Thursday 21 April 2011

From the Latin Mass Society of England and Wales

Family Residential Lenten Retreat a Great Success
Gregorian Chant Network Course also a Success
Saint Catherine’s Trust for Traditional Family Education (SCT), sponsored by the Latin Mass Society (LMS), held its fifth annual family retreat for Lent from Friday 8th to Sunday 10th April (Passion Sunday). The retreat was held at the Oratory School, Reading, Oxfordshire and over 150 parents and children attended.

Running alongside the SCT retreat, the Gregorian Chant Network (GCN), also sponsored by the LMS, held its own residential course to study Gregorian Chant in the context of parish liturgy. 20 singers attended and were tutored by Colin Mawby, composer and ex-Director of Music at Westminster Cathedral.

The SCT retreat was led by Fr Andrew Southwell, LMS National Chaplain, who gave catechesis for both adults and children and also celebrated all the liturgies and devotions. The Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite was used throughout.

The weather was glorious and facilitated the SCT’s traditional procession through the Oratory School grounds; the younger children made special banners for the procession which were blessed by Fr Southwell. The youngsters also received their own special talks on the Faith from three volunteers while Fr Southwell was giving spiritual conferences for the adults.

During the weekend, the singers on the GCN course sang at all the liturgies, which included three Sung Masses, Compline twice, Vespers and Benediction, and a Marian procession. During the procession they sang the Litany of the Saints, the Litany of Loreto, and the Stabat Mater.

Doctor Joseph Shaw, LMS Chairman, said: “The LMS is happy to sponsor its affiliated organisations, the SCT and GCN, as a way of increasing exposure to the Extraordinary Form for families and musicians. We find that participants at these residential courses go back to their parishes enthused by the beauty and profundity of the Traditional Latin Rite and become active in reintroducing it into their local church life. We are already planning a full range of SCT and GCN events for 2012”.

For pictures of the St Catherine’s Trust and Gregorian Chant Network Lenten residential weekend at the Oratory School see here.

For more pictures see here

For information on St Catherine’s trust see St Catherine's Trust

Saturday 16 April 2011

Barney Life No. 29

St Mary's, Barnard Castle, all empurpled for Passion Week and Holy Week.
May you have a holy and fruitful Triduum.

Good Friday Rosary
You may have seen this suggestion for a Good Friday Rosary (it has been around for some time), but in case you haven't here it is again.


Imagine what might happen if every Catholic in the world were to pray a Rosary on the same day!  We have an example in October of 1573 when  Europe was saved from the invasion of the mighty Turkish fleet, by the praying of the Rosary by all Christians!

So, on Good Friday, let us all pray a Rosary for peace in the world and the return of moral values into our communities. 
If possible, please pray your Rosary between Noon and 3:00pm
And I would like to add, for peace and harmony in Holy Mother Church!
Please invite your friends and parish priest.

Sunday 10 April 2011

Barney Life No. 28

Sunday -- another beautiful day in Teesdale -- even better because the cold wind which has been blowing for the last few days has stopped blowing!

After my Masses this morning, time for a walk with Storm.  On a weekend he likes nothing better than a stroll up this service road near the desmesnes.
On the way we pass this ruined shed, obviously past its sell-by-date (in the background you can see the upper storeys of the Bowes Museum).
Of course when we reach this cattle grid, we both stare longingly beyond it - this is as far as we go - we must turn and go back the way we came!
And we have time to contemplate again the changing needs of the local farmer.
And so back over the desmesnes for lunch.
This was a misfire, when I meant to turn off the camera - still a nice shot of the ground!

Saturday 2 April 2011

Barney Life No. 27

April 2nd - First Saturday of the month.

Today I and a small congregation celebrated the First Saturday of the month, as we do each month, in answer to Our Lady of Fatima's request for the First Saturday devotions in honour of Her Immaculate Heart and in reparation for sins against Her and Her Son.  This devotion involves Confession, Mass (which I say in the Extraordinary Form, as more fitting), the Rosary and fifteen minutes of meditation on the Mysteries of the Rosary.
It is a great pity and tragedy for the world that more Catholics do not take Our Lady's apparitions at Fatima to the three children and subsequently to Sister Lucia in her convent more seriously.  A few years ago, the then Cardinal Ratzinger and the now Cardinal Bertone gave the impression in a press conference that the prophecies of Our Lady, and especially the so-called Third Secret, all pertained to events which had passed and gone. However, so many questions were left unanswered that I, for one, cannot altogether accept what we were then told.  It seems to me that the need for prayer to at least slow down the punishments of God, and diminish them, is even more urgent than ever.  The situation in the world today is so volatile that the possibility of the destruction of whole nations, which is understood to be a part of the Third Secret, is terribly conceivable.
Our Lady of Fatima, pray for us!