Daily Mass - Tuesday of the fifth week of Lent

Mass was offered this morning at the high altar for the peaceful repose of the soul of Lilly Yore (+), and for her family members and friends, those who love her. May eternal rest be granted unto her, who trusted in God's great mercy.

Today's readings at Mass link together Moses' brass serpent in the desert, which was used as a saving remedy (a type of totem) to several Israelites, who were being attacked by poisonous desert snakes, and Christ on the Cross, which remains a saving remedy to sinful humanity. This comparison was already made by Christ Himself, when He said that 

"No man has ever gone up into heaven; but there is one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man, who dwells in heaven. And this Son of Man must be lifted up, as the serpent was lifted up by Moses in the wilderness; so that those who believe in him may not perish, but have eternal life." - Gospel of John, 3: 13-15

Christ's ministry was deeply rooted in the faith of the Jewish people and in their history, with its reverence for the house of King David, from which the Messiah was to come, and for the Temple and cult in the city of Jerusalem; this quote above is a reference to the prophecy of Zacharias, in which God says

"On David’s clan, on all the citizens of Jerusalem, I will pour out a gracious spirit of prayer; towards me they shall look, me whom they have pierced through. Lament for him they must, and grieve bitterly; never was such lament for an only son, grief so bitter over first-born dead." - Zacharias 12: 10

And, of course, Christ says, in today's Gospel, that 

"When you have lifted up the Son of Man, you will recognise that it is myself you look for, and that I do not do anything on my own authority, but speak as my Father has instructed me to speak." - Gospel of John, 8: 28

So, let us keep a crucifix in plain view in our homes - in every room, if possible - for there is a great virtue that comes from it and from the devotion that it creates in our hearts. 

The Cardinal on fulfilling Easter duties

The garden at S. Joseph's

One of the best features of the hillside fort I've just arrived at is its magnificent grounds and layout. When I was first told about the garden here, it was not mentioned that it was a terraced garden. It is marvellous to hear bird-song, where for years I had only heard road traffic. I'm sure it helps that there isn't too much road traffic at the moment. I shall have to dig out my RSPB books.

Daily Mass - Monday of the fifth week of Lent

Mass was offered today, as requested, for a private intention. The church is delightfully bright, because of the large sky-lighted sanctuary, and, after I replaced the red pilot-light in the sanctuary, that comfortable glow is once more present, more vivid naturally in the darkness.

Mass today had the longest reading of all for the first reading: the story of the holy woman Susanna, who was devoted to the Law of God, and who was unjustly accused of adultery by two unscrupulous elders of the people of a Jewish community in the land of Babylon (modern-day Iraq). If you don't know this story, you may find it in the thirteenth chapter of the book of Daniel. It is a sordid story, but unfortunately easily understood today by us, for the human heart has not changed much since this story was told, some five hundred or so years before Christ. The two wicked old men try to 'frame' Susanna  and have her killed to hide their own filthy voyeurism and illicit desire. The beautiful part of the story comes with Susanna's cry to heaven and the instant reply:

"They were elders, they were judges of the people, and they persuaded the assembly, without more ado, to pass the death sentence. Whereupon Susanna cried aloud, 'Eternal God, no secret is hidden from Thee, nothing comes to pass without Thy foreknowledge. Thou knowest that these men have borne false witness against me; wilt Thou let me die, a woman innocent of all the charges their malice has invented?' 

And the Lord listened to her plea; even as she was being led off to her death, all at once He roused to utterance the holy spirit that dwelt in a young boy there, called Daniel. This Daniel raised his voice and cried out, I will be no party to the death of this woman..." 

- Daniel, chapter 13

And thus was an innocent woman saved from death, and the prophet Daniel exalted. The Gospel message is an interesting parallel: it is the story of the woman caught in adultery and brought to Christ by the elders of the people, to trap Him. Here is a woman actually guilty, this time, of the crime, but once more, it is the guilt of the elders that is exposed, this time by Christ Himself. I can't remember who first suggested that what the Lord was writing on the ground with his finger was a list of the crimes committed by the men who were seeking both to condemn this woman, and to somehow demonstrate publicly that Christ was prepared to disregard a crucial point of biblical morality. And He turns the tables on them, by inviting them to make the condemnation themselves. If, that is, they can stand to be on trial themselves.

An old tradition says that this unfortunate woman was none other than Saint Mary Magdalene, the great penitent and one of the most faithful of the disciples of Christ. This tradition was taken up in the famous 2004 film, the Passion of the Christ. Here's a clip from that:

"Then Jesus straightened up and said to her, 

'Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?'

She replied, 'No one, sir.'

Then Jesus said, 'Neither do I condemn you.

Go, and from now on do not sin any more.'"

- Gospel of Saint John 8: 10-11

Daily Mass - the fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time

Mass was offered this morning for the peaceful repose of the soul of Anthony Lecky (+), and also for his family and friends, those who love him. It has been the first time that I have said a Sunday Mass in church without anybody else present, and it is truly bizarre. I made sure to belt it out, anyway, for Christ was there, and a crowd of angels and Saints, for as the Book of Apocalypse says,

"I saw a great multitude, past all counting, taken from all nations and tribes and peoples and languages. These stood before the throne in the Lamb’s presence, clothed in white robes, with palm-branches in their hands, and cried with a loud voice, 'To our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, all saving power belongs.' And all the angels that were standing round the throne, round the elders and the living figures, fell prostrate before the throne and paid God worship; 'Amen,' they cried, 'blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honour and power and strength belong to our God through endless ages, Amen.' And now one of the elders turned to me, and asked, 'Who are they, and whence do they come, these who are robed in white?' 'My Lord,' said I, 'thou canst tell me.' 'These,' he said, 'have come here out of the great affliction; they have washed their robes white in the blood of the Lamb. And now they stand before God’s throne, serving him day and night in his temple; the presence of him who sits on the throne shall overshadow them.'" - Apocalypse 7: 9-15

Our parishioners were all remembered, as usual. The Gospel, as those of you who are following the Mass either by yourselves or via the livestreaming on the internet, was rather long today, the story of the raising of Lazarus from the dead. The key to that story is that Christ allowed four days to pass before he arrived at the tomb of Lazarus. Saint Martha is clear about it, when she says that there will be a frightful stench if they reopened the tomb. Then it is that Christ makes the request again for faith in Him, and He is glorified in what follows. A blessed and holy Sunday to you all.

Use of the church building

What a beautiful few days we have been having. That's what I was thinking as I coasted towards Derby on the A50, yesterday afternoon. Bright, sunny, endless blue skies. The skies have closed up again at the moment, unfortunately, but the sun still gets through a lot. It's quite surreal, then, that this viral pandemic has been worsening across this last week, and people are either staying at home or shopping with masks and scarves on.

Meanwhile, it seems that I slipped into Derby in time, to arrive before we were urged not to move house. I thought that I'd start this little blog to let people who are interested know about what's happening at the parish church, and house. The buildings are, of course, still locked to the public, according to the advice and recommendation of the Bishop in Nottingham. 

However, I have begun a daily Mass at the high altar today, and I aim to continue with that for the duration of the next few weeks. I am also saying the Holy Rosary in its entirely (the original fifteen decades) daily, with the intentions of our parishioners in mind, and especially for a quick solution to this problem of the virus and, therefore, for the opening of our church and the restoration of our Masses and other services. On Friday evenings, as yesterday, the Lenten Stations of the Cross continue in the church, as well, at eight. The church is therefore in use, and I hope that our parishioners are able to continued with their lives of prayer and devotion in their homes. You are all remembered, as the Parishioners, until I am able to get to know you eventually.

First day at S. Joseph's

Mass this morning was offered for the repose of the soul of Moira Spencer, and secondarily for her family and her friends, all who knew and loved her. We entrust her to our Blessed Lady and to her Spouse most chaste, S. Joseph, our holy patron.