Tuesday, August 29, 2017
EWTN...
...the international Catholic TV network based in America now has a base in Britain too. Annunciation House in Walsingham was formally opened today, with Bishop Alan Hopes blessing the house, and Michael Warsaw of EWTN cutting a ribbon across the main door....and a goodly crowd of people from all sorts of groups involved with Walsingham and with various Catholic groups and organisations all celebrating afterwards at Elmham House the Shrine Bureau.This whole project is part of a great teaming up with the Shrine at Walsingham and Mgr John Armitage its Rector...great plans for the future and many good things will flow from all of this for the evangelisation of ur country from England's Nazareth...
Monday, August 28, 2017
How to describe...
...Youth 2000 at Walsingham?
The Blessed Sacrament standing atop of a glowing stack of candles. Young faces, hundreds of them, lit by the glow. Music, singing, long periods of silence. All of this in a vast tented cathedral...and all in the glorious Norfolk countryside....
The particular theme of Youth 2000 is an encounter with God: their specially-made stand for the candles and the Blessed Sacrament evokes thoughts of the Burning Bush, and God's presence among men.
Young people come from across Britain: they bring their own tents and they camp, and large fields adjoining the Shrine at Walsingham are taken over for this purpose. In addition to to great Tabernacle Tent, there are other marquees - this year labelled Goodness, Truth, and Beauty - where talks, workshops and discussions are held. There is a full programme, with opportunities to learn about all sorts of things, from Lectio Divina to the Church's teaching on marriage, from poetry to monasticism...
Auntie Joanna's tasks included a talk on "The Gender Agenda" - a topic covered at the New Dawn event, and other Catholic gatherings this summer - and to lead a walk around Walsingham Village, telling its history...
All week the splendid Friars of the Renewal have been a ministering presence, and it is a joy to see them in their grey habits, along with the Sisters of the Renewal, Dominicans, and members of other religious orders, plus a great many parish priests from various parts of the country...
The Blessed Sacrament standing atop of a glowing stack of candles. Young faces, hundreds of them, lit by the glow. Music, singing, long periods of silence. All of this in a vast tented cathedral...and all in the glorious Norfolk countryside....
The particular theme of Youth 2000 is an encounter with God: their specially-made stand for the candles and the Blessed Sacrament evokes thoughts of the Burning Bush, and God's presence among men.
Young people come from across Britain: they bring their own tents and they camp, and large fields adjoining the Shrine at Walsingham are taken over for this purpose. In addition to to great Tabernacle Tent, there are other marquees - this year labelled Goodness, Truth, and Beauty - where talks, workshops and discussions are held. There is a full programme, with opportunities to learn about all sorts of things, from Lectio Divina to the Church's teaching on marriage, from poetry to monasticism...
Auntie Joanna's tasks included a talk on "The Gender Agenda" - a topic covered at the New Dawn event, and other Catholic gatherings this summer - and to lead a walk around Walsingham Village, telling its history...
All week the splendid Friars of the Renewal have been a ministering presence, and it is a joy to see them in their grey habits, along with the Sisters of the Renewal, Dominicans, and members of other religious orders, plus a great many parish priests from various parts of the country...
Monday, August 21, 2017
Spent the day...
...wrapping, packing and posting prizes for the 2017 Schools Bible Project, which attracts entries from schools across Britain. A small team of volunteers worked hard all day in the John Paul II Room at a local church - a large room in a well-equipped parish centre...we needed all the space as we worked with stacks and stacks of books, wrapping materials, brochures, and letters, with relays of parcels being hauled along to the local Post Office, and brews of tea being brought up from the kitchen.
This nationwide project invites pupils at secondary schools to have an encounter with Christ by studying his life....they imagine themselves present at one of the major events and write about it. Prizes are awarded for the best essays, and the main winners come to London to receive theirs from our Trustees, at a gathering traditionally held at Westminster and preceded by a tour of the Houses of Parliament. Other prizes are mailed to schools
Late at night, after tackling emails etc here at home, I browsed the internet, picked up news and views from various websites and blogs and so on...much Vatican gossip, the Pope v.v. unpopular etc. It all seems remote from the real work of Christian service and evangelisation.
This nationwide project invites pupils at secondary schools to have an encounter with Christ by studying his life....they imagine themselves present at one of the major events and write about it. Prizes are awarded for the best essays, and the main winners come to London to receive theirs from our Trustees, at a gathering traditionally held at Westminster and preceded by a tour of the Houses of Parliament. Other prizes are mailed to schools
Late at night, after tackling emails etc here at home, I browsed the internet, picked up news and views from various websites and blogs and so on...much Vatican gossip, the Pope v.v. unpopular etc. It all seems remote from the real work of Christian service and evangelisation.
Met...
...Clare Anderson, with whom I co-authored a book on St John Paul the Great and have done some TV work ....she will be spending much of this week, with me and other volunteers, packing and posting prizes for the 2017 Schools Bible Project.. We mused on the absurdities of living as Christians in the dying culture of the West...we swapped news (weddings, babies, joyful family things - a while back, we discovered, following a dinner discussion about family trees, that our husbands are in fact distant cousins, and we all find this rather fun and satisfying)...we talked books and ideas and current events....we agreed to meet tomorrow for Mass at the local church where we will be using the John Paul Room for the packing-and-posting work...
It's been a busy weekend. Sunday Mass here and the children's choir is back after the summer break. Then a cheery family afternoon with a beloved nephew (helping Auntie with computer problems - see below) and his delightful wife and enchanting children, plus ice-cream and noise and fun and plans for blackberrying....
On Saturday evening a rather splendid dinner at this University where I am doing research into its history. Former students celebrating a 50th anniversary reunion....delicious meal in a candlelit setting in the Waldegrave Rooms: I was asked to speak about the history, and also gathered info, anecdotes, contact details and more...
It's been a busy weekend. Sunday Mass here and the children's choir is back after the summer break. Then a cheery family afternoon with a beloved nephew (helping Auntie with computer problems - see below) and his delightful wife and enchanting children, plus ice-cream and noise and fun and plans for blackberrying....
On Saturday evening a rather splendid dinner at this University where I am doing research into its history. Former students celebrating a 50th anniversary reunion....delicious meal in a candlelit setting in the Waldegrave Rooms: I was asked to speak about the history, and also gathered info, anecdotes, contact details and more...
Sunday, August 20, 2017
I left...
...my laptop on a train, so if you are wondering why there have no entries to this Blog for the past, week, you now know the reason. Ghastly panic....contacting Lost Property etc etc...but decision taken to buy a new laptop, and crucial work safe because I had emailed it anyway...so...
Using various borrowed computers, I have been able to access emails and deal with all my work, but access to the Blog proved impossible. All is now rectified thanks to a generous husband and a wonderful nephew....I now have a new laptop and it is all connected and things start afresh....
And if you want to know about my work, you might get a flavour of it here...
Using various borrowed computers, I have been able to access emails and deal with all my work, but access to the Blog proved impossible. All is now rectified thanks to a generous husband and a wonderful nephew....I now have a new laptop and it is all connected and things start afresh....
And if you want to know about my work, you might get a flavour of it here...
Thursday, August 10, 2017
...and if you want...
...some of Auntie Joanna's Blackberry Jam, Bramble Cheese, or Apple Butter, you must come to the 11 am Mass at the Church of the Most Precious Blood, London Bridge, this Sunday, as there will be lots and lots on sale over coffee-n-biscuits afterwards...
If the nice "Yorkmum"...
...who recently wrote to me at this Blog would give me an EMAIL ADDRESS (which I will not publish) I would love to reply...
To Sussex...
...for a meeting with the wonderful team that run the admin for the Catholic History Walks...over a cheery supper at their home not far from the sea, we reminisced about how the History Walks project began some years ago, and looked at practical plans for the future...
Then the next morning, a glorious walk along by Chichester Harbour. Blackberries ripening on the bushes, wide fields where the harvest has just been brought in, and the great spire of Chichester Cathedral as a landmark in the distance. Out across the water, dozens of sailing boats nipping about, and at the harbour entrance, some very impressive motor craft moving through the lock gates taking people out for a day of cruising...
Then the next morning, a glorious walk along by Chichester Harbour. Blackberries ripening on the bushes, wide fields where the harvest has just been brought in, and the great spire of Chichester Cathedral as a landmark in the distance. Out across the water, dozens of sailing boats nipping about, and at the harbour entrance, some very impressive motor craft moving through the lock gates taking people out for a day of cruising...
Tuesday, August 08, 2017
and then...
...after some repacking and organising things at home, another trip to Walsingham. But this time, a Walking Pilgrimage. The Dominican sisters of St Joseph organise an annual John Paul Walk for the New Evangelisation. It starts with an open-air Mass at Bury St Edmunds, but I joined them at Swaffham. Here, we all slept overnight in the sports hall of this school...and after an early morning start, we walk along the footpaths and lanes of Norfolk, alongside great fields of sugar-beet and rustling wheat, making our way sometimes through nettles and brambles, sometimes across mud and puddles, sometimes along comfortable cart-tracks or lovely soft grass...
Mass at this church at Castle Acre, by kind invitation of the vicar and churchwarden. A picnic in the churchyard: Sister Julie is in charge of catering, driving a minibus with supplies of bread and ham and cheese and apples and crunchy chocolate biscuit bars... Then on again, praying the Rosary, and hearing some excellent catechesis from Sister Hyacinthe.
Another warm welcome from the Anglican Rector at West Raynham, and an unforgettable Evensong, led by him in the ruins of an old church before a hearty supper in the village hall. The Rector's wife brought glorious rich fruit cake, and a kind parishioner brought delicious scones with jam and cream. We had use of showers and bathrooms in a local houses, where we were also able to bed down for the night.
And then, on the Sunday morning, the final march into Walsingham,singing and praying...our young Dominican priest joined other clergy to concelebrate Mass, as we joined other pilgrims in the packed church. Then a final walk - this time along the Holy Mile along the old railway line, finishing with Benediction in Church of the Annunciation...
This pilgrimage is so fabulous that it's hard to say goodbye at the end...long farewells and hugs and swapping of email addresses and so on...the minibus to Cambridge, and while the young people chattered away I just slumbered. And then the train to London, and so home...
Mass at this church at Castle Acre, by kind invitation of the vicar and churchwarden. A picnic in the churchyard: Sister Julie is in charge of catering, driving a minibus with supplies of bread and ham and cheese and apples and crunchy chocolate biscuit bars... Then on again, praying the Rosary, and hearing some excellent catechesis from Sister Hyacinthe.
Another warm welcome from the Anglican Rector at West Raynham, and an unforgettable Evensong, led by him in the ruins of an old church before a hearty supper in the village hall. The Rector's wife brought glorious rich fruit cake, and a kind parishioner brought delicious scones with jam and cream. We had use of showers and bathrooms in a local houses, where we were also able to bed down for the night.
And then, on the Sunday morning, the final march into Walsingham,singing and praying...our young Dominican priest joined other clergy to concelebrate Mass, as we joined other pilgrims in the packed church. Then a final walk - this time along the Holy Mile along the old railway line, finishing with Benediction in Church of the Annunciation...
This pilgrimage is so fabulous that it's hard to say goodbye at the end...long farewells and hugs and swapping of email addresses and so on...the minibus to Cambridge, and while the young people chattered away I just slumbered. And then the train to London, and so home...
After the New Dawn gathering at Walsingham...
...I paid an all-too-brief visit to the FAITH Movement's great Summer gathering. As always, crowds of young people. A ceilidhi was in progress as I arrived - there is always a strong Scottish contingent at FAITH events, kilted and enthusiastic, and the dancing goes on until a late hour. The week included daily Mass and prayer, talks and sports and more...it has all grown hugely from the days when we gathered, 40 years ago, in much smaller numbers, at what is now Roehampton University. But as the music swirled and the talk was warm and lively around the bar, and there was the buzz of youth and energy, lots and lots of laughter and fun...it brought joyful memories and an enormous sense of gratitude...
The Summer Session is now held at this school with its beautiful grounds, approached by a walk from the railway station along by lush meadows in the fold of the Surrey hills - every year, I relish this lovely walk, and the peace it brings, especially as I know it will end with a meeting of old friends and a sense of homecoming.
The Summer Session is now held at this school with its beautiful grounds, approached by a walk from the railway station along by lush meadows in the fold of the Surrey hills - every year, I relish this lovely walk, and the peace it brings, especially as I know it will end with a meeting of old friends and a sense of homecoming.
for the Feast of the Transfiguration...
...I found this a moving and powerful read. Blessed Paul VI died on this feast-day. We owe him a debt of thanks for, among much else, the courageous encyclical Humanae Vitae...
Friday, August 04, 2017
The Rosary...
...said - and sung - as a vast procession made its way down to the ancient Walsingham Priory, and then the cool lawn beneath one's feet as we settled for Mass in the Priory grounds...this is always one of the highlights of the New Dawn gathering. An enormous crowd - if the old Priory Church had still been standing, we would have filled it. Thanks to Henry VIII we were in the ruins, and spilling out from what would have been the church, into all the ancilliary areas, and still the crowd kept coming, singing, down the Holy Mile from the Slipper Chapel at Houghton St Giles...
New Dawn was a glorious few days, and it was a delight to meet friends, to have some wonderful discussions, to celebrate the Faith and to tackle serious subjects in an atmosphere of prayer...
There is an underlying seriousness when Catholics get together at present. Things in our country feel bleak, with a sense of social and moral fragility and breakdown, an awareness of great confusion and anger among too many of the young who have been given no understanding of what life is about or how much they are loved by God...
The poor old CofE is not helping much...read Auntie on the subject here...
Tuesday, August 01, 2017
and now...
...on to Norfolk, to the shrine of Our Lady at Walsingham, for the great NEW DAWN gathering...
I'm staying at the very comfortable Elmham House, the Shrine Bureau - and am writing this in the pub next door, where I have been enjoying a good supper and a pin-and-tonic while using the somewhat intermittent Norfolk wifi to catch up on my emails. Which gives me also the opportunity to offer you the latest Portal magazine, in which there is a feature by Auntie about Bl John Henry Newman and a recent trip to his childhood home along by the Thames at Ham...
New Dawn is rather wonderful...lots of lovely families, a variety of talks on Catholic doctrine and moral teachings, rousing singing - though not all to my taste (the words are inspiring, tunes and general style...not so sure) - an atmosphere of prayer, enthusiasm, and great goodwill, There is a tremendous sense of loyalty to the Church and knowledgeable, well-informed discussion about living as Catholics today and celebrating the joy of the Faith. There is much concern about the threats to Christian families seeking to raise their children in freedom. Of course, some can and do educate their own children at home - but this is not possible for all, and anyway the Church must, as of right, be free to run schools and colleges and has a reasonable claim on public funds for some of this as she educates vast numbers of children and has done so for generations. The history of education in our country is Church history.
From the Thames Valley - via a rushed couple of days at home in London - to the wide Norfolk fields...it's been an opportunity to feast on a glory of English views...
New Dawn happens in a vast near the Shrine, with families camping in adjoining field, and a linked youth camp in another alongside...one of the most powerful sights occurred this evening, as people were chatting in the evening sunshine, children frolicking about, strains of singing coming from one group, a buzz of talk from another....the sudden sound of a bell ringing, and a little procession crossed the meadow, a robed priest bearing the Blessed Sacrament aloft, preceded by a server.. Children and adults alike knelt down with complete naturalness and quiet reverence. A lovely moment.
I remembered a similar moment last year and the beauty of it. Oh, may there be, in long and happy years ahead, children at play in a Norfolk field and kneeling joyfully before the Lord in his Sacrament is borne along....
I'm staying at the very comfortable Elmham House, the Shrine Bureau - and am writing this in the pub next door, where I have been enjoying a good supper and a pin-and-tonic while using the somewhat intermittent Norfolk wifi to catch up on my emails. Which gives me also the opportunity to offer you the latest Portal magazine, in which there is a feature by Auntie about Bl John Henry Newman and a recent trip to his childhood home along by the Thames at Ham...
New Dawn is rather wonderful...lots of lovely families, a variety of talks on Catholic doctrine and moral teachings, rousing singing - though not all to my taste (the words are inspiring, tunes and general style...not so sure) - an atmosphere of prayer, enthusiasm, and great goodwill, There is a tremendous sense of loyalty to the Church and knowledgeable, well-informed discussion about living as Catholics today and celebrating the joy of the Faith. There is much concern about the threats to Christian families seeking to raise their children in freedom. Of course, some can and do educate their own children at home - but this is not possible for all, and anyway the Church must, as of right, be free to run schools and colleges and has a reasonable claim on public funds for some of this as she educates vast numbers of children and has done so for generations. The history of education in our country is Church history.
From the Thames Valley - via a rushed couple of days at home in London - to the wide Norfolk fields...it's been an opportunity to feast on a glory of English views...
New Dawn happens in a vast near the Shrine, with families camping in adjoining field, and a linked youth camp in another alongside...one of the most powerful sights occurred this evening, as people were chatting in the evening sunshine, children frolicking about, strains of singing coming from one group, a buzz of talk from another....the sudden sound of a bell ringing, and a little procession crossed the meadow, a robed priest bearing the Blessed Sacrament aloft, preceded by a server.. Children and adults alike knelt down with complete naturalness and quiet reverence. A lovely moment.
I remembered a similar moment last year and the beauty of it. Oh, may there be, in long and happy years ahead, children at play in a Norfolk field and kneeling joyfully before the Lord in his Sacrament is borne along....
To the Thames Valley...
...and the EVANGELIUM conference, in the splendid surroundings of The Oratory School, Woodcote. This conference, now in its 10th year, draws a good numbers of young Catholics from across Britain. Excellent presentations by, among other, Dr Jacob Phillips, on the theology of Pope Benedict XVI, Fr Andrew Pinsent on Faith and Science, Sr Hyacinthe du fos du Rau on on the Virtue of Hope...glorious singing at Mass every day in the big chapel with its poignant War Memorials...a talkative social evening in the main hall with its portraits of the Pope and the Queen and boards with listing School Captains...
I was speaking on The Gender Agenda, and began by expressing thanks to HM Govt for producing such a grossly absurd and horrible plan (changing birth certificates at will when people decide they'd rather pretend they were born a member of the opposite sex) thus ensuring me a large audience - every seat taken and I gave the talk twice.
I was speaking on The Gender Agenda, and began by expressing thanks to HM Govt for producing such a grossly absurd and horrible plan (changing birth certificates at will when people decide they'd rather pretend they were born a member of the opposite sex) thus ensuring me a large audience - every seat taken and I gave the talk twice.
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