Server Master Class - report

Yesterday we had the Latin Mass Society Server 'Master Class' in Blackfriars in Oxford. There was a course for MCs at Ushaw runing in conjunction with the Priests' Training Conference, so this was the second course the LMS has put on for servers. Fr Armand de Malleray FSSP began the proceedings with a short address on the importance of the service of the altar.


The demand is clearly there: about 25 people signed up for the course, and we had to divide into two groups for the training. Some people had come long distances - one as far as Preston in Lancashire!


The two training groups each had an experienced MC and a cleric to help them: the group for the less experienced servers (which I was in!) was led by Fr Armand de Malleray and David Forster; the more experienced group by Br Lawrence Lew and Mr Richard Hawker.



The day was interspersed with prayers and ended with Benediction.

See a slideshow of photos here.

This was also the occasion for the launch of the Society of St Tarcissius, a sodality for Traditional Altar servers, which has been set up under the wing of the Latin Mass Society. A good many people on the course signed up for it; there is no fee. Anyone interested in joining can visit the website and contact the coordinator, David Forster, through that.

Membership is open to those who can serve Low Mass; even those who cannot can join as associates. There is no membership fee.

Pope Benedict: the Church's chief persecutors are within

In reaponse to a journalist's question as to whether he saw his own situation in terms of the Fatima vision of a 'bishop in white' being attacked by soldiers, he had this to say:

"In terms of what we today can discover in this message, attacks against the pope or the church don’t come just from outside the church. The suffering of the church also comes from within the church, because sin exists in the church. This too has always been known, but today we see it in a really terrifying way. The greatest persecution of the church doesn’t come from enemies on the outside, but is born in sin within the church. The church thus has a deep need to re-learn penance, to accept purification, to learn on one hand forgiveness but also the necessity of justice. Forgiveness does not exclude justice. We have to re-learn the essentials: conversion, prayer, penance, and the theological virtues."

John Allen's article on this: http://bit.ly/cdsNYL

H/t Catholic Herald Twitter feed.


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Book launch for Bishopbof Ebbsfleet

I have just attended the book launch of 'Heaven and Earth in a Little Space' by Andrew Burnham, the Anglican 'flying bishop' of Ebbsfleet.


Here he is talking to Fr Aidan Nichols OP, at the launch party, held at Pusey House in Oxford. You can buy the book here: http://bit.ly/cAPgrm

It is about Bishop Burnham's liturgical thinking, and it will be an interesting side-light on the project of establishing an Anglican Ordinariate launched by Pope Benedict with his Apostolic Constitution Anglicanorum Coetibus. Bishop Burnham has just returned from widely reported 'secret' meetings in Rome to discuss the developing plans.
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FSSP move into new house in Reading

In a very exciting development, the two priests of the Fraternity of St Peter based in Reading, Fr Armand de Malleray and Fr Simon Leworthy, have moved today into a new house which they have bought, through a specially set up charity for the FSSP in England.

They have been renting a very small house up to now. The new house will make it possible for guests to stay in reasonable comfort and for many parish activities to have a proper base. It also indicates the seriousness and permanence of the Reading apostolate. It is close to the church where they say Mass, St William of York, Upper Redlands Road.

The purchase and building work on the house have been made posssible by many generous gifts from the faithful, and a one-off contribution by the Latin Mass Society.

The new address:

Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter,
St John Fisher House,
17 Eastern Avenue,
Reading RG1 5RU,
Berkshire






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Cardinal Meyer: report from FIUV

Leo Darroch, President of Una Voce International Federation, was at the funeral and reports on this and Cardinal Mayer's life here. The photo shows the Holy Father at the funeral.

Cardinal Mayer was the first head of the Ecclesia Dei Commission, created to oversee the implementation of the wide permission granted for the Traditional Mass by John-Paul II in 1988.

Young Catholic Adults: Newsletter

The YCA is the UK affiliate of the international Juventutem movement, which organises the Traditional Catholic contribution to the World Youth Day events. It has been around for a few years and has an annual retreat at Douai Abbey, with Fr Armand de Malleray, in September. They are expanding their activities and a new Newsletter is now available with lots of news and events of interest to young Catholics: download the pdf here.

Sign up for their Yahoo group through their website homepage; contact the Co-Ordinator, Damian Barker, by email.

This is how they describe themselves:

Many groups involving younger Catholics tend to become polarised and argumentative (in part due to a lack of catechesis), therefore YCA has decided to adopt a positive and charitable ethos based on orthodox Catholic teaching. Our role models are St. John Vianney, the English Martyrs and St. Francis de Salle. Also, it was felt that YCA could provide a more contemplative spirituality than other younger Christian groups around at the moment.

What are the aims of Young Catholic Adults? Its aims are:-

• To foster authentic Catholc teaching and spirituality

• Promote a spirit of charity as practised by the great saints of the Church such as St. John Vianney St. Francis de Sales and the English Martyrs

• It is principally aimed at young adults, but is open to all.

• We aim to promote a spirit of beauty and reverence in the Sacred Liturgy

St Joseph the Workman

Fr Armand de Malleray came to Oxford to celebrate a Missa Cantata in St Anthony of Padua, Headington, for this important feast. The Mass was accompanied by the Schola Abelis, with Byrd's 3-Part Mass.

Some more photos here.