Sr Frances Orchard CJ appointed as Religious Safeguarding Lead

 Sr Frances Orchard CJ, a member of the Congregation of Jesus, is taking on the new role of Religious Safeguarding Lead, a post created in response to IICSA’s recommendation for there to be a lead Bishop and a lead Religious for safeguarding within the Catholic Church.

It follows a nine-month period in which Fr David Smolira SJ has operated as implementation Lead for Religious in response to the review of safeguarding in the Church by Dr Ian Elliott, which called for new structures for safeguarding to be established in the Catholic Church in England and Wales. Fr Smolira has been a critical part of the implementation of the new safeguarding structures and systems for Religious. He has worked for and with Religious to implement the changes, and to ensure that their questions, concerns and needs are heard and understood. The newly established Religious Life Safeguarding Service is now in existence, though it will be some time before it is fully operational. The RLSS will offer a full safeguarding service designed specifically for Religious Congregations, including case work and the provision of training.  Anne O’Brien who is the current chair of the Hexham and Newcastle diocesan safeguarding commission has recently been appointed as the first Chair of the RLSS.

Sr Frances Orchard holds a degree in History (London), a Masters in Catholic School leadership (Surrey) and has a professional background in educational leadership and consultancy. Sr Frances has served as Vicar General of her congregation in Rome, and more recently as Provincial Superior, and Vice-President of the Conference of Religious of England and Wales. At various times she has been a governor/trustee of seven schools in total, and has first-hand experience of safeguarding issues. Sr Frances commented: “I am privileged to be entrusted with taking forward this new role and will endeavour to build on the excellent foundation laid by Fr David; safeguarding is an essential part of our Catholic belief and should be focussed on the needs of survivors.”

Buckfast bees find a home with the Presentation Sisters in Derbyshire

By Sister Susan Reichert PBVM

In this Season of Creation, we are encouraged to do or take something on that will help our planet….

In our efforts to care more for our earth, we decided to invest in a bee hive. Our next-door neighbours, Julia and Eric, were a great help – they had a hive of bees AND a spare hive. Her son, Daniel and his wife are bee keepers and so our adventure started.

In late June, the hive was placed in an alcove in the church cemetery beside our house. Daniel took himself off to collect a swarm of bees from Buckfast. He had suggested these bees because they are gentle and had been bred as far back as 1919 (at Buckfast) so that they are more acclimatised to England. We were also conscious of the school children being next door and their playing field being on the other side of the hedge.

The bees arrived and were put in the hive but unfortunately some had died on the way and the others were struggling.

Daniel, the beekeeper, got back onto Buckfast – they needed to know in case there was a problem being bred in the bees.  Another swarm was brought up and housed in the hive. These are thriving.

We have planted bee-friendly bushes and flowers in our garden and in the graveyard.

It is amazing to see them working in our garden and queueing to get into the hive to take back their nectar.

As a side line – they are doing a great job pollinating our flowers and bushes.

We are now collecting our empty jam-jars ready for the honey………

From cathedrals to candles, from vestments to the Easter Vigil Exsultet, the church honours, depicts, and implements honeybees into its representation of life offered for others. Common words, like the “cell” in a monastery, derive from the cells of a hive. It’s a group of celibate worker bees, supporting one another for the survival of the whole. The high altar in St. Peter’s Basilica is covered in bees. St. John Chrysostom once shared in a homily:

“The bee is more honoured than other animals,

               not because it labours,                 

   but because it labours for others.”

Martin Marklin took up beekeeping as a sideline to his main business producing thousands of handcarved liturgical candles each year at the Marklin Candle workshop in Contoocook, New Hampshire. Beekeeping became its own vocation, however, and the more Marklin learned about the life of bees, the more he saw the ways in which the beehive reflects the early church.

Martin has a 5 minute video in which he parallels the bees and us as Church. Its called Be The Bee

https://youtu.be/ZxDesicz62g

In the light of seeing the video, reflect on the following questions –

Martin Marklin says he became interested in beekeeping when he realized he “had no idea how the bees did what they did.” What aspects of your work are you curious about? How might exploring those areas open up your imagination? Is there any anxiety you need to overcome to do this?

Marklin says the bee community “is reflective of how the early church was.” Do you see powerful metaphors for the church around you?

In what ways do you “labour for others”? Is that a useful mindset in your organization?

As a candle maker, Marklin derives joy from knowing that the work of his hands becomes “the light of Christ in the world.” Do you see your work in that way? Could you?

Markin urges everyone to “be the bee” -- to find beauty and transform it into something even more beautiful. Are there places in your life and work where you can do that?

(This was first published in Faith & Leadership:   www.faithandleadership.com )

Finally, we invited the parishioners and schoolchildren to get involved,  by donating some crocus bulbs helping to create a carpet of crocuses in the cemetery at St.Joseph’s – and provide food for our bees.  We hope to get the children in St.Joseph’s school to plant the bulbs.

Sisters host film festival to highlight human trafficking

Sr Imelda Poole & Sr Patricia Mulhall with prizewinners

By Jo Siedlecka, ICN

A festival of films dedicated to human trafficking took place at the Royal Society of Arts (RSA) and British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA).

Organised by RENATE (Religious in Europe Networking Against Trafficking and Exploitation) the day included an exhibition of art by victims of trafficking, and the announcement of the winners in a short-film competition - with a viewing of their works.

Sr Imelda Poole presenting the first prize to the winner who joined from Poland

Loreto Sister Imelda Poole MBE, director of RENATE came from Albania to open the festival. She said it aimed to provide a platform for survivors of human trafficking by highlighting their stories and showcasing the work of Religious across Europe who assist victims and lobby for tougher legislation to end the practice.

Dr Jon Hackett, head of the Department of Communications, Media and Marketing and Professor of Film and Communications at St Mary's University, Twickenham, compered the day and Dr Carol Murphy, Director of St Mary's Bakhita Centre for Research on Slavery, Exploitation and Abuse also commented on the films.

An image created by a teenage victim of trafficking

Nine films made by RENATE members and friends were shown at the RSA in three viewing areas, followed by discussions. Sr Imelda Poole moderated discussion in one area after the screening of 'L'invisibles' about street children in France, produced largely by Secours Catholique - Caritas France, and the documentary 'Sisters Act' about the work of RENATE in Albania. Viewers' questions ranged from the role of drugs and alcohol, the issue of patriarchy the live-streaming of children as young as two-years-old to sexual predators. There were concerns about increasing drug trafficking and gang culture in Britain and calls for systemic change since human vulnerability is worsened by economic hardship and environmental problems.

'Ivan' from Slovakia, highlighting the heartbreaking true story of a man tricked into forced labour in slave-like conditions, was followed by 'Two little girls', an animated short film highlighting the broken dreams of two young women sold into prostitution after moving overseas for work. Brigidine Sister Patricia Mulhall, who has worked with trafficked people for more than 15 years, locally and internationally, led a discussion on these. She felt the 'demand' side of trafficking should be investigated more and asked why it is that the victims are more like to face being criminalised than their abusers.

Sr Marie Power of TRAC (Trafficking Awareness-Raising and Campaigning), moderated discussion in another room, looking at films including, 'They're children not slaves' focusing on Albania. She said that her organisation, formed by 16 religious congregations in the UK, works with RENATE, "to give victims a forum to tell their stories".

Presentations were made to winners of the Europe-wide RENATE short-film competition for young people. First prize went to Elliott Engberg, a student at the Warsaw Film School. His movie 'Traffic' , showing the commodification of human life, was uncomfortable viewing but strikingly powerful. Speaking from Poland by zoom he said: "this is a topic I care about and I wanted to force the audience to view a the scene of a young woman being abducted and sold to the highest bidder online - probably on the dark web. This happens every day."

Second place for 'Humans - Not for Sale' went to A level students from London, Joel Black and Shadman Jabir. They used a hand-held camera to film 'victims' trying to escape, highlighting their vulnerability and disorientation. The third place winner was young animator Emily Downe. Her highly original film 'Plain Sight', based on drawings she made while walking around Soho, showed how victims of modern slavery are there in our city streets in broad daylight - and we need to be more conscious of their presence.

‘New Beginning’

There were calls for the UK's Modern Slavery Act of 2015 to be better enforced. And it was felt that the international Anti-Slavery Day on 18 October is a key opportunity to highlight human trafficking and its causes, using some of the festival's 12 films to raise awareness.

All the films are available on the RENATE Events website: www.renateevents.net/

Journeying together - communion, participation, mission

This web page will be updated with links and resources as the congregations of England and Wales take part in the process of discernment around synodality.

7/9/21; The General Secretariat for the Synod of Bishops has presented the base text and 'Vademecum' - or handbook - to guide the journey of the Synod on Synodality.

Listening without prejudice; speaking out with courage and parrhesia; dialoguing with the Church, with society, and with the other Christian confessions are among the guiding principles that will direct the path of the Synod on Synodality.

The solemn opening of the Synod will take place in Rome on October 9-10, and in the particular Churches on October 17; and will conclude in the Vatican in 2023 with the assembly of bishops from around the world.

The Preparatory Document, released on Tuesday, is intended above all to be an instrument facilitating the first phase of listening and consultation of the People of God in the particular Churches, which will take place from October 2021 to April 2022.

"In other words," as the document says, "it constitutes a sort of construction site or pilot experience that makes it possible to immediately begin reaping the fruits of the dynamic that progressive synodal conversion introduces into the Christian community."

The text opens with the fundamental question: "How does this 'journeying together,' which takes place today on different levels (from the local level to the universal one), allow the Church to proclaim the Gospel in accordance with the mission entrusted to Her; and what steps does the Spirit invite us to take in order to grow as a synodal Church?"

LINKS

letter to those in Monastic life:

18/10/21: https://www.synod.va/content/dam/synod/document/common/prayers/monasteries/LETTERA-EN.pdf

Synod base text - https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2021/09/07/210907a.html

Vademecum - www.synod.va/en/news/vademecum-for-the-synod-on-synodality.html

To learn more about the 2023 Synod on Synodality:  official website of the Synod.

20/9/2021: Synodality and Women, by Phyllis Zagano: https://www.indcatholicnews.com/news/43071

Key appointment to new safeguarding service for religious congregations in England and Wales

Anne O’Brien of Hexham and Newcastle diocese has been appointed as Chair of a new safeguarding structure dedicated to supporting the responsibilities of religious congregations. 

The ‘Religious Life Safeguarding Service’ is being set up following a review of safeguarding across the Catholic Church conducted by Dr Ian Elliott. This review recommended significant changes to the organisation and delivery of safeguarding services in the Church. The Religious Life Safeguarding Service will offer a full safeguarding service designed for Religious Congregations, including the provision of case work and training.

For three years Anne O’Brien has been the Chair of the Independent Safeguarding Commission for the Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle – and has also worked at a national level for the last 20 years within the NHS and the Department of Health. She held a Company Board Director position at NHS Professionals Ltd for 11 years.  Anne is a faculty member of the Royal College of Physicians, Edinburgh Quality Governance Collaborative and is currently advising the College on its global engagement and governance activity.

Fr David Smolira SJ has been overseeing the development of this new service for the past 7 months and said this about the appointment:

“I am absolutely delighted that Anne O’Brien has accepted the role of Chair of the Board of the Religious Life Safeguarding Service. She brings a wealth of safeguarding expertise and experience as well as a proven track record in governance. As the first Chair of the Board, Anne will play a very important role in developing the service and ensuring that its commitment to best practice and responding compassionately and professionally to the needs of victim/survivors will be at the heart of what the RLSS does.”

Anne O’Brien commented:  

‘’It is a privilege and a responsibility to become the first Chair of the RLSS, particularly at such a pivotal time for safeguarding in the Catholic Church. I intend to use my experience to support religious congregations embrace the changes we need to make, and I look forward to getting out and about listening and learning, ensuring we bring people with us as we develop. The voice of those hurt will be heard and will help us to improve what we do.’’

Those in Religious Life in England & Wales and the Religious Life Safeguarding Service itself are fully committed to working to create a safer Church for everyone and to fully implement the recommended changes of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse and the Elliott review.  

 Why is this Being Done?

In part, this is being done in response to the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) and the Elliott Review, both of which reported towards the end of 2020 and both of which were critical of the safeguarding work being undertaken in the Catholic Church in England and Wales.

The Religious of England and Wales are completely committed to following best practice in the area of safeguarding and are willing to invest significant financial resources into this project to ensure that this happens.

The new approach, recommended by Dr Ian Elliott, will be a standards-based approach to safeguarding and this will be audited by the Catholic Safeguarding Standards Agency.

Previously safeguarding needs were primarily met through dioceses but going forward the Religious Life Safeguarding Service will offer a dedicated service to meet the safeguarding needs of Religious. Like all other areas of the Church the RLSS will be working with the standards and regulations set by the Catholic Safeguarding Standards Agency in a one church approach

Let's respond to the seriousness of climate change

By Fr Sean McDonagh SSC

On 9 August 2021, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), a scientific body convened by the United Nations, issued a new report on climate change. This IPCC report based on 14, 000 studies and the work of more than 200 scientists is the clearest and most comprehensive account of the science of climate change. Dr Tamsin Edwards from King's College London, one of the main authors of the report, points out that climate science has improved significantly since the previous IPCC report in 2013.

In that report, human influence on climate change was "clear" whereas in the new report it is "unequivocal."

Since the beginning of the industrial revolution the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has increased from 280 parts million to over 416 parts per million today. The reason is that humans are burning fossil fuels, such as coal, oil and gas to heat their homes, power their industrial and transport sectors and increase their agricultural production considerably.

The report makes it clear that the concentration of carbon dioxide is greater than at any time in the past two million years. As a result, the average global temperature has increased by 1.1 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. The warmer atmosphere, land and oceans has caused more and severe droughts, floods and typhoons in recent years. In July 2021, heavy rains in Germany, Holland and Belgium caused riverbanks to burst, flooding entire towns and villages and destroying highways. More than 160 people lost their lives. Now massive wildfires burning in Siberia, Greece, Turkey and California bear the hallmark of climate change.

The warmer atmosphere and oceans mean that the late summer Arctic Sea ice has decreased by 40 percent in a mere 30 years. In this warmer world massive icebergs and glaciers are melting in Greenland, Arctic and the Himalayas leading to a significant rise in sea-levels. If this continues, many coastal cities will be flooded and some island nations such as Tuvalu in the Pacific Ocean may disappear in the next 50 years.

While the IPCC report is certain that major climate changes are inevitable and irreversible, there is much that humans can do to stop global warming from intensifying in the coming decades. The most important action is to cut emissions by 50 percent by 2030 and by 2050 to eliminate them completely.

That will not be easy as 34 per cent of greenhouse gases in Ireland come from agriculture. The Irish government's 'Food Vision 2030' plans to increase agricultural exports, mainly dairy and livestock by 50 percent in the next decade. Little thought is given to lowering our methane emissions by reducing our dairy herd which has doubled in the past 10 years. Similarly. there is little talk of moving to more plant- based agriculture which would lower Ireland's greenhouse gas emissions significantly.

Retrofitting homes will also be quite expensive. In Ireland it is estimated that retrofitting a house will cost between 25,000 and 50,000 euro. The cost for retrofitting 1.5 million houses will come to between 10 to 15 billion euro. Very few people have access to this kind of money. Since most churches are heated by oil, parishes will have to spend significant resources retrofitting these churches during the next 10 years. Similar kinds of costs will arise changing our transport sector from fossil fuels to electricity.

The IPCC report has been published three months before world leaders meet at COP 26 in Glasgow to discuss climate change. It is crucial that countries make drastic cuts in their emission of greenhouse gases. COP 26 is seen by some as the last opportunity to ensure the world does not exceed the two degrees Celsius in the 21st century. This would be disastrous as many areas of the world would be unliveable for human beings.

People are asking whether Britain is leading by example in tackling climate change. In early August 2021, Keir Starmer, the leader of the opposition warned that Boris Johnson's "failure of leadership" on tackling climate change could seriously damage the success of COP26. Others point out that the British government's recently cut in foreign aid has damaged the chance of success at COP26. Asking poor countries to undertake serious climate action while giving them less money to pursue clean energy strategies does not make sense.

Until the publication of Laudato Si': On Care for Our Common Home the record of the Catholic Church in giving leadership on this vital issue was extremely poor. One of the first places where climate change is mentioned by Pope John Paul II is in the 1990 document Peace with God the Creator, Peace with All Creation. The document states that "the gradual depletion of the ozone layer and the related 'greenhouse effect' have now reached crisis proportion…While CFCs are global warming gases, the depletion of the ozone layer and global warming are two entirely different processes.

The Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, published in 2004, is a large book running to over 350 pages, yet there is only one paragraph on climate change. Regrettably, global warming did not appear in Pope Benedict's first encyclical Deus Caritas Est published in 2005. Chapter 4 of Pope Benedict's social encyclical, Caritas in Veritate is devoted to the environment, yet it did not mention to the most important environmental problem of the time - climate change.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) has given the most courageous leadership of any Christian institute on climate change during the past 4 decades. In 1992, it published a document on climate change called Sign of Peril, Test of Faith. Eight years later in 2002 the WCC published another pamphlet, Solidarity with Victims of Climate Change.

In the Anglican Church, former Archbishop Rowan Williams has warned that climate change is 'the largest challenged ever faced by humanity.' Since the publication of Laudato Si' - climate change has been at the centre of Pope Francis's ministry. He has made it clear that, if his health permits, he will attend COP26 in Glasgow to encourage leaders to make ambitious commitments on reducing carbon emission.

Given the seriousness of the crisis, every parish needs to set up a climate change committee and work with other Christian Churches and other religions to address this critical issue of our time. Such a context of support, at local and national level, will make it possible for people to implement the radical changes in our lifestyle which are demanded by this new IPPC report. And the time to achieve this is very short.

Sisters in search of a new home have found one

Pictured centre, Mother Winsome

By Dom Cuthbert Brogan OSB

Prinkash Abbey, Wiki Image by Enid Fletcher

The Benedictine monks of Prinknash Abbey in Gloucestershire are delighted to announce a new and important venture on the historic Prinknash Abbey estate in Gloucestershire.

The monks have offered one of the properties on the Prinknash estate to the Sisters of the Blessed Virgin Mary OSB - an autonomous community of nuns established within the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham following the Benedictine Rule and currently living at Kingstanding in Birmingham.

The Prinknash community converted to the Catholic faith in 1913 on Caldey Island. The monastic community belongs to the Subiaco-Cassinese Congregation of the order of St Benedict, the largest of the Benedictine Congregations which comprise the Benedictine Confederation, and whose monasteries include St Benedict's own monasteries of Subiaco and Monte Cassino.

The Sisters of the Blessed Virgin Mary OSB were received into the Catholic Church at the Oxford Oratory in 2013. They are part of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham, established by Pope Benedict XVI and are aggregated to the Subiaco-Cassinese Congregation.

The refurbishment of buildings at the new monastery for nuns will include new guest and retreat facilities for individuals and groups, especially of young people. The work is expected to take two years.

Mgr Newton, the Ordinary of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham, said he was extremely grateful for the generosity of the Prinknash community in offering the sisters a permanent home to live out their monastic vocation.

The Abbot Administrator of Prinknash said: "Prinknash is a much-loved and historic centre of prayer and monastic hospitality. We ask Almighty God's blessing on this new venture. Our hope is that the presence of these two distinct monastic communities on this outstandingly beautiful and historic estate will enrich this oasis of peace for the many who visit, and be a powerful witness of monastic generosity and prayer."

In January 2020, CoR reported on the Sisters’ plight as they sought a new home:

At the time, the Superior, Mother Winsome, said: “We’d ideally like to stay in the archdiocese of Birmingham but we’re open to suggestions. However with elderly Sisters it would be helpful for us not to be too remote. We’re hoping to find a purpose built convent, as a small-ish house wouldn’t be quite big enough.”

After being received into the full Communion of the Catholic Church and vacating their former convent, they stayed for an initial period of monastic formation at St Cecilia’s Abbey on the Isle of Wight. Whilst there,  an American Dominican,  who was at that point staying at Maryvale in Birmingham,  paid a visit.  Mother Winsome explains: “We outlined our circumstances and said to the visitor : please go back to Maryvale and beg John Henry Newman to give us a home!”

On return to Birmingham the Dominican in question mentioned to someone that they’d encountered “some homeless nuns” and was told a convent was becoming available, just up the road from Maryvale. Mother Winsome had to act quickly to seal the deal: “I had just an hour to get off the Isle of Wight that day because of the times of the tides!” she recalled. Mother Winsome travelled to meet the outgoing Superior of the Birmingham convent - who was wondering what to do with all the contents of the property. Mother Winsome replied: “Please leave it all, we have nothing!”

There was the slight matter that the Ordinariate Sisters also had absolutely no funds to acquire the property - but, said Mother Winsome, “we were confident the Lord would provide!” Within days an anonymous donor stepped forward and the lease of the property was agreed. So they moved, in August 2013, to their present location in Birmingham, just up the road from John Henry Newman’s first ‘Catholic’ home after his conversion, Maryvale.

In 2020, the Sisters expressed confidence that their prayers to England’s new saint would lead them safely to their own new home soon.

To read more about how Anglican Sisters became Catholic Sisters, visit:   https://www.sbvm.org.uk/

Prayers for the people of Hull as the Daughters of Charity say goodbye

By Sister Maureen Tinkler DC

On Saturday 10th July, Bishop Terence Drainey, Parish Priest Fr Jim O'Brien, Fr Paul Roche CM, diocesan clergy, Marist Fathers, members of the Society of St Vincent de Paul, parishioners, colleagues, and friends of the Sisters gathered with 12 Daughters of Charity in St Vincent's Church, Queens Road, for a farewell Mass.

Over the span of 131 years, the Daughters have lived and worked in Hull serving the people in various ministries within the parishes of St Charles, St Vincent's, West Hull, East Hull, and Bransholme.

Despite COVID restrictions, the liturgy of the Mass was incredibly beautiful. In his homily, the Bishop thanked the Sisters for their work in Hull, and indeed throughout the diocese of Middlesbrough, reminding them of Jesus' words in the Gospel: " You did not choose me, no I chose you and I commissioned you to go out and bear fruit." In the life of the Sisters, these words of Jesus have been realised. Sr Ellen Flynn, Provincial, traced the history of the Sisters in Hull from the beginnings in 1890 right up to the present day. She thanked both priests and people for their collaborative support and reassured everyone of the Sisters’ prayerful support as they continue together on the journey of life in Hull as witnesses to the Kingdom.

Bishop Terence and Councillor Abhimanyu Singh

After Mass, the Sisters, priests, and people gathered outside at the front of the church beneath the Commemorative Blue Plaque. This had been erected by Hull City Council to honour the memory of the Sisters’ 131 years of service. The plaque was blessed by Bishop Terence ; Councillor Abhimanyu Singh spoke of the unselfish work of the Sisters as the highest form of love and graciously gave thanks to them on behalf of all the people.

The original plans for the day included a sit-down afternoon tea for all in St Vincent's School Hall. However, because of COVID restrictions, these plans had to be abandoned and the West Hull Parish Priest, Fr Ivan Dawson, came to the rescue putting on a wonderful mid-afternoon barbecue on the grounds of St Joseph's Church. A wonderful meal for the Sisters and clergy.

The next day brought further celebrations at the 9am Sunday Mass in St Wilfrid's Church - the parish of Sisters Ann and Eleanor. This is a multicultural parish and Fr Ivan had invited his parishioners to turn up dressed in their national costumes. The Gospel that day was from St Mark in which Jesus missions his disciples to go out wearing their SANDALS: Sandals which protect the feet and can be easily slipped off when entering the sacred space of a person's home.

Many years ago, Jesus called the Sisters to put on their sandals and come to Hull and enter the homes of the people. Now he calls them to other places. The parish has been blessed by having Sisters as travelling companions on its journey so far. At the end of Mass after receiving Holy Communion, Sr Ellen spoke to the parishioners and gave them thanks for being part of our journey too. The only reason The Daughters of Charity are leaving Hull is a lack of vocations. She encouraged the people to pray for vocations. If they do, who knows what could happen? One day the Sisters may come back to Hull. Meantime we should pray for each other and ALL OF US to put on our sandals and go wherever the Lord sends us and do whatever he asks of us.

Benedictine Abbey thrives under lockdown with new online presence

Fr John Seddon OSB preparing beeswax products

Hidden in the glorious Surrey Hills yet only a stone's throw from Guildford and an hour from London, lockdown over 2020-21 for the growing community of Benedictine monks at St Augustine's Abbey, Chilworth, should have been a quiet affair but online interest in the place has rocketed, coinciding with the monastery's quest in its tenth anniversary year of being at Chilworth, to go decidedly digital with its overall online presence, most markedly with the launch of a new website and new online Benedictine Abbey shop.

During Lockdown, Fr John Seddon OSB, Benedictine monk and Lancastrian, has realised the power of the internet for spreading the message of the Gospel by providing short daily scripture reflections on the readings his Community reflect on every morning called 'Matins' Musings', which are now read internationally and translated into Spanish. Another monk, Fr Thomas Kolangaden OSB, provides an online daily Divine Mercy Hour, including teaching input from others members of the Community. The worldwide interest in these initiatives is reflected in the numbers regularly visiting the website and the many prayer intentions the monks receive daily. Fr John commented, "My ministry as a priest and monk has been greatly enriched and extended via the internet as a direct result of Lockdown restrictions."

Meanwhile the monks' new online shop is doing well. Top sellers are the organic beeswax skin creams, lip balms and furniture polish made with wax and honey from the abbey bees, and 'Chilworth Rosary Beads' constructed of cord by one of the monastery's new monks. There are around 80 more different products to choose from in the shop, including religious wall plaques, crosses, candles and more - all of which aim to offer good value.

Lockdown has seen annual shop sales increase from a few hundred pounds to several thousand and there seems to be a growing appetite for monk-made items, each made prayerfully by hand at Chilworth. Importantly, any excess income from the shop supports the ever growing maintenance costs of the listed Victorian Abbey Church and monastery.

Other online enquiries, often from all over the world, have also ballooned, notably prayer and Mass requests, enquiries from those thinking about becoming a monk or Oblate, and - with many thanks - donations.

Meanwhile, the peaceful rhythm of monastic prayer life, often notated by Gregorian Chant, continues at Chilworth as it has done for generations of Benedictine monks for hundreds of years and, yes, the monastery is actively welcoming enquiries from men considering becoming a monk. The very basic yet welcoming Monastic Guest House is inviting individuals to stay on a self catering basis, often a good way to experience monastic life at arm's length. Chilworth's Benedictine monks don't run a parish but outside Covid emphatically welcome members of the public to pray with them at daily Mass and Divine Office seven times daily 365 days a year and many do.

Outside of the pandemic, members of the public are welcome to pray in the Abbey Church at St Augustine's Abbey, Chilworth 365 days a year - daily Mass is at 9am, Sunday Mass is at 10am, Divine Office takes place seven times a day and the Monastic Guest House welcomes members of the public on retreat. An online Divine Mercy Hour (3-4pm) takes place every day, accompanied by an online Mass every Saturday afternoon.

St Augustine's Abbey is in Sample Oak Lane, Chilworth, Guildford, Surrey GU4 8QR. Tel: 01483 899360

Saying farewell to Streatham – after 133 years

St Michael’s Convent (formerly Park Hill)

By Sister Mary Kenefick SMG

In Spring 2021, one hundred and thirty three years of ministry in Streatham, South West London came to an end. Back in 1888, the newly formed Religious Congregation of the Poor Servants of the Mother of God, was just sixteen years in existence.  The Foundress, Venerable Mother Magdalen Taylor - whose ministry and mission to the poor, the destitute, the voiceless and those caught up in prostitution was gathering momentum -  sought a property outside the city centre.  As ever Divine Providence came to her rescue.  Through her contacts with Bishop Butt, Bishop of Southwark, she became aware of a vacant property, Russell House, Streatham. Here in May 1888, she opened a refuge for vulnerable women dedicated to St Mary Magdalen.

Russell House, the first convent of the Poor Servants of the Mother of God

The estate was the property of Mr R.H. Measures and the Poor Servants of the Mother of God, who with financial support from the Duchess of Buccleuch and others,  acquired the leasehold of the property.  Cardinal Manning also stepped in, in the most effective way he could, by preaching a homily to a crowded congregation on “Fallen Women” at the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Farm Street, on the feast of St Mary Magdalen 1888, thus giving Venerable Mother Magdalen Taylor moral and financial support for her new ministry.

Frontal of the original Convent Chapel Altar, now in the Church of  the English Martyrs.  The 1st Mass since the Reformation was celebrated on it in Russell House.

A letter in the P.S.M.G, archives shows  some outcomes from the ministry of the early Sisters.  By  1895 a new refectory was built and opened on 12 February.  That same year forty-seven young women were received into the home; seven were received into the Church and made their First Holy Communion. Later in the year forty-six were received into the home, and fifteen placed out in situations. Progress was being made. 

Thus the foundation of over a hundred years of social outreach ministry had begun.  In subsequent years this ministry changed and developed as the needs of the times demanded. 

“Pastoral work continued to be carried out, and from the beginning of the foundation, visitation of the poor, as well as catechism classes, some of which were taken in the large convent garden, were regularly carried out. As late as 1979, it was recorded that 2,000 meals had been served to the poor that year from the convent. The Sisters had also taken responsibility for sacristy work in the parish church.”

It was here at St Mary’s Convent that many of the early Sisters who contacted TB spent their last days.  Fr William Lloyd PP was  most supportive to the SMG community.  He encouraged them to be in charge of the sacristy and all that it entailed until they became too ill to do so. 

The work of St Mary’s Convent which had developed so rapidly until 1923 made room for another property to be purchased from Sir Henry Tate known as Park Hill (renamed St Michael’s Convent) to take over the refuge work for vulnerable women transferred from St. Mary’s Convent. In the 1970’s there was a fresh phase of improvements thus accommodating about 70 women. By 1980 a variety of services for adults of all denominations was provided as was full-time education by local establishments. Leisure activities, short-term accommodation and respite care were also provided.   In the fifties some of the land at Park Hill was donated to the diocese of Southwark for the building of Bishop Thomas Grant School.

St Michael’s closed in 1993 and the SMG Sisters provided its residents with more family-like residential accommodation in the community.   The grounds of St Michael’s hosted the Corpus Christi processions annually.  From 1888 there was a huge growth of Catholic population with both primary and secondary school along with the flourishing Church of English Martyrs.

From 1923 onwards various improvements were made to St Mary’s Convent and it became St. Mary’s Nursing Home. 

In recent times the Sisters were collaborating with St Leonard’s Anglican Church in the running of the Spires Centre offering hospitality to homeless people. Various other forms of Chaplaincy have been supported by our Sisters: Brixton Prison, Hospital Chaplaincy and Chaplaincy to people in Independent Living at Norbury, and the Nursing Home in Streatham, while one Sister volunteered with Refugees at the Brixton Centre.

SMG footprint in Streatham has been very large and many SMG Sisters made untold contributions to the whole picture. We can now close our story in the words of Venerable Mother Magdalen Taylor, “Let Deo Gratias be ever on our lips.”

Tireless campaigner against human trafficking, Sr Isabel Kelly FMSJ, has died

Sr Isabel addressing a CoR meeting on human trafficking in Manchester in 2019

Sr Isabel looking down from her room where she’d been shielding since March 2020

Sr Isabel Kelly FMSJ, who was well known to the Religious of England and Wales for her unstinting efforts to raise awareness of human trafficking, has died. Sr Isabel passed away on Friday (May 28th) at her convent in Blackburn where she’d been shielding since the start of the pandemic. She was 87.

Sr Nuala McGarvey FMSJ, who’s also based in Blackburn, said Sr Isabel passed away peacefully after her family from Scotland had been to visit: “Sister Isabel was always writing something or to someone. Many of the Sisters commentated on how quiet our phones had become in the past fortnight, as she began to deteriorate; she was forever sending something amusing from the Internet or some petition to sign. Things won't be so peaceful "up there" from now on! Yes, she was a remarkable character who kept at her mission to the end. May she rest in peace.”

Sr Isabel addressing a meeting in Formby

Sr Isabel had spoken passionately at several meetings held in 2019 and 2020, to highlight the curse of modern slavery. She also wrote some very thoughtful articles, reflecting on doing God’s will and also on the nature of friendship. In fact she’d also written a book about her long years overseas and used any proceeds to help victims of trafficking.

As a tribute, we reproduce some of her articles below:

I will pray, talk about trafficking and keep my eyes open:

http://bit.ly/2Uw4aF6

A tribute to life long friendship:

http://bit.ly/2U4c8Re

A reflection on doing God’s will:

https://bit.ly/3heOgp9

Prayer of St John Henry Newman:

May He support us all the day long, till the shades lengthen and the evening comes, and the busy world is hushed, and the fever of life is over, and our work is done. Then in His mercy may He give us a safe lodging, and a holy rest and peace at the last.

Requiescat in Pace

A call to action on Laudato Si’ from a Columban Sister

By Sister Kate Midgley

On the 24th May the Vatican is inviting the entire Catholic Church to embark on an audacious faith filled seven-year journey through the Laudato Si’ Action Platform. It is hoped that as many of us as possible will join this journey together and it is hoped that with every passing year the number of us on this journey will increase exponentially.

Sr Kate (centre) in a Christian Climate Action weekly vigil outside Parliament - “praying that our leaders will be inspired to do what is needed, given our climate and ecological emergency, to protect the earth.”

So why is the Vatican so concerned that we all take part in this journey?

As is well known the Pope, the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, David Attenborough to name but a very few household names as well countless scientists, religious leaders and ordinary citizens have all warned us that we need to take urgent action in order to protect our Earth from a 6th Mass Extinction and dangerous global overheating which could lead to weather patterns spiralling dangerously out of control making large parts of the earth uninhabitable and leading to hundreds of millions of climate refugees.

As Christians we believe that the whole earth is a miracle of God’s creation and that is being held in being in every moment by God.

This attitude of awe and wonder was evident in the title Pope Francis gave to his 2015 encyclical “Laudato Si” (Praised be) and when he recalled St Francis who: “Just as happens when we fall in love with someone, whenever he would gaze at the sun, the moon or the smallest of animals, he burst into song” (LS 11)

The Pope, quoting St Francis, spoke with great tenderness about our earth, “our common home is like a sister with whom we share our life and a beautiful mother who opens her arms to embrace us” (LS 1) What the Pope shows us in Laudato Si’ is that integral ecology is integral to our faith.

The Pope also wrote these heart-breaking words “This sister now cries out to us because of the harm we have inflicted on her by our irresponsible use and abuse of the goods with which God has endowed her. We have come to see ourselves as her lords and masters, entitled to plunder her at will. The violence present in our hearts, wounded by sin, is also reflected in the symptoms of sickness evident in the soil, in the water, in the air and in all forms of life. This is why the earth herself, burdened and laid waste, is among the most abandoned and maltreated of our poor, she “groans in travail”. We have forgotten that are ourselves are dust of the earth; our very bodies are made up of her elements, we breathe her air and we receive life and refreshment from her waters.”  (LS 2)

Laudato Si’ reflection day, Salford, February 2020

With these words ringing in our ears, six years on after Laudato Si’ was first published, the Pope, through the Vatican Dicastery of Human Development, is inviting us to act now and embark on this seven-year journey through the Laudato Si’ Action Platform.

For an excellent 20 minute introduction by Fr Josh Kureethadam into what it is all about see this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIU7C7V81qg  (39 minutes in)

What follows is a simple explanation of what the writer of this article knows so far of the Laudato Si’ Action Platform, as religious congregations have already had some preliminary meetings.

Seven parts of the Church are named where we can embark on this journey to total sustainability, in the spirit of Laudato Si’ towards integral ecology.

 1. Families

2. Parishes & Dioceses 

3. Education – Schools, Universities etc.

4. Hospitals / Health Care Centres

5. Economy – businesses/cooperatives/farms

 6. Organisations – NGOs, movements, groups, foundations, communication centres etc.

 7. Religious Orders

 It is hoped that each part of the Church will make public commitments to the seven Laudato Si goals which are:

How to concretely put into practice these seven goals? Obviously, each group is best placed to decide that.  Below are a few very simple examples many of which are gleaned from LaudatoSi.org - Laudato Si' Goals

Response to the Cry of the Earth

Eg., Reducing our carbon footprint, changing to a renewable energy supplier …

Response to the Cry of the Poor

Eg., Responding to the poor in our society, refugees, people who are trafficked, indigenous peoples across the world

Ecological economics

Eg., Divestment from fossil fuels, Fair Trade, what are the economic activities that harm the environment?

Adoption of Simple Lifestyle

Eg., avoid single use plastic, adopt a more plant-based diet and reduce meat consumption, greater use of public transport

Ecological Education

Eg., Re-think and re-design educational curricula to create ecological awareness and action

Ecological Spirituality

Eg., Rediscover our ancient spiritual vision of God’s creation, that God is in all things and holding all in being, not just humans. Greater contact with the natural world, praying outside, ecological catechesis, retreats ….

Community Involvement and Participatory Action

Eg., Action to protect creation at local, national and international levels, advocacy campaigning

When planning how we will do this we are encouraged to use SMART goals, ie:

SPECIFIC, MEASURABLE, ACHIEVABLE, RELEVANT, TIME-BOUND

The goal of this mobilisation of the entire Catholic Church is to create the “critical mass” needed for radical societal transformation which is what is needed in order to protect our planet for future generations. Social scientists tell us that this critical mass is reached with just 3.5% of the population. For society to change 21% to 25% of the population is needed but that will happen once the critical mass is reached.

We know from history radical social change has started from below (we may think of Gandhi in India, Nelson Mandela in South Africa or the Suffragettes). It is the hope that in this issue of our climate and ecological emergency, that the Pope, the entire Catholic Church, and working together with others, that we may achieve the radical global societal transformation that is needed.

Everyone is needed for this journey, as Greta Thunberg has said “Somebody needs to do something and I am somebody”

“What kind of world do we want to leave to those who come after us, to children who are now growing up?  ….. “Leaving an inhabitable planet to future generations is first and foremost, up to us. The issue is one which dramatically affects us, for it has to do with the ultimate meaning of our earthly sojourn.”  (LS 160)

Response to IICSA Recommendations

The Catholic Council has submitted a document to IICSA in response to the recommendations made following the hearing into the Catholic Church. This document includes the response of the Conference of Religious.

The full document can be accessed here.

Service for victims and survivors of abuse: May 4th 2021

The Conference of Religious held a service to pray for survivors of abuse on May 4th. Those attending virtually were invited to share answers to some questions anonymously which were immediately incorporated into the live streaming of the service.

Here is a link to the service:

https://youtu.be/jahs8UmKOFI

“A church that does not listen...cannot be credible, especially for the young who will inevitably turn away rather than approach.”

(Pope Francis, October 2018 )

ORDER OF SERVICE:

Welcome & Introduction

Opening Hymn: Song For a Young Prophet Chorus: Oh the word of my Lord, deep within my being, Oh the word of my Lord, you have filled my mind. Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you through and through, I chose you to be mine. Before you left your mother’s side, I called to you, my child, to be my sign. Chorus I know that you are very young, but I will make you strong I’ll fill you with my word; and you will travel through the land, fulfilling my command which you have heard. Chorus And everywhere you are to go, my hand will follow you; you will not be alone. In all the danger that you fear you’ll find me very near, your words my own. Chorus

Opening Prayer God of endless love, you sent your Son as our Shepherd to lead us and safeguard us. We are sorry for what some of us did to your children; treated them cruelly, especially when they were in need. We have left them with lifelong hurt. This was not your plan for them. Show us the way to justice and wholeness enfolded in your mercy, through Christ our Lord. Amen

We ask the Risen Lord to walk with us; For those whose trust has been broken Walk with them Lord

For all who have lost hope Walk with them Lord

For all who suffer Walk with them Lord

For all who are sick and in pain Walk with them Lord

For all who are struggling Walk with them Lord

For all who have been hurt Walk with them Lord

For all who are grieving Walk with them Lord

For all who are depressed Walk with them Lord

For all who feel rejected Walk with them Lord

For all who feel isolated Walk with them Lord

For all who are anxious Walk with them Lord

For all who self-harm Walk with them Lord

For all who despair Walk with them Lord

Questions for reflection (Using your mobile phone or web browser, you can now go to www.menti.com and add the passcode 83181972 where you can share your answers to these questions anonymously where they will immediately be incorporated into the live streaming of the service this evening.)

• What hopes do you have for the future? • What help do you need?

• What would you like to say to your Priest, Bishop or Community Leaders?

Quiet Music

We pray together: Let us pray for the survivors of abuse; may they come to know the peace only you can give. Lord hear us, R/ Lord graciously hear our prayer

Let us pray for the families and friends of those abused; may they open their hearts to the truth and find ways of healing. Lord hear us, R/

Let us pray for all in the church, laity and clergy; may their shaken faith be restored by Christ, their strength and hope. Lord hear us R/

Let us pray for our community, may we have the courage to move forward in truth and see the help we need from each other. Lord hear us, R/

Litany of Hope and Trust:

When peace is fragile Stay with us Lord. When tempers are raised Stay with us Lord. When atrocities occur Stay with us Lord. When forgiveness is needed Stay with us Lord. When talks breakdown Stay with us Lord. When agreements are broken Stay with us Lord. When hope seems faint Stay with us Lord. When burdens feel too heavy Stay with us Lord. When we are weak Stay with us Lord. When faith seems difficult Stay with us Lord.

An Act of Humility and Penitence. For the little ones of our community who have been abused, sexually, emotionally or physically; Lord in your mercy; R/ Hear our prayer For the courage to accept with integrity and honesty what has happened in our community; Lord in your mercy; R/ For a spirit of compassion that puts an end to acts of abuse to our little ones; Lord in your mercy; R/ For the gifts of wisdom and compassion in those who minister to the hurting ones; Lord in your mercy; R/ For a renewal of the love that protects the most vulnerable people in our care; Lord in your mercy; R/ God of strength on whom we lean; help us to create an atmosphere which allows us to speak the reality we dare not face. To establish a safe place for those who, in their pain reach out to us, and a community not afraid of the past, nor of walking into the future with hope, through Christ our Lord. Amen

A Reading from the Holy Gospel According to John. (10:11-18) Jesus said; ‘I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd is the one who lays down his life for his sheep. The hired man, since he is not the shepherd and the sheep do not belong to him, abandons the sheep and runs away as soon as he sees a wolf coming, and then the wolf attacks and scatters the sheep. This is because he is only a hired man and has no concern for the sheep. I am the Good Shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father, and I lay down my life for my sheep.

The Gospel of the Lord R: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

A Sharing from a Survivor of Abuse

Meditation of Acknowledgement of Abuse :

The Good Shepherd carries all people in their pain, confusion and isolatio.

As a community let us take a moment to consider: ¨ Are we prepared like Christ, to carry those in pain, confusion and isolation? ¨ Are we the kind of people the abused can trust? ¨ Are we willing to let them talk and feel, so they can break their silence and uncover their secret? Aware that we have answered these questions before God and each other the Paschal Candle will be lit. Hymn: Eagle’s Wings You who dwell in the shelter of the Lord, who abide in His shadow for life, say to the Lord, "My Refuge, My Rock in whom I trust." And he will raise you up on eagle's wings, bear you on the breath of dawn, make you to shine like the sun, and hold you in the palm of his hand. The snare of the fowler will never capture you, and famine will bring you no fear; under his wings your refuge, his faithfulness your shield. And he will raise….. You need not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day, though thousands fall about you, near you it shall not come. And he will raise …. For to his angels, he's given a command, to guard you in all of your ways, upon their hands they will bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone. And he will raise …

Let us pray as Jesus taught us: Our Father Closing Prayer Father of hope and consolation, be the guardian of all who suffer abuse, send healing for their wounds. Deepen our respect for the dignity of every human life. Heal the brokenness of all victims of abuse, and renew the spirt of all who lament this sin. Through Christ our Lord Amen.

Closing Song; Something Inside So Strong

Carmelite Sr Teresa Keswick on BBC R3 on Easter Day

Nearly forty years ago Teresa Keswick exchanged her career as a London lawyer for life as a nun in an enclosed and largely silent Carmelite monastery in Norfolk. She’s devoted her life to prayer and work and has become a highly skilled embroiderer. Since 2014 she’s written a regular column for The Oldie magazine.

In a special ‘Private Passions’ programme for Easter Day, Sister Teresa shared her fascinating life story and the music she loves with presenter Michael Berkeley.

Sr Teresa told Michael about her initial reluctance to accept her vocation and leave her busy social life in London for a remote monastery in the Norfolk countryside and the contentment she eventually found in the strict daily routine of prayer and work.

She chose pieces by Handel and by Beethoven that reflect her life before she became a nun and two pieces of plainchant that play a central role in the life of her community - and described her ongoing love of 1960s pop music and there’s a song by Simon and Garfunkel which she still plays when she has a day off from work, once a month. And she appreciates the importance of having fun – in life and in music – choosing the party scene from the opening of La Traviata, which recalls a wonderful evening at the opera when she lived in London.

Sr Teresa described how her community celebrates Easter Day and chooses music from Bach’s Mass in B Minor; she says this music is the only thing that comes close to describing Christ’s resurrection.

A Loftus Media production for BBC Radio 3

To listen: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000tw5j

TRACKLIST:

• 1 : Plainchant:

  Salve Mater Misericordiae

• 2 : Ludwig van Beethoven

  Bagatelle in A minor - Fur Elise

• 3 : George Frideric Handel

  Dead March (Saul)

• 4: Clement Jacob

  Au milieu de silence (Psalm 18)

• 5: Simon & Garfunkel

  The Sound of Silence

• 6: Giuseppe Verdi

  Libiamo (Traviata, Act 1)

• 7: Johann Strauss II

  Blue Danube - Waltz

• 8: Johann Sebastian Bach

  Et Resurrexit (Mass in B minor)

NunsofTwitter and BruvsofTwitter unite

Sr Simone (right) at work

Sr Simone Herrmann MMS was recently interviewed by German radio about the growing number of Religious who are on social media, in particular Twitter. They’ve developed the ‘brand’ name, or ‘hashtag’   #NunsofTwitter & #BruvsofTwitter.  The transcript below is adapted from the interview, courtesy of @Deutschlandfunk:

 "Just now in lockdown there have been many questions to the religious communities, in particular the monastic communities, which have always lived in a form of “lockdown” the cloister. Questions such as : “So how do you actually live?”  

Simone Herrmann is an active NunofTwitter, but in fact, she is a religious sister, not a nun. She does not live in a cloistered convent, but in the city of London in the religious community of the Medical Mission Sisters. The 45-year-old comes from the Black Forest, in Germany, joined the order in Frankfurt and studied medicine. She works as a doctor in the emergency department of a hospital. Working shifts. Stranded homeless people, Corona patients, her hospital also cared for the victims after the terrorist attacks in central London. A religious sister who has both feet on the ground and sometimes goes to the pub with her colleagues after work.

Sr Simone says: "There are many people who have a certain idea what Religious are or what they are not. We are coming from various communities; we are also different, and we have the different charisms. Some wear a habit, some don’t - but at the end of the day we are all human beings like the other twitterers." The communities follow different charisms, so they are committed to different traditions.   But in all their differences, Catholic and Anglican Religious unite under the hashtag #NunsofTwitter. They are focusing here - and this is atypical for social networks - on their similarities rather than their differences.

Sr Simone adds: "From time to time we watch a movie. When, a few months ago, there was The Life of a Nun with Audrey Hepburn on television, we were amused to see how religious life is presented - but which has nothing to do with our life." The film's topic, she said, inspired some of the "NunsofTwitter" to make their own vocation stories public. Many tweeted their personal journey - what led them to join a religious order. And what they value about this life:

"Most live in some form of community and in relationship with others. And that is not different on Twitter. It is on a smaller scale and you can only say shorter sentences. Which is sometimes an advantage, because then you can really focus on the essential. And the essence of what's important." The question still remains: how does life as a devout religious sister fit in with this at all? With Twitter - the stage of the self-promoters?

"That also fits with a religious order. So, I do not think that everything we do in social media has something to do with self promotion. But it's just simply sharing about what moves us."

Memories of Mozambique in better times….. a missionary reflects:

Fr Hugh Seenan WF

For the first time since I was ordained in 1989, I am back living in Britain. Most of that time I was in Mozambique. Even when I was in Malawi for the last three years in our Philosophy House I was always in Mozambique during the holidays. When I was in Mozambique it was rare for somebody to get in touch with me about what was going on there, it would be just about how I was keeping. When I came back last August, I thought that it would continue like that. I had been closely following the atrocities taking place, but it is only in the last few weeks that this has changed. One Friday night I got a phone call asking if I had seen Sky News. I watched the next Bulletin and saw Pemba. Since then if I am not seeing, listening or reading about Cabo Delgado somebody is getting in touch to tell or ask me about it.

It all takes me back to December 2016. Konrad Millanzi, a Tanzanian Missionary of Africa, was going to be ordained in the very south of Tanzania. He had been with us in Nazaré Formation Centre in Beira for his pastoral training for two years. He invited me  to attend and I decided to go via Cabo Delgado. I went from Beira, two hours by plane to Pemba. I had the great pleasure to stay the weekend with Dom Luís Fernandez, the Brazilian Passionist Bishop of Pemba and great friend of Nazaré. Pemba, the capital of Cabo Delgado, was booming because of the gas finds off the coast of Cabo Delgado. It no longer depended on tourism along its white sandy beaches. On the Monday I set off for Moçimboa da Praia, a comfortable seven-hour bus journey along the coast on a brand-new road to supply the gas fields further north. Moçimboa da Praia, the last real town before the border like Pemba had many new buildings fuelled by the gas finds.

I was welcomed by four Benedictine Monks from the great Ndanda monastery in southern Tanzania. In the afternoon I went down to the beach and had a walk around the bay with its white sands, light blue waters, many fishing boats and a small place to sit and have a cold beer. The parish was on one side of a palm-lined square, the other sides being the Town Council building, the police headquarters and the Sport and Social Club, a typical Portuguese arrangement. I remember saying to myself “there are worse places you could be a missionary!”

Mocimbao da Praia Beach

The next morning, I set off to the border, the Rovuma River, going through Palma. Going across the river was another adventure. It was low tide and as the ferry could not move, we went by canoe among the hippos with a long stretch in the middle of walking on sandbanks before a final canoe journey. It was then a short journey, only four hours to Nyangau for the ordination. The journey back was more of the same except that I spent an hour in Palma waiting for local transport to Moçimboa da Praia. I enjoyed the whole experience and I never tired of telling people about it.

It came as a great shock therefore in early October 2017 to read that Islamist militants had attacked Moçimboa da Praia occupying the square and its buildings, destroying the police station. I was worried about the monks but thank God they had been able to escape. Not so lucky, all the others especially police who were killed. Last week I was shocked to see bodies lying in the streets in Palma where I had waited for transport on my return journey.

It has been like that for over three years now, stories of Moçimboa da Praia being reoccupied by the government and then the Islamists coming back. They have been in control for months now. Stories of people having their heads cut off, the vast majority being other Muslims became normal news. All the parishes have been closed, some destroyed, with all the sisters, brothers and priests coming to Pemba. Pemba is no longer a tourist destination but a giant refugee camp. The latest official figure is 607,000 having to leave their land - settling everywhere from Pemba southwards.

Dom Luís in a peace meeting with the President Filipe Nyusi after Pope Francis’ phone call

Here it is only in the last few weeks that we have heard about all this. In Mozambique if you are depending on government media for news, you still would not know about it. One of the few to spread the news was Bishop Luís Fernandez. He was outspoken and was Person of the Year for some independent news outlets in Mozambique in 2020. He went in fear of his life often threatened by people close to the Frelimo Government. If he is still alive today Pope Francis is the reason. He phoned Dom Luís in the worst of those times and invited him to the Vatican to see him just before Christmas 2020.  

To understand more about the complex situation in Mozambique I recommend the newsletters of Joseph Hanlon, an expert on Mozambique, ex Professor in the Open University and SOAS. His latest one dated 30 March is excellent (http://www.open.ac.uk/technology/mozambique/sites/www.open.ac.uk.technology.mozambique/files/files/Mozambique_532_30Mar21_Palma_Total-out-again_Gas-gamble-lost.pdf.)

The people of Cabo Delgado have been carrying their crosses for over three years. May they not be forgotten after this short time in the news, especially in our prayers during Holy Week.
 

Fr Hugh Seenan, Missionary of Africa. Provincial Delegate since 2020.

Fr Hugh at his Silver Jubilee in 2014 in Beira, Mozambique

Talks on art, the media, ecology and sacred music during Lent

‘Bethany’ by Andrew White

In a new venture, the Conference of Religious held a series of online talks during Lent.

Faith and Art: Depicting the Image of Christ:

The Artist in Residence at Farm Street Church in London, Andrew White, reflected on his large depiction of The Last Supper, noting it took him fourteen months to paint, “in which time I learned a lot, including about myself.”

He added: "With Judas at the centre & not sneaking off at the side, he's confronting us, his gaze a challenge: what decisions will you make?"

Andrew White also described the process of creating other pieces, including sculptures.

The artist describing his art

A youthful Mary

……on show outside Farm Street church

The Bethany painting, featured at the top, above, was commissioned by the chapel of a school in Belgium. The project began in February 2020 and is near completion. Andrew White said: “The theme of the woman annointing Jesus with oil encompasses the three accounts in the Bible, Mary the sister of Martha, and also the un-named woman who Jesus refers to when He said, 'Truly I say to you, wherever this gospel shall be preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will be told in memory of her.”

Faith and the Media: Seeking the Truth - How religion is reported and the impact of social media :

The online Editor of The Tablet, Ruth Gledhill gave a wide ranging talk on the experience of ‘covering’ faith issues during decades as a Religious Affairs Journalist.

A response was given by Jen Copestake, a Technology Journalist with the BBC programme Click. Jen also contributes to meetings on the future of technology and humanity at the Pontifical Academy for Life at the Vatican, as well as being the Co-ordinator of the central London Catholic Churches' homeless service.

Faith and Creation : Laudato Si’ and Vowed Religious – developing a prophetic voice:

Back by popular demand after participating in our recent ‘Cry of the Earth’ webinar, Dr Carmody Grey (Assistant Professor of Catholic Theology at the Centre for Catholic Studies at Durham University) gave a profound talk on the theology of creation.

A response was given by theologian Fr Martin Poulsom SDB in which he outlined how Religious can lend their prophetic voice to environmental efforts.

Faith and Sacred Music : Music and some wider implications - a Catholic composer’s perspective:
Sir James MacMillan CBE reflected on his life as a composer, from his early inspiration to his most recent composition. The talk was preceded by an extract from his Stabat Mater, recorded in the Sistine Chapel in Holy Week, 2018.

One attendee wrote: “How inspired I am by James MacMillan. Wonderfully stimulating. Warm thanks for inviting me to your Lenten lectures, which have been superb.”

Religious wishing to see the recordings of these talks can email : admin@corew.org

Sir James Macmillan

Reflecting on art, the media, ecology and sacred music during Lent

‘Bethany’ by Andrew White

In a new venture, the Conference of Religious held a series of online talks during Lent.

Faith and Art: Depicting the Image of Christ:

The Artist in Residence at Farm Street Church in London, Andrew White, reflected on his large depiction of The Last Supper, noting it took him fourteen months to paint, in which time “I learned a lot, including about myself.” He also described the process of creating other pieces, including sculptures.

Artist Andrew White talking about his depiction of the Last Supper, on display in Farm Street Church

….and his depiction of a young Mary

Farm Street Church

The Bethany painting, featured at the top, above, was commissioned by the chapel of a school in Belgium. The project began in February 2020 and is near completion. Andrew White says: “The theme of the woman annointing Jesus with oil encompasses the three accounts in the Bible, Mary the sister of Martha, and also the un-named woman who Jesus refers to when He said, 'Truly I say to you, wherever this gospel shall be preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will be told in memory of her.”

Faith and the Media: Seeking the Truth - How religion is reported and the impact of social media :

The online Editor of The Tablet, Ruth Gledhill gave a wide ranging talk on the experience of ‘covering’ faith issues during decades as a Religious Affairs Journalist.

Ruth Gledhill

A response was given by Jen Copestake,a Technology Journalist with the BBC programme Click. Jen also contributes to meetings on the future of technology and humanity at the Pontifical Academy for Life at the Vatican, as well as being the Co-ordinator of the central London Catholic Churches' homeless service.

Faith and Creation : Laudato Si’ and Vowed Religious – developing a prophetic voice:

Back by popular demand after participating in our recent ‘Cry of the Earth’ webinar, Assistant Professor of Catholic Theology at the Centre for Catholic Studies at Durham University: Dr Carmody Grey gave a profound talk on the theology of creation.

A response was given by theologian Fr Martin Poulsom SDB in which he outlined how Religious can lend their prophetic voice to environmental efforts.

Faith and Sacred Music : Music and some wider implications - a Catholic composer’s perspective:
Sir James MacMillan CBE – preceded by an extract from his Stabat Mater, recorded in the Sistine Chapel in Holy Week, 2018. One attendee wrote: “How inspired I am by James MacMillan. Wonderfully stimulating. Warm thanks for inviting me to your Lenten lectures, which have been superb.”

Religious wishing to see the recordings of these talks can email : admin@corew.org

Sir James Macmillan

Reflecting on the extraordinary life of Fr Ignatius Spencer CP

What’s it like to have the responsibility for promoting one of your congregational predecessors as a potential saint?

By Fr Ben Lodge CP

Over the past several months, I do not think I have heard an excuse which did not include the word “pandemic”. This includes excuses, or explanations, from Rome. Let me explain: I am the postulator or “campaign manager” for the Cause of Beatification of Fr. Ignatius Spencer. For many years I have dealt with the Congregation of Saints in this role, and finally was told last year that the Cause of Ignatius would take a big step forward in February 2020. Recently I have been told this will not happen until September 2021, because during the pandemic the Congregation of Saints is focussing on canonisations.

Ignatius Spencer was born in 1799 into one of the wealthiest families in England; the family homes included Althorp House where Princess Diana is buried; Spencer House – across the lawn from Buckingham Palace; a house in Wimbledon – now home of the Lawn Tennis Association; a house on the Isle of Wight next to Osborne House; Oh and three London boroughs!

After Eton and Trinity College Cambridge, Ignatius, as the youngest son in the family, was ordained in the Church of England and became parish priest on the Althorp estate; it was assumed a Bishopric would soon follow. He was unusual in that he spent most of his time working with the poor, often denying himself even basic foodstuffs – the family thought he was eccentric! Increasingly in his reading and conversations with fellow clergymen, he began to question the basis of the 39 Articles; in this he shows a very similar pattern to that followed by John Henry Newman.

In 1830 he was received into the Church and went to Rome to study at the English College under Nicholas Wiseman. While there he met some Passionists including Blessed Dominic Barberi, who would become a good friend and colleague. Returning to England he worked as parish priest in the Black Country, commenting that his time hunting rabbits on the Althorp estate was not wasted as he now had to hunt out so many of the Irish living in caves dug into the side of slag heaps. He succumbed to TB and so was moved as Spiritual Director to Oscott College, where among other things he taught the students the finer aspects of playing cricket – his “mania”. In the summer vacation he went to Ireland for six weeks – begging for prayers for the conversion of England; this was to mark the beginning of his lifelong “Crusade of Prayer” for the conversion of England.

By 1847 he had decided to enter the Passionists; during his novitiate he had to minister in the workhouse and so contracted fever which left him on the point of death, but he survived. He made his vows at the feet of Blessed Dominic. Two years later Dominic died and Ignatius was appointed Provincial. He was the only Englishman in the community and so had to divide his time between translating, teaching, and formation work – in addition to preaching missions, and because of his celebrity status he was frequently asked to preach at the opening of new churches, including Mount St. Bernard Abbey. Sermons frequently lasted more than an hour.

He made several tours of Europe begging for prayers, be it from Emperors and Dukes, or beggars in asylums, but his main, and favourite, place to work was in Ireland. There he argued that the Irish should pray for their enemy – the English – and then God would listen to their prayers and convert the English! Interestingly, in one letter to a nephew who was Lord Lieutenant in Ireland he complains about how the Irish are being starved to death during the potato famine; the nephew agrees it is a pity but says it is the only way to subdue Ireland – it clearly suggests a policy of what today is called “ethnic cleansing.”

Several times in his Diary Ignatius refers to outbreaks of typhus, cholera and “fever”, and he comments that when he journeyed to Rome he had to go into a state-imposed quarantine at Civitavecchia. However, he equally went into towns where death was a reality among the clergy, often reporting alarming death rates. But the sense of service was so great that well-founded fear of contagion was simply set aside.

On one occasion Ignatius was to preach at the opening of a church, but instead remained through the night by the bedside of a woman who was dying in Birmingham.

Ignatius lived in the middle of the Industrial Revolution at a time when society was moving from a rural to an urban setting. Typhus and cholera were common, and people lived in real fear of contagion. When Dominic Barberi  (the Passionist priest who received Blessed John Henry Newman into the Catholic Church in 1845) was taken ill on a train from London where there was an outbreak of cholera, people in Reading would not allow him to be taken into their home, convinced that he had the disease; in fact, he was suffering a massive heart attack.

The killer diseases of the 19th century had no cure, but many people instinctively tried to isolate themselves from others. One cannot help but see parallels with Covid 19 today; maybe the “new normal” is not so “new” after all.

Footnote:

St John Henry Newman:

In January 1840, Fr Spencer visited  John Henry Newman at Oriel College, Oxford, to ask Newman to join him in prayer for "unity in truth". Newman sent Spencer away and refused even to see him, but later apologised for this in his Apologia;

"This feeling led me into the excess of being very rude to that zealous and most charitable man, Mr. Spencer, when he came to Oxford in January, 1840, to get Anglicans to set about praying for Unity. I myself then, or soon after, drew up such prayers; it was one of the first thoughts which came upon me after my shock, but I was too much annoyed with the political action of the members of the Roman Church in England to wish to have anything to do with them personally. So glad in my heart was I to see him when he came to my rooms, whither Mr. Palmer of Magdalen brought him, that I could have laughed for joy; I think I did; but I was very rude to him, I would not meet him at dinner, and that, (though I did not say so,) because I considered him " in loco apostatx " from the Anglican Church, and I hereby beg his pardon for it."

Fr Spencer’s body is entombed in the Church of St Anne and Blessed Dominic Barberi in Sutton in St Helens, Merseyside.

He lies beside Blessed Dominic Barberi and Mother Elizabeth Prout, the founder of the Passionist Sisters.