More on the Broad Stone
I was very pleased to read Charles Coulombe’s feature on “The Broad Stone of Honour” by Kenelm Digby (Mass of Ages, Summer 2019). As he explains, it forms part of an extraordinary library of Catholic knowledge but, sadly, it is little known.
I met Charles recently at the Chavagnes International College summer conference and we had a brief conversation about the works of Kenelm Digby. One of the main reasons for this work not being widely read is probably its length - over 2,000 pages. A few years ago (when I was completing my ‘formation’ before being dubbed at Chartres as a Chevalier de Notre Dame) my final project was a study of this book and I prepared a summary and precis (a mere 14 pages). This would give anyone interested a brief introduction to the book and might inspire them to read it in its entirety. This summary can be found under the section ‘News and Thoughts’ dated 19th February 2019 on the MSM website- https://militiasanctaemariae.org.
Ian Gordon
St Bede’s Parish, Clapham Park
Spanish Saint
I am quite an ancient member (4999) of the LMS resident in Spain. In relation to the interesting article on Shrewsbury Cathedral in Issue 200 (congratulations!), please note that the saint in question is Saint Peter of Alcántara (San Pedro de Alcántara) not of Alacantara. The Spanish place name is derived directly from the Arabic, qantara, which means a bridge, and the Alcántara of Extremadura (where the saint was from) does indeed possess one of the finest Roman bridges in Spain. If in doubt you can check the Oxford Dictionary of Saints where it appears correctly, though there they confuse Estremadura (which is in Portugal, in the area of Lisbon) with Extremadura, a region in the SW of Spain.
Mervyn Samuel
Via email
Turin Meditation
I should like to express my thanks and admiration for such an inspiring article explaining the link between the window and the Shroud of Turin in the Summer 2019 issue of Mass of Ages. As an occasional visitor to Buckfast Abbey I have sometimes felt ambiguous about this great window, but now the article has helped to open this imposing image to a much deeper meditation on the suffering and death of Our Saviour and High Priest. Thank you so much to Mackenzie Robinson, the author of the article.
J P Fitzgerald
Via email
More History, Please
I don’t know about other readers but for me one of the great delights of reading Mass of Ages magazine is the number of historical articles you publish. It is easy to forget - and this is true of Catholics as much as it is true of anyone else - how the society in which we live today is the product of Catholic values and ideas. These ideas may have been altered, perhaps even suppressed, since the Reformation but they are always there forming the bedrock of our spiritual and indeed intellectual lives. With this in mind I wanted particularly to say how much I enjoyed Joseph Shaw’s article ‘Traces Remain’ in your autumn issue.
Alan Kelly
Liverpool
Please Pray for the Souls of all Members who have Died Recently
Requiescant in Pace
Departed:
John Wheatley Blench
Edith Hamill
Agnes Rutherford
Every effort is made to ensure that this list is accurate and up-to-date. However, if you know of a recently deceased member whose name has not, so far, appeared on our prayer memorial, then please contact the LMS. The LMS relies heavily on legacies to support its income. We are very grateful to the following who remembered the Society in their Will: Michael O’Brien.