Mass of Ages Spring 2019

Mass of Ages The quarterly magazine of the Latin Mass Society

Issue 199 – Spring 2019

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Walsingham: Rogation for the Nation The difficulties of writing Catholic fiction Bishop Athanasius Schneider on the Church on earth and its militant characteristics Plus: news, views, Mass listings and nationwide reports

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Contents

CONTENTS

5 Chairman’s Message Joseph Shaw on new initiatives for 2019 6 LMS Year Planner – Notable events 7 Liturgical calendar

8 The Church on earth and its essentially militant characteristics A talk given by Bishop Athanasius Schneider

10 A problem for novelists

Joseph Shaw on the difficulties of writing Catholic fiction 12 ‘Useless bickerings’

An extract from Una Voce: The History of the Foederatio

Internationalis Una Voce 1964–2003 by Leo Darroch 15 Roman report

Alberto Carosa

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16 Reports from around the country

What’s happening where you are 24 Art and Devotion

Caroline Shaw on Rubens’ Descent from the Cross 26 Comment

Mary O’Regan on Saving Ireland’s Unborn 27 The Egyptian Guide: From Jihad to Joy

Anne-Marie Mackie-Savage reviews a new novel 28 Architecture

Paul Waddington visits The Church of St John, Wigan 31 The Traditional Mass returns to Latvia

A special report by Andris Amolins of Una Voce Latvija 32 Walsingham: Rogation for the Nation 34 Mass Listings 41 Letters

Readers have their say 42 Fads and fashions

Lone Veiler on why Great New Ideas are usually no such thing at all 43 Meeting the Syro-Malabar Catholics of Liverpool

By Neil Addison 46 Crossword and classified advertisements 47 Macklin Street The Latin Mass Society 11-13 Macklin Street, London WC2B 5NH Tel: 020 7404 7284 editor@lms.org.uk Mass of Ages No. 199 Cover image: Our Lady of Walsingham

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Due to the considerable volume of emails and letters received at Mass of Ages it is regrettably not always possible to reply to all correspondents.

31 PATRONS: Sir Adrian Fitzgerald Bt, Lord (Brian) Gill, Sir James MacMillan CBE, Colin Mawby KSG, Charles Moore COMMITTEE: Dr Joseph Shaw – Chairman; Kevin Jones – Secretary; David Forster – Treasurer; Paul Beardsmore – Vice President; Paul Waddington – Vice President; Eric Friar; Alisa Kunitz-Dick; Antonia Robinson; Alastair Tocher; Roger Wemyss Brooks.

Registered UK Charity No. 248388 MASS OF AGES: Editor: Tom Quinn Design: GADS Ltd Printers: Cambrian DISCLAIMER: Please note that the views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the Latin Mass Society or the Editorial Board. Great care is taken to credit photographs and seek permission before publishing, though this is not always possible. If you have a query regarding copyright, please contact the Editor. No part of this magazine may be reproduced without written permission.

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CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE

Preserving that patrimony Joseph Shaw on new initiatives for 2019

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n my last Chairman’s Message I announced new membership rates, and new options for supporting the Latin Mass Society. The Society deserves support, naturally, insofar as it is active, and in this issue, I am pleased to announce a series of new initiatives which I hope will serve to remind readers of just how active it is.

First, we are reviving the Society of St Tarcisius, the LMS’ own Altar Servers’ Guild. This was founded some years ago but for various reasons it was difficult to maintain momentum with it. We are now committed to organising a series of training days, when members can also be enrolled: we are advertising three in London over the next six months, and in due course there will be events outside London too. Among other things the Guild will have a die-cast, enamelled servers’ medal: as I write it is being manufactured for us, and readers can see the artwork.

Second, one of the Society’s unexpected successes of the last couple of years has been the Guild of St Clare: a group dedicated to the making and mending of liturgical vestments. A couple of reports have appeared in Mass of Ages about their ‘Sewing Retreats’, weekends of ora et labora, work and prayer, with the Traditional Mass and spiritual talks from a priest. These now take place twice a year but book out months in advance.

The Guild of St Clare is now arranging a series of sewing days in London to allow a larger number of people to take part in its projects, which, because they require a wide variety of work, can be assisted by people at every level of expertise.

Third, the development of Gregorian Chant, and also of the singing of sacred polyphony, in the context of the Traditional Mass in England and Wales, has been one of our great long-term success-stories. The number of sung Traditional Masses has enormously increased in the decade since Summorum

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Society of St Tarcisius die-cast, enamelled servers’ medal Pontificum freed the ancient Mass, and the standard of chant at these Masses has increased tremendously at the same time. Demand for singers continues to challenge supply. We have long organised an annual Chant Training Weekend, this year taking place in the Oratory School, and this year we are launching a new Chant schola in London, to train a new generation of singers: the Schola Cantorum Ioannis Houghton, named after the proto-martyr of Henry VIII’s revolt from Rome, St John Houghton, Prior of the London Charterhouse. They will be singing once a month in Corpus Christi, Maiden Lane, in London, in the first instance.

Fourth, we know that our members and supporters need space to talk and to think, to make connections between the ancient Mass and its profound spirituality, and their own lives in the darkening world around us, which increasingly resembles the decadent paganism of the Roman Empire, without the fun. This year we are launching the ‘Iota Unum’ series of talks, one a month, to take place in the basement of Our Lady of the Assumption, Warwick Street, in London, with some very distinguished speakers.

Full details of all these initiatives can be found on the LMS website.

The Latin Mass Society has a hardwon reputation for slogging on—like the rather grand lady in this issue’s cartoon.

We slogged on with the old Mass through some pretty tough times, and I never cease to be grateful for those older members, many now gone to their reward, who did the slogging. Today we are called on to make the best of what is something of a renaissance for the old liturgy, even while the decline of the general culture in which we live accelerates, bishops around the world are engulfed in a moral crisis, and the trumpet from Rome sounds an uncertain note.

These things are not unrelated. The crisis of society and of the Church alike represent the unravelling of the idea that normal, civilised, life could be continued while certain key elements of our ancient spiritual patrimony are rejected. As it unravels, more people are going to see the need to do what we are doing: preserving that patrimony. In the meantime, it will continue to sustain us through the most difficult times: and not just to sustain us, but to give the energy and motivation to rebuild, even while so many edifices seem to be crumbling around us.

'No thanks, Sister, I'll slog along with the last one--issued on July 19th, 1570.'

From Cracks in the Clouds, Dom Hubert van Zeller (erstwhile Br Choleric), 1976.

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EVENTS

LMS Year Planner – Notable Events Iota unum talk in London, Friday, 22 February The second of a series of talks, which will focus on topics connected with the everyday life of traditionally-minded Catholics: the domestic church, homeschooling, traditional catechesis, moral instruction, culture (high, common, and religious), religious history etc., takes place in the basement of Our Lady of the Assumption & St Gregory, Warwick Street, London on Friday 22nd February at 7pm. The speaker will be Fr Andrew Pinsent on ‘The Traditional Latin Mass and the formation of the virtues’. There will be a charge of £5 on the door to cover refreshments and other expenses.

St Tarcisius server training day, Saturday, 9 March Men and boys will be able to learn all roles for Low Mass and Sung Mass, and High Mass if there is demand. There will also be a chance for those attending to be enrolled in the Society of St Tarcisius and be promoted from grade to grade. St Mary Moorfields Church, Street, London EC2M 7LS, from 10:30am.

Booking is required, so the organisers have an accurate idea of numbers attending and what they wish to learn; there is no fee.

To book, email tarcisius@lms.org.uk

St Tarcisius server training day, Saturday, 11 May Another opportunity for men and boys to learn to serve the Traditional Mass. To be held in Our Lady of the Assumption & St Gregory, Warwick Street, London from 10:30am. Booking is required, so the organisers have an accurate idea of numbers attending and what they wish to learn; there is no fee. To book, email tarcisius@lms.org.uk Requiem for Prince Rupert Loewenstein, Saturday, 25 May There will be a polyphonic Requiem for Prince Rupert Loewenstein in St Mary Moorfields Church, London on Saturday May at 12 noon. Prince Rupert was a former Patron of the Latin Mass Society. Further details are on our website.

LOOKING AHEAD LMS Pilgrimage to Holywell – Sunday, 7 July AGM and High Mass in Westminster Cathedral – Saturday, 20 July LMS Residential Latin course – 29 July to 2 August LMS Walking Pilgrimage to Walsingham – 22 – 25 August

LMS Pilgrimage to Caversham, Saturday, 16 March The LMS Pilgrimage to Caversham coincides with the Ember Saturday of Lent. We will have a High Mass, the full set of Ember Saturday readings, polyphony from the Newman Concert and a buffet lunch for pilgrims. The celebrant will be Fr Anthony Conlon. The Mass starts at 11.30am. Our Lady and St Anne’s Church, South View Avenue, Reading RG4 5AB. The church of Our Lady and St Anne’s Church is within walking distance of Reading station.

Iota unum talk in London, Tuesday, 26 March The series of talks continues with Stuart & Clare McCullough on ‘The liturgy and crisis pregnancy counselling’. In the basement of Our Lady of the Assumption & St Gregory, Warwick Street, London at 7pm. There will be a charge of £5 on the door to cover refreshments and other expenses.

St Catherine’s Trust Family Retreat and Gregorian Chant Network Weekend, 5 – 7 April These take place once again at the Oratory School, near Reading (RG8 0PJ). For further details see www.stcatherinestrust.org.uk Sacred Triduum By kind invitation of Fr Christopher Vipers, the LMS will once again celebrate the Sacred Triduum in St Mary Moorfields Church, London. We are delighted that Fr Michael Cullinan will be the celebrant throughout. See the poster on page 4 or our website for details.

Iota unum talk in London, Friday, 26 April The fourth of a series of talks, which will focus on topics connected with the everyday life of traditionally-minded Catholics, takes place in the basement of Our Lady of the Assumption & St Gregory, Warwick Street, London on Friday 26 April at 7pm. The speaker will be Dr Joseph Shaw on: ‘Why do they call you “Rigid”?’ There will be a charge of £5 on the door to cover refreshments and other expenses.

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NEWS Write for us!

If you enjoy reading Mass of Ages and feel there is an article you would like to write for us do let us know.

In the first instance contact the Editor with an outline of your proposed article letting us know why you are the person to write it and with details of any photographs or illustrations you are able to supply.

Contact our Editor Tom Quinn at editor@lms.org.uk

FACTFILE Details of all our events can be found on our website, together with booking and payment facilities where applicable. Go to lms.org.uk SPRING 2019

LITURGICAL CALENDAR

© John Aron

Liturgical calendar FEBRUARY 2019 Sun 10 V SUNDAY after EPIPHANY II Cl G Mon 11 APPARITION of the BVM IMMACULATE III Cl W Tue 12 SEVEN HOLY FOUNDERS of the ORDER of the SERVANTS of the BVM CC III Cl W Wed 13 FERIA IV Cl G Thu 14 FERIA IV Cl G Fri 15 FERIA IV Cl G Sat 16 OUR LADY’S SATURDAY IV Cl W Sun 17 SEPTUAGESIMA SUNDAY II Cl V Mon 18 FERIA IV Cl V Tue 19 FERIA IV Cl V Wed 20 FERIA IV Cl V Thu 21 FERIA IV Cl V Fri 22 CHAIR OF S PETER Ap II Cl W Sat 23 S PETER DAMIEN B C D III Cl W Sun 24 SEXAGESIMA SUNDAY II Cl V Mon 25 FERIA IV Cl V Tue 26 FERIA IV Cl V Wed 27 S GABRIEL of the SORROWING VIRGIN C lll Cl W Thu 28 FERIA IV Cl V

MARCH 2019 Fri 1 FERIA IV Cl V Sat 2 OUR LADY’S SATURDAY IV Cl W Sun 3 QUINQUAGESIMA SUNDAY II Cl V Mon 4 S CASIMIR C lll Cl W Tue 5 FERIA IV Cl V Wed 6 ASH WEDNESDAY I Cl V Thu 7 FERIA III Cl V Fri 8 FERIA III Cl V Sat 9 FERIA III Cl V Sun 10 I SUNDAY in LENT I Cl V Mon 11 FERIA III Cl V Tue 12 FERIA III Cl V Wed 13 EMBER DAY II Cl V Thu 14 FERIA III Cl V Fri 15 EMBER DAY II Cl V Sat 16 EMBER DAY II Cl V Sun 17 II SUNDAY in LENT I Cl V Mon 18 FERIA lll Cl V Tue 19 S JOSEPH SPOUSE of the BVM I Cl W Wed 20 FERIA lll Cl V Thu 21 FERIA lll Cl V Fri 22 FERIA lll Cl V Sat 23 FERIA lll Cl V Sun 24 III SUNDAY in LENT I Cl V Mon 25 ANNUNCIATION of the BVM I Cl W Tue 26 FERIA III Cl V Wed 27 FERIA III Cl V

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Thu 28 FERIA III Cl V Fri 29 FERIA III Cl V Sat 30 FERIA III Cl V Sun 31 IV SUNDAY in LENT (Laetare Sunday) I Cl V/ROSE

APRIL 2019 Mon 1 FERIA III Cl V Tue 2 FERIA III Cl V Wed 3 FERIA III Cl V Thu 4 FERIA III Cl V Fri 5 FERIA III Cl V Sat 6 FERIA III Cl V Sun 7 PASSION SUNDAY (I SUNDAY of PASSIONTIDE) I Cl V Mon 8 FERIA in PASSION WEEK III Cl V Tue 9 FERIA in PASSION WEEK III Cl V Wed 10 FERIA in PASSION WEEK III Cl V Thu 11 FERIA in PASSION WEEK III Cl V Fri 12 FERIA in PASSION WEEK III Cl V Sat 13 FERIA in PASSION WEEK III Cl V Sun 14 PALM SUNDAY (II SUNDAY of PASSIONTIDE) I Cl R & V Mon 15 MONDAY in HOLY WEEK I Cl V Tue 16 TUESDAY in HOLY WEEK I Cl V Wed 17 WEDNESDAY in HOLY WEEK I Cl V Thu 18 HOLY THURSDAY I Cl W Fri 19 GOOD FRIDAY I Cl B & V Sat 20 HOLY SATURDAY I Cl V & W Sun 21 EASTER SUNDAY I Cl W Mon 22 EASTER MONDAY I Cl W Tue 23 EASTER TUESDAY I Cl W Wed 24 EASTER WEDNESDAY I Cl W Thu 25 EASTER THURSDAY I Cl W Fri 26 EASTER FRIDAY I Cl W Sat 27 EASTER SATURDAY (Sabbato in Albis) I Cl W Sun 28 LOW SUNDAY I Cl W Mon 29 S GEORGE M I Cl R Tue 30 S CATHERINE of SIENA V III Cl W

MAY 2019 Wed 1 S JOSEPH the WORKER, SPOUSE of the BVM C I Cl W Thu 2 S ATHANASIUS B C D III Cl W Fri 3 FERIA IV Cl W Sat 4 HOLY ENGLISH & WELSH MARTYRS III CI R Sun 5 ll SUNDAY after EASTER II Cl W Mon 6 FERIA IV Cl W Tue 7 S STANISLAUS B M III Cl R Wed 8 FERIA IV Cl W Thu 9 S GREGORY NAZIANZEN B C D III Cl W Fri 10 S ANTONINUS B C III Cl W Sat 11 SS PHILIP & JAMES Aps II Cl R

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FEATURE

The Church on earth and its essentially militant characteristics A talk given by Bishop Athanasius Schneider to a meeting organised by Voice of the Family in St Mary Moorfields, London on 24 May, 2018

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Bishop Athanasius Schneider at St Mary Moorfields

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hen there is no battle, there is no Christendom. When there is no battle, there is no true Church of God, no true Catholic Church. The dramatic situation of "the whole world [which] is in the power of the evil one" (1 Jn 5:19; cf. 1 Pet 5:8) makes man's life a battle (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, 409). The Christian life is indeed a warfare. Saint Paul wrote that "we wrestle" against the powers of darkness. “Our battle is not with flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Eph. 6:12).

The Baltimore Catechism teaches us: “We are called soldiers of Jesus Christ to indicate how we must resist the attacks of our spiritual enemies and secure our victory over them by following and obeying Our Lord. We have good reason never to be ashamed of the Catholic Faith because it is the Old Faith established by Christ and taught

by His Apostles; it is the Faith for which countless Holy Martyrs suffered and died; it is the Faith that has brought true civilization, with all its benefits, into the world, and it is the only Faith that can truly reform and preserve public and private morals. We should know the Chief Mysteries of Faith and the duties of a Christian… because as one cannot be a good soldier without knowing the rules of the army to which he belongs and understanding the commands of his leader, so one cannot be a good Christian without knowing the laws of the Church and understanding the commands of Christ. By the expression ‘these evil days’ we mean the present age or century in which we are living, surrounded on all sides by unbelief, false doctrines, bad books, bad example and temptation in every form.” (3 part, lesson 15).

In the time of the Fathers of the Church the Christians were aware to be spiritual soldiers of Christ and to fight for the truth, even at the risk of one’s life. Saint Cyril of Jerusalem told the catechumens: “You are to be enrolled in the army of the Great King” (Catech. 3, 3). The Christian duty to fight against the sin, the errors and the temptations of the world, includes also the fight against the errors inside the Church, i.e. the fight against heresy and ambiguity in doctrine.

Saint Ignatius of Loyola is one of the most eloquent teachers of the truth about the Church militant. He writes in his book of the Spiritual Exercises: “Consider the war that Jesus Christ came to bring from Heaven to earth.”

People are used to the idea that Our Lord Jesus Christ came to bring peace.

Yet St Ignatius with all naturality begins the meditation by saying “Consider that war that Jesus Christ came to bring from Heaven to earth.”

A true Catholic spiritual knight of 20th century, Plinio Correia de Oliveira, a Brazilian layman who spent all his life in defending Holy Mother Church from the spiritual attacks and infiltration of the unchristian spirit of revolution, modernism and communism, said: “Every man is born a soldier, although not every soldier will use his arms. Yes, all men are born soldiers because, as the Scripture states, Militia est vita hominis super terram [The life of man upon earth is a warfare] (Job 7:1). Our life is a fight, and this is how we must consider it first and foremost. A man is born a soldier at the first moment he sees the natural light. Then when he is baptized, he receives the light of grace and is born a second time, now to the supernatural life, becoming a soldier in its defence.

Further, the Church has a special Sacrament that confirms a man as a

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FEATURE soldier in the full sense of the word. It is the sacrament of Confirmation. Not every soldier uses his weapons on the battlefield, but whoever does so is privileged. Since the duty of the soldier is to fight, when he takes up arms to enter battle he becomes privileged.

Imagine a painter who does not paint, a musician who cannot make music, a singer who cannot sing, a professor who is unable to give classes, a diplomat prevented from engaging in politics. Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Catholic Church, comes asking us to join His Holy War inside the Church against progressivism, and inside the State, against communism. And He appeals to us to fight and not be soft or indifferent to this struggle, but to wage battle with all our soul.

“Of course, St Ignatius does not speak about progressivism. Since his meditation is destined for all times, he refers generically to the world, the devil and the flesh, which are the causes of all errors at all times, in which they simply change name. In his time, the error was Protestantism, supported by people who called themselves Catholics but who were deep down Protestants working for Protestantism inside the Catholic Church. In the civil sphere, those persons tended to eliminate all social and political inequalities. In other words, they were forerunners of the French Revolution.”

We possess very apt and impressive affirmations of the Popes of modern times about the essential militant characteristic of the Church. Pope Leo XIII taught: “The enemy forces, inspired by the evil spirit, ever wage war on the Christian name. They join forces in this endeavor with certain groups of men whose purpose is to subvert divinely revealed truths and to rend the very fabric of Christian society with disastrous dissent. Indeed, how much damage these cohorts, as it were, have inflicted on the Church is well-known.

And yet, the spirit of all previous groups hostile to Catholic institutions has come to life again in that group called the Masonic sect, which, strong in manpower and resources, is the leader in a war against anything sacred.” (Leo XIII, Encyclical Inimica vis, 8 December 1892). “To refrain from doing battle for Jesus Christ amounts to fighting against Him; He Himself assures us ‘He will deny before His Father in heaven those who shall have refused to confess Him on earth’ (Luke

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9:26)” (Leo XIII, Encyclical Sapientiae christianae, 43). “The enemies of the Church have for their object - and they hesitate not to proclaim it, and many among them boast of it - to destroy outright, if possible, the Catholic religion, which alone is the true religion. With such a purpose in mind they shrink from nothing, for they are fully conscious that the more fainthearted those who withstand them become, the easier will it be to work out their wicked will. Therefore, they who cherish the ‘prudence of the flesh’ and who pretend to be unaware that every Christian ought to be a valiant soldier of Christ; they who would obtain the rewards owing to conquerors, while they are leading the lives of cowards, untouched in the fight, are so far from thwarting the onward march of the evil - disposed that, on the contrary, they even help it forward.” (ibid., 34).

Cardinal Karol Wojtyla (the future Pope John Paul II) in an address during the Eucharistic Congress in 1976 in Philadelphia in the United States of America said: “We are now standing in the face of the greatest historical confrontation humanity has ever experienced. I do not think that the wide circle of the American Society, or the whole wide circle of the Christian Community realize this fully. We are now facing the final confrontation between the Church and the antichurch, between the gospel and the anti-gospel, between Christ and the antichrist. The confrontation lies within the plans of Divine Providence.

It is, therefore, in God’s Plan, and it must be a trial which the Church must take up, and face courageously”.

Our weapons are the weapons of justice, and these are the weapons in first place of prayer and of a saintly life, the weapons of the spiritual help of the Holy Angels, the weapons of the sacred science, of the sacred apologetics, the weapons of righteous and honest individual and collective protests against the de-Christianisation and moral degradation of society.

Already in 1946 Pope Pius XII made the following very apt and realistic analysis of the spiritual situation of the world and the Church in our times: “The subject, against which the adversary directs his assaults in our days, openly or insidiously, is not more, as it was usually in the past, the one or the other particular item of doctrine or discipline, but the whole of

the faith and Christian morals up to its ultimate consequences. It’s a matter of a complete yes or of a complete no. In such real circumstances a true Catholic must remain all the more firmly and securely on the ground of his faith and demonstrate this with his deeds” (Discourse to the youth of the Italian Catholic Action, April 20, 1946). As soldiers of Christ every Catholic should be always conscious of the fact that he belongs to the army of the winners, because “Christus vincit”, and as Saint John Chrysostom concisely formulated: “It is easier to delete the sun, than to destroy the Church” (Hom. In Is. 7).

In holy Baptism according to the Traditional Rite of the Roman Church we have been signed with seven crosses in order to be always reminded that the Christian is inseparably united with the Cross of Our Lord, in order to be spiritually protected and in order to lead a life of the holy battle for the Lord with the invincible sign of His cross. We were signed on the forehead to accept the cross of the Lord; we were signed on the ears to listen to the Divine precepts; we were signed on the eyes to see the clarity of God; we were signed on the nose to smell the sweetness of Christ; we were signed on the mouth to speak the words of life; we were signed on the chest to believe in God and we were signed on the shoulders to take upon us the yoke of the service of Christ.

The most powerful help in our personal life as soldiers of Christ and in the life of the entire militant Church is the Blessed Virgin Mary and Mother of God, and She is the winner in all the battles of the Lord.

To Her we turn ourselves praying: “August Queen of Heaven, sovereign Queen of Angels, you who at the beginning received from God the power and the mission to crush the head of Satan, we beseech you humbly, send your holy legions so that, on your orders and by your power, they will track down demons, fight them everywhere, curb their audacity and plunge them into the abyss. Who can be compared to God? Oh good and tender Mother, you will always be our love and our hope. Oh divine Mother, send the Holy Angels and Archangels to defend me and to keep the cruel enemy far from me. Holy Angels and Archangels defend us, protect us. Amen.”

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REVIEW

A problem for novelists Joseph Shaw on the difficulties of writing Catholic fiction

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n the last issue I reviewed William Whyte’s Unlocking the Church, about the movement, within Anglicanism and from about 1830, for a form of church architecture and corresponding programme of church restoration, which saw churches as sacred spaces, so filled with symbolic references that they could be read like a book. It might sound a dry subject but it aroused fierce passions at the time, and among other manifestations it gave rise to an entire sub-genre of novels and poetry.

The Tractarians and others involved in the debate decided that in order to made the points they wished to make, they needed to employ a wide range of literary forms. The great majority of their fiction output was—according to Whyte—terrible, from a literary point of view. It is hard to know how much of an impact it had in its day: it is all long forgotten now, although the related output of John Henry Newman, such as his novel Loss and Gain, is still read today. But it is a natural thought that fiction, as well as non-fiction writing, should play a part in the spreading of a theological message, and bridge the gap between the abstract and the personal, the academic and the popular.

One reason why the Tractarian novelists and poets wrote such bad stuff was that they were amateurs.

Another, however, is specific to the task they had set themselves: of trying to persuade their readers of a laundry list of abstract theological points through the pages of their books. It is extremely difficult to do this while still penning a convincing story. The reader of a novel must be interested in the characters in the story to carry on reading, and if events are being driven by ideological necessity rather than by psychology, or if the action is interspersed by clumsy editorial comment, then the book ceases to be interesting.

This is a problem for novelists of all ideological persuasions, and catches up even with professional writers.

This may sound surprising, because fiction is such a powerful medium of persuasion, and has been used to such devastating effect in our own lifetimes

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to attack the traditional family and gender-roles, the historical role of the Church, and so on. But these attacks have been most effective when they have been oblique. Thousands of films presenting traditional domestic life as an intolerable servitude for women, for example, have left their mark on society precisely because they did not proclaim their ideological distortions in the opening credits, but aimed, primarily, to tell an entertaining story and make money. The new generation of directors who can’t touch a Star Wars episode, Disney re-make, or Agatha Christie adaptation, without turning it into antipatriarchy shout-fest, simply turn off their audiences.

We are fortunate, in the English language, to have superb authors who tell stories which reflect a subtle but all-pervading Catholic vision of the world and of human nature, in a way which is not off-putting to nonCatholics: Chaucer, Shakespeare, Dryden, Alexander Pope, Chesterton,

'I wish the best of luck to Catholics writing now, particularly those of a traditional cast of mind who see that what afflicts the human spirit today is, as it always has been, the absence of God’s grace...'

Evelyn Waugh, Tolkein, and Graham Greene in his good moments. We do, of course, need new ones, to tackle the issues, genres, and needs of each new generation. In the Traditional Catholic movement, we even have a few novels which address the liturgical crisis more directly. I have in the past reviewed Natalia Sanmartin’s wonderful The Awakening of Miss Prim; earlier, there was the more lightweight but entertaining Smoke in the Sanctuary

by Stephen Oliver, and from an earlier era, Alice Thomas Ellis’ The Sin Eater, and the profound and moving Judith’s Marriage by Fr Bryan Houghton, which I gather will soon be back in print, with his other two works, Mitre and Crook and Rejected Priest.

Of all these, only Miss Prim and The Sin Eater are books one could give to a non-trad, let alone a non-Catholic.

Even with Miss Prim one would be taking a risk, not because the needs of the message have overwhelmed the needs of the story, but because of the Catholic setting. One can hardly forget that Catholic matters are at issue in the story, when it is set in a sort of Catholic colony, though even this is done with a very light touch. One can avoid even this, like my brother’s Ten Weeks in Africa (written under the name J.M.Shaw), but obviously it is difficult to drill into the most detailed Catholic issues without letting on. This task is handled in a very unique way by the American Catholic convert of an older generation, Flannery O’Connor.

I wish the best of luck to Catholics writing now, particularly those of a traditional cast of mind who see that what afflicts the human spirit today is, as it always has been, the absence of God’s grace, and that those significant chance events which mark the turning points of our personal narratives are those in which created things are called upon to play a role in grace’s work. The novelist’s task is to make that process comprehensible, without making it appear crude and obvious. To see the Lord of History at work while respecting the autonomy of each human agent is not an easy task: it is a divine one.

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REVIEW

The Devil Hates Latin

by Katherine Galgano From the general to the particular, I turn to this novel set in a somewhat fictionalised present. The author (the book is pseudonymous) informed me that this was just ‘a bit of fun’, what a traditional Catholic might read without much effort in the evenings, and one should certainly see it in that spirit.

It does not aspire to great literary perfection or psychological profundity, but it hangs together as a story, it is not over-long, and I, for one, found it as entertaining as it was unpretentious.

It is set in and near Rome, and although most of the protagonists are non-Italians, it takes as its starting-point the social crisis gripping Italy. Italy is a pleasant place to holiday, strewn with wonderful Baroque churches and classical ruins, but the country is in deep trouble. The Italians, to put it simply, are not forming families and having children. The motives of the various characters in the story which impinge on this question are well-observed, as is the struggle of the Italian family at the centre of the action to free itself from attitudes which, at bottom, are incompatible with the emergence of a new generation.

Another theme which may be surprising is the attraction of what looks like a Catholic restorationist project but which is, it turns out, fake. It is a sad reality that, as it has become impossible to trust the orthodoxy or moral probity of many Catholic institutions associated with dioceses and long-established religious orders—whether schools, seminaries, or anything else—it has been no less necessary to treat new institutions, often proclaiming their traditional outlook and orthodoxy with trumpets, with extreme caution.

The example in the book is clearly inspired by the Legionnaires of Christ.

I fancy that the relative lack of success which this and similar institutions have enjoyed in the UK is largely due to the fact that the cult-like ‘hard sell’ they employ is such a massive turn-off over here. But that isn’t the heart of the problem: it is their attitude to the Catholic tradition, not as to an object worthy of veneration and therefore of preservation and continuation, but as a box for tools which may or may not prove useful. This item, taken out of its original context, might serve to keep the faithful in awe of the clergy; that

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one looks good in photographs; this one over here can be used to make potential whistle-blowers quiet: but let’s leave alone that other one, the local bishop doesn’t like the old Mass. Under the name of discernment and creativity, they have adopted an attitude of the manipulative instrumentalisation of holy things: a form of Simony, a trade in the means of grace.

The Devil Hates Latin weaves something of a thriller-plot out of these materials, with a bold supernatural climax. I don’t say this climax is wholly successful: the incorporation of the

supernatural into a naturalistic novel is a very tough trick to pull off. However, it is an interesting attempt and wraps things up nicely; the reactions of some of the villains to it is a very good touch.

Overall, I recommend this novel as, in the author’s words, a ‘bit of fun’: not to be taken too seriously in literary terms, but part of an interesting and necessary debate on human nature, the Catholic tradition, and how normal life can be restored in our own dark times.

The Devil Hates Latin (315pp; Regina Press) is available from the LMS shop, £14.99 + p&p.

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FEATURE

‘Useless bickerings’ The following is an extract from Una Voce: The History of the Foederatio Internationalis Una Voce 1964–2003 by Leo Darroch. Darroch summarises the Una Voce Newsletter of February 1971, which came from the pen of its President, Eric de Savanthem.

At this date the Una Voce Federation already had a widespread membership, and an ‘Indult’ for the saying of the Vetus Ordo had been gained for England and Wales. Catholics were still in a state of shock at the radical nature of the ‘reform’ unveiled on the 1st Sunday of Advent 1969, and dissent from the teaching of the Church, by theologians holding official positions in Catholic universities and even some bishops, above all about contraception, was disturbing the Faithful everywhere. (The ‘Dutch Catechism’ referred to below was later roundly criticized by a panel of Cardinals specially convened by Pope Paul VI.) In this context the pressure on Una Voce groups to drop their objections and embrace the New Mass, while focusing their energies on other issues, was intense, and we see the beginning of the parting of the ways between ‘Traditional’ Catholics, who saw the liturgy as key to the life of the Church and its doctrinal and spiritual orientation as essential to the wider crisis of doctrine, and ‘conservative’ Catholics who, while often deeply involved in the battle to uphold the Church’s teachings on contraception, abortion, and other matters, wished to concede the issue on the liturgy.

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I

n glancing through the different ‘traditionalist’ publications which waited on his desk he [Eric de Saventhem] had noted a tendency, on the part of certain spokesmen of the so-called ‘moderate’ groups to criticise those who, like Una Voce, considered the maintenance of the Mass of St Pius V a matter of cardinal importance. It was argued that since the reigning Pontiff had approved the reform of the Mass in every particular, the resulting orthodoxy of the New Ordo was guaranteed. To say that the New Ordo was ‘favouring heresy’ was, therefore, tantamount to implying that the reigning Pontiff was either gravely derelict in his duty to protect the faith or was himself a victim of heretical leanings. Such implications were—it was being suggested— incompatible with the loving respect and unwavering obedience which every faithful Catholic owes to the Pope, and whoever held such views could not therefore be counted among those who fight pro Pontifice et Ecclesia.

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FEATURE

The ‘useless bickerings’ seemed to have their ultimate source in an understandable divergence of views on the nature of liturgical legislation.

It is possible and legitimate to see it as a mere matter of discipline—and this was possibly the view of Pope Paul VI and of the majority of the bishops

More charitably—and probably more for internal than external consumption— it was being said that the heated arguments between those who were finding the New Ordo unfortunate but orthodox, and therefore were willing to accept it (provided it was celebrated strictly according to the rules currently in force) and those who considered it a direct danger to the faith, were ‘useless bickerings’ which, since there were so many much more important matters at issue between the traditionalists and the ruling neo-modernist ‘mafia’, should be abandoned without delay.

In support of this attitude, the Pope’s repeated insistence on the need to safeguard fully and faithfully the depositum fidei, Dr de Saventhem recalled the appointment of ‘conservative’ bishops in Holland—Msgr Simonis at Rotterdam, and Msgr Gijsens at Roermond—being cited as evidence of His Holiness’ determination to suit his actions to his words. It was somewhat curious to observe that the same people

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who were speaking with admirable frankness about the openly heretical attitudes of so many leading functionaries of the ecclesiastical establishment—the ‘mafia’ for short—should be prepared to assume that the post-conciliar liturgical reform had remained untainted (at least in its officially promulgated results) from that same neo-modernist heresy which they were finding rampant in every other sphere of the Church’s life.

Even the most cursory acquaintance with Church history, and with the birth and development of the countless heresies with which the Magisterium has had to contend through the centuries, was sufficient to establish one central and recurring fact: the spread of every heresy had been accompanied by the introduction of new liturgical forms, designed to give expression to the theological content of the heretic’s ‘new’ faith, and to propagate that new faith among the people.

If, therefore, one accepted as a fact the existence, in the post-conciliar

Church, of a strongly entrenched ecclesiastical ‘mafia’ holding heterodox (i.e. neo-modernistic) views on virtually all the essential tenets of the Catholic and Apostolic Faith, then it would be mere wishful thinking to pretend that the same ‘mafia’ should have failed to penetrate those multiple organisms which on a national level and in Rome, had been charged with the application of the Council’s Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy. It must, on the contrary, be taken for granted that according to historical patterns these organisms would have been among the first over which the ‘mafia’ sought to gain control.

And since, in all other spheres of hierarchical responsibility, effective penetration of the episcopal and central administrations by members of the ‘mafia’ was by then regarded as a proven fact, it must be taken for granted that the same applied, and a fortiori, to that part of the ecclesiastical establishment which was in charge of liturgical reform.

It therefore seemed illogical, to say the

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FEATURE least, that in their valiant battle against neo-modernist heresy in high places those who claimed to fight ‘for Pope and Church’ should treat the reform of the Mass as if by some miracle it had been kept immune from neo-modernist infection and represented, as it were, a territory barred to all comers by some kind of spiritual or canonical extraterritoriality. It seemed uncharitable, to say the least, that in their attitude to other movements, those ‘loyalists’ sometimes spoke and acted as if they alone knew where the line should be drawn, beyond which the battle must not be carried.

True, the Dutch, or French, or German Catechism did not carry a papal imprimatur, whereas the Novus Ordo Missae did. Nonetheless, all the other texts which had been formally approved by the Roman Dicasteries— down to the traductions-trahisons of Holy Scripture, did carry such an imprimatur. Was it not, then, mere hairsplitting to attack the neo-modernist bias in the selection (and amputation or ‘collage’) of scriptural readings offered for the New Mass, and at the same time to denigrate as ‘useless bickerers’ those who levelled the same attack against the texts and rubrics of the New Mass itself?

True again: the texts of the Mass were not dogmatic definitions, and the ordering of the liturgy pertains more to the Pope’s juridical prerogatives than to his teaching authority. This is, however, precisely an additional reason why criticism and, indeed, condemnation of the New Mass was perfectly compatible with the proper respect for the Divine Protection granted by Christ to His Vicar. This protection does not extend to the wide area of discipline and Church government, in which any Pontiff is dependent on the quality of his own judgment and that of his advisers. He is, thus, as fallible as any other human being charged with grave responsibility and enjoying the commensurate grace of his high estate.

This is why many who were keenly alive to the neo-modernist subversion in all matters of the faith felt that they could safely leave the liturgy to ‘look after itself ’ whilst they concentrate on defending the Creed—whether apostolic or ‘of the People of God’.

Yet, the liturgy is ‘the source from which the Church derives all her power, and the summit to which all her action tends’. Surely, therefore, what

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happens to the Mass (the summit of the Church’s liturgy) cannot be a matter of mere discipline, but must engage the Church’s teaching authority at the highest level. It was certainly thus that St Pius V saw it—and why Quo Primum reads like an infallible definition carrying sanctions against offenders very similar to those that would apply to anybody who denies a dogma.

In fact: the ‘useless bickerings’ seemed to have their ultimate source in an understandable divergence of views on the nature of liturgical legislation.

It is possible and legitimate to see it as a mere matter of discipline—and this was possibly the view of Pope Paul VI and of the majority of the bishops.

It is, however, equally possible and legitimate to see it as straddling the fields of discipline and Magisterium and as being subject, therefore, to the stricter standards applying to the latter.

This was the view taken by the Una Voce Federation, by Itinéraires, by Der Fels, and by many others, all of whom considered themselves to be fighting pro Pontifice et Ecclesia no less than those who chose these words for their motto.

In criticising the post-conciliar liturgical reform and in particular the new Order of the Mass, the Una Voce Federation was guided by those stricter standards. The Federation, however, had to bear with those who saw nothing intrinsically wrong in subordinating liturgical legislation to current pastoral options. As many of those options (not to say: mere fads or whims) were of doubtful spiritual value, their liturgical counterpart would be equally shallow and transitory. The Una Voce leadership felt certain that, in due course, the short-sightedness and superficiality of this approach to liturgical reform and legislation would become apparent even to those who supported it with the full weight of their hierarchical authority.

When this realisation struck home there would be a genuine liturgical restoration sweeping through the whole of the Church. Until that moment arrived, however, facts had to be faced as they were. In terms of principles and practical action this meant the following: • To fight for the preservation—both de facto and de jure—of the Roman Missal as promulgated by St Pius V.

• To tolerate, as an ‘experiment’, the new Mass as ordered by the recent Roman Decrees.

• To agitate—at all levels of persuasion—for prompt revision of those parts of the new Ordo and its accompanying ordinances which, in the considered judgment of the FIUV, were dangerous to the faith of the people and, particularly, of the celebrant.

• To demand that the pastoral results of the reformed liturgy of the Mass be kept under constant critical review.

• For the FIUV not to claim authority to decide whether the new Order of the Mass was either intrinsically heretical or favoured heresy to such a degree that attendance at New Ordo Masses must be discouraged, even when the orthodoxy of the celebrant is not in doubt, and the inner disposition of those attending is such as to protect them from having their own faith undermined.

• For the FIUV not to say or imply that in promulgating the New Order of the Mass the reigning Pontiff has violated his trust as Guardian of the Faith, since for him liturgical legislation does not directly implicate this guardianship.

• To maintain that as a matter of principle and, a fortiori, in the current climate of pluralism and co-responsibility that the FIUV is not only free but in duty bound to challenge the liturgical reform wherever it is found to be tainted by any of the modern heresies.

• To repudiate the accusation— whether it comes from above or from those whom the FIUV considered its ‘brothers in arms’— that any of these attitudes are incompatible with that respect for the hierarchy and for its responsible guidance which is the hallmark of the true ‘sons of the Church’.

Una Voce: The History of the Foederatio Internationalis Una Voce 1964–2003 by Leo Darroch, is available from the LMS shop, £25 + p&p.

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ROMAN REPORT

A Scandinavian dimension Alberto Carosa on the 7th International Summorum Pontificum Pilgrimage to Rome

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he now traditional international Summorum Pontificum pilgrimage to Rome took place from 26-28 October, 2018, as usual in connection with the Feast of Christ the King, which according to the calendar of the Extraordinary Rite is celebrated on the last Sunday of October.

The only exception was in 2017, when this gathering of faithful from around the world attached to the pre-Vatican II liturgy took place on September 1417, 2017, to mark the tenth anniversary of the motu proprio Summorum Pontificum.

The pilgrimage is promoted by the Coetus Internationalis Summorum Pontificum (CISP), a group that brings together traditionalist Catholic organizations from different countries, which this year included French portal Oremus Paix Liturgique, FIUV (Latin acronym for International Una Voce Federation) and Fœderatio Internationalis Juventutem, an international movement of young Catholics attached to the pre-Vatican II liturgy.

The 2018 pilgrimage was also characterized by a Scandinavian dimension, which bears a direct reference to what Pope Francis has often termed as the “periphery” of the Catholic Church. This dimension was first and foremost due to the presence of the Bishop of Copenhagen, the Most Reverend Czeslaw Kozon, whose diocese comprises the whole of Denmark, the Faroe Islands and Greenland. He led the pilgrimage and presided over the liturgies, whose highlight was a Solemn Pontifical Mass in the old rite in St Peter’s Basilica on October 27, 2018.

Among the pilgrims were some 40 faithful from Scandinavia, mostly Danes and Swedes, with representatives of the local clergy, including Father Anders Hamberg, who heads the parish church in Jyväskylä in central Finland, where he regularly celebrates the Extraordinary Rite, and the Danish Father Jan Hansen, who is currently studying Canon Law in Rome.

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Despite its specifically religious connotation, the pilgrimage had a “lay” opening on Friday morning, October 26, at the Patristic Institute Augustinianum, a few steps away from St Peter’s: a forum where an international panel of leading figures of the Summorum Pontificum communities around the world took stock of the progress made by its application in their respective countries and/or geographic areas.

Among the speakers were Cardinal Raymond Burke, Archbishop Emeritus of Hong Kong Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze Kiun (by videomessage), the CISP chaplain Fr Claude Barthe, Fr Charles Ike of the FSSP, Canon Joseph Luzuy of the ICKSP for Italy, parish priest Don Raffaele Roffino of Rivarolo Canavese in the diocese of Ivrea, the President of the International Federation Una Voce Felipe Alanis, the Secretary of Juventutem, Paul Schultz, the President of Oremus Christian Marquant and attorney Marco Sgroi, organizer of the Coordinamento nazionale del Summorum Pontificum.

These panelists agreed that we are witnessing a slow but profound impact of the pre-Vatican II liturgy that, although still facing difficulties here and there, and at times even setbacks, there is the laying of foundations for its definitive resurrection.

The opening Mass of the pilgrimage was celebrated in the evening in the parish church of Santissima Trinità dei Pellegrini by Fr Ike, also in thanksgiving for the 30th anniversary of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter, which was canonically erected on October 18. In a previous pilgrimage on the exact date of the anniversary, the FSSP had offered a morning Mass at the tomb of St Peter for the intentions of its supporters of the FSSP, while later pilgrims attended a Solemn High Mass of thanksgiving at Santissima Trinità dei Pellegrini, the FSSP personal parish in Rome, offered by its Superior General Fr Andrzej Komorowski. In the evening, Fr Komorowski and Fr Jean-Cyrile Sow,

the Rector of Santissima Trinità, joined the group of pilgrims for a festive dinner at Casa di Santa Brigida.

The liturgical highlight was the Pontifical Mass in St Peter’s on Saturday morning, preceded by Eucharistic Adoration in the Basilica of San Lorenzo in Damaso, from which the traditional-minded faithful proceeded in procession to St Peter’s Basilica amid prayers, hymns, standards and national flags through the streets of Rome led by Mgr Kozon and around 100 clergy.

The homily was delivered by Cardinal Angelo Comastri, Archpriest of the Papal Basilica of St Peter, right after the Pope’s welcoming address with his apostolic blessing, which was read out by the secretary of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei, Archbishop Guido Pozzo. In his homily the senior prelate called upon us to imitate the humility of Our Lady, the Mother of God. “Mary responded to God's call with an impressive docility and made herself available for a project that would make anyone tremble”, he said. Therefore, since her yes to the incarnation, “Mary is the greatest collaborator of God for the salvation of mankind.” Her docility in saying yes to the Lord, he went on, is a clear message for us, since we are all called to be collaborators of God’s salvation plan.

The pilgrimage ended on Sunday, October 28, the Feast of Christ the King, with two Solemn Masses: one at 9.30am in the church of Gesù e Maria al Corso celebrated by Msgr Schmitz, Vicar General of the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest, for pilgrims wishing to participate in the Angelus of the Holy Father, and a pontifical at 11am celebrated by Mgr Kozon at Santissima Trinità dei Pellegrini.

His homily emphasised that the virtue of humility is a prerequisite for practicing the approach of Our Lord, who came to serve and not to be served.

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REPORTS FROM AROUND THE COUNTRY

DIOCESAN DIGEST Mass of Ages quarterly round-up Arundel & Brighton Annie-Marie Mackie-Savage 01323 411370 aandb@lms.org.uk Masses continue to be regularly said in the Diocese, details of which can be found on the A&B blog. There is a new regular Mass said at Christ the King, Eastbourne, every Tuesday morning at 7.30 by Fr Thomas Mason, and now every fourth Sunday at 8.00 am. We are very grateful to him for this. This means there is now a Latin Mass every Sunday, if you are able to travel. If you have knee trouble, I advise you to take your own kneeler. Actually, take one even if you haven't. Any extra Masses will be advertised on the blog. I am sad to report the death of Fr David Goddard. Mr David Brown writes: "It was a sad but beautiful Mass on a filthy night in a jam-packed church. It was the wish of Fr David to have the EF Mass. Fr Matthew Goddard was the celebrant with FSSP brother priests as deacon and sub deacon. There were at least ten priests dressed in cassock and cotta in choir on the sanctuary. The beauty of the Mass will live in the memory.

Fr David Irwin, a long-time friend of Fr David and frequent visitor to WG, gave the oration at the end of Mass. Tom Haggar and his schola were as expected brilliant. This was a fitting memorial to a wonderful priest and a great champion of the Traditional Mass." May he rest in peace.

Birmingham & Black Country LR: Louis Maciel; Tel: 0739 223 2225 E: birmingham@lms.org.uk W: http://birmingham-lms-rep.blogspot.co.uk/ All Souls fell on a first Friday, which meant it saw around a dozen EF Masses celebrated over five parishes, including a special 8am Low Mass at St Dunstan’s, in addition to the regular Friday Masses at Wolverhampton and Solihull, and special Masses at Wednesbury and the Oratory, the latter offering a Low Mass every half hour between 8am and 11am and a High Mass at 7.30pm. The following week, Our Lady of Perpetual Succour in Wolverhampton celebrated the Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica with a High Mass at 7pm.

Our Lady of Perpetual Succour also celebrated three Rorate Masses at 7am on the three Thursdays during Advent.

The Oratory could only celebrate one on the Saturday before Christmas as the other two Saturdays coincided with the Feast of the Immaculate Conception and Oratorian Blessed Anthony Grassi, for which there was High Mass and Sung Mass respectively.

Christmas itself saw three regional EF Masses celebrated: an 8am Low Mass at Our Lady of Perpetual Succour, a 9.30am

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Sung Mass at St Mary-on-the-Hill in Wednesbury, and a 10.30 High Mass at the Oratory. The rest of Christmastide saw two EF Masses celebrated every day until Epiphany, mainly at the Oratory and Wednesbury although there was a Low Mass at Holy Cross, Lichfield on New Year’s Eve celebrating the transferred feast of St Thomas of Canterbury.

St Mary-on-the Hill celebrated several additional Masses for various Feasts, including the Immaculate Conception, the Epiphany and several Saturday votive Masses of Our Lady.

There is a change to the Mass schedule in the East Birmingham and Solihull deanery – following the departure of Fr Daniel Horgan to Ireland in September, the first Friday Mass at St Augustine’s has now been discontinued, with the last Mass in February. However, there will be a fourth Friday Mass at Sacred Heart and All Souls in Acocks Green which started on the Feast of the conversion of St Paul. As this is a new Mass you may wish to check with the parish before travelling - please see the Mass listings for further details.

Birmingham (Little Malvern) Alastair J Tocher 01684 893332 malvern@lms.org.uk extraordinarymalvern.uk Facebook: Extraordinary Malvern The last quarter of our first year at St Wulstan’s saw a significant increase in Mass attendance at our twice-monthly Sunday Masses. The Sung Requiem on the centenary of the Armistice in particular saw over 50 in attendance and it was a pleasure to see the church so full. The Ordinary of the Mass was Victoria’s lesser known Missa pro Defunctis a 4. The parish’s ornate catafalque candle stands had been stripped and resprayed in good time for the Requiem and the original parish funeral pall cleaned up and patched, having not been used for many years previously. A similar Requiem Mass for next Remembrance Sunday is already planned.

By the end of the year we were able to buy our own Altar Missal. In addition, an antique white Roman-style Low Mass set has now been acquired and restored and made available for our Masses along with green and violet copes for the Asperges.

We have recently also acquired a fourth server who had previously served regularly at Spetchley. Having recently discovered a set of torches in the parish store room I would nevertheless still welcome more servers so that we might return the torches to their proper liturgical use.

Lastly thanks as ever to our chaplain, Dom Jonathan Rollinson OSB, our servers and singers for their tireless and enthusiastic support.

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REPORTS FROM AROUND THE COUNTRY Birmingham (Oxford) Joseph Shaw oxford@lms.org.uk Last October’s annual LMS Pilgrimage to Oxford was a great success, with the largest procession through Oxford’s streets, to one of our two sites of martyrdom, that we have seen for many years. Thanks are particularly due to Mrs Shaw who provided food for the pilgrims following Mass, and to Fr Lawrence Lew OP who came all the way from Haverstock Hill to celebrate Mass for us in the Dominican Rite.

Our next big event of the year will be the LMS Pilgrimage to Caversham, which is today a suburb of Reading. Our Lady and St Anne’s Church is within walking distance of Reading station. Our Pilgrimage to the charmingly restored shrine, in the Middle Ages one of England’s greatest, coincides as usual with the Ember Saturday of Lent. We will have a High Mass, the full set of Ember Saturday readings, polyphony from the Newman Concert, and a buffet lunch for pilgrims. The celebrant will be Fr Anthony Conlon. The date is 16th March; Mass starts at 11:30am.

Other notable events include Candlemas at SS Gregory & Augustine’s in Oxford with polyphony (Sat 2nd Feb: Mass at 10:30am), and St Joseph’s feast at English Martyrs, Didcot, over the diocesan boundary in Portsmouth (19th March: Mass at 7:30pm).

Sunday Masses at Holy Trinity, Hethe, are now taking place only four times a year. The next is 31st March. Masses there are at 12 noon.

Mass at St Wulstan’s Birmingham (North Staffordshire) Alan Frost Free copies of a booklet on the life of Sr Elizabeth Prout were made available in the North Staffs churches before Christmas by a nun promoting her cause for beatification. In Stone, she was converted by Bl Dominic Barberi and founded the female branch of the Passionists. Her community was established in Manchester where the Oratorians now reside and offer the Traditional Rite Mass each week.

Recently several stalwarts of the traditional Latin Mass in North Staffs, over a good number of years, have left this life. One was an outstanding organist and music teacher, Beryl Terry, who worked with the late Lady Mary Berry on Gregorian chant.

She lived at the Benedictine Oulton Abbey where she served as organist, including for the monthly Latin Sunday afternoon Masses at the Church there. Usually the celebrant was Fr Petroc Howell, a splendid priest, who passed away shortly before Beryl.

Former celebrant of the EF in Sacred Heart Church, Burslem, Fr Chris Miller, is continuing to undergo medical and surgical treatment and we hope to comment on his progress in due course. Fr Chavasse, our mainstay celebrant in the area, is also continuing to receive treatment, but is bearing up well and serving visitors and regulars at Our Lady’s, Swynnerton.

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BRENTWOOD (East) Alan Gardner alanmdgardner@gmail.com

In the ‘country’ region of the diocese our regular Traditional Masses continue in Chelmsford, Kelvedon and Leigh; please pray for all the celebrants for whom these Masses are an ‘extra’ to their busy parish duties.

If there is a need for Masses in other areas, please let me know. In terms of keeping members informed, Carol Smith continues to work hard to keep us all up to date. If you would like to be kept in the loop, please email me.

We continue to look for servers at Chelmsford and Kelvedon, and for singers across the region – we would very much welcome experienced exponents, and we can support those who would like to learn – if you can help, or if you know of those who can be approached, please do get in touch.

In the last issue we celebrated the life of Maud Sutton who passed peacefully into the arms of Our Lord on 5th October, in her one-hundred-and-second year. On Sunday evening 28th October her body was brought in to Our Lady Immaculate Chelmsford with appropriate ceremonies (and thank you to Sean and Marie Wright for singing on this occasion), followed by a Requiem Mass at noon on Monday. It was of course very much Maud’s wish that this should happen, and we were grateful to all who worked to ensure her wishes were carried out, including Andrew Bosi, Dominic Johnson, and John Tennant who travelled from London to boost the singing (and then travelled back to sing by the graveside).

Please also pray for the soul of Peter Whitaker – he had wished to be buried in the Traditional Form which he loved and supported, but unfortunately it did not prove to

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REPORTS FROM AROUND THE COUNTRY be possible to arrange this with his family. A Mass was said in December for the repose of his soul.

We also celebrate ‘new life’! We welcome our newest member, Quinn Joseph, born on 11th January at a whopping ten pounds. Whether he is going to be a server or a singer (or both?!) seems currently too early to say…

Cardiff Andrew Butcher T: 07905 609770 E: cardiff@lms.org.uk Masses are being offered around the Archdiocese with the addition of Sung and Solemn High Masses as announced by the LMS website or The Orarorians.

We have been extremely fortunate over the last several years with great priests, in particular Dom Antony Tumelty OSB (RIP) and the Oratorians who have provided the faithful with at least a Sung Mass every Christmas, however Christmas Eve 2018 saw the first Solemn High Mass at Midnight in the capital for many years. It was offered at Nazareth House by Fr Sebastian Mary Cong. Orat. which was preceded by the traditional Christmas Carols.

A dawn Mass of Christmas was offered at Belmont Abbey at 7am.

Please remember Dom Alastair Findlay OSB who was ordained to the Sacred Priesthood on Saturday 12 January 2019 at Belmont Abbey. Ad Multos Annos!

Words cannot express my sincere gratitude to all the priests and faithful who support us in so many ways. Thank you all for your hard work and commitment. If there is anything that I or the LMS can do…let me know.

Please continue to check the website for more information. All LMS reps in the country have been given new email addresses. You can now contact me on cardiff@ lms.org.uk or 07905 609770.

Clifton James Belt and Monica Paplaczyk clifton@lms.org.uk On Saturday 8th December, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, Fr Rupert Allen led a day of recollection at Bristol University Chaplaincy. The day began with a very well-attended Missa Cantata, the first to be celebrated in the Chaplaincy since its establishment in the 1960s. The Mass was chanted by a schola made up of students and others from the regular Sunday congregation. Fr Allen gave some talks on the importance of Our Lady in our Catholic faith, and the day concluded with Adoration and Benediction.

The regular Sunday Masses at the Chaplaincy continue to be well-attended, by students, university staff and others.

The other regular Masses also continue to be offered around the Diocese. Thanks to all the priests and laypeople who make this possible.

East Anglia (West) Gregor Dick The normal Sunday Mass schedule continues at Blackfriars in Cambridge.

The first Sunday of Advent was the tenth anniversary of the establishment of regular Sunday Masses in Cambridge in the Traditional Rite. Mass on that day was offered for the repose of the souls of Fr Christopher Back, who first

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celebrated these Masses, of Dr Kevin Marshall, who until his death in 2015 was LMS Representative for the diocese, and of all late members of the congregation. We are grateful as always to the Dominicans for their unfailing generosity in ensuring continuity in the celebration of these Masses in the years since Fr Back's declining health and death.

The Masses on Christmas Day and on the Epiphany were sung. We are eagerthat Mass might be sung with more regularity; volunteers to sing and serve are always welcome.

Lancaster Bob & Jane Latin 01524 412987 lancaster@lms.org.uk latinmasslancaster.blogspot.com John Rogan 01524 858832 lancasterassistant@lms.org.uk The winter quarter is always quieter once the Sizergh Masses have finished for the year. All the Masses at St Mary's Hornby have gone ahead as scheduled with the usual faithful attending. Mid-afternoon is not always a convenient time but it would be good to see a few more people.

Canon John Watson has now moved from Boarbank Hall to serve the parish of Christ the Good Shepherd at Workington.

He has already been approached by a parishioner about offering an EF Mass, probably on a Saturday in the summer, and this is under discussion. We hope to bring you good news about this in the next edition.

After our report went to print for the winter 2018 edition of Mass of Ages, we heard that the heating system at St Walburge, Preston, had finally given up the ghost so the parish is busy trying to raise the money for a new one. If you can help then do visit their website https://icksp.org.uk/ preston/ where you can donate online. We ourselves haven't been there for several months because it is so cold!

We hope to be able to have our usual Masses at Sizergh Castle Chapel this summer. Dates should be available in time for the next edition but please see our website for the most accurate information. We are very grateful to those priests who are willing to travel to offer these Masses. However, the collections are not always sufficient to cover the stipend and travel expenses, so if anyone wishes to offer a stipend for one of the Sizergh or Hornby Masses then please do get in touch as this will help us greatly.

Liverpool Jim Pennington liverpool@lms.org.uk The regular Sunday and Holyday EF Masses in the parishes of St Catherine Laboure, Farington, St Mary Magdalen, Penwortham, and St Anthony’s, Scotland Road, Liverpool, continue. Fr O’Shea’s Thursday Traditional Rite Masses at St John’s in Wigan also continue. Fr Hemer of Allen Hall once again offered our Christmas Day Mass at St Anthony’s.

Fr John Harris is now back in his parish, and has resumed his Tuesday Traditional Rite Masses at Holy Spirit, Liverpool, but every two weeks at present. Please check with him before travelling to Holy Spirit – his number is in the Mass listings.

We are still very short of servers for the Mass at St Anthony’s. A student, Jesse Gitau, has joined us, and another

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REPORTS FROM AROUND THE COUNTRY has shown interest, but that would still leave us with only four regulars, including me – and I am not precisely a teenager any more. We would love to hear from anyone who would like to join our team.

Liverpool (Warrington) Alan Frost The LMS has long held an annual pilgrimage to Holywell, but just last month (January), St Mary’s organised a pilgrimage to Holywell for its young adults (18-35). Shortly after, it was expected a pre-planning application process would confirm the change of use of buildings next door to the Shrine Church from ‘Business’ to ‘Community’. There is still a need for funds to achieve this.

In December, there was a very fulsome celebration of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. As well as Holy Mass, there were Eucharistic Adoration, Confessions, Spiritual Conferences and a picnic! At the end there was investiture with the Miraculous Medal and a procession including the reciting of the Rosary.

Of unusual interest is the fact that at Christmas, the Midnight Mass (very well attended) was almost entirely candle-lit, including, notably, all the sconces along the walls of the nave.

Middlesbrough Paul Waddington 01757 638027 middlesbrough@lms.org.uk Most activities in the Middlesbrough Diocese centre around the Oratorian Community at St Wilfrid’s Church in York. The Sung Masses continue at noon every Sunday, with a polyphonic setting provided three Sundays per month by choral scholars, most of whom are University students. On the first Sunday, there is usually a plainsong setting. On Sunday evenings, presently at 6pm, traditional Vespers and Benediction is offered.

Fr Mark Drew continues to offer a Sunday Mass at the Church of St Mary and St Joseph in Hedon at 5pm on the second Sunday of each month.

I am very conscious of the lack of any provision of Latin Masses in the northern part of the diocese. I would be interested to hear from anyone who is able to suggest a way of overcoming this omission.

Northampton North (Northamptonshire) Paul Beardsmore northampton@lms.org.uk Fr Byrne continues to offer Mass every Saturday; in addition, Masses were offered on the feast of all Saints, the Commemoration of All Souls, and the feast of the Epiphany, and there was a Sung Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve. Northampton (South) Barbara Kay bedford@lms.org.uk 01234 340759 Nick Ross nick@efmass.co.uk

07951 145240 The Latin Mass Society came to Bedford for the first time on 10 November for a High Mass of Reparation for the Abortion Referendum in Ireland at the Church of the

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Holy Child and St Joseph, which houses Great Britain’s authenticated copy of the Miraculous Relic Image of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Some 80 people attended and enjoyed some splendid liturgy and music.

Our new series of First Sunday Family Catechism Days at Christ the King, Bedford are being well attended, with sessions for the under 8s, under 16s and adults, led by Fr Patrick O’Donohue, FSSP, who regularly says the Mass there beforehand.

Numbers at Bedford continue steadily in the 70s and 80s and we are welcoming new faces all the time. All enjoy refreshments in the hall after Mass with a sales table, proceeds supporting the FSSP Bedford Apostolate.

Matthew Schellhorn, our Director of Music, has sung several Masses in the new season. He is also planning to give a talk on Gregorian Chant on Sunday 24 March at Christ the King to encourage further interest. The small Schola continues to sing Mass on the first Sunday of each month.

Marc Anthony Norfolk, who was born on Boxing Day, was duly and appropriately baptised by Fr O’Donohue on the Feast of Jesus, Mary, Joseph, Sunday 13 January.

Masses at Chesham and Shefford continue respectively at 8 am on Sunday and 7.30 pm on the third Friday of the month.

For details of all our activities, please see our Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/bedfordlatinmass/ Nottingham (Lincoln) M.Carroll mcarroll3@hotmail.co.uk Website - Traditional Latin Mass in Lincolnshire Website - The Lincolnshire Martyrs Facebook - Traditional Latin Mass in Lincolnshire I am very pleased to announce that the Latin Mass has returned to Skegness. This was an unexpected, and extremely welcome addition to the Latin Mass calendar, and it is good to see the far east of the country now starting to be served even more. The Latin Mass is being said at the Sacred Heart Catholic Church, 22 Grovenor Road, Skegness, PE25 2DB on the 4th Sunday of every month at 5pm. I would like to greatly thank all those who support this new Mass.

The Latin Mass also continues at St Hugh's Catholic Church, 34 Broadgate, Lincoln LN255AQ on the second Sunday of the month at 4pm. We now have an excellent server, and chant is being provided to greatly enhance the Liturgy. Thank you to all those who help and also travel to this Mass. It is good to see the Latin Mass doing well in this part of the country.

Nottingham South (Leicestershire and Rutland) Paul Beardsmore It was heartening to have four Old Rite Masses celebrated in the area on All Souls' Day; Fr Gillham at Loughborough was able to offer Mass in addition to those previously scheduled at Holy Cross and St Peter's in Leicester, and the Sung Mass at Oakham. The Oakham Mass, at which the St Peter's Singers performed the Fauré setting, was particularly well attended. Sung Masses have also been celebrated for the feasts of All Saints (at Holy Cross), the Immaculate Conception (St Peter's), and the Epiphany (Holy Cross).

Otherwise the regular schedule of Masses continues unchanged - daily (except Saturdays) at Holy Cross Priory, Saturday and first Fridays at St Peter's, and every Friday

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REPORTS FROM AROUND THE COUNTRY

Mgr Francis Jamieson with our reporter Maurice Quinn dressed as a Knight of St Columba - the Torbay Knights of St Columba assisted in the setting up of the altar rails at Oakham. The Mass on 1st February at Oakham will be a sung Requiem on the anniversary of the death of Mackenzie Urquhart. There will also be a Sung Mass on the following day at St Peter's in Leicester for the feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin.

Plymouth (Devon) Maurice Quinn 07555 536579 devon@lms.org.uk I am pleased to report that here in Devon we have some interesting developments regarding much-needed servers.

Andrew Marlborough, a Diocesan seminarian (Allan Hall) currently stationed at Sacred Heart and St Theresa and the Child Jesus parish, Paignton, has been undergoing server training locally, and hopes to serve the usus antiquior in the New Year when time and opportunity allows. For this we have to thank the parish priest, Fr Ralph Candy, for allowing the training to take place at Sacred Heart, both on the sanctuary and in the church rooms. Another young man, Kieron MizziWeaver, who hails from the Blandford Forum area but is now a medical student at Exeter University, has offered to join our serving team in the Exeter area. Kieron learnt to serve the Old Rite while a student at Downside Abbey, and was happy to help out at Blandford Forum when able to do so. We thank them both for their generosity in giving up their time to help out on the sanctuary.

At St Mary’s Abbey, Buckfastleigh, our monthly Latin Mass celebrations have been going well with Fr Guy de Gaynesford and Dom Thomas Regan OSB sharing

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responsibility in alternate months. A really good bonus for the congregation on Saturday 8 December – Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary – was a Sung Mass.

Fr Thomas celebrated, and we were once again pleased to welcome Andrew Butcher, the LMS Rep for Cardiff, as MC for the occasion.

I am pleased to confirm that there will be a Latin Mass at Buckfast every month throughout the year as usual, but at the moment I cannot confirm the date for the months of April and June. Here, I suggest that if you wish to attend our celebrations in either of these two months please contact me by email or by phone for details nearer the time.

In Exeter at Blessed Sacrament, the well-attended Mass celebrations have been shared between Fr Harry Heijveld and Mgr Adrian Toffolo, and we thank them both for giving up their time. The usual Sung Mass in December had to be moved from the third Sunday to the second Sunday, with Mgr Toffolo celebrating and John Tristram serving for the first time as Thurifer in place of Joseph Jones who was away.

I am pleased to report that our wonderful tea ladies, Joan Ware and Shelagh Jess, are still on hand to provide much needed refreshments after Mass for those who wish to stay awhile and socialise. We owe them a big vote of thanks for their sterling work throughout the previous year.

Numbers attending our monthly fourth Sunday Mass celebrations have been down recently at St Cyprian’s, Ugbrooke House, Chudleigh, probably the result of the dark winter evenings. The lack of a choir on many occasions has

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REPORTS FROM AROUND THE COUNTRY been a problem, which resulted in Fr Guy de Gaynesford having to celebrate a Low instead of the advertised Sung Mass. However, all was well on the fourth Sunday of Advent – the last Latin Mass of the year in this part of the county when Dr Andrew Beards and his daughter Clare, assisted by Michael Crawford, sang the Mass unaccompanied for a very appreciative congregation. It was particularly pleasing to have many people comment afterwards that to have attended such a beautiful Sung Mass a day before Christmas Eve, and at such a beautiful venue, was profoundly moving. Many thanks to Fr Guy, Andrew, Clare and Michael for making it happen.

I would like to point out that, unfortunately, there will be no Traditional Rite Mass at Ugbrooke House during the month of May for reasons beyond our control. We thank the Rt Hon. Alexander Clifford for offering us an alternative date in May, although this proved to be unworkable for us. Again, do check the Mass Listings before travel.

For some weeks I have been unable to attend the usual Sunday morning 11.30am Missa Cantata at St Edward the Confessor in Plymouth, so to be there for the Third Sunday of Advent was a real pleasure. Fr Anthony Pillari still makes the regular Sunday morning trip to Plymouth from Lanherne Convent in Cornwall to celebrate Mass and to pastorally care for the Latin Mass parishioners. As the usual MC was away, Stephen Proctor was pleased to stand in for him and direct the proceedings. It was also a pleasure to see the confidence and reverent dignity with which the four young servers diligently carried out their duties on the sanctuary.

We also have to thank Fr Pillari for travelling to Plymouth to celebrate a Christmas Day Mass, after which carols were sung, and the Child Jesus was venerated – each person knelt at the altar rails and kissed his feet when offered to do so.

On the 30 December (Sunday in the Octave of Christmas), Fr Anselm Gribben ICKSP, was pleased to celebrate Mass as he was in the area visiting family. Fr Anselm is no stranger to St Edward’s, as he often celebrated Mass here before his joining the Institute.

If any reader would like to assist in the choir at any of our Traditional Rite Mass celebrations please make yourself known to us (servers or musicians/choir members) at any venue. Also, if any men would like to try serving, especially in the Exeter, Chudleigh and Buckfastleigh areas please contact me so that we can arrange for training, and lastly, do make a note of my new Latin Mass Society email address.

Plymouth (Dorset) Maurice Quinn 07555 536579 devon@lms.org.uk Our Traditional Rite Latin Masses, celebrated in the lovely county of Dorset at St Mary’s, Marnhull, and at Our Lady of Lourdes and St Cecilia, Blandford Forum, are still proving to be popular among those who manage to attend.

At the latter venue, Mgr Francis Jamieson has succeeded installing the long-awaited altar rails (see photograph) as part of the general refurbishment of the church building, much to the delight of the usus antiquior congregation who can now receive Holy Communion in a more reverential and traditional manner. Fr Martin Budge and Mgr Francis Jamieson still take it in turns to celebrate the Latin Mass in alternate months at 12 noon in their respective parishes –

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usually on a weekday (for full details see the Mass Listings).

Unfortunately, Mgr Francis had to be away elsewhere in November, but the Blandford Mass went ahead as usual as Fr Martin kindly stepped in to take his place. We owe a debt of gratitude to these two priests, without whom the people of this part of Dorset would have no opportunity to attend Holy Mass in the Traditional Latin Rite every month throughout the year. If any reader is free to attend the usus antiquior celebrations in either of these two venues, we would be most happy to see you and speak afterwards at the social lunch that usually follows. Do check the Mass Listings, and feel free to contact me at any time either by phone or by my new LMS email address if you have any questions.

Portsmouth (Bournemouth) Tim Fawkes Bournemouth t.fawkes136@btinternet.com The monthly first Friday Masses at the Bournemouth Oratory have continued with a steady congregation of around 35. Additionally, there were Masses offered for the Vigil of All Souls on 1 November and of the Vigil of the feast of the Immaculate Conception on 7 December.

At the time of writing work is being done in the sanctuary that will enable Mass ad orientem to be offered. Until now, only the altar in the Lady Chapel has really been suitable.

Another development has been the installation of communion rails just before Christmas at the front of the nave which were built and supplied by a local firm. It is interesting to see how many people choose to kneel and receive Holy Communion in the traditional manner when they have the choice.

Finally, our congratulations to Brother Andrew Wagstaff of the Bournemouth Oratory who was ordained Deacon by Bishop Philip Egan at a well-attended novus ordo Mass on the stormy night of 9 November. Those there who appreciate traditional music will have enjoyed the singing of Ecce Sacerdos Magnus

by Elgar, Tollite Hostias by Saint-Saens and Veni Creator Spiritus sung to plainchant among other traditional works.

Portsmouth (Isle of Wight) Peter Clarke The EF Mass continues here on the Island on (most) Thursdays at 12 noon with Exposition and Confessions from 11-30am, thanks to Fr Jonathan Redvers Harris (Ordinariate and parish priest of Cowes and East Cowes). These Masses are usually at St David’s, East Cowes, with occasional Masses at St Thomas’s, Cowes and St Mary’s, Ryde.

Please ring for confirmation of these Masses. Tel. 01983 566740 or 07790 892592 We were delighted to welcome Fr Seth Phipps FSSP to the Island for a Day of Recollection, the week before Advent.

Father was ordained in June and this was the first Day of Recollection that he had given. His theme was: "The glories of Mary, and our interior life."

Father gave three most interesting and inspiring talks on: Divine Motherhood and Immaculate Conception; Assumption of Our Lady and Our Lady at the foot of the Cross.

In addition, Father offered Mass, heard Confessions and gave Benediction. The day concluded with the traditional individual blessing and kissing of the newly ordained priest’s hands.

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REPORTS FROM AROUND THE COUNTRY A more detailed account of the Day of Recollection can be read on the Isle of Wight Catholic History Society website: www.iow-chs.org/events-reports We look forward to another visit from Fr Phipps in the near future.

Portsmouth (Reading) Adrian Dulston We had the usual array of Christmas Masses with the FSSP also arranging a midnight Mass to usher in the New Year.

The Sunday Masses continue to be well attended. Men and Women’s groups occur once a month with trips planned for the New Year. There is a vibrancy in the community since the FSSP gained Personal Parish status. As usual, note the Mass times during the week by visiting the FSSP Reading web page. You will also find out the latest news about groups and visits.

Perhaps we could pray especially to Blessed Dominic Barberi, whose plaque where he died is displayed near Reading Station, that the Mass of Ages may be more known and embraced by Reading priests. Blessed Barberi literally gave his heart to England dying of a heart attack. Incidentally, rumours abound that the Blessed Newman will be made a Saint in October but I understand he wanted Blessed Dominic Barberi made a Saint while he was drawing to the end of his own life, so perhaps a double canonisation is appropriate – the Bishop of Birmingham Diocese was keen on this. It’s appropriate that this year the school founded by Blessed Newman near Reading celebrates its 160th anniversary and it so happens to be the 170th anniversary of Blessed Barberi’s death as well! Two Latin Masses are offered in Blessed Newman’s Oratory School in Woodcote, near Reading, on Mondays and Saturdays at 7.30am during term time.

May Royal St Joseph continue to rebuild Our Lady’s Dowry.

Shrewsbury (Chester) Andrew Nielsen chester@lms.org.uk Third Sunday monthly masses are continuing at St Clare's Chester. Mass attendance is constant with a small regular congregation.

Shrewsbury (The Wirral) Stefano Mazzeo 01516 386822 wirral@lms.org.uk The Shrine Church of Ss Peter, Paul and Philomena, the Dome of Home, New Brighton continues to flourish and we have a steady growth in our congregation. However, in a recent interview I recorded for my You Tube channel Canon Montjean said that many local people across The Wirral still do not know that we are open and that we celebrate the Traditional Latin Mass in all its glory. Contact Canon Montjean for further details. chn.montjean@icrsp. org Tel. 0151 638 6822. Our church is always open and we have regular tours by local schools and other organisations around the church, during this people can listen to our audio tour of the church during the blitz, and also have various aspects of Traditional Catholicism explained to them by one of the Canons. To take part in a tour please contact Anne at contactus@domeofhome.org. We also have Fr Gribbin now in residence at the Dome to help out.

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The renovations under the project manager Anne Archer have now reached the third phase, with the sanctuary and the dome itself about to undergo restorative work. So, there is still a lot of work to be done.

Masses also continue at Birkenhead Carmel every Thursday at 7:45am celebrated by a Canon of the Institute from New Brighton.

Canon Scott Smith ICKSP is now in residence at St Winefride's Presbytery Shrewsbury and there is an increase in the number of Traditional Latin Masses both at St Winefride's church and at Shrewsbury Cathedral; please see the Mass listings.

Southwark (Kent) Marygold Turner 01580 291372 Having been lucky enough to fill the Holidays of Obligation (Old Rite!) in the summer, we were sad that Fr Richard Whinder was ill for the Immaculate Conception at Headcorn and unable to come as planned. However, at very short notice Fr Michael Cullinan took his place, and we were most grateful. There was a good congregation and I gave lunch at my house for Father and eight in all.

On December 30th, at South Ashford, Marcus Williams, a priest recently ordained by the Bishop of Chru in Switzerland, said Mass, with first Blessings.

On the Feast of the Epiphany, Fr Michael Woodgate celebrated Mass at Maidstone, and blessed the chalk for marking our doors. A very good and grateful congregation was the result.

Westminster (Hertfordshire) Tom Short Thanks to Canon Noonan for Baldock Masses and Mgr Read for Old Hall Green and Mike Mason for organisation of them. Also, thanks to Ed Hamer for serving at Hertford Masses.

Westminster (Spanish Place) Roger Wemyss Brooks wemyssbrooks@outlook.com Congregations remain stable and sometimes growing, often with visitors unfamiliar with the Old Rite or who have missed it for many years. The copies of the Ordinary Prayers booklets and the print-out of Sunday Propers are in constant use and copies are often requested for purchase.

We are most appreciative of the priests who substitute for our regular Old Rite Chaplain, Fr Michael Cullinan, when his duties at Maryvale call him away. Recently these have included Fr John Hemer of Allen Hall, Fr Gabriel Diaz Patri from St Bede’s, Clapham Park, Fr Christian de Lisle from Homerton and our neighbour from Warwick Street Fr Mark Elliott Smith.

A magnificent High Mass on New Year’s Day was celebrated by recently ordained FSSP priest Fr Seth Phipps, assisted by Fr Elliott Smith, deacon, and Fr David Evans of Hackney as subdeacon. The St James choir enriched the ceremonies with their beautiful singing.

A solemn Requiem will be offered for the late Fr George Dangerfield on Friday 15th February at 7pm. Father

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© Celine Bisson, WPR Agency

celebrated the 9.30 Mass at Spanish Place for many years and will be remembered for his diligence and trenchant preaching. He frequently urged devotion to the Incarnate Lord –

Sacred Infant, all Divine What a tender love was Thine Thus to come from highest bliss Down to such a world as this.

Father had met all the popes of his lifetime, apart from the present Holy Father. When the Managers of the retirement home where he lived in the last years of his life learnt of this, they made great efforts and transported him to Rome where he received a blessing from Pope Francis.

May he rest in peace.

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Wrexham Kevin Jones web http://lmswrexham.weebly.com Twitter twitter.com/LMSWrexham e-mail wrexham@lms.org.uk Telephone: 01244 674011 This last quarter saw Masses taking on the First Saturdays (Buckley), Second Sunday (Llay) and Holywell (Fourth Sunday).

In November, at Llay, Canon Lordan celebrated a Requiem on the second Sunday.

It is pleasing to see that since the Traditional Mass replaced the English Mass on the first Saturday at Buckley, it has attracted and retained the attendance of a number of the parishioners in addition to regular Latin Mass attendees.

The weather has been kind to us so far this winter and therefore there is no excuse for not supporting the Latin Mass in the diocese! Whilst the core numbers remain static, it would good to see some more people!

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ART AND DEVOTION

Descent from the Cross Peter Paul Rubens, c. 1612 Cathedral of Our Lady, Antwerp, Belgium

By Caroline Shaw

I

n the sombre evening light of Good Friday, the crowd has departed from Golgotha, and daylight is fading.

Only those few who have not abandoned Our Lord are here now. A group of eight figures works silently and with great concentration, gently lowering Our Lord’s body from the Cross. Our eye is first draw to the graceful, limpid figure of Jesus, whose lifeless form illuminates the whole scene with a pale grey light.

Then our gaze travels down to the beautiful figure of St John, in vivid red, the colour of martyrdom. He is fully alive, strong and sure as he braces himself to carry the weight of Our Lord in his outstretched arms. Above St John is Joseph of Arimathea, who provided the tomb in which Jesus was laid, and opposite him is the bearded figure of Nicodemus, the wealthy Pharisee who brought myrrh and aloes to embalm Jesus’ body. Above them, two muscular workers lower the blood-stained winding sheet and gently, wordlessly, let Our Lord’s body slip from their arms.

Our eye travels along this sinuous, tightly-packed group, down to the left, where Our Lady stands. Her face is as deathly pale as her Son’s, her arm is outstretched, reaching up to touch His lifeless arm. Her inner grief is etched onto her pale tear-stained face, but she stands ready to receive her beloved Son in her arms for the last time. Below her is Mary Cleophas, who gathers up her skirt with one hand, and reaches out to grasp the winding-sheet with the other, gazing in anguish up at her Lord and Saviour with tears streaming down her face. Next to her, St Mary Magdalene’s long pale golden hair shines in the darkness, and her solemn gaze contemplates with awe and wholehearted love, the image of her Crucified Lord, whose blood-stained foot rests gently on her shoulder. She takes it tenderly in both hands, recalling at once the moment when she washed Our Lord’s feet with her tears, and dried them with her hair.

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This vast, magnificent altarpiece fills the space at the right of the main altar in the great Cathedral of Our Lady at Antwerp. It is one of a trio of huge altarpieces painted for the Cathedral

by Rubens, which are all still in situ.

Standing at the entrance to the Cathedral and gazing along the great expanse of the nave, one can recognize immediately what is depicted in this altarpiece: Rubens’ clarity, his dramatic vision, his powerful yet simple compositions, are easily visible even to the worshippers sitting at the very back of the church.

Rubens was born in Antwerp in 1577, a few years after the period of nearly 20 years of iconoclastic attacks by Calvinists that disfigured almost all the Catholic churches in the city. Thousands of paintings, sculptures and liturgical items were set upon and violently smashed, burned and destroyed. The Calvinists attacked images of Our Lady particularly virulently: “As if on cue, they all fall furiously upon the Madonna, stab it with swords and daggers and tear off its head,” wrote a horrified onlooker.

The citizens of Antwerp had a particular devotion to Our Lady and, once peace and the Catholic faith had been re-established under Spanish rule, they quickly sought to restore her images.

Rubens painted a magnificent, lightfilled ‘Assumption’ for the High Altar of the Cathedral, emphasising her triumph, while the pale yet steadfast image of Our Lady in his ‘Descent’ underlines her importance as co-Redemptrix at the foot of the Cross.

Rubens may well have drawn upon the writings of St Ambrose for his depiction of Our Lady: “during her Son’s many afflictions, she alone stood confident in her faith… disciplined and modest”. This is a passage that was very much in keeping with the new post-Tridentine understanding of Our Lady’s role in Christ’s Passion. From the Middle Ages onwards, the Church had often meditated upon the Virgin’s tragic, agonizing impotence during the Passion

and descent from the Cross, and artists routinely painted the figure of Our Lady as slightly separated from the main body of the action, fainting and overwhelmed with grief.

This idea of Mary’s weakness was, however, vigorously countered by the Church after the Reformation. Far from depicting her as a weak and broken figure, it was her steadfastness and stoicism that was now to be emphasized. A few years before Rubens painted this altarpiece, a Jesuit named Fr Jacob Gretser wrote: “those who paint the blessed Virgin fallen to the ground, robbed of her strength and senses… are not acting in correspondence with the truth, nor in accordance with the dignity of such a great mother.” Rubens’ altarpiece was the first, and certainly the most influential, of a new generation of works that sought to emphasize Our Lady’s admirable strength in the face of her all-consuming suffering.

The altarpiece was commissioned in 1611 by the Guild of Arquebusiers, whose patron saint was St Christopher, the ‘Christ-bearer’. The guild members asked Rubens for an altarpiece celebrating St Christopher, but according to the new rules laid down by the CounterReformation Church, it was forbidden to depict images of saints in the central panels of altarpieces: only scenes from the life of Our Lord were considered worthy. Rubens responded to their request in two ways. He painted an impressively large St Christopher on the back panel of the altarpiece; and here, in this magnificent image of the Deposition, he has painted eight ‘Christ-bearers’. In this scene, the figures most central to the life of Our Lord – His Mother, St John, St Mary Magdalene – are the founders of the primordial Church. They take into their arms the body of their Lord – the original Corpus Christi. This image is thus a potent reminder and re-affirmation to all who worship in the Cathedral, of the real presence of Our Lord, the body of Christ, which is received by all the faithful, every day, in the holy Eucharist.

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Rubens’ ‘Descent from the Cross’ is considered to be one of the greatest paintings of the 17th century.

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COMMENT

Saving Ireland’s Unborn Mary O’Regan on a special case of giving

T

he one certainty in Siobhan’s mind was that if she didn’t have an abortion, she could not raise the baby herself. She already had one little boy and was barely coping. Her boyfriend of many years was in chains to an addiction and while they lived together, she was forever in a pattern of leaving the flat and going to sleep on a friend’s sofa because she didn’t want their son to be around his father when he was drunk and high.

Siobhan’s parents were less than impressed so they cut her off, withholding affection until she agreed to break up with her sweetheart-the-drunk which was never going to happen.

He was averse to marrying her. Most of her friends had fellows with drink problems and they didn’t leave their men, and it never crossed her mind to do so either. I knew of Siobhan’s crisis pregnancy because one of her friends knew me and was struggling to help Siobhan find a way forward. Siobhan was desperately fighting against a temptation to have an abortion, the mere idea was hideously gruesome to her, but she was beginning to feel she had ‘no other choice’. Siobhan mentioned that she’d had previous pregnancies, yet I made the deliberate choice not to try to find out specifics.

I have helped pregnant women in crisis from all over the world and it is an essential step to ask them if they have had an abortion before and, if so,

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for what reason, and the majority of them have even said they were grateful to me for showing concern about their history. Not so with an Irish girl.

If an Irish woman is not going to tell the man with whom she is intimate about such things, to think she will tell you is folly.

A friend of Siobhan’s made a suggestion: ‘would you ever think of adoption? Think of the joy the baby would give a couple who can’t have kids of their own. This would be very generous of you.’

I would never have dared suggest adoption to Siobhan because in my experience to mention adoption in such circumstances is to risk hearing the words: ‘the baby will be abused!’ What

'I hope that sharing my experience will... give you hope that Ireland’s young people may come to save their young'

a close friend could do, I could not.

Siobhan became obsessed with the idea: there was a way to keep the baby alive and to allow for him to have a life she could not give him. I only helped from the sidelines by encouraging the friend to keep encouraging Siobhan towards adoption.

Siobhan’s friend’s words spoke to her heart. For the Irish girl it is a source of pride to ‘be the giver’ or ‘to do the generous thing’ and to get credit for good-heartedness by a most genuine act of selflessness in giving to another. Blindly pro-abortion as the young Irish often are, they still have this empathy for couples who cannot have a baby of their own, and yet they are contrarily oblivious to how their role in voting for abortion makes it ever more impossible for a childless couple to adopt.

But could Siobhan bear the pain of parting with her baby? With each passing month, she realized that she was the one person who would know pain, yet three people would profit immeasurably, the baby would have his life spared and a couple would know the immense happiness of calling him their own.

What I’m about to write may shock you but it is nonetheless true and the most telling detail of all: Siobhan and her boyfriend never discussed her pregnancy, and never talked about the baby going for adoption. Not once. To do so would have been to open the Pandora’s box as to her reasons for thinking him an unfit father and why his addictions made him a stranger to her.

Then there came a still, cold morning when Siobhan gave birth, patted his fluffy head, bathed his newborn face in her tears and gave him into the arms of another.

The Latin Mass Society has been organizing glorious Traditional Latin Masses in reparation for the Irish voting abortion into law, and I hope that sharing my experience will edify you and give you hope that Ireland’s young people may come to save their young.

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REVIEW

The Egyptian Guide: From Jihad to Joy Evelyn Oliver Published by Regina magazine Anne-Marie Mackie-Savage reviews a new novel

W

ritten in the first person, the Egyptian Guide is the story of reversion, conversion, and the start of a war which begins when the Aswan Dam is destroyed by the Scimitars of Islam, and Christians are blamed. The narrator, Clara Cumberhart, a beautiful Korean-English woman of 24 brought up in a broken home in Canada, is a Travel Management graduate employed in Egypt. When we first meet her, she is in an airport, reading a letter from Azim, a tour guide she met while working, and with whom she formed a chaste relationship. The letter, read between asides from the narrator, reveals his conversion to Christianity from Islam, and the fact that he is in fact working for British Intelligence, the former which leads to his death. His martyrdom is on the steps of the Church where he is about to be baptised, saving the life of the daughter of his Christian friend, Nour, who is also gunned down. Nour's husband, Mansur, is saved from death by an icon of St Anthony he was holding, a gift for Azim. Mansur, educated at a Catholic boarding school in the north of England, then Oxford, was baptised on the steps of the church alongside the dying Azim, and is temporarily paraplegic from his wounds. All of this Clara witnesses, as she has been escorted from her plane by the CIA to watch the CCTV footage of the attack, and where she learns of Azim's secret life as an agent. Later accepting a job offer from Mansur, Clara is propelled fully into the life of the billionaire, Mansur, and his daughter Talitha. Reader, she naturally marries him. She enjoys the life of a billionaire's wife, literally wearing his deceased wife's shoes, with some hiccups, until he goes to Egypt to help after the dam is destroyed. I won't tell you the end.

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The Egyptian Guide is a long book, spanning about 25 years in 422 pages and 141 chapters, and includes a prologue, three parts, and an epilogue, and has a very broad scope. Every event in Clara's life from the opening to the close of the book has a didactic element which I found detracted from the story telling.

Clara's journey back into the Faith is a bit like a tick box from the Catechism, with almost every hot Catholic topic signposted during the tale and expounded upon. We see divorce (Clara's parents), marriage (primarily hers), IVF (Mansur's paraplegia, albeit temporarily, Clara's sister Kitty has MS), abortion (Nour's

sister, Vardah Wattles contemplates one), the consecrated life (she has a room in a convent prior to her marriage), homeschooling (she is a mother now), marital difficulties, contraception, separation and reconciliation (hers).

And of course, Jonathan the PA, gay and obsessed with Mansur since University.

Then there are relics, her dress with Azim's blood on it, Nour's entire wardrobe, the relics she finds on her tour of the UK with Mansur, finding English saints, St Margaret Clitherow for one, prayers before statues, icons, all of which are absolutely Catholic and worthy, but presented in such an obvious way, and cloying at times, that any narrative flow just halts. Clara herself feels rather unreal because she comes across as a rather florid ideal, rather than a living breathing character. Symbolism, and meaning, and coincidence, are all so thoroughly spelled out with regard to incidents and characters that there isn't much room left for individual characters to develop themselves through the actions they perform, and seem 2D as a consequence.

The layout of the book is a bit of a challenge. Indent and spaces between paragraphs together, surely one or the other? I also found chapters only two pages long rather odd, and there are an awful lot of italics, which really don't help Clara's characterisation at all, and again, makes a read less enjoyable. There are also recaps of key ideas which are unnecessary, reinforcing the didactic tone, and it would have been great to have some show-not-tell parts of the book which weren't explained for us. It is an ambitious book about conversion, love, and forgiveness, in a time of hatred, hostility, and war, but it's covering too much ground in not enough depth.

The Egyptian Guide is available from the LMS bookshop, ÂŁ14.99 + p&p.

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ARCHITECTURE

St John's Church viewed from Standishgate. The red building on the right is the original presbytery and is now the parish club.

The Walmsley Cross in the centre marks the position of the 1785 chapel

Church of St John, Wigan Paul Waddington tells the story of how Wigan came to have two Catholic Churches practically next door to each other, and looks at the architecture of one of them

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esistance to the English Reformation was nowhere stronger than in the County of Lancashire, where the Mass continued to be offered throughout Penal Times.

Mostly, this was made possible by the gentry creating clandestine chapels in the attic of their houses, where they were also able to hide priests. Many of these priests were Jesuits, which accounts for the preponderance of Jesuits in the area even into the modern era. Catholicism was particularly strong in the rural areas, where priest holes and secret chapels could more easily be concealed.

In the eighteenth century, the inhabitants of rural Lancashire, many of whom were Catholics, flocked to the towns to find work in the newly built mills, where they often lived in

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slum conditions. Nowhere was this so pronounced as in Wigan, a former Market Town, which expanded rapidly due to its location at the centre of the Lancashire coal field. Provision had to be made for the newly arrived urban Catholics, and it was Jesuits who took the lead.

Still outlawed In 1740, Fr Charles Brockholes SJ, built, at his own expense, a house with an upstairs chapel to serve the 300 Catholics living in Wigan at the time. Although Catholicism was still outlawed, it seems that, by exercising discretion, he was able to do this quite openly, as the house, which still exists, occupied a prominent site in Standishgate close to the town centre. Nevertheless, Fr Brockholes took

the precaution of including a priest hole in the building. This chapel served the Catholic population of Wigan until 1785, when a larger, but still illegal, chapel was built at the rear of the house.

By 1817, this chapel was inadequate for the Catholic population of Wigan which had risen to 3,000. Since the Catholic Relief Act of 1791 had legalised the building of Catholic Churches, it was decided that a much larger building, capable of accommodating a congregation of 1000, should be built.

In order that the 1785 chapel could continue to be used during construction of the new church, a site was chosen even further back from the road, which explains why to this day, the church of St John is hardly visible from the street.

The former chapel was later demolished.

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ARCHITECTURE Even before building started, the Jesuits found that they had competition.

The Vicar Apostolic for the Northern Region, William Gibson, was also taking an interest in the Catholics of Wigan, and he, with the help of the Greenhalgh family, set about building a church in Wigan. The plot selected was also in Standishgate, less than 100 yards up the hill. There followed a period of intense rivalry.

Vicar Apostolic The foundation stones of both new churches were laid in the same year. The Jesuits were first off the blocks, laying the foundation stone of St John’s Church in January 1818. The Vicar Apostolic followed two months later, laying the foundation stone of the future St Mary’s Church in March. Although St John’s was completed first, at the insistence of Bishop Gibson, its opening had to be delayed until after that of St Mary’s.

St Mary’s, which stands on slightly higher ground, is the grander and more prominent of the two churches. Built in the Gothic style, it has an imposing position. By contrast, St John’s, which is the subject of this article, is classical in style and set back so far behind buildings that it is scarcely visible from the street. Nevertheless, it is worthy of close inspection.

The architect of St John’s church is unknown, but it is probable that it was designed by its builder, one Robert Haulbrook, a local stonemason. Costing a mere £6000, it was originally a very basic rectangular structure, made from yellow sandstone with round headed windows. Except for its large size, it resembled many Nonconformist chapels of the period. It did, however have two distinguishing features. The first was external, where a full width porch with Ionic columns and frieze gave the building a very classical appearance.

The second was the elegantly curving choir gallery and staircases at the west end. Otherwise the interior was plain, reflecting the modest cost of the building.

It was not long after St John’s was opened in 1819, that the process of beautifying the interior began. Most notably, in 1843 Fr Henry Gradwell SJ engaged the distinguished Catholic architect Joseph John Scholes to redesign the sanctuary. Within the east end of the church, he created a semi-circular apse with six massive Corinthian half columns, supporting a prominent

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entablature. Centrally placed in the apse and behind the High Altar, he placed a tempietto. Often wrongly described as a baldacchino, this is a circular structure with dome, housing a large crucifix with Our Lady and St John at either side. St John’s tempietto has eight Corinthian columns, echoing the columns of the apse, and is the most notable feature of the church.

Further improvements were made in 1849, when Corinthian pilasters were added to the walls of the nave, and the entablature was extended around the entire church. Stained glass was added to the sanctuary windows, and it is probable that the beautifully moulded ceiling dates from this period.

In 1885, new tiled paving was laid, gas lighting provided, further stained glass added and new benches installed. Ten

years later in 1895, the main works of embellishment were completed when a new curving marble and alabaster altar rail was installed. The parishioners of St John’s could be very proud of their transformed church.

Lady Altar In 1933, the Jesuits withdrew from St John’s Church, which was still unconsecrated, handing it over to the Archdiocese of Liverpool. Consecration had to wait until 1959 when Scholes’ wooden High Altar was replaced by a marble one. A Lady Altar was installed at the same time, but its position close to the sanctuary was not ideal.

The next change came in 1962, when the very small sacristy attached to the north side was replaced by a more spacious one housed in an extension

The Church of St John, interior: most of the best features have been retained

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ARCHITECTURE

The parishioners of St John’s could be very proud of their transformed church built to the southern side. This extension also included a baptistery. The style of the extension was very much of its period, and totally out of sympathy with the rest of the church.

The final episode in the story of St John’s Church came in 1994, when it was subjected to post Vatican II reordering.

A forward altar was installed on a raised dais in the nave, around which benches were rearranged on three sides. The great width of the nave made this change possible, although the new layout of the benches conflicted with the design of the 1885 paving. This problem was resolved by laying a carpet over the tiles. Whilst a commendable effort was made to recreate the pattern of the tiles in the carpet, the soft finish does not suit the church.

The font was moved from the baptistery to a position near the altar rails, and the awkwardly placed Lady Altar of 1959 installed in the 1962 baptistery, so forming a separate chapel. Alas, the 1960s extension had such limited headroom, that it made a very poor setting for this otherwise attractive altar. In fact, the ceiling

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was so low that there was not space for a Marian statue over the altar. It may be that sometime, someone with the skills of J J Scholes will be able to create something out of this space that is more in keeping with the rest of the church.

Fortunately, the latest changes are not irreversible, and most of the

best features have been retained. The forward altar and its dais could, no doubt, be removed, and the benches restored to their original position to reveal Scholes’ paving. The Church of St John is a Grade II* Listed Building, and the Parish Priest, Fr O’Shea, offers Mass in the Extraordinary Form every Thursday at 7.30pm.

St John's Church showing the 1962 extension

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REPORT

The Traditional Mass returns to Latvia A special report by Andris Amolins of Una Voce Latvija

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© Sandra Kuznecova

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or the first time since the introduction of Paul VI’s Missal, the Traditional Latin Mass has been celebrated in the Marian sanctuary of Aglona. Aglona is the main Catholic pilgrimage site in Latvia. Its origins are connected with a Marian apparition in 1698. After the apparition a Dominican convent was founded, but the present church was built in the late 18th century.

The sanctuary was granted the title of Basilica minor on the occasion of its 200th anniversary in 1980. Every year, thousands of pilgrims from all over Latvia and neighbouring countries gather here on the Feast of the Assumption. These pilgrimages continued even through the years of the Soviet occupation, despite the obstacles put in place by the regime.

Una Voce Latvija (UVL) had long wished to assist at the Traditional Mass at this national shrine. It was in part hindered by the lack of a competent priest. But then Fr Witold Wisznewski, OFMCap, who currently serves in Riga, on his own initiative learned the Traditional Mass at the Ars celebrandi workshop in Lichen (Poland). Our great opportunity had arrived. UVL contacted the Rector of the Basilica, who advised us to contact the Bishop of Rezekne, who then gave permission for the Mass, the place and time being at the discretion of the Rector. It was, therefore, decided that the Mass should be offerred in the crypt of the Basilica early on 15 August.

The crypt had been renovated in the late 1990s, and this was the first Traditional Mass celebrated on that altar. It was also one of the first such for the priest and the first sung Mass at that (and for the server, too). Nevertheless, or perhaps because of that, the Holy Sacrifice was offered with great ceremonial accuracy.

Immediately behind the altar where the Traditional Mass was celebrated, lie the mortal remains of Venerable Bishop Boleslavs Sloskans, one of the three bishops secretly consecrated by Mons. D'Herbigny in 1926 for his work

in Russia. He was soon arrested and sent to the Gulag. In 1933, he was returned to Latvia as part of an exchange for an arrested Russian spy.

At our Mass the chant was performed

by Schola Sancti Meinardi from Riga, including also the ancient offertory Assumpta est with its verse. Many of the faithful present were almost certainly taking part in the Traditional Mass for the first time.

UVL is delighted at the return of the Mass of Ages - so far on one occasion only - to Latvia’s national sanctuary, on the 100th anniversary of the Republic of Latvia, the land dedicated to Our Lady

by Innocent III as Terra Mariana.

‘UVL is delighted at the return of the Mass of Ages - so far on one occasion only - to Latvia’s national sanctuary...’

Reprinted with permission from Gregorius Magnus, the magazine of the International Federation Una Voce, available from www.fiuv.org

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COMMENT

Walsingham: Rogation for the Nation “The harvest indeed is great, but the labourers are few.

Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest that he send labourers into his harvest.” Luke 10:2

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ogation days are days of prayer and fasting in Western Christianity, remembering the passion of Our Lord and the harvest of souls awaiting redemption. They are traditionally observed with processions and the Litany of the Saints. The word rogation comes from the Latin verb rogare, meaning “to ask”.

Rogation days of abstinence and penance were officially adopted into the Roman Rite in the reign of Pope Leo III. The faithful typically observed the days by fasting and abstinence in preparation to celebrate the Ascension, and farmers often had their crops blessed by a priest at this time.

A medieval custom on these days would have been the ceremony of ‘beating the bounds’, in which a procession of parishioners, led by the priest, would proceed around the boundary of their parish and pray for its protection in the forthcoming year.

There were often obstructions and violations of boundaries and this day helped to resolve these issues. This theme also developed into the tradition of seeking reconciliation in personal relationships.

At the time of Michaelmas, the harvest time in autumn, it was customary practise to call upon the powerful intercession of Holy Michael the Archangel to bless and protect the harvest.

At one time, Eucharistic Marian processions around village fields and ending in Benediction at the parish church were very common throughout Christendom to honour these days.

This was an important part of our liturgical heritage. Other names for these days evolved including “cross days” to signify the processions with crosses and banners.

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Rogating with Richeldis Walsingham has been a place of pilgrimage since the Middle Ages – one of four great shrines of medieval Christendom, ranking alongside Jerusalem, Rome and Santiago da Compostella.

In 1061 the Lady of the Manor, Richeldis de Faverches, had a series of visions of the Virgin Mary, who showed her the house in Nazareth where the angel Gabriel made his angelic salutation to the Mother of God. Our Lady asked Richeldis to build a replica of the holy house to serve as a perpetual memorial of the Annunciation.

According to the Pynson Ballad (c 1485), Richeldis prayed and asked that she might undertake some special work in honour of Our Lady. These visions were the answer to her rogation and a deepening of her vocation.

A shrine and vast religious heritage grew up around this rogation in response to Our Lady’s words to Richeldis “All who are in any way distressed, or in need, let them seek me there in that little house you have made for me in Walsingham. To all that seek me there shall be given great succour.

And there at Walsingham in this little house shall be held in remembrance the great joy of my salutation when St Gabriel told me I should through humility become the mother of God’s Son.” England: Mary’s Dowry Throughout the history of the shrine the vocation of parenthood and family life has been desired by many pilgrims who are barren, seeking wombs to be opened through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Bringing forth life is the essence of vocation, whether this is by physical or spiritual parenthood. Seeking to unite our ‘yes’, our FIAT with that of Our Lady in Walsingham is the rogation for the harvest of souls in our nation. Our Lady invites each one of us to participate in her joy of the Annunciation, the joy of a rich harvest and banquet to come.

Walsingham is a centre par excellence to rogate. A centre point to disern, deepen and dedicate your vocation, uniting your particular call in union with the Mother of God. The Walsingham Way opens an invitation to participate in the conversion of the nation, Mary’s Dowry, which is destined to have her ancient splendour restored once again.

Charlotte Pearson Boyd is the third woman in the story of Walsingham, whose vocational rogate bore fruit in the purchasing of the Slipper Chapel post the Reformation destruction of the shrine at Walsingham. Her charism was the conversion and restoration of the Dowry of Mary with Walsingham at its heart.

A Harvest Annunciation The harvest is precious, symbolic of bounty, health and abundance. Not only was the harvest of people vast as Jesus looked upon it, but he was moved with compassion to the depth of his being.

The current population of England stands at around 53 million. The Catholic population currently stands around the size of the population of Birmingham at just over a million.

God expects a crop from our vocation; He waits for a great harvest.

To produce fruit from our vocations we must labour in response to this call to discipleship. We must be expectant

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COMMENT like our Lady. The seeds of our vocation need watering in order for germination and growth to take place.

Pray, Pray, Pray.

The Annunciation is the birthplace of the harvest. Walsingham is the cradle of the conversion of England and a perpetual memorial of the Incarnation. The harvest of ‘Our Lady’s Dowry’ indeed is great, but the labourers are few. Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest that he send labourers into this harvest.

The harvest of our lands can be thought about in the agricultural sense as well as the metaphysical and supernatural sense of our spiritual lives. Responsible stewardship is needed more than ever before.

The Conversion of England The statue of Our Lady of Walsingham is currently on a two-year tour to Cathedrals around the country in preparation for the re-dedication of England as Our Lady’s Dowry by the Bishops of England and Wales. This will take place on the Solemnity of the Annunciation in 2020.

You can prepare for this by offering your ‘yes’ to God with the FIAT of Our Lady for the conversion of England, seeking the divine will of God in your life and for its purpose for the nation.

You can rogate for unanswered vocations through praying England’s prayer, the rosary and offering up your holy hours and days of fasting, and praying as rogate days to send labourers into England’s harvest.

You can come on pilgrimage to Walsingham to consecrate your vocation to Our Lady of Walsingham.

“Unless a wheat grain falls on the ground and dies, it remains only a single grain; but if it dies. It yields a rich harvest.”

EDITOR’s note: The LMS will be organising our annual Walking Pilgrimage from Ely to Walsingham, to be held during the August Bank Holiday weekend (22-25 August), as well as a Day Pilgrimage from London on the Sunday. See our website for details.

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LETTERS

Letters to the Editor Donations for The Little Sisters of the Poor May I be permitted through your pages to thank those who so kindly responded to my recent appeal through Mass of Ages for stamps, coins and notes, old broken pieces of gold and silver and military medals for the Little Sisters of the Poor for their almost immediate response. As most items arrived anonymously Theresa and I were unable to offer personal thanks – this we wholeheartedly do now.

In addition to thanking those who have already helped, may I be bold enough to ask that this help continues? Giving is not a one-way street, as both sisters and residents regularly offer prayers and Masses for benefactors.

AMDG David & Theresa O’Neill Newcastle Upon Tyne

Praise for Bede I have read and enjoyed Mass of Ages magazine for the past few years and I hope that its message – that the Traditional Mass and its profound depth and meaning must and should be encouraged – will enjoy an ever-wider readership. I have given my copy of the magazine to several friends who have gone on to express an interest in attending the Old Mass.

That is the good news but, on the downside, I have to say how sad I am that Father Bede has decided to ‘bow out’ as he puts it in his winter 2018 column and cease to write for the magazine.

I will miss his wise words greatly and his light touch puts many better-known columnists to shame. But I take my hat off to the Father for doing what a great many columnists on national newspapers and magazines never do – most columnists will not stop writing until they are sacked; often they continue to write when they really have nothing more to say because they are motivated by money and egotism.

Father Bede on the other hand would, I am sure, have continued to entertain and inform us for many years to come, and though I will miss his column I completely understand if he feels it is time to move on.

Please pray for the souls of all members who have died recently Requiescant in Pace Departed: Joseph Anderson James Carroll Martin Cuddihy Peter Emery Peter Geraghty Fr Petroc Howell Michael James ap John Margaret Jenkins David Lowbridge Mary Truran Peter Whitaker Every effort is made to ensure that this list is accurate and upto-date. However, if you know of a recently deceased member whose name has not, so far, appeared on our prayer memorial, then please contact the LMS, see page 3 for contact details.

The LMS relies heavily on legacies to support its income. We are very grateful to the following who remembered the Society in their Will: Mark Jacques.

R.M. Wilson, Via email

Trench Masses I write with reference to your article ‘A Priest in the First World War’ (Winter 2018).

Three of my father’s uncles left rural Ireland to fight in the Great War. One uncle was badly injured but survived; the other two, incredibly, returned unscathed.

My father told me that for the rest of their lives the uncles insisted that their survival – their sheer ability to continue despite the horrors with which they were surrounded - was entirely down to the ‘trench’ Masses they were able to attend.

Your article was a timely reminder of the importance of the Mass for Catholic soldiers and indeed of the heroism of their priests.

J.F.L. Byrne, Via email Letters should be addressed to: The Editor, Mass of Ages, 11-13 Macklin Street, London WC2B 5NH email editor@lms.org.uk Letters may be edited for reasons of space

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LONE VEILER

Fads and fashions Lone Veiler on why Great New Ideas are usually no such thing at all

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ecently, I have been even more aware of the number of remakes, retakes, and reinventions that go on around me all the time. There is a constant stream of any number of Great New Ideas which are touted as the best, the last, the ultimate, the only. Take a trivial example, Jane Eyre, a novel which is a bit like Marmite. I happen to love both, but there are those for whom this isn't the case. Over the years, there have been several versions of the book, none of which come close to the original novel in spite of enormous sums of money thrown into the productions.

Cursed as these reinventions generally are by scriptwriters who miss the Christian point entirely, a viewer might genuinely wonder why she leaves Rochester at all. He's got a mad wife in the attic? So what? Jane's genuine scruples are rather baffling out of the context of her faith. There has even been a horror/paranormal reworking of the book, in which Jane becomes a vampire hunting, werewolf and zombie slayer. Although she is still a governess, which is something I suppose.

Of course, the movie of a book I had most wanted to see was Lord of the Rings. Or I thought so. Beautiful to watch, wonderful sets, but again, liberties with the tale, liberties with the characters, and no Glorfindel, which is frankly unforgiveable. It's a bit curate's egg. Among some of my friends, this view is akin to heresy, but I can live with that. I try not to dwell on what was done to The Hobbit. There is no excuse possible for ‘re-envisioning’ The Hobbit in that way apart from the generation of filthy lucre.

Great novels are not the only ones infected by the spirit of the age. Our fêted BBC (may its licence fee soon be abolished) recently made a complete dog's breakfast of Poirot. Yes, Poirot. You have to try really, really hard to muck that up. The mother in law didn't want to see an edgy, gritty, dark, and morally dubious Poirot mired in modern politics.

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I wholeheartedly agreed with her.

It certainly wasn't Agatha Christie, and it wasn't entertaining. Whoever thought John Malkovich would be great as a tubby Belgian detective had obviously never heard him as Unferth in Beowulf, another great piece of casting.

Or perhaps they had.

' We know we are suffering from the editing of our Faith during the 1960s, and before, and attempts to make it relevant and accessible then and now which are having an awful effect.'

It apparently all comes down to making things 'relevant'. Well, relevant with regard to what exactly? Watching only some of the execrable Poirot, I saw extremely laboured and very heavy handed modern political analogies crowbarred unsubtly into a cosy period detective drama. It makes me realise why I tend not to watch TV. As in art, so in life, it's the same in the workplace. New boss, established work force, new initiatives that turn out not to be new at all, just a revamp of the boss before last's great new initiative which didn't work then either. It's a jargon filled, box ticking, envelope pushing

waste of time for the poor souls having to implement these fine schemes, but can look awfully good on the CV of the boss, now convincingly failing upward.

This is a tad cynical I will admit, but having friends and relatives in a variety of professions, all of whom say pretty much the same thing, and my own albeit limited experience, it's not an entirely inaccurate picture.

The tendency to want to change everything with little thought as to whether it really will be an improvement, or change for the sake of change, is part of human nature. It's part of the arrogance we have, thinking everything we do has to be better than our predecessors. We can't even leave perfectly good books alone without feeling we could do better if this was tweaked, and that was left out, and perhaps this added for a bit more relevance. Perhaps we should change some of the vocabulary because it isn't inclusive enough, change the sex of the protagonist to make it really inclusive, get rid of some of the social conventions that might upset the few at the expense of the many. Even Dr Who is now a woman, which as I was told by one of the show's target audience, makes no sense, because he's a Time Lord not a Time Lady.

Does it matter? Yes, I think it does.

We as a Church seem to be being led towards worldliness rather than away from it. We know we are suffering from the editing of our Faith during the 1960s, and before, and attempts to make it relevant and accessible then and now which are having an awful effect. We are still reaping the rewards of having our Faith watered down. To live might be to change, but I always took that to mean first and foremost we change ourselves, not things read and believed by generations before us, even if now they don't conform to current fads or fashions. So, I'll stick to the original Jane Eyre, and Lord of the Rings novels. I'll also stick with the old Missal. If it ain't broke, and all that.

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FEATURE

Meeting the Syro-Malabar Catholics of Liverpool

by Neil Addison

Cardinal Alencherry, Head of the Syro Malabar Church

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ne of the many peculiarities of Vatican II is that, whilst the liturgy in the west was dramatically recast with little regard for tradition, a completely different approach was taken towards the liturgies of the 23 Eastern Churches who are in full communion with Rome. In Orientalium Ecclesiarum Eastern Catholics were exhorted to ‘cherish’ their historic traditions and it was noted that ‘practices sanctioned by a noble antiquity harmonize better with the customs of the faithful and are more likely to foster the good of souls.’

Unfortunately, as we are all aware,

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these wise principles of Orientalium Ecclesiarum were ignored in the west.

One of the Eastern Churches which has taken these principles to heart is the Syro-Malabar, Church which has put a lot of effort into preserving its identity and rites amongst a wide spread Diaspora. The name combines their origins in the South West Indian state of Kerala, historically known as the ‘Malabar Coast’ with their use of the ancient Syriac Rite, hence ‘SyroMalabar’. The origin of the Church goes back to the Apostle ‘Doubting’ Thomas, who is honoured by Indian Christians as

the Apostle who brought Christianity to the subcontinent. Most Indian Churches have a statue or icon of St Thomas which emphasises not his doubts but rather his dramatic declaration of faith ‘My Lord and my God’.

There are about 38,000 SyroMalabars in Britain. With 84 Priests they collectively form an Eparchy, which is a form of special diocese covering the whole of Great Britain, and they have their own bishop, Joseph Srampickal, who is a member of the Bishops’ Conference of England & Wales.

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FEATURE

Prior to 2015 the Syro-Malabar community was in a situation with which LMS members will be familiar, being squatters in many parish churches dependent on the kindness of the local parish priest to fit in a Syro-Malabar service with the ordinary parish routine. Certainly, they were treated with generosity by many parishes but, ultimately, there is nothing to compare with having a place of your own.

Therefore, in 2015, Bishop O’Donoghue of Lancaster gave the Syro-Malabar Eparchy its first Church in Britain: St Alphonsa in Preston. Which, as the home of their Bishop, was given the status of a cathedral. At the inauguration of the cathedral so many people came that the

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service had to be moved to Preston North End Football Ground, locals said it was the biggest and best behaved crowd PNE had all season!

It is worth noting that Bishop O’Dongohue had previously given the church of St Walburge to the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest to serve as a specialist Latin Mass Church, and perhaps that encouraged him to recognise the value of specialist Churches supporting distinctive rites.

Following on from giving the Church of St Mary to the FSSP, Archbishop McMahon of Liverpool has now given the Syro-Malabars their second church: Our Lady Queen of Peace (OLQP) in Litherland. This has given a new lease of

life to OLQP, which now has a large lively and enthusiastic congregation. They certainly need to be enthusiastic because Syro-Malabar services are not short, 1hour 30mins seems to be regarded as fairly quick and before that there is a 30 minute rosary said in Malayalam, the language of Kerala. The rosary however is easy to pick up in any language, I’ve joined in rosaries said in Thai, Hindi, Maltese, Quebec French and Alabama English, it is the most recognisable of all Catholic prayers.

The fact that the service is in Malayalam shows that liturgical change can be made without the wholesale upheaval that we had in the west. The traditional liturgical language of the

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FEATURE language so we know the basic rules, stand, sit or kneel when everyone else does.

It is noticeable that in the SyroMalabar Rite the Consecration takes place ‘Ad Orientum’ once again a familiar experience to Latin Mass regulars. One interesting difference is that Communion is by way of intinction with the consecrated host being dipped in the consecrated wine and then placed on the tongue. It is certainly far more hygienic than having everyone drinking from the same chalice as happens in OF Masses.

Having visited OLQP I certainly applaud the decisions of the Bishops of Lancaster and Liverpool and I hope that other bishops will also think about giving a church building to their SyroMalabar community.

I would recommend that LMS members keep their eyes open to see if there are any Syro-Malabar services being held in their area and attend them if you can, in my experience the congregations are delighted to see other Catholics joining in their distinctive liturgy. Since we, rightly, attach importance to preserving our historic liturgy we should support the Syro-Malabars and other Eastern Churches as they work to retain their distinctive rites Personally having had experience of the specialist Latin Mass Churches in the north west and now the SyroMalabar Churches, I am a fervent supporter of having specialist churches within dioceses, they have a special vigour and purpose to them which the Church as a whole needs and I hope we will see more of them in future.

Syro-Malabar rite was Syriac but, prior to Vatican II permission was given to replace Syriac with Malayalam, i.e. the vernacular, but this change in liturgical language was just that, a change in language and not a change to the liturgy as a whole. It makes you wonder why we didn’t think of that.

The Syro-Malabar community puts a lot of efforts into preserving their heritage including music and, in a sung Mass, the music to a western ear can sound rather more Bollywood than Gregorian Chant.

However the choir is impressive and listening to them certainly reinforces the sad point that the English Church puts little effort into maintaining our liturgical music tradition.

SPRING 2019

For the western Catholic used to the Ordinary Form Mass in English the initial experience of a Syro-Malabar Mass (or ‘Holy Qurbana’ literally ‘offering’) can be disorienting but is probably easier for those used to the Latin Mass. The liturgy is of course different and perhaps more flowery but the basic structure is reassuringly familiar, prayer, readings from the Bible, sermon, consecration and communion are all dignified, prayerful and recognisable whether you speak Malayalam or not. Reading an English translation of the Holy Qurbana reveals many familiar prayers and blessings and regulars at the Latin Mass are already used to a service in another

Congregations are delighted to see other Catholics joining in their distinctive liturgy Further Information at: http://queenofpeacesmcc.com www.syromalabarchurchuk.org https://en-gb.facebook.com/csmegb

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CROSSWORD

Clues Across

1 Knowledge oriented heretic of early Christian times (7) 5 Signs that can be good or bad (5) 8 “--- libera nos a malo”, Pater Noster (3) 9 Practice or nature of being sound in doctrine (9) 10 Native of a country of the Holy Land (5) 11 Excels in performance (9) 14 Collection of clothes by a bride for her marriage (9) 18 An Italian cathedral, notably Florence and Milan (5) 21 ICKSP, ‘--------- of Christ the King, Sovereign Priest’ (9) 22 Measure of alcohol for a child? (3) 23 Papal successor to St Peter (5) 24 Saint founder of the Ordo Praedicatorum (7)

Clues Down

Alan Frost: January 2019

ANSWERS TO WINTER 2018 CROSSWORD

Across: 1 Almoner 5 Craig 8 Beg 9 Mendacity 10 Rouen 11 Esmeralda 14 Salesians 18 Pange 21 Plainsong 22 Und 23 Croix 24 Drifted Down: 1 Albertus 2 Magnus 3 Numbness 4 Ransom 5 Coal 6 Abital 7 Gwyn 12 Respighi 13 Ascended 15 Lavabo 16 Almond 17 Indult 19 Spec 20 Knox

Closing Date & Winner

Closing date for crossword entries: Friday 29th March 2019.

The winner of the winter 2018 competition is Dr Porilo of London, who wins a copy of Tradition & Sanity by Peter Kwasniewski.

1 Victorian alternative to candles (8) 2 ‘------ By Fire’, legal test of innocence banned by Lateran Council of 1215 (6) 3 Philosophical followers of the teachings of Aquinas (8) 4 Member of heretical sect 24 Across inspired to counter (6) 5 Orchestral instrument among the woodwinds (4) 6 Leaving part of the Pentateuch (6) 7 Sound of wood in fabled river of Hades (4) 12 “Et Verbum erat ---- ----”, the Last Gospel of the Mass (4,4) 13 Term referring to three of the Gospels, excluding John (8) 15 Another word for a prayer (6) 16 St. ------ Campion SJ, profoundly exemplary Tyburn Marty(6) 17 ------ Hall, religious community and school led by Fr Faber where he wrote Faith of Our Fathers (6) 19 Rowland, reformer of the postal service, introduced the penny stamp postage (4) 20 Pope (V) who in July 1570 gave us the litany and structure of the traditional Latin Mass (4)

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISEMENTS Guild of St Clare: Advance notice of the 2020 Sewing Retreat at Douai Abbey, 28th February-1st March. Douai Abbey, Upper Woolhampton, Reading, RG7 5TQ. Guild of St Clare: Advance notice of the 2019 Sewing Retreat at Douai Abbey, 1-3 November. Douai Abbey, Upper Woolhampton, Reading, RG7 5TQ. Guild of St Clare: Bobbin Lace for Beginners. Ongoing course, fortnightly on Thursday evenings. Email for further information: lucyashaw@gmail.com St Catherine’s Trust: Family Retreat 2019, with Fr Konrad Loewenstein and Fr Ian Verrier of the Fraternity of St Peter, 5-7th April 2019, at the Oratory School, Woodcote, nr Reading, South Oxfordshire RG8 0PJ: booking open at www.stcatherinestrust.org

Gregorian Chant Network: Chant Training Weekend 2019, 5-7th April, with Dominic Bevan and Fr Guy Nichols of the Birmingham Oratory. Oratory School, Woodcote, nr Reading, South Oxfordshire RG8 0PJ: booking open at www.stcatherinestrust.org Latin Mass Society: 2019 Latin Course, with Fr John Hunwicke and Dr Jean Van Der Stegen, 29th July to 2nd August, at the Carmelite Priory, Chilswell, Boars Hill, Oxford, OX1 5HB. Booking open at www.lms.org.uk St Catherine’s Trust Summer School for children ages 11-17, Sun 28th July to Sat 3rd August. There is no fee. Register at www.stcatherinestrust.org

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SPRING 2019

MACKLIN STREET

T

Devotional reading

hank you to all who responded so generously to our end of year appeal which accompanied the winter edition of Mass of Ages, your support is greatly appreciated.

An important source of revenue for the Society is our online shop, which offers a wide range of resources for seasons throughout the year.

Remember, members receive a 5% discount off purchases made online - you need to login to receive this discount.

SPRING 2019

As we enter the seasons of Lent and Easter, choose from our selection of devotional reading for a companion through the forty days.

Pray the Via Crucis as you follow Our Lord to Calvary.

Rejoice in the resurrection as you unite yourself to the Risen Lord in prayer and spiritual reading. Send your family and friends a Latin Mass Society Easter card – see below for our selection for 2019.

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