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  3. Chairman's Blog

Chairman's Blog

    27/02/2018 - 10:00

    Mass in Didcot for the Chair of St Peter

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    Last Thursday was the feast of the Chair of St Peter, and Fr Philip Pennington Harris celebrated it with a Traditional Missa Cantata. It was accompanied by the Schola Abelis of Oxford.

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    One of the difficulties a priest faces in starting to celebrate the Traditional Mass in a parish is that, if he wants to have sung Masses, both singers and servers are likely to be difficult to find. This can become a chicken-and-egg problem, as sung Masses are in many ways the best way to present the ancient liturgy to those who have not encountered it before. Only if people see how beautiful it can be, will they be motivated to go to great lengths to support it.

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    The Latin Mass Society is well placed to help in this situation, and singers and servers converged on Didcot from Oxford, Newbury, and London to assist Fr Pennington Harris. In the long term, if the EF continues to be celebrated in the parish, I am sure more local resources will develop. But these things can't be rushed.

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    26/02/2018 - 10:00

    Evangelising the Culture: guest post

    Evangelising the Culture: The Great Commission for Traditional Catholics
    By Mike Carrol, LMS Representative for Lincolnshire.

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    Titian: great art still evangelising after five centuries. Seen by SCT Summer School pupils in 2016.

    It is now ten years since Summorum Pontificum and it is now time for those within the traditional Latin Mass community to collectively use the great virtue of prudence to transmit the message of the Gospel into the culture and society. It is time to evangelise the culture. The great virtue of prudence gives us foresight and the mental and spiritual means of achieving even the most great and overarching goals. After we sanctify ourselves and our families through the Latin Mass, devotions, mortification, and dieing to self by way of The Imitation, we have one Great Commission left which to evangelise. Our traditional message can no longer be kept under a bushel. Christ's light must once again enlighten a society which is groaning under the weight of sin and a dystopian nightmare.

    It is now the responsibility of traditionists to evangelise the culture, because since Vatican II we have not collectively as a Church become the Lumen Gentium as was predicted by the council. The great hope was that the faithful would also become 'The Light of the Nations' and that the faith would be transmitted into society from the bottom up, but this never happened.

    Firstly there is our personal duty. It has been noted elsewhere that true evangelisation is a consequence not a program. The renewal of the Church, the culture, and our broken society will not come about by plans and structures, but by holiness of life. What is required is the sort of mortifications taught us by St. Thomas A Kempis, St. Francis de Sales, St. Therese of Lisieux and Christ Himself, when He said "Go and sin no more". In order to transmit the Gospel to the men and women of today we must first become a holy people.

    Secondly, there are those of an artistic, cultural, and literary ilk whom with great transcendant skills whom, with a girding of grace from God, can transmit great works of literary, cultural, and artistic merit from the top down. The airwaves, the broadcasting media, our libraries, and galleries can be transformed into conduits of God's grace through high artistic endeavours.

    As Archbishop Gomez eloquently put it, "Catholicism creates a culture. Catholicism is a way of living born from the encounter with a divine person, Jesus of Nazareth, who is the Word of God and the Son of God humbling himself to come among us in human form. With the incarnation, the world becomes charged with the grandeur of God."

    Since the fruits of Vatican II have so far not provided the solutions to transmit the faith into the culture, the responsibility now falls on tradition to enlighten the world and bring Christ to the world once again. This message must be transmitted into the culture from the top down, starting with the high culture.

    Archbishop Gomez goes on to say...

    "For nearly 20 centuries, the world’s greatest artists were inspired by religious themes. By the search for God in a fallen world and by the great questions of human existence — who are we, where do we come from, why do we suffer and what is it that truly matters?... The people of our times are not satisfied by the temporary consolations and diversions of our consumer, secular society. Their hearts are troubled. They are restless to know that their life has value and meaning. They want to know love and wholeness and community. They want to know that there is something that lies beyond here, something more than this life. So let us pray for artists and writers, students, teachers, critics and readers."
    This revolution will only come from individuals and brave souls who are willing to step up to the plate in mortification and from the fullness of grace that flows from tradition and the Latin Mass. It will take courage of individuals, but it is clear that there should now be a clarion call to transmit the goodness, beauty, and truths of Our Lord Jesus Christ into the culture and wider society.

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    25/02/2018 - 10:00

    Rosary on the Coast

    Rosary on the Coast

    for Faith, Life and Peace in the British Isles

    Sunday 29 April 2018 at 3pm

    How to get involved
    Website:  https://www.rosaryonthecoast.co.uk/

    Facebook:  https://facebook.com/rosaryonthecoast/

    Email: admin@rosaryonthecoast.co.uk


    On the website you will find:

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    Letter from the General Secretary of the Bishops’ Conference of England & Wales, with the good wishes and prayers of Cardinal Nichols for this act of witness, and stating that Mgr. Armitage and Fr. Harries from the two National Shrines of Our Lady have recommended the project, and that the Bishops Conference of Scotland have given it a strong endorsement.

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    3 min YouTube with message of support from Bishop John Keenan of Paisley, Scotland

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    Interactive map with many locations already registered

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    Form to sign up a new Location, and link to sign up for email updates

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    Rosary on the Coast logo to use on any local event promotional material

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    A schedule of National Preparations from 1st March - Feast of St David, Patron of Wales

    The intention is to include all coastal regions and offshore islands. Inland locations are also invited…

        Under the Resources section you will find practical guidelines and spiritual preparations, to be augmented in time.

    Context of Prayer for a re flourishing of Faith across the British Isles

    An opportunity to pray for a re-flourishing of faith across the British Isles as a means of preparing for a New Spring Time within the Church, so that we Christians of these lands might spread the Gospel in its fullness in a renewed and joyous way. We hope that Rosary on the Coast will bring from heaven the grace of renewed evangelistic outreach and zeal as we further the work of the New Evangelisation.

    Context of Prayer for the Sanctity of the Human Person

    The Abortion Act came into effect on 27 April 1968. This Act has overseen the killing of nearly nine million unborn children and yet society is in denial. The rosary is a powerful spiritual instrument to bring about a return to belief in God, an end to evil and for a rebuilding of a culture of Life.

    Context of Prayer for Peace in our National life and throughout the World

    There is a great unease in people’s hearts as helplessly they watch daily the news channels and their incessant litany of bad news and of horrors unthought-of. How are we all to respond with both generosity and compassion? Rosary on the Coast seeks through prayer for peace to awaken HOPE again and plead for PEACE from God throughout the world.

    Please do whatever you can to help promote this Rosary prayer campaign as a contribution

    to the re-evangelisation of our country. God bless you, and thank you,

    Rosary on the Coast Coordinator

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    24/02/2018 - 10:00

    Chartres Pilgrimage: booking open
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    British pilgrims setting off from Notre Dame in Paris in 2014

    Registration for the Chartres Pilgrimage is now open!
    UK Pilgrims are spoilt for choice:
    The long standing 'Chartres UK' group organised by Francis Carey, who will have a 'youth' chapter and one other: see the text below, or go here.
    The Institute of Christ the King are organising a chapter: see the video below, see Facebook here and email newbrighton@icrsp.org
    There is also a Scottish Chartres Chapter, which I introduced here. Email fromscotlandtochartres@gmail.com

    From Francis Carey, Chartres UK.
    Registrations for this year’s Pilgrimage to Chartres are now open! The 36th Chartres Pilgrimage has, as it’s theme, “St Joseph, Pilgirm and Servant”. We hope you are able to join us for this unforgettable pilgrimage in honour of Our Blessed Mother and the Holy Ghost.

    The 25th British Pilgrimage leaves London on Friday, 18 May 2018 at 7:30 AM. (There will be a Mass of Departure in Westminster Cathedral Crypt at 7:00 AM). The Registration Form (attached/enclosed) should be completed and returned with a deposit of £50 per person to reserve your place. Payment in full by 25 March 2018 (Palm Sunday this year) please. We arrive back in London about 8PM on the following Tuesday, 22 May 2018. Following the Mass before departure; we take the Ferry to France; overnight stay Friday at the Hotel ibis, Aulnay sous Bois; 3 days of Pilgrimage; a hot meal and overnight stay in Chartres (L’Hotel); Mass in Chartres Cathedral Crypt; and return via Eurotunnel to London. We have decided to maintain the cost at £275.00 (£140.00 for Children under 12). Preliminary information is contained in the attached/enclosed sheet.

    We will have one Youth chapter (ages 13-30) dedicated to St. Alban and one chapter (Our Lady of Walsingham) for everyone else! Please note that we have been unable to obtain our usual allocation of rooms in our hotel in Chartres and, therefore, there will be very few single rooms available. A single room in the Paris hotel only will be at a supplement of £30.00.   

    Further information and updates may be posted to our website, www.chartresuk.blogspot.com. Please contact us for any further information on email: Chartres@duc-in-altum.co.uk. We look forward to seeing you on the road to Chartres, Deo volente!

    Video from the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest

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    23/02/2018 - 17:52

    An attack on older Traditionalists in the Catholic Herald

    I'm cross-posting this from Rorate Caeli.


    Davis in the Catholic Herald
    In last weekend's Catholic Herald (Feb 16) Michael Davis (not to be confused with the late, great, Michael Traherne Davies) makes an extraordinary attack on the older generation of Catholics attached to the Traditional Mass. He does so in the context of an alleged contrast with younger Traditionalists. You can read the first part of his article, or pay to read the whole thing; I include some screenshots to give a flavour.
    To generalise about Traditional Catholics as 'going out of [their] way to be nasty' or tainted by 'repugnant anti-Semitism' is wearily familiar, and I would not dignify it with a response but for the fact that Davis presents himself as a 'Traditionalist' (as he puts it), and the Catholic Herald is one of the more trad-friendly Catholic newspapers. Furthermore, Davis is the paper's US Editor, on the eve of their big launch in the USA. Rorate's Twitter feed put it well: what we see is the phenomenon of the "the self-hating self-righteous not-really-trad Trad." I've discussed other examples of the type here.


    2nd snippet
    If challenged Davis would doubtless claim that he is being frightfully clever, on behalf of the Traditional movement, since the thrust of the article is that the stereotype of the nasty trad is becoming out of date. But a moment's thought should have been enough to reveal that saying 'Yes the stereotype is true: but only of the older generation of traddies, and they are all dying off, hoorah!' is not a good PR strategy. The self-righteousness and lack of charity are awe-inspiring, but the take-home message is that the vicious polemic against us for the last forty years has been spot on: even self-confessed Traditional Catholics admit it.
    But is it true? As I pointed out in my letter to the Editor of the Catholic Editor, which may be published next weekend, the founding leaders of the lay Traditional movement (and it is the laity Davis appears to have in mind), cannot be accused of these traits. Internationally and in Germany, the dominating figure from the 1960s to the 1980s was Eric de Savanthem, who had risked his life for his opposition to Hitler, and whose decency and kindness are admitted by everyone. Intellectual leadership was given by the philosopher Dietrich Von Hildebrand, who was on a Nazi assassination list when he fled Austria, eventually to arrive, penniless, in the USA. Other major figures in the movement include Hugh Ross-Williamson, a founder of the Latin Mass Society and a man of the political Left, and the Scot, Hamish Fraser, a former Communist Party activist who had fought for the Republicans in the Spanish Civil War.
    3rd snippet.
    Are these the 'older generation' of Traditionalists Davis is talking about? Were they 'gratuitously nasty'? Were they anti-Semites? No one even superficially acquainted with their actions or writings could say so. The same is true of the following generation of leadership, who include the likes of the late Michael Davies and John Rao.
    Davis refers to Bishop Richard Williamson and Hutton Gibson. He admits that what he is talking about is 'only a minority that gives the rest of us a bad name. But sadly the extremists are always the noisiest.' But they are not a 'minority', they are not even 'extreme' members of our group: these two, the only named targets in the article, are not any part of the Traditional movement which Una Voce organisations, the Traditional Institutes under the PCED, or the SSPX, would recognise. They are, as a result of their own choices, on the outside. No-one would have even heard of Gibson were it not for his famous son. Are Traditionalists to be judged by mainstream leaders, or by such marginalia? Well, do we judge the Novus Ordo world by reference to excommunicated pink-haired feminists who've had themselves ordained? De-frocked child-abusers? Priests excommunicated for breaking the seal of the Confession? Celebrity 'Catholics' who campaign for abortion? Of course not. Why are Traditionalists judged by a different standard?
    Again, Davis may have met an anti-Semite or an aggressive older person at the Traditional Mass. He may even have met two or three. I could show him, at some of London's famous churches, tramps who sleep in the aisles, mad old ladies who carry statues around or hand out incoherent tracts about private revelations, and the occasional aggressive schizophrenic. Should we be expecting Novus Ordo Catholics to cringe and apologise for these figures? Of course not. But why are Traditionalists judged by a different standard?
    Davis claims it is the older generation who are the problem. Well, I could introduce him to some very angry and off-putting older Novus Ordo Catholics, if we are in the business of invidious comparisons. People who don't just make themselves unpleasant in church, but make a public spectacle of themselves in print. I've made a particular study of the ones who regard themselves are 'conservatives', so I'm not just talking about the shouty liberals. It would never occur to me to say their behaviour is a problem for the Novus Ordo milieu as a whole, or to look forward to their deaths with anticipated satisfaction. Good grief! But why should Traditionalists be judged by a different standard?
    Michael Davis' attack on the older generation of Traditional Catholics is not just lacking in filial pietas, a virtue he recommends to others in this very article, but is grossly unjust. The Traditional movement owes everything to the older generation: were it not for them, there would be no movement and no Traditional Mass today. As I wrote in 2013:


    I should say, in passing, what a joy it is to meet and work with the older generation of the traditional movement. People sometimes characterise them as embittered and battle weary, but that is not my experience. Of course, things are beginning to go their way, which always helps. But these are people who maintained their integrity, or have rediscovered it, who lived through the horrors without giving in to the horror. Their obedience has been learnt by suffering. They have much to teach us, and are more than willing to pass it on. This is how the Church is supposed to work. (Here's one illustrative obituary, and here's another.)


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    23/02/2018 - 09:03

    Vestment repair day in the LMS Office

    From the Guild of St Clare.

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    The Guild of St Clare has been asked to repair some vestments for the Latin Mass Society. These repairs will need to be undertaken in the LMS's office, in central London. We have arranged two dates when we will do this work: the 21st April and the 12th May, between the hours of 10am and 4pm. Lunch will be provided.

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    This violet High Mass Set is among the things needing attention

    If you would like to join us, or want to know more about the details, please email me at lucyashaw@gmail.com. Space in the LMS office is fairly limited, so we need to know how many people are planning to come.

    The Office is at 11 - 13 Macklin Street LONDON WC2B 5NH

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    21/02/2018 - 12:00

    LMS Pilgrimage to Caversham this Saturday, 24th Feb

    Our Lady and St Anne, 2 South View Avenue, Caversham RG4 5AB. (Click for a map.)

    High Mass at 11:30am followed by buffet lunch in the parish room.

    Mass will be celebrated by Fr Anthony Conlon, assisted by Fr Gabriel Diaz and Fr James Mawdsley FSSP.

    Mass will be offered for the Irish abortion referendum.

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    21/02/2018 - 08:00

    Chair of St Peter: Sung Mass in Didcot
    Please support this if you in the area, one of an occasional series of Sung Masses celebrated by parish priest Fr Philip Harris, and accompanied by the Schola Abelis of Oxford.

    Church of English Martyrs, 15 Manor Crescent, Didcot OX11 7AJ (click for a map)

    Sung Mass at 7:30pm, Thursday 22nd February 2018.

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    20/02/2018 - 13:18

    Call for Masses for Ireland's referendum
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    A Dominican Rite High Mass in the Priory of the Holy Spirit (Blackfriars), Oxford


    Latin Mass /  Una Voce groups throughout Britain and Ireland call for Masses to be offered for the Irish abortion referendum

    Many readers will have heard of the attack on the unborn currently being planned in Ireland. The background is that in 1983, in the context of fears that Ireland’s historic legal protection of the unborn would be undermined by the courts, the Irish voted to amend their constitution—the Eighth Amendment—as follows:

    The State acknowledges the right to life of the unborn and, with due regard to the equal right to life of the mother, guarantees in its laws to respect, and, as far as practicable, by its laws to defend and vindicate that right.

    A referendum is now being planned to abolish this amendment. This will take place in late May or early June.

    Ireland’s protection of the unborn is of special significance because it is unique in Europe, and among ‘developed’ countries in general. It is therefore a test case for the argument, so often made, that abortion is necessary for the safety of mothers. In fact Ireland has one of the best records for maternal mortality in the world, a fact deeply embarrassing to the abortion industry. Abortion is not necessary for the protection of women’s health, but indeed is a direct attack on it.

    In response to this threat, four affiliates of the Una Voce Federation in the British Isles have come together to appeal for Masses to be said for this intention. Ireland has two national associations: the older Latin Mass Society of Ireland, and the more recently founded Una Voce Ireland. They are joined by Una Voce Scotland, and the Latin Mass Society of England and Wales.

    In their press release, John Briody, President of the Latin Mass Society Ireland, declared:

    The act of abortion, the direct killing of an innocent person, is never permissible. Many pro-life groups are engaged in valiant campaigns to educate people on the reality of abortion and its effects. The role of God’s grace is recognised too in the prayer campaigns which have commenced. What better way to implore God’s grace than to offer the ultimate prayer, the Mass, in its most worthy form – to implore Almighty God to enlighten Irish citizens so that we better understand and fight this evil, which not only kills the bodies of our unborn brethren, but deprives their souls of baptism, the gateway to spiritual life (vitae spiritualis ianua)? (Catechism of the Catholic Church 1213, quoting the Council of Florence).

    Joseph Shaw, Chairman of the Latin Mass Society of England and Wales, commented:

    The significance of this referendum is world-wide. Over many decades, Ireland has demonstrated that a developed nation can protect the unborn and mothers at the same time, with one of the best records for maternal mortality in the world, giving the lie to the claim that access to abortion is necessary for the protection of women.

    This is an issue which is close to hearts of our members and supporters, who are well represented in the Pro-Life movement.

    It behoves us as Catholics to pray and offer Masses to protect our brothers and sisters in Ireland.

    Masses to be offered for this intention include the Latin Mass Society of England and Wales’ annual Pilgrimage to Our Lady of Caversham, in Reading, on Saturday 24th February, and its annual Pilgrimage to Preston on Saturday 5th May.

    The Dominicans of Holy Cross, Leicester, will be offering a Novena of Masses for this intention culminating on the Feast of St Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary, on 19th March.

    We hope readers will feel inspired to add their own Masses, prayers, and sacrifices for this important intention.


    Press release from the Latin Mass Society

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    19/02/2018 - 12:56

    Support the polyphony database today!

    Today is the last day of a Crowdfunder initiative to support a project to digitise a huge database of early Sacred Polyphony, to be provided free for scholars and musicians. Not only is it worthy of support, but the 'benefits' you can claim for donations are fantastic!

    Some details below. Go to the Crowdfunder page.

    What is the Polyphony Database?

    PolyphonyDatabase.com is a detailed catalogue of early music sources designed to help musicians perform, academics study, and enthusiasts explore a vast and glorious repertoire quickly and easily. It aims to combine the practicality of CPDL with the academic rigour and ambition of the RISM census, to make use of similar projects where possible, and to directly combat the frustrations performing musicians have with all existing resources.

    It is an altruistic endeavour and will always be free to access. There are currently only a handful of administrators, but as its stability and functionality improves I plan to allow more people to sign up and contribute.
    Its three main goals are:
    • To assist performers, directors, and editors by cataloguing the contents of primary sources, source concordances, and basic information about how each piece of music can be performed.
    • To provide a reliable starting point for academic research by linking to library catalogues, other existing databases, and facsimile images of early music manuscripts and prints.
    • To provide a repository for properly sourced critical editions, performing scores, and recordings of as much of this music as possible, each carefully vetted for typesetting quality and accuracy, and made available for free download, so that this music might be discovered and appreciated by a wider audience.

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    Latin Mass Society, 9 Mallow Street, London EC1Y 8RQ | 020 7404 7284 | [email protected]

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