Fr Stephen Maughan will celebrate his first Sung Mass in the usus antiquior on Gaudete Sunday, which this year is 13th December. This Mass will be at 6.30pm in the church of the English Martyrs, Dalton Terrace in York.
Fr Maughan, who has been celebrating Low Mass at the English Martyrs' Church each Sunday for several weeks now, is musically tallented, so I am sure that his singing will be of a high standard. Nevertheless, the various tones used at a Sung Mass are fairly complicated, and there are extra rubrics to be mastered concerning the incensation of thr altar etc. Please pray that everything goes well.
The Mass will be the plainsong setting for Sundays of Advent and Lent with Credo I. The schola of the Rudgate Singers will sing the propers and lead the congregation in the peoples' parts.
25 November 2009
18 November 2009
Masses outside the Diocese
There are two Masses coming up that might be of interest.
Leeds Cathedral
Saturday 28th November 3.00pm
Requiem Mass
for the repose of the soul of Bishop Wheeler.
St Mary's, Brigg, Lincolnshire
Tues 8th December 7.30pm
Solemn High Mass
Feast if ther Immaculate Conception.
Leeds Cathedral
Saturday 28th November 3.00pm
Requiem Mass
for the repose of the soul of Bishop Wheeler.
St Mary's, Brigg, Lincolnshire
Tues 8th December 7.30pm
Solemn High Mass
Feast if ther Immaculate Conception.
17 November 2009
Anglicanorum Coetibus
Readers who have been following developments within the Church of England since the publication of Anglicanorum Coetibus, may be wondering how many convertions there might be within the area of the Middlesbrough Diocese. At present, we can only guess because most groups of potential swimmers are delaying their decision until February. That is when it is expected that the Church of England will decide what provision it will make to accommodate its members who are opposed to women bishops.
The likelihood is that no satisfactory provision will be made, and the current system of "flying bishops" will come to an end. The prevailing arguement amongst synod members seems to be that there should be no discrimination between male and female bishops; and consequently it would not be acceptable for the jurisdiction of female bishops to be restricted by having parishes within their territory over which they did not have full control.
It seems inevitable that next February, another wave Anglican bishops, priests and laity will begin to move out of the Church of England. Most will be heading towards the Catholic Church, but it is far from certain that they will all make use of the provisions for Ordinariates set out in Anglicanorum Coetibus. It seems to me that that would only work if whole parishes converted en Masse and they were lucky enough to have use of a suitable church. Furthermore, it would have to be a sizable parish for it to be able to support a priest financially. I would be surprised if there would be more than three viable Ordinariate parishes established within the Middlesbrough Diocese. It is more likely that most conversions will be by the conventional route of joining established Catholic parishes.
In the Church of England, parishes that use the oversight of flying bishops belong to a movement called Forward in Faith. The Forward in Faith website lists nine parishes within the boundaries of the Catholic Middlesbrough Diocese. Three are in Middlesbrough itself, two are in North Thornaby and two are in York. In addition, there is one at Cottingham, one at Carlin How and one at Loftus. Of course, conversions are not limited to F in F parishes, neither is it necessarily the case that the majority of members of a F in F parish (or indeed any members) will convert.
So one can only guess what might happen. My stab in the dark is that about 10 clergymen and maybe 200 laity will take the plunge.
The likelihood is that no satisfactory provision will be made, and the current system of "flying bishops" will come to an end. The prevailing arguement amongst synod members seems to be that there should be no discrimination between male and female bishops; and consequently it would not be acceptable for the jurisdiction of female bishops to be restricted by having parishes within their territory over which they did not have full control.
It seems inevitable that next February, another wave Anglican bishops, priests and laity will begin to move out of the Church of England. Most will be heading towards the Catholic Church, but it is far from certain that they will all make use of the provisions for Ordinariates set out in Anglicanorum Coetibus. It seems to me that that would only work if whole parishes converted en Masse and they were lucky enough to have use of a suitable church. Furthermore, it would have to be a sizable parish for it to be able to support a priest financially. I would be surprised if there would be more than three viable Ordinariate parishes established within the Middlesbrough Diocese. It is more likely that most conversions will be by the conventional route of joining established Catholic parishes.
In the Church of England, parishes that use the oversight of flying bishops belong to a movement called Forward in Faith. The Forward in Faith website lists nine parishes within the boundaries of the Catholic Middlesbrough Diocese. Three are in Middlesbrough itself, two are in North Thornaby and two are in York. In addition, there is one at Cottingham, one at Carlin How and one at Loftus. Of course, conversions are not limited to F in F parishes, neither is it necessarily the case that the majority of members of a F in F parish (or indeed any members) will convert.
So one can only guess what might happen. My stab in the dark is that about 10 clergymen and maybe 200 laity will take the plunge.
07 November 2009
Il y a un Elephant dans la Salle
Fr Sean Finnegan in his blog Vale Adurni discusses some statistics that he has found in the French periodical, Paix Liturgique. It makes interesting reading.
Apparently, there are nearly 9,000 diocesan priests in France. At first, this seemed an impressive number to me, but one must remember that France is supposedly a Catholic country, where the majority of the population are nominal Catholics. France is vastly greater in area than England and Wales and its Catholic population is something like ten times as large.
As in England and Wales, the number of priests has been in steady decline for decades, but the shortage is far more accute in France than it is over here. The supply of priests is also far more patchy in France. Apparently in some dioceses it is common for priests to have to look after as many as six churches.
The bishops of France are gathered for their autumn conference; and, although they must all be very aware of this issue, they are apparently unwilling to discuss it, preferring to make optimistic statements about how well parishes are managing without a parish priest. They are also unwilling to acknowledge the existence a growing, and now substantial, section of the clergy, namely those who belong to the traditional movements. Here are the figures.
There are about 260 French priests belonging to traditional orders. [In this article, the term traditional orders includes the SSPX.] This represents about 3% of the total number of active priests, and one might conclude that they are of little significance. However, one should look at trends. As in England, the age profile of diocesan priests is heavily skewed, with the majority nearing retirement. The age profile of priests belonging to the traditional orders is skewed in the oppositee direction. On current projections, the 3% will grow to 25% within 15 years. Here are some more figures.
In 2009, there were 90 priests ordained for diocesan ministry. This is nowhere near the number that would be required to maintain the already inadequate complement of 9,000. Priests are currently retiring in France at about the rate of 300 a year. The traditional orders managed to ordain 15, which may seem a tiny number, but it does represent more than 14% of all ordinations. Expressed this way, it begins to look far from insignificant. What about the longer term?
There is a total of about 900 men studying in French seminaries. 160 of them are within the traditional orders and 740 are in diocesan seminaries. Expresses another way, 18% of the men who have joined a French seminary in the last six years have chosen the traditional orders. However, an analysis of the 740 in diocesan seminaries, shows that relatively few of them are at the junior end. In other words, the numbers of ordinations are going to decline further. The opposite applies with the traditional orders.
If we look at admissions to French seminaries in 2009, there were 41 entering traditional seminaries and 120 entering diocesan seminaries. These are startling figures. In France one in four vocations to the priesthood is a vocation to a traditional order.
As in England and Wales, it is inevitable that the priest shortage in France will worsen over the next 25 years, the only difference being that the effects will be felt more accutely in France. However, France has a growing reserve of priests, which, at present, their bishops refuse to acknowledge. In a few years, the number of traditional priests will grow to such an extent that the bishops will surely have to recognise the elephant in the room.
In fact, there is the first sign that this is about to happen. Bishop Rey of the Diocese of Frejus-Toulon seems to have broken ranks with his fellow bishops and included instruction in the traditional form of the Mass in his diocesan seminary. The result is that this seminary is attracting more than its share of students and becoming the one bright spot amongst all the gloom. Historically, it has been regarded as a small seminary serving a small relatively diocese. It now has 80 seminarians. This compares with, for example, the formerly large seminary serving Paris and the surrounding region which now has 50 students.
Apparently, there are nearly 9,000 diocesan priests in France. At first, this seemed an impressive number to me, but one must remember that France is supposedly a Catholic country, where the majority of the population are nominal Catholics. France is vastly greater in area than England and Wales and its Catholic population is something like ten times as large.
As in England and Wales, the number of priests has been in steady decline for decades, but the shortage is far more accute in France than it is over here. The supply of priests is also far more patchy in France. Apparently in some dioceses it is common for priests to have to look after as many as six churches.
The bishops of France are gathered for their autumn conference; and, although they must all be very aware of this issue, they are apparently unwilling to discuss it, preferring to make optimistic statements about how well parishes are managing without a parish priest. They are also unwilling to acknowledge the existence a growing, and now substantial, section of the clergy, namely those who belong to the traditional movements. Here are the figures.
There are about 260 French priests belonging to traditional orders. [In this article, the term traditional orders includes the SSPX.] This represents about 3% of the total number of active priests, and one might conclude that they are of little significance. However, one should look at trends. As in England, the age profile of diocesan priests is heavily skewed, with the majority nearing retirement. The age profile of priests belonging to the traditional orders is skewed in the oppositee direction. On current projections, the 3% will grow to 25% within 15 years. Here are some more figures.
In 2009, there were 90 priests ordained for diocesan ministry. This is nowhere near the number that would be required to maintain the already inadequate complement of 9,000. Priests are currently retiring in France at about the rate of 300 a year. The traditional orders managed to ordain 15, which may seem a tiny number, but it does represent more than 14% of all ordinations. Expressed this way, it begins to look far from insignificant. What about the longer term?
There is a total of about 900 men studying in French seminaries. 160 of them are within the traditional orders and 740 are in diocesan seminaries. Expresses another way, 18% of the men who have joined a French seminary in the last six years have chosen the traditional orders. However, an analysis of the 740 in diocesan seminaries, shows that relatively few of them are at the junior end. In other words, the numbers of ordinations are going to decline further. The opposite applies with the traditional orders.
If we look at admissions to French seminaries in 2009, there were 41 entering traditional seminaries and 120 entering diocesan seminaries. These are startling figures. In France one in four vocations to the priesthood is a vocation to a traditional order.
As in England and Wales, it is inevitable that the priest shortage in France will worsen over the next 25 years, the only difference being that the effects will be felt more accutely in France. However, France has a growing reserve of priests, which, at present, their bishops refuse to acknowledge. In a few years, the number of traditional priests will grow to such an extent that the bishops will surely have to recognise the elephant in the room.
In fact, there is the first sign that this is about to happen. Bishop Rey of the Diocese of Frejus-Toulon seems to have broken ranks with his fellow bishops and included instruction in the traditional form of the Mass in his diocesan seminary. The result is that this seminary is attracting more than its share of students and becoming the one bright spot amongst all the gloom. Historically, it has been regarded as a small seminary serving a small relatively diocese. It now has 80 seminarians. This compares with, for example, the formerly large seminary serving Paris and the surrounding region which now has 50 students.
04 November 2009
The International federation Una Vove
Many readers may not know that the Latin Mass Society of England and Wales is a member of the International Federation Una Voce. This federation has thirty or more members from around the world, all of which areorganisations campaigning for greater use of the traditional liturgies in their own countries.
The LMS has been a prominent member of the federation since it was formed, Michael Davies having been its Executive President for many years. The current Executive President, Leo Darroch, is again an Englishman; and has been very active recently. At the end of October, he was able to arrange a short audience with the Holy Father and present him with a report on the implementation of Summorum Pontificum worldwide two years after its introduction. You can read all about it on the federation's website: www.ifuv/docs/rome_20091028.html
The LMS has been a prominent member of the federation since it was formed, Michael Davies having been its Executive President for many years. The current Executive President, Leo Darroch, is again an Englishman; and has been very active recently. At the end of October, he was able to arrange a short audience with the Holy Father and present him with a report on the implementation of Summorum Pontificum worldwide two years after its introduction. You can read all about it on the federation's website: www.ifuv/docs/rome_20091028.html
29 October 2009
Masses Continue in York
There have now been three Sunday evening Masses at the church of the English Martyrs in York. The first two were celebrated by Fr Stephen Maughan and the third by Fr Alex Redman. Fr Redman is a priest of the Clifton Diocese, but working full time as Catholic chaplain to Wakefield Prison. He has free time on Sundays and has volunteered to say Latin Masses whenever he is available. So we will have backup for the occasions when Fr Maughan is away.
About 40 attended the first mass, but the numbers were down a little at the following ones. The problem in one of publicity. It seems that very few people know about these Masses. I have asked the parishes in the York area to include an item on this Mass in their newsletters; but, so far, I am not aware that anything has appeared. For the first Mass, I arranged for an item in the local paper, which probably accounted for the larger number. I have sent information to the diocesan newspaper, Catholic Voice, but this will not appear until the December issue, due to the lead times. Does anyone have any ideas of how to spread the news around?
About 40 attended the first mass, but the numbers were down a little at the following ones. The problem in one of publicity. It seems that very few people know about these Masses. I have asked the parishes in the York area to include an item on this Mass in their newsletters; but, so far, I am not aware that anything has appeared. For the first Mass, I arranged for an item in the local paper, which probably accounted for the larger number. I have sent information to the diocesan newspaper, Catholic Voice, but this will not appear until the December issue, due to the lead times. Does anyone have any ideas of how to spread the news around?
18 October 2009
Italian Opinion Poll
Rorate Caeli has reported on an opinion poll conducted in Italy by one of that country's leading polling organisations. I understand that the results can be considered reliable. Apparently, three questions were asked.
1. Are you aware of the motu proprio, summorum pontificum, by which Pope Benedict XVI approves both forms of the Roman Rite?
64% of practicing Catholics said YES
58% of all catholics said YES
2. Would you find it normal to have both forms celebrated in your parish?
71% of practicing Catholics said YES
71% of all Catholics said YES
3. If the Extraordinary Form were available in your parish, would you attend
a) at least once a month?
63% of practicing Catholics said YES
b) at least once a week?
40% of practicing Catholics said YES
These are all remarkably high percentages. I would guess that if the same questions were asked in England, the figures would less than half the Italian ones. However, this is only my guess. It would be interesting to see the results of a similar poll conducted here.
The most significant result is the one that found that 63% of practicing Catholics would attend a usus antiquior Mass at least once a month if there was one in their parish. This must surely be a compelling argument for provision of at least some older rite Masses in most Italian parishes. The result that as many as 71% of Catholics would consider this normal, would seem to suggest that opposition amongst parishioners would be minimal.
Another result that I find surprising is the level of awareness of summorum pontificum in Italy. Of course, being aware of the existence of summorum pontificum is not the same as knowing exactly what it decrees; nevertheless, 64% is a remarkable figure for a country where there is no equivalent to the Latin Mass Society, and very few old rite Masses are celebrated.
1. Are you aware of the motu proprio, summorum pontificum, by which Pope Benedict XVI approves both forms of the Roman Rite?
64% of practicing Catholics said YES
58% of all catholics said YES
2. Would you find it normal to have both forms celebrated in your parish?
71% of practicing Catholics said YES
71% of all Catholics said YES
3. If the Extraordinary Form were available in your parish, would you attend
a) at least once a month?
63% of practicing Catholics said YES
b) at least once a week?
40% of practicing Catholics said YES
These are all remarkably high percentages. I would guess that if the same questions were asked in England, the figures would less than half the Italian ones. However, this is only my guess. It would be interesting to see the results of a similar poll conducted here.
The most significant result is the one that found that 63% of practicing Catholics would attend a usus antiquior Mass at least once a month if there was one in their parish. This must surely be a compelling argument for provision of at least some older rite Masses in most Italian parishes. The result that as many as 71% of Catholics would consider this normal, would seem to suggest that opposition amongst parishioners would be minimal.
Another result that I find surprising is the level of awareness of summorum pontificum in Italy. Of course, being aware of the existence of summorum pontificum is not the same as knowing exactly what it decrees; nevertheless, 64% is a remarkable figure for a country where there is no equivalent to the Latin Mass Society, and very few old rite Masses are celebrated.
12 October 2009
Fr Stephen Maughan's First Mass in the Usus Antiquior
Yesterday, Fr Stephen Maughan celebrated his first Mass in the Usus Antiquior, and he did it very well. From now, at least until Christmas, there will be a Low Mass at 6.30pm every Sunday at the church of the English Martyrs in York. Fr Maughan will be the usual celebrant.
About 40 attended yesterday, which was quite good since it is nine months since the last Latin Mass in York. Interestingly, many of the congregation were people that I had not seen before. In the other hand, some who were regulars last year were not there. Hopefully, the attendence will build up so that there are enough for this Mass to continue indefinitely.
Please pass on information about this Mass to anyone you know who might be interested.
About 40 attended yesterday, which was quite good since it is nine months since the last Latin Mass in York. Interestingly, many of the congregation were people that I had not seen before. In the other hand, some who were regulars last year were not there. Hopefully, the attendence will build up so that there are enough for this Mass to continue indefinitely.
Please pass on information about this Mass to anyone you know who might be interested.
01 October 2009
Good Appointment in Birmingham
I think that we can be well pleased with the Holy Father's choice for the see of Birmingham. It was announced today that Bishop Bernard Longley, Auxiliary in Westminster, will be moving to the Archdiocese of Birmingham.
Bishop Longley is considered orthodox, and is known to be reasonably sympathetic to the traditionalist point of view. He is also well educated, having an Oxford degree.
This is an imaginative appointment, bypassing several bishops who are already ordinaries in their dioceses, and might have considered themselves ripe for promotion.
Bishop Longley is considered orthodox, and is known to be reasonably sympathetic to the traditionalist point of view. He is also well educated, having an Oxford degree.
This is an imaginative appointment, bypassing several bishops who are already ordinaries in their dioceses, and might have considered themselves ripe for promotion.
30 September 2009
Well Attended Mass in Howden.
The Mass celebrated last night at the church of the Sacred Heart in Howden was well attended. I did not get a chance to count, but going bey the number of booklets used, the congregation was around 35. Fr David Smith of St Marie's Church in Hallifax celebrated and the propers were sung by the Rudgate Singers. The congregation joined in Missa de Angelis.
I was well pleased by the size of the congregation. I had guessed that about 20 would come.
I was well pleased by the size of the congregation. I had guessed that about 20 would come.
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