and well into the early part of the 20th century. And the families that do it today tend to be those who tackle it with great dedication, and produce superb results. But it would be terribly cruel for the Church to announce this as the norm: it's like suggesting that because some families can cope well with ill or frail elderly relatives, there is no need for any care-homes or visiting nurses, or day centres! I know a number of families who educate their own children at home - they tend to be highly committed, and if they are Catholic they tend to be v. devout, keen on lots of Latin etc etc. All very delightful and splendid. But what about all the other children in Britain? Are we meant to mumble that "it's up to the parents" and ignore their needs?

SALVE REGINA

...is the title of a beautiful new hardback illustrated book of traditional Catholic prayers, produced by Stonyhurst College. It was an initiative of two pupils and is the result of research among some of the College's fabulous collection of old manuscripts. The result is a feast of medieval artwork, together with a collection of prayers, some taken from the Sarum Primer. It also has the whole Rosary - including the new Mysteries of Light - and an explanation of how illuminated manuscripts were made (did you know that the thick ink was made by boiling oak-apples, and that the bright blue colours came from lapis lazuli from Afghanistan?). Warmly recommended: £12.95p from St Omers Press. Contact www.stomerspress.co.uk or phone 01254 836345 Jan Graffius.

WORRIED....

The Family Bulletin of the useful organisation Family and Youth Concern arrives in the post. It includes a detailed analysis of the Govt's new Sexual Orientation Regulations. The full implications of these, and especially the restrictions they carry on the teaching of religious and moral; values to children, have not yet been fully graped by many (most?) Christian organisations or other community groups. It looks as though even the giving of private advice might be subject to the possibility of legal action, for example a priest urging people to uphold the principle of male/female marriage and not to do anything which blurs the distinction between this and a homosexual union.

I think a lot of people are simply hoping that these Regulations will be largely ignored or will simply go away. Hmmmm. They come into force on April 30th.

SEA AND HISTORY

I got up early to walk by the sea and explore the town. It was bliss to be running along the seashore on the edge of Scotland on an April morning. The ruined hulk of castle and cathedral that stand up starkly against the sky and sea tell a grim story of Scotland's religious battles of long ago , and then as you turn inland there is the pleasant town and friendly people greeting you with "good morning" and freshly-brewed coffee at a cafe, and shops selling all those Scottish things like marmalade in nice jars and tins of shortbread with Bonniee Prince Charlie and Flora Macdonald.

A group of young people - organisers of last night's meeting - joined me for breakfast and were very good company. They took me for a proper tour (story of St Regulus, bringing of St Andrew's relics to Scotland, etc) and we skimmed stones into the sea and talked about university life, and plans for the CathSoc barbeque and the success of their recent celigh (sp??)and more.... I hugely enjoyed it all, and it was just such a great pleasure to be with this delightful group of young people with their laughter and enthusiasm....Finally, they went off to lectures and to write dissertations and things (end-of-term pressures loominmg) and we said our goodbyes and I was off in a taxi to Leuchars station and thence to Ednburgh and the flight home.

Every time I talk to a group of young Catholics like this I recognise what the H. Father meant when he said at his inauguration "The Church is alive - and the Church is young!"

St ANDREW'S UNIVERSITY

A wonderful visit to St Andrew's, in Scotland, where I gave a talk to the Catholic Society at the University. Great fun, and a delightful bunch of young people. Mass first in the chapel - as we prayed, a glorious evening sun played on the silvery sea beyond the window and dusk fell gently...this really is a most beautiful corner of the world.

My talk was on "The Church and Women", looked at what Christianity has done for women, the role played by remarkable Catholic women down the centuries etc etc. We looked at the whole idea of the Church as the Bride of Christ, the meaning of the Cana miracle, Christ as the Bridegroom....and the Mass as having a "nuptial meaning" and that is why the Church is now Mother Church and we are all children of that union...it all gets v. interesting. There is a useful Catholic Truth Society leaflet about why the Church doesn't have women priests, and I was glad to see copies of this - and other excellent CTS material - at the Chaplaincy.

As evening ended, we had Compline in the chapel, by candlelight, with the sea now a gleaming vision of beaten silver in the distance. The young voices sang an evening hymn and said Compline beautifully, and it reminded me of evenings at summer youth gatherings of the FAITH Movement years ago, the same sense of youthful unity, of friends praying together at the end of the day.

Tuesday April 24th

AID TO THE CHURCH IN NEED

To Brompton Oratory for a Board meeting of the UK section of the international charity Aid to the Church in Need. As always, lots to plan and discuss. All sorts of good things happening: a recent wonderful pilgrimage to Walsingham, sales of v. popular Easter cards (the office actually ran out of all stocks and there'll have to be a massive printing next year. This is great for fund-raising...but my heart sinks slightly. Does this mean that sending Easter cards is going to be like the Great Christmas Card Hassle each year, with days and days spent over address-book and lists???. Oh dear...) Over lunch, a discussion on, among other things, the situation of the Church in Pakistan (where ACN is giving help to a number of churches), the plans for future activities of the charity in Britain.

Much discussion, too, about the Internet. I sometimes think that what is being cosily termed the "Catholic blogosphere" is a good deal smaller than it seems: I get a lot of hits on to this blog but I suspect that many are from people who simply like cruising from Catholic blog to Catholic blog within a limited frame of reference and they visit a rather small number of blogs but very frequently.. That doesn't mean I'm reaching many people: it means that a smallish number visit me - and a smallish group of other blogs - a lot! One can see the emergence of a group-culture within this (friendly and pleasant, but nevertheless rather inward-looking?) group: in-jokes,chatty references, etc within a limited network. No,no...I'm not objecting. But it's not quite the wide-ranging readership I had imagined might be out there...

So if you are a new reader, and/or you are some one who doesn't just like reading Catholic blogs, do drop me a comment! I'd like to know about you!

ST GEORGE'S DAY

The London suburbs are all apple blossom and cherry blossom at the moment, and sometimes there is an enchanting delicate little shower of it, like confetti at a wedding, which catches you as you cycle past.

The bells of Westminster Abbey were ringing out, crashing peal on peal, as I rounded Parliament Square on my way to the City for the St George's Day meeting of the Catholic Writers' Guild. We now meet at St Mary Moorfields, after many happy years at St Etheldreda's, Ely Place. (Fr Kit Cunningham, of St E's, recently retired - I was honoured to be invited to write the tribute to him in the diocesan newspaper, the Westminster Record). It's easy to miss St Mary's - which is intentional, because when it was built, Catholics still had to be rather private (oh, well, all right, secret) so it has a hidden, semi-underground feel. This also makes the church - which is beautiful, and enormously popular as a venue for weekday Masses among the younger City workers - rather hot. Even on this mild evening, it felt very warm: there are no windows giving access to the outside air. But it was a beautiful St George's Day Mass and Fr Peter Newby, our Chaplain, spoke about St George as England's patron saint, reminding us that the very identity of our country is bound up with the traditional Christian faith, and we must pray and work for the revival of this Faith in England today.

Speaker at the meeting - held in the lower crypt after the usual delicious and talkative supper - was Maggie Fergusson, author of the much-acclaimed biography of the poet George Mackay Brown. Her book is warmly recommended. His poetry is glorious, and his story - a convert to the Catholic faith, growing ip in Orkney - an extraordinary one.

Meetings of the Writers' Guild are always so enjoyable. I sat next to David Twiston Davies of the Daily Telegraph - his daughter Bess, also a journalist, was with me on Friday afternoon as we worked on the "Young Journalist" project for Tamezin magazine.(excellent magazine for teenage girls - recommended). The vote of thanks was given by novelist Piers Paul Read, who is a former Master of the GUild and helped to shape it in its prent form. Others present included Lynette Brurrows, whose excellent book on raising children Good Children, is still popular and who is always so courageous and refreshing in sticking up for family values in debates on TV and radio.

It was good cycling home in the cool breeze along by the river, which glitters at night with all the lit-up buildings and city activity alongside.

HURRAH FOR PAPA B!!

A major part of our Easter is watching the Holy Father on TV giving the Urbi et Orbi blessing. One can now watch all the beautiful Holy Week ceremonies on TV on one's computer: you just tap in "Television Catholique" into Google and then choose from various Papal events....

I have also enjoyed reading the text of the what the H>Father actually said in his Easter words. Read here for example.

BTW, the way the way Papa Benedict celebrates Mass is a model for others to note: measured, dignified, noit drawing attention to himself but to what is taking place at the altar.

Thursday April 19th 2007

YOUTH AT THE ORATORY

A beautiful and packed room at Brompton Oratory, where young people arrived for one of the regular monthly evening gatherings - well over 100 of them, with a friendly atmosphere and a sense of life and vibrancy. I was speaking on "Women and the Church" and the evening was really encouraging - good questions and discussion, a glorious buzz of talk over sandwiches and wine afterwards. One of the young priests got me a plate of sandwiches, as I was surrounded by a big circle of young people wanting to chat and follow up on the talk I had given.Things went on until a late hour, and when I finally got away, I found I was on almost the last Tube getting out to Wimbledon.

The Oratory is famous for being very traditional in its style of Catholicism, for its glorious music, and for being in a smart part of London and associated with beautiful weddings and great liturgy and so on and so on....and all these things make it very attractive. To have regular evenings like this, with vast numbers of intelligent, committed, interested young men and women, is a sign of life and hope in today's Church.

THE CHURCH....

Off to London for a meeting of the small working team that organises the Towards Advent Festival every year at Westminster Cathedral Hall......yes, yes, I know....but to get this biggish event happening every year, we have to plan well ahead. (The date's Nov 3rd. Some brilliant speakers and a lovely choir. Lots of displays by Catholic organisations etc. Go on, put the date in your diary now, then you won't get into a muddle later on).

As we talked about the arrangements for promoting the Festival via parishes etc I found myself reflecting on the various Holy Week and Easter devotions this year....all those that I attended were absolutely packed, whether it was the Maundy Mass at Westminster Cathedral, or our own suburban parish on Good Friday, or the Oratory (St Aloysius) at Oxford for the Easter Vigil. Good Friday was especially memorable - it's always so moving to see the priest there, prostrate before the sanctuary - and the crowds spread from the church and porch right out into the street outside.......

I know we keep hearing that the Church is in a mess, Christianity fading out of everyone's lives etc etc etc....but it simply didn't feel that way this season.

Tuesday April 17th 2007

AUSTRIA!!!

Sonntagberg: a conference on the theme "Children are a blessing". Sonntagberg is the most glorious place, a great pilgrimage church on top of a mountain, with a welcoming pilgrimage-house next door, run by our friends the Doblhof family who had organised this conference. An excellent gathering of people from a number of Catholic groups, focused on the idea of the family as the "domestic church". Not a conference of plastic folders and name-badges and self-importance, but a large-minded, friendly gathering, plenty of children joining us all for meals and spending the day in the lovely mountain-top park or in a room set aside for them with toys and with the most heavenly views in all directions....friendly Bishop opened the events with an excellent talk. Everyone very realistic about the problems facing Europe, and the Church in Europe, atmosphere well-informed, thoughtful, talkative.

Jamie and I were the first speakers on Saturday morning. For most of the weekend we all spoke German, but I was able to give my speech in English: it was about childhood, and the way the culture of childhood is being attacked in Britain and in the West (regular readers of this Blog will know about my indignation re filthy teenage mags, removal of good books from children's libraries, etc etc etc.....). Jamie followed on with information about some of the anti-family antics at the United Nations and elsewhere....including alas our latest nasty lesgilsation here at home which will force Catholic adoption agencies to hand children over to homosexual couples for adoption....

The whole tragedy of Europe's sense of losing contact with its authentic roots, and of course of the falling birthrate with all that this means, was a theme echoing through all the talks and discussions. It was so good to be able to talk in a frank, open and genuine way. Excellent bookstall (with a number of excellent new books about the Holy Father plus of course, lots by him), good conversations, useful contacts....

READ ON!!

We hear about the problems of the Church in Austria, but on Sunday morning, at 8 am the great church (and I do mean great - think Brompton Oratory, but larger) was FULL for Mass, with lots of singing. And that wasn't the main Mass of the day - that came later, and the church was packed again, and with more music. Then, it being Divine Mercy Sunday, the whole place was full - very, very full - of pilgrims all afternoon, families with children, older people, and the church was overflowing for a big service, led by young people with songs and readings, and two looooooong lines of penitents approaching each confessional.

AND MORE.....

We spent our last evening with friends on a glorious walk through the woods and out along the mountain-path to the inn where a big jug of most was waiting (local cider, made with pears) and delicious speck and cheeses and so on....We stopped at the Turkish Chapel, site of the place where a Turkish soldier was halted en route to burn and sack Sonntagberg, his horse sinking into the ground, and the village being saved (the great basilica was built in thanksgiving - see the full story on the Sonntagberg website. Then we took the path along the line of the hill, past farms and with snow-topped mountains in the distance, each turn lovelier than the last, and all the time soft April air, and good talk with good friends,and a senser of Easttertide and of Divine Mercy.... A glowing sunset turned all the edges of the world red in the west. The old Austrian name for the West is Abendland - the evening land.....


AND THEN SALZBURG.....
On Monday, as a treat, J. and I gave ourselves a full day together exploring the city of music and Mozart and churches and more...a swift train to Salzburg, lots of wurzel at a pleasant restaurant, then churches galore....in this city, you can, on an ordinary Sunday, choose from a feast of fabulous liturgical music in the Cathedral, or the church of St Peter, or the Franciscan church - all offering the glories of the Mass with music of the sort most people in Britain are only likely to get on Classi FM. Here, it's all there in the setting for which it was intended, ie the Mass!, and it's free, and is simply part of the city's life! We found the convent where Maria von Trapp tried her vocation, and I found its dark Medieval chapel a great contrast to the baroque glories of the city's churches, no wonder she went running to the hills just to get a feeling of space and width and joy...of course there are now "Sound of Music" tours and special buses and so on...meanwhile we found churches and fountains, cafes and street-stalls, pony-and-trap rides and lines of fat teenagers on school-trips with, all bare-middled and in tight low-slung jeans and looking rather glum as the fashion is....

As we enjoyed our final coffee-and- thick-cream (me) and beer (J), the bell of the cathedral pealed out for the solemn Mass that was being held to celebrate the Pope's birthday, with a promise of a feast of joyful music. His picture dominated the newspapers, and special stamps commissioned to mark the anniversary, and he's visiting Austria later this year, leading pilgrims to the great shrine at Mariazell....

And then finally to the airport and the last flight out of the city at night-time, and first sight of a British newspaper for some days: the Independent, with a vicious story denouncing young doctors for refusing to do abortions and hinting that more coercive laws might be neccessary in order to crush this sort of moral and Christian tendency...

A feeling of the holiday coming to an end....British drunks shouting on the plane, and then the foul-mouthed youth next to me looked suddenly all pale and vulnerable as the descent into London was announced and he confided that he simply hated flying and was scared, and I found myself wanting to offer him a rosary to hold....

And then home, and a great pile of letters, and much bustle to get clothes washed and things organised for a busy morning start to a new week and everyday work....

Thursday April 13th 2007

GLORIOUS EASTER

After a beautiful Holy Week, a glorious Easter, celebrated with the family and beginning with the Easter Vigil at the Oxford Oratory. Then chocolate eggs,country walks, family meals...and on to J's family in Somerset for more of the same, plus a day on the beach with the creation of a magnificent sandcastle...

Home now, but only briefly as we are off to a conference in Austria.

Note to the young correspondent who wants to send in an essay for the Catholic Young Writer Award. All you have to do is choose a hero or heroine FROM AMONG THE CANONISED SAINTS OF THE CHURCH and write about him/her - no more than four A4 pages, explaining why you admire him/her, the message of his/her life, etc. Send the entry to: Catholic Young Writer Award, 34 Barnard Gardens New Malden KT3 6QG to arrive before April 30th. Can be typed on a computer or ahndwritten. You must be of secondary school age (ie 11-18). Make sure you put your full name and full postal address on the entry.

HOLY WEEK....DOMESTICITY....

Leafing through cookery books to get necessary recipes for Easter goodies, I found myself browsing one given to me by my sister on my engagement over 25 years ago... on the flyleaf she wrote:"If you cook with love, he'll always eat with pleasure...Always enjoy cooking and don't resort to tins. Much love...". She now lives on the other side of the world, but felt suddenly near. Sent her a mental hug.

Am planning a Simnel Cake but had to tackle some work first. Got a good deal of writing done, interrupted by bits of cooking. Discussion yesterday evening with friends about Hot Cross Buns. Is it worth making one's own? Useful kitchen activity with children/friends for Holy Week or too jolly messy what with yeast and leaving-to-rise and making pastry crosses?

Would value ideas/opinions. The query is not just a personal whim: I'm doing another TV series for EWTN in due course, re Lent and Easter traditions, to match the series I did on Advent and Christmas. This new Lent/Easter series will be broadcast next year, 2008, but we are busy planning it now...I am not short on ideas for things to make, do, eat, pray and sing for this whole season but don't want to offer ideas that are just impractical or silly. (For those who didn't see the Advent/Christmas series, it's all set in a kitchen, and is meant to show ideas for ways of marking all the seasons...)

MAUNDY MATTERS

Tomorrow sees the Chrism Mass at St George's Cathedral, Southwark. I plan to go along to be part of the "Thank you to our priests" which greets the clergy as they process into the Cathedral - excellent initiative of Mulier Fortis which, as you will have read in yesterday's posting, has now spread to Westminster and been a great success. I won't be able to stay for the Mass itself, however because I'm due at the BBC for a radio programme. Later I'll be at the evening Maundy Mass in a London church, always a central point of the whole year. "Ubi caritas...."

AND SO ON....

I don't think one blogs on Good Friday. Then on Holy Saturday I'm meeting Mother in London and we're off to a family gathering for Easter, where Jamie will join us. Later in Easter week, J. and I will go on to Bogle relations in Somerset. What with family and country walks and chocolate eggs and nieces and nephews and talkative meals and being by the sea and relishing every moment I can't see an aunt spending much time blogging. And is there any point, since it would only encourage people to be at home reading it instead of being out in the Easter springtime?

Tuesday April 3rd


"THANK YOU" AT THE CATHEDRAL

We gathered in front of Westminster Cathedral with our big new placard saying "Thank you to our priests", so that we could greet them all as they arrived for the Chrism Mass....and found that a splendid group of young people from St Patrick's, Soho Square, had had the same idea and were there with their placard too! So we joined forces, and were able to give the priests a good and sustained round of applause as they walked, in white vestments, in procession up from Ambroseden Avenue and round through the great doors. They were, it has to be said, hugely appreciative and there was a wonderful atmosphere of friendship so it was really well worth doing. We gave each priest a card saying "Thank you for the service you give as a Catholic priest" and with a quotation about Melchisidech...

And the Chrism Mass was beautiful. I had not realised what glorious prayers there are for the blessing of the oils...I closed my eyes to listen better: all about the dove returning to Noah with an olive branch, and King David, and all sorts of other references to the fruits of the olive tree....and the choir sang some Monteverdi and the cathedral was packed - absolutely packed, so its whole vastness was filled, even to the side-chapels, and with people sitting on the floor and on any convenient set of marble steps. I ended up in St Patrick's chapel - though of course St P couldn't be seen, as all the statues were covered up with purple cloth for Holy Week.

Cardinal Cormac preached about the Holy Father's new Exhortation Sacramentum Caritatis! And at the end of the Mass he announced that there was a copy for each priest to take home...

I should perhaps add that the priestess-lobbyists were outside the cathedral too, poor dears, with their banner. They didn't come in to the Chrism Mass.

Tuesday April 3rd

IN RESPONSE TO NEED.....

I am extending the deadline for entries to the Catholic Writers' Guild CATHOLIC YOUNG WRITER AWARD. New deadline is April 30th. Send me an email WITH YOUR FULL EMAIL ADDRESS IN IT for more information.

There is a £100 cash prize, plus other prizes. We seek essays from young people of secondary school age on the theme "Heroes and Heroines of the Faith" - choose a hero from among the canonised saints of the RC Church and write to us about him. We want evidence that you have studied his life, work, and message. MAKE SURE YOU PUT YOUR FULL NAME AND POSTAL ADDRESS, also your date of birth, on your entry. Max length - 4 sides of A4. Entries cannot be emailed and must be sent by post to:

Catholic Young Writer Award
34 Barnard Bardens
New Malden Surrey KT3 6QG

That's all the information you really need, but email me for full details.

Monday April 2nd

BISCUITS AND ANCENT GREECE

I was halfway through making some Easter biscuits - hands all covered with pastry - when the doorbell rang. Small girl from next door: had we got any books on ancient Greece? Mmm, yes. Several, as it happens. Washed hands, found large book on ancient Greece plus Greek New Testament. Scrambled over low fence (we never use gates and paths as all the houses are stuck together) to pass them over. Showed Greek lettering in Nt, explained ancient Greek v.like NT Greek. Short discussion re ancient Greece. Wooden horse of Troy? Blank looks. Sparta? "Oh yes - they were brave. It was a separate city and they were Spartans". Told her about the heroes of Thermopolae (sp?):"Go stranger, tell Sparta..etc..." Scrambled back to biscuits and kitchen thinking heroic thoughts. Have always admired Sparta, and at school our classes were named after ancient peoples, and we were Spartans - our parallel class were Athenians, not a patch on us. Chuntered Spartan epitaph as I worked the next batch of pastry. ("Go, Bogle, tell biscuits....")

Monday April 2nd

"CARING" RUBBISH

Entries arrive for the 2007 "Catholic Young Writer" Award sponsored by The Keys, The Catholic Writers' Guild. This annual Award was my idea, and it's been going for several years now, but unless we get some better entries than these, we won't be awarding the shield this year. These are hopeless: ill-written and with little or no punctuation, but also, and much more worryingly, devoid of any content whatever. Pupils had been asked to choose a hero or heoine from among the saints of the Church, and write about that person, with a note about why he or she had appealed to them. In this batch of entries, all we get is "Mary Magdalen was a caring person" and "St Anne was a caring person", plus, in a couple of cases, a sudden change of style and a couple of sentences copied down from the Internet, so there is a sudden muddled statement about Mary Magdalen's links with Provence or St Anne's appearance in Christian art. Er....copying things directly from another source without attribution used to be called cheating, no? And one child has got St Anne, the mother of the Virgin, mixed up with St Anne Line, giving us the hilarious information that St Anne was born in the 16th century and was the mother of Our Lady...

I know that most Catholic schools don't teach much in the way of the Catholic Faith, but this latest evidence of how bad things are is very, very depressing.

I am particularly struck by the endless repetition of the cliche about being a "caring person". This is mantra that pupils are evidently taught, as it crops up too in the essays from small children that we get in the Reliogious Education Project run by ther Association of Catholic Women. Memo to any Catholic teacher reading this blog: if you want to give children anything of value connected with the Faith, don't give them cliches. Ditch any reference to some one bing "caring". Saints can be courageous, loving, tender, heroic, eccentric, noble, repentant, loyal, and more. To slither into saying that St Mary Magdalen was a "caring person", and to make dozens of teenagers copy out such glop, is to fail utterly in any attempt to communicate anything of value at all.

Monday April 2nd

PALM SUNDAY IN LONDON

A glorious Palm Sunday. Procession of palms at Brompton Oratory: fabulous singing in the church with both the children's choir and the professional choir, prayers and the blessing of great palm branches and hundreds and hundreds of lesser leaves held aloft, then the great doors were flung open and we went out into the sunshine, round through past the Oratory House, with the processional Cross leading, and the choirs singing, and members of the Confratenity of something-or-other (Jamie is a member and looked splendid in his red-hooded robe). A great concourse of people, out though the gates and down that short stretch of road, just into busy London for a moment as Christ went into Jerusalem...and then back into the great church and the solmen chanting of Christ's Passion and then the Mass.

Afterwards, much milling about and greeting of friends - people flock to the Oratory for Holy Week. We had already made plans to meet the E. family there, and over refreshments with them in the parish hall we made plans: the men went off to get supplies of picnic food while we organised the children and soon we were all off to Kensington Gardens. The Princess Diana Memorial playing-ground is excellent, with its pirate ship and (my personal favourite) its musical paving-stones and quiet corner where you can stand by some magic posts and hear the sounds of the sea (yes, really! Recordings hidden in the posts, I suppose, but it's a lovely corner, all planted with sea-grass and drifting with sand and pebbles). We had a delicious picnic, the four children (the oldest, T. is my godson),scrambled about in bare feet and disappeared into the glories of the playground (did I also mention that it has Indian wigwams, innumerable places to climb,and a village of wooden Goldilock-style houses?)and we all sat and talked and relaxed and enjoyed ourselves.

Home late, palm branches and all, and supper on laps while we watched a borrowed DVD "The Winslow Boy" (v. good)

Friday March 20th

BUSY LONDON DAYS.....

To central London to meet a small niece from school... We always hugely enjoy time with nieces and nephews, all of whom have given and continue to give endless pleasure. When they are small, Jamie spends a lot of the time swinging them around upside-down and throwing them up in the air...

Current Catholic Herald has a front-page report on the Pope's recent speech about the future of Europe which is very, very interesting and worrylingly to the point. It echoes something he said a few years ago as Cardinal Ratzinger, in an interview with a German journalist:"When any society turns away from fellowship with the liiving God, it cuts the inner roots of its social organism."

Latest issue of AD2000 arrived from Australia this morning - always a good read. Review of Aidan Nicholls' book on "Catholic Thought since the Enlightenment", and a good feature on Christian-Moslem dialgue. There is also a heart-rending letter about the plight of inmates in some of Africa's prisons, with an address to contact through which some help could be given (click on the link and find out more).

We have friends in Australia who are involved in all the exciting preparations for World Youth Day, which tales place in Sydney in 2008....

Thursday March 29th

TO AUSTRIA
Jamie and I are off to Austria in a couple of weeks, to speak at a conference at Sonntagberg, where a large pilgrimage centre is run by friends of ours. It is always glorious to go there - mountains, friends, wonderful walks, a quite fabulous baroque basilica, and a sense of largeness and hence of life's boundless possibilities. My only worry is that the conference will mostly be in German, and I certainly can't make an adequate speech in that language. I have asked if I can do mine mostly in English, and have a translator on hand. I can do an introductory bit in German, but will then have to ask permission to relapse into my native tongue...when I am speaking German, I can hear not only my strong English accent but also a childlike use of wrong verbal tenses, which makes people smile and when I apologise for the poor grammar, they laugh and say not to worry, they are hugely enjoying it...

....AND TEA IN LONDON

Yesterday, Christiana von Habsburg, whom we met at a recent conference in Rome, came to London and we had a get-together of some like-minded women to learn about the study centre in Rome with which she has become involved.It's the Institute for Studies on Women and is exploring the "new feminism"...there are talks and lectures, and one can even do a full-time study course and get a degree... I got interested in all this some years ago I attended the United Nations conference at Copenhagen which was looking at international development, and where there were concerted attempts by well-financed American and European lobby groups to highjack the thing for an agenda promoting abortion which was not what the poorer nations of the world thought the whole event was meant to be about... I was impressed at the time by the (elegant, and multi-lingual) women representing the Holy See, who gave a good press conference, smoothly run and with intelligent and perceptive contributions to the issues being raised.(It was also great fun meeting people from the wide range of independent groups representing various pro-life and pro-family causes, and the days that we spent together working and lobbying remain in my mind as exciting, exhausting, and with a wonderful sense of teamwork).

Tuesday March 27th

BLAIR'S HAPPY ANYWAY

Tony Blair - remember all those reports that he's about to become a Catholic? - says he gave a skip of joy at seeing Britain's first gay-marriage style Civil Union. And he's given unqualified backing to the militant homosexualist lobby group Stonewall which will now be able to start lots of work in schools following the Govt's new Sexual Orientation Regulations which ban Catholic schools from putting the Church's teachings in this area. See the speech that Blair gave last night at a big Stonewall celebration.

AND WHAT DOES THE HOLY FATHER SAY?

In a (rather profound and moving) exhortation on the Eucharist, Sacramentum Caritatis, Pope Benedict, summing up the recent Bishops' Synod on the subject recalls their emphasis on "Eucharistic Consistency". He goes on to explain what this means:

"Worship pleasing to God can never be a purely private matter, without consequences for our relationships with others: it demands a public witness to our faith. Evidently, this is true for all the baptised, yet it is especially incumbent upon those who, by virtue of their social or political position, must make decisions regarding fundamental values, such as respect for human life, its defence from conception to natural death, the family built upon marriage between a man and a woman, the freedom to educate one's children, and the promotion of the common good in all its forms. These values are not negotiable. Consequently, Catholic politicians and legislators, conscious of their grave responsibility before society, must feel particularly bound, on the basis of a properly formed conscience, to introduce and support laws grounded in human nature. There is an objective connection here with the Eucharist(1.Cor 11:27-29). Bishops are bound to reaffirm constantly these values as part of their responsibility to the flock entrusted to them." (emphasis mine)

Anyone written to Ruth Kelly yet? (I genuinely want to know. I think the woman's in a bind about this).

Monday Jan 26th 07

MARTYRS' WALK
Meeting in London to plan the Martyrs' Walk, organised by members of Miles Jesu. The date is June 23rd, and everyone will meet at 11 am at Tower Hill, where Saints John Fisher and Thomas More gave their lives for the Faith. We'll be walking to Tyburn, via stops at Greyfriars and at St Patrick's Church, Soho Square, where there will be talks, and Benediction....

The week before, on Friday June 15th, I'll be giving a talk at Westminster Cathedral (the Hinsley Room, just alongside the Cathedral) about the history of the Church in England, from Augistine's landing in Kent through the centuries to the present day and its opportunities.

For more information on all of this, contact Miles Jesu at 0208 764 0341.

Monday March 26th

HAPPY WEEKEND

Saturday afternoon saw us at an adventure area in Kent, with three young nieces and their parents, plus 17 other children, all energetically doing an assault course, firing vegetable-paints at targets, running a complicated tyre-carrying relay race and making rafts out of crates and plastic barrels and floating them perilously across a pond with team members on board. Don't bother to ask if Auntie Joanna fell in - of course she did, but this didn't stop me, or the others who got similarly soaked and muddied, from enjoying a hearty tea...however, once back at the house with a glass of wine and a log fire and a change of clothes, I found that cosy exhaustion was gradually overwhelming me...

...and on Sunday morning we had to get up early to get to Mass (in quite the most hideous church I've ever visited, which is saying a good deal. It was built c. 1977, had a messy, "cardboard" feel, the tabernacle placed weirdly and bleakly to the rear, an entrance area littered with notices and posters of the type that look busy but which remain largely unread,and a general air of fussy incoherence).

Then on to a point-to-point, something which I haven't attended for years. I hadn't realised that despite the official anti-hunting laws, and the general aboliton of the traditional farming-based rural way of living, there is still a sense of life in country activities. Lots of commercial support: tents selling (expensive) smart clothing, wellies, barbour jackets etc; stalls offering everything from game pie and Pimms to burgers-n-chips; a roundabout and bouncy castle or two; arts-and-crafts tents with v. expensive furniture and rocking-horses....and at the heart of it the horses and the races and the huntsmen in traditional ultra-elegance. I don't want to get into the pro-and anti-hunting debate (I'm a townie, brought up in suburbia)so won't be publishing any comments on the subject (endless debates elsewhere). I merely note what I saw at the point-to-point and must add that after a traditional picnic, wandering round the displays and stalls, watching the races, and lots of chat with family-and-friends, I eventually succumed to slumber in a comfortable picnic chair, wearing two waterproof jackets and a pair of thick socks (it was a pleasant day, but cold).

Saturday

A NIGHT AT THE OPERA

Yesterday evening to the Bloomsbury Theatre: excellent production of Mendelsohn's opera Camacho's Wedding in which nephew G. was singing. It was a delight: we arrived tired at the end of an unusually hectic and demanding week, but the music and the energy of this spirited production energised us, and we hugely enjoyed ourselves. It's good to be part of a city where a University theatre can put on a production of this quality and style. The chorus was strong and effective, the plot suitably convoluted (young lovers must separate as bride's father has decided she must murry a rich man instead, friends help to try to ensure all ends well, after innumerable muddles they finally do....)and the music glorious. Mendelsohn wrote it when only 14!!

Saturday

EVENING IN BRIGHTON

On Wednesday evening I was in Brighton, speaking at St Joseph's Church as part of a series of talks on "Catholicism for the Curious". As I drew up to the church, memorioes rushed back: I was last there 17 years ago, to gather support for the 1990 International Congress for the Family, a massive event of which Jamie was the organiser. On that occasion, I was asking local families if they would consider hosting some visitors for the Congress - specifically, visitors from eastern Europe who were unable to afford hotel fees...As I recounted this memory at the start of my talk, a hand shot up from among the audience and an elderly lady called out "Yes! And we are still in touch with our two Hungarians! They've become close family friends and have been back to visit several times!" Everyone broke into applause and it made a wonderful beginning to the evening.

The church is a large and rather splendid one, numbers attending were rather good for a (cold) weekday evening, and the atmosphere excellent. The nice parish priest was extremely welcoming: he was in the church quietly praying when I arrived, and when he finished he welcomed me with a warm smile, and took me off for a mug of tea and made me feel very much at home. There is a small group of young people living as a Benedictine community in a house near the church, and they were the initiative behind the series of talks. A large number of people from the parish go every year to "Celebrate!" the big family gathering organised by the Catholic Charismatic movement - where I have also been a speaker several times, and so that brought another wave of renewal of contacts.

Part of my talk centred on the Calendar - how the Church's feasts and seasons tell the story of our salvation, and how it all fits together. People always enjoy discovering - or rediscovering - the traditions associated with the Faith, and I always learn more as people add information or we tackle some new aspect via questions. This time, there was one young enthusiast who had written to HM the Queen suggesting that she revive the authentic custom of washing the feet of twelve poor men on Maundy Thursday, rather than just distributing Maundy nmoney...All in all a most cheery and agreeable evening. Home late as a train sped up to London, and I caught another back to the suburbs and cycled home from Wimbledon through silent and chilly streets.

Friday March 23rd

DATELINE LONDON

Hectic week, little time for blogging.... due to a major speaking engagement on the South Coast, I had to miss the torchlit vigil on Wednesday night at which a great crowd, led by Evangelical Christians, stood in opposition to the loathsome Sexual Orientation Regulations which were whisked through Parliament. This week's Catholic Herald has a front-page headline in which Cardinal Cormac rightly denounces the lack of any real opportunity for full Parliamentary debate on this issue.

One of the most horrible aspects of this tragic piece of legislation is that Ruth Kelly, who has always publicly affirmed her Catholicism, spearheaded the drive to get these unjust regulations passed into law. Under her driving-power, Catholic schools could now be legally forced to teach the acceptability of lesbian and homosexual activity, Catholic organisations banned from publicly proclaiming the Catholic treachings in this area.

I invite readers of this blog to join me in writing to:

Mrs Ruth Kelly MP
House of Commons
London SW1

to ask her specifically why she believes Catholics and other Christians should be restricted in this way.

Tuesday

A DESPERATE PLEA!!!

PLEASE , dear correspondents to this blog - understand that I cannot reply to you unless you send me an email address! A nice lady has written saying she wants to get in touch about a speaking engagement. I'm delighted to accept such an engagement: but I CAN'T GET IN TOUCH WITH YOU UNLESS YOU GIVE ME AN ADDRESS!!!!

COLD WEATHER

Rushing about my bike....speaking at a school in Kent, re Tamezin magazine....I give a talk on journalism, we have a mock press conference (today I was, by turns, a mother whose baby had just been rescued in a fire, and then the rescuer....)and also learn to write headlines, think about follow-up features, etc etc. It is great fun. The idea is to encourage young writers. Tamezin runs a Young Journalists' Award which involves a competition: this year's theme is "inspirational interviews".....Tamezin is a real alternative to other teenage magazines and is beginning to be v. popular with young readers....

Very cold weather today, but I prefer it to great heat.I relish cups of coffee at railway stations - a vast improvement on the revolting stewed tea and dreary sandwiches available there in my youth......

WEIRD SILENCE

I'm still waiting for some response from our Bishops - or some of them, or one of them - in response to the magnificent new document out from Rome about the Eucharist. It says so many important things about the Mass, about the need for beauty in the liturgy, about correcting abuses, about parish music, about Latin, about things that affect every parish gathering for worship every Sunday across Britain.....

Hello?

Anyone there?

TV IN MANCHESTER
I arrived in Manchester late on Saturday night, and the city centre was lively with shrieking, shouting young people, many drunk, a few vomiting or slumped in pub doorways. With intermittent blasts of driving rain, it was a vivid but depressing scene. Several thumped on the doors of my taxi as it took me to what was once the Free Trade Hall, the facade now fronting a vast modern and very comfortable hotel all thick glass doors and shiny steel and gleaming dark wood. The taxi-driver said the crowds were celebrating St Patrick's Day, but that most Saturdays were a bit like this. I stepped over a fat drunken girl in the doorway as her friends mumbled awkwardly and a couple of lads started to argue with my taxi-driver.

My room was immensely comfortable and I slept well. Off at an early hour to the TV studios for the "Heaven and Earth Show", broadcast live. As one of three panel members I ddiscussed whether or not Christians are experiencing discrimination in Britain....lively talk. Mentioned obviously, that we shouldn't whinge too much....Christians in Pakistan have had their churches torched and homes destroyed, Christians in China get beaten up or mysteriously disappear to be listed among prisoners three or four years later..... But yes, things are likely to get difficult here...unjust new law about to be passed forcing Catholic schools to teach that homosexual and lesbian activity is an acceptable lifestyle...obviously for some years now Christian doctors haven't been able to work in senior posts in obstetrics unless they abandon their beliefs and perform abortions...etc. Another panel member said it was all the Christians' fault for having too many privileges in the first place, eg having Anglican Bishops in the House of Lords, and being allowed to have Christian schools funded by the taxpayer. I pointed out that for centuries all schools in Britain, and health services too, were run by the Church (and run rather well - the State has been a newcomer, and I'm not sure has yet proved itself as the best provider of either education or health care) so any funding now being produced from the public purse is an extra to what we provided first and purely from a spirit of Christian service.....oh, but debates like this get nowehere really....

Home, just settling to letters etc when phone call from BBC World Service at Bush House in the Strand...would I come and do a News Hour interview re same topic? Looked at kitchen clock. Could just manage it with Mass first. Cycled to Mass - our Sunday evening one is always packed, especially with young people as the parish youth club meets afterwards. Squeezed in to corner of pew. Cycled home. Jamie back from weekend in Yorkshire.Had about five mins with him then taxi came. To BBC, did interview. Staff at Bush House v. anxious about BBC reporter, one of their team, kidnapped apparently by Palestinian group in Gaza. This was subsequently all over the news bulletins. His BBC colleagues all say he is a v. decent and friendly chap, keen to be a fair reporter.

Monday March 19th St Joseph's Day

LOTS TO DO

A hectic weekend. On Saturday Mother and I went to an excellent local production of "The Hound of the Baskervilles" put on by the Sutton Amateur Dramatic Com,pany at Carshalton Theratre. The Sutton group is the oldest amateur dramatic society in the world, and very proud of the fact: among its members there have been several who have gone on to become well-known actors, eg Leslie Howard ("Ashley" in Gone with the Wind....). We hugely enjoyed the play, which was M.'s treat for Mothering Sunday, and was preceded by lunch at The Woodman, where they were offering special dishes for St Patrick's Day (bacon and white sauce, and very good).

It was strange to be sitting in that small theatre - because it used to be Carshalton village hall, and the memories came flooding back.....Back in the 1970s, I made political history - well, for a while - at Carshalton Hall by becoming London's youngest borough counciollor, when I was elected there for the Beddington South ward of the London Borough of Sutton. The votes were counted in Carshalton Hall, and I remember the breathless, pounding excitement as they stacked up and up...a picture of me cavorting with glee later graced the front page of the local newspaper, and more formal portraits some of the national press....

I was a councillor for eight years and loved it. Only ceased when I met Jamie and so decided not to stand for re-electionm but to go on to the next chapter....

And now here I am, and it's 2007, and I am a great-aunt and write books and have been married for over a quarter of a century and have a blog on a computer.

The play was well done, and we really felt convinced we were in a great house in Dartmoor, with the mist swirling and the haunting cry of some terrible beast... "Mr Holmes, it was the footprints of a gigantic hound...". (Oh, if you haven't read the story, go and get it, still available in paperback at any halfway-good bookshop....). It felt quite strange to emerge into pleasant sunlight and Mother caught the 157 buis back home while I cycled on to the sttation and caught the train to town.

Sat March 17th

GROSS AND WRONG

The gross Sexual Orientation Regulations have been rushed through, without a proper Parliamentary debate, in a hurried committee meeting at Westminster at 8.55 am yesterday. These unjust and ill-considered new regulations present massive problems and could mean - among many other injustices - that Catholic schools will be forced to teach thre acceptability of homosexual unions, contrary to Christian teaching.

There is to be a torchlit prayer vigil this coming Wednesday, March 21st, outside Parliament, starting at 7pm.

Christian groups are asking people to contact their MPs and members of the House of Lords over the weekend to get emergency debates etc on Monday.


GOOD NEWS FROM ROME

Reading the Holy Father's superb new document on the Eucharist is a joy. Now - how to get it implemented?

Er....our Bishops don't seem to have commented on it yet.

I predict there will be an attempt to suggest that it's a hard-to-read (it isn't) complicated (not a bit, it's straightforward, powerfully straightforward, and beautifully written) and not relevant to Britain (it speaks directly, almost pointedly, at the liturgical realities of most of our suburban parishes).


ACTIVITIES
Hurtling about in bright spring sunshine. Yesterday evening the final day of our parish mission - spoke on "Catholic for a reason". I was very nervous about giving a talk in my own parish, but it turned out to be a happy evening. We are very, very fortunate in our parish clergy here and our parish priest has done wonderful job with this mission for which we are all grateful. Great atmosphere in the church, sense that the mission has achieved something, good to have been part of it.....

On Thursday evening I spoke to the Confirmation class. They invite me in every year to talk about saints and the calendar etc. I find the prospect of a teenage audience a bit scary but the reality is always fine! It's a good-sized parish: we have 40 young people being confirmed every year. They were receptive and listening - you could have heard a pin drop when I explained that they were to be anointed with sacred oil, as monarchs and priests are anointed, as our Sovreigns have been anointed for over a thousand years....they were interested to learn about the calendar, watched as I explained how the whole round of our seasons is intimately bound up with the Incarnation and Lady Day and Christmas, Lent and Easter and the Passover now made new and universal.....

(and yes, before anyone writes in with criticisms, of course I explained the full reality of Confirmation and that it is no mere symbol like the Queen's Coronation etc).

The idea was also to help them choose a Confirmation name. I explained about names being v. important in the Scriptures...Abram's name changed to Abraham, Simon's to Peter, etc etc....we went through some stories of saints especially heroic ones like Maximillian Kolbe, Edmund Campion, Mother Teresa.

NOW.....
Of to lunch with Mother (Mothering Sunday tomorrow, and today we were going to a matinee as part of the treat). To Manchester overnight to do a TV programme "Heaven and eartbn show" - more on that later.....

Thursday Jan 15th
A packed memorial Mass yesterday evening at St Etheldreda's, Ely Place, the beautiful pre-Reformation church near London's Holborn Circus, for Peter Bearcroft, a leading Catholic layman who did a good deal for the cause of Christian unity. It was Peter who arranged for a plaque to be placed in the Tower of London commemorating St John Fisher, Bishop of Rochester, who died there in 1534 - Peter brought together Anglicans and Catholics in this, and the plaque was blessed and dedicated by the Anglican Bishop of London and the Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster, a moment of history.....

Yesterday evening's Mass included some glorious hymns, notably Newman's "Praise to the Holiest in the height" and Faber's "Faith of our Fathers" (original version), which we sang with all our hearts. Afterwards a crowded gathering in the crypt. Peter was a Papal Knight, and there were Knights of St Gregory and of the Holy Sepuklchre, in their robes and uniforms. He was also a member of the Catholic Union (of which Jamie is chairman), the organisation which speaks for Catholics in public life....

ST ETHELDREDA'S

St Etheldreda's was for many years the Guild Church of The Keys, the Catholic Writers' Guild, and it was good to be back there again. Back in the early 1980s we met in the dining-room, genial Father Kit Cunningham, our Chaplain, presiding. Then as numbers grew , with people crammed round the door and into the hall, we moved to the crypt. Memorable speakers included Charles Moore of the Daily Telegraph on "Why I am not a Catholic" - it was clear from his talk that he was in fact well on the way and a few weeks later he announced his conversion in a massive full-page feature in the newspaper.

The Guild moved from St E's last year when Fr Kit retired as our chaplain, and we now meet at St Mary Moorfields, with Fr Peter Newby. My Blog in recent days has been crammed with many things, so I didn't have a moment to mention that last Wednesday saw a superb Guild meeting with Professor Jack Scarisbrick on "The Gunpowder Plot", dispelling many myths about that tragic chapter of English history and holding the meeting spellbound.

CATHOLIC CULTURAL GROUP

An enquiry to this Blog asks about the Catholic Cultural Group. This is an informal group, meeting in London each month - we have speakers on topics of interest, sometimes arrange visits to places connected with Catholic history etc. If you are London-based, and send me a note of your full name and address, and are genuinely interested, I'll send more information about some of our forthcoming events.

Wed Jan 14th

HURRAH FOR PAPA BENEDICT!!!

Superb new document on the Eucharist just out from Rome. You simply must read Damian Thompson's comments on this, on the Daily Telegraph website

That link didn't work at first, but I have chcked it now (lateish on Friday night) and it's fine.Do read it.

The press here in Britain seems largely to have ignored this important new document....let's make sure it doesn't get buried.....

Wednesday


A HAPPY DAY

My feet hardly seem to have touched the ground we returned from Rome, and this hasty note is to keep faith with my readers.....Sunday was a very happy day, spent looking after a family of lively and delightful children. We had long promised the A.-G. family that we'd give them some babysitting time, and on Sunday the parents had to go out for the day, so I went to take over, doing lunch and spending a wonderful afternoon in the garden in the sunshine....the children were building a treehouse, and we also played "statues" (you whirl them round, then let go - they then "freeze" in whatever position they are in, and you look at them and decide what each one is - a swimmer who has just staggered out after a cross-Channel attempt, a murder victim writhing on the ground, a pop singer swaggering with a microphone,etc etc.... then at a given signal they must all start to act out these roles, to everyone's noisy enjoyment, and on another signal stop and freeze again. First to move is out, last one in swings everyone else round and the game starts again.....). We ate roast chicken, and were settled with a lively game of "Monopoly" when the parents returned and the day finished when Jamie came to join in and we all had pancakes.....Jamie always throws children around, turns them upside down etc, while they shriek and plead for more. Fortunately the roast chicken, pancakes etc stayed inside....

Monday saw Tea at the House of Lords, with David Alton as host.....two American visitors, Robert Royal, author of excellent book "Martyrs of the 20th century", Prof John O'Callaghan of Notre Dame University.....lots of good conversation. David had just come from the debate about the future of the Lords, and returned there as we finished tea....

In the evening, a most interesting talk at the Catholic Cultural Group by Philip Goddard, on the origins of the Holy Week ceremonies. It was fascinating to learn about how Christians of the early centuries in Jerusalem marked Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, and Good Friday....interesting to note that some things, such as the Mandatum with its washing of feet, are actually later arrivals (it seems to have started in monasteries where the care of guests was seen as linked with Christ's washing of the Apostles' feet....) . Of course there are all sorts of differences between those early times and now, but what seemed to me remarkable was how much is the same, especially in the celebration of Easter, and baptism - the very words of renouncing Satan and all his works, the donning of a white garment, and so on. And the reading of Christ's Passion, and waving of plams in procession on Palm Sunday....well, it could be a description of any and every parish in which I have ever marked that day.

Yesterday, Tuesday, involved a good deal of hurrying about: talk on "Celebrating traditional feasts and seasons" at an Anglican Mothers' Union in Coulsdon (lovely church, daffoldils nodding in pretty churchyard, friendly people, and we looked at everything from Hot Cross Buns to how to colour eggs with nettles or onion skins, from the origins of the word "Shrove" to the intricacies of the Julian and Gregorian calendars.....). Then on to London, tea at Newman House in Gower Street, Catholic chaplaincy for University of London. The chaplain, Father Peter, is a friend and joined us at a cheery and talkative tea.... incidentally, their Palm Sunday procession is a real sight to enjoy, as they walk down Gower Street with massive bunches of plams aloft....My most agreeable nephew G. presided at tea with generous platefuls of buns and it was all deeply enjoyable. Home late as mild problems with trains.

Saturday, late

THE ETERNAL CITY.........

Well, Rome was glorious. I flew home today, then had to get to London in time to give a lecture (I made it!!) then hurried home, got to Mass, and was ready to collapse cosily over a mug of tea but....among my emails was a delightful one from my big sister in NZ, with glorious pix of a family wedding Down Under, and lots of nice chat and "how was Rome? ..." and her pix gave so much pleasure I want to reciprocate...so here goes....

A few snapshots really, as I'm still whirling from travel and images and so on....
the trip began with a 4am cycle ride through the dark suburbs to Wimbledon and a train to Gatwick....and on arrival at Ciampino I felt v. proud of myself negotiating safe arrival via buses and the Metro to the conference hotel in the Via Aurelia (only got a taxi for the very last part, from the taxi rank near thr Vatican musuems).....conference a wonderful gathering tackling family policy..... some good speakers including a Polish MEP, and a Spanish journalist (golly, the current Spanish Government sound a ghastly lot!).....in the early evening we met friends for drinks, hurrying across St Peter's Square in the gloaming, that wonderful dome illuminated.....then a splendid dinner with MUCH lively conversation, in which Jamie used his French and German and I rather tamely stuck to English (did better at lunch the next day)....on Friday morning an enjoyable potter around Rome....cobbled streets, a cappucino and breakfast at a friendly cafe while we wrote postcards...the Vatican Post Office with its own stamps and enjoyably village-Post-Office feel.... in the city,shops crammed with elegant clothes, expensive goods, a sense of prosperity and all v. enjoyable.....but vile pornographic advertisments at Termini railway station, making it embarrassing when you wanted to stare at adjacent train times...an evening visit to the Chiesa Nuova (where Palestrina is buried - did you know that? Nor did I), and pasta and seafood in a restaurant almost opposite, followed by coffee in...oh, what's that Square not far away, with fountains and space that feels like a set from an opera....a friend who was there a few weeks ago said there was a superb children's carnival parade there, with dozens of children dressed (this year's popular outfit, apparently!) as cacti, complete with spikes!!

It was all hugely enjoyable. We didn't waste much time sleeping, which is probably why I'm now feeling blurred, but, goodness, it was fun!

Oh, and I looked up as we crossed St P's square, and all the windows were dark except those where the Pope lives, where lights were bright and glowing, and one imagined him sitting with papers and, one hopes, the odd mug of tea and a favourite snack.....

I loved Rome. Even this morning's hurry to the airport was fun, and I dozed on the plane, then a sudden air of unreality scurrying to the train and hurtling from Gatwick to....Balham, where I was talking to some young engaged couples! I hope that something of the enthusiasm and joy kindled by the conference spilled over to them.

And now I'm going to sleep.