Bishop de Galarreta’s Confirmation tour is underway as I write. The sung Mass in Our Lady of Victories Church, Preston was well attended in spite of the adverse weather conditions, there being severe flooding in parts of Cumbria. The bishop spoke in his sermon on the triple office received by the sacrament of Confirmation, namely that of witness, soldier and apostle. Quoting Pope Pius XII, he developed the theme of the apostolate and spoke of the importance, for young people in particular, of being engaged in the various Catholic groups and movements with the goal of leading souls to Christ and His Church.
In the Church of Saints Margaret and Leonard in Edinburgh a Pontifical Mass at the faldstool was celebrated for the occasion and similarly attended by a numerous congregation. This was preceded by the confirmation of some sixteen children and adults. In his sermon, the bishop spoke of the talks with Rome, which he himself is leading, and expressed his satisfaction with the initial meeting which tookplace in October. The meetings with the Vatican commission are setto take place every two or three months, with the next one, on the subject of the New Mass, being held at the end of January 2010.
Only time will tell as to whether or not these meetings bear fruit regarding the true restoration of Tradition for the whole Church. Meanwhile we need to continue our earnest prayers for this intention, as it is certain that, given the Modernist hold on the men of the Church, a favourable outcome is humanly speaking all but impossible.
Following Mass a well-organised and convivial reception was held in the church hall which allowed many of the faithful to exchange a few words with His Lordship.
After his stay of a couple of days in Saint Andrew’s House, Carluke, the bishop then travelled via the scenic route to Jedburgh and then on to Gateshead for an impromptu visit to the Church of the Holy Name of Jesus, before continuing to London. After Confirmations in Burghclere and in London on the last weekend of November, Bishop de Galarreta will return to Argentina via Spain.
In Brighton three custom-made reliquaries were recently blessed following Sunday Mass in the Chapel of the Holy Family. A first class relic of Saint Pius X, which once belonged to Padre Pio, is now exposed for veneration in the chapel, whilst the altar will be adorned for solemn occasions with those of Saint Columba and Saint Rita.
The weekend seminar in London from November 13-15 went well, and dealt with issues ranging from Usury to Anglo-Saxon works of mercy. Such seminars are important given that since Vatican II the Church’s social teaching on Christ’s reign over society has been abandoned. They provide the opportunity to connect Church teaching with every-day life, and remind us of the importance of the role of committed lay Catholics in society.In addition to the Christmas Mass schedules, please note the proposed dates of retreats and recollections to be held at Saint Savour’s House in the course of 2010. The key to the Christian life is generosity, as the Third-Order news-page article emphasises, and so it is that we need to generously give time to the work of our sanctification bythe means of a good retreat. Such indeed could be the subject of a worthwhile New Year’s resolution.
Many thanks to all of you who generously supported Saint Michael’s School annual ‘fayre’ and raffle which raised some £4,500.
On the subject of vocations to the religious life, please remember in your prayers: Miss Miriam Gill who is presently a postulant with the Poor Clares (Franciscans) in Morgon, France; and Mr Arne Kaurin, from Oslo, Norway, who has just left for Goulburn, Australia to try the vocation of an SSPX Brother.
Each year the holy season of Advent becomes more and more eclipsed by the extended and commercialised ‘Christmas’ period. We do well to counter this, in our own homes at least, by Advent prayers and devotions, accompanied by a certain frugality, so as to correspond with the Church’s mind of a joyful but penitential preparation for the great feast of Our Lord’s Nativity. December is also the time to thank almighty God for the blessings, graces, joys and crosses of the past year. It is therefore becoming to thank you also for your continued support, both spiritual and material: May God reward you!
With every good wish and blessing,
Father Paul Morgan
