De Omnibus Dubitandum Est.

Well that was quick! Following my last blog post reporting on the shocking appointment of a priest with pro-abortion views to Allen Hall Seminary as Pastoral Director, the move has been canned. This is how the diocese announced it: PASTORAL DIRECTOR, ALLEN HALL SEMINARY Fr Philip Dyer-Perry has given further thought to his appointment as Pastoral Director at Allen Hall Seminary and his prayerful discernment has led him to ask the Cardinal for permission to withdraw. This request has been granted. The Cardinal thanks Fr Philip for this searching discernment and for his continuing reflection. Fr Philip will continue his ministry as Parish Priest at Staines-upon-Thames. The appointment of the Pastoral Director is pending. Fr. Philip will continue his current ministry as parish priest of Our Lady of the Rosary Church in Staines. All I can say is God help Staines! No doubt this is due to the publicity — Church Militant have followed the story and featured it prominently in their evening...

Priests Appeal to World’s Bishops to Address ‘Pastoral Crisis’ in the Church Their plea to reaffirm the Gospel comes in response to errors in teaching which they say have their roots in ‘secular mentalities and the false moral theology of past decades.’ A group of priests has issued a plea to all the world’s bishops to “reaffirm Christ’s teaching” in the face of today’s “pastoral crisis” in the Catholic Church. Fifteen American and European clergy, including Father Gerald Murray, a frequent guest on EWTN’s The World Over program, highlight a resurgence of “gravely harmful moral errors” regarding the feasibility of living Jesus’ teachings, the nature of conscience, and the role of the Church. With measured and respectful words, A Pastoral Appeal to the Bishops for an Apostolic Reaffirmation of the Gospel expresses the hope that “much of the damage” caused by this trend “could be healed or mitigated” if bishops were to “reaffirm Jesus’ teachings and to correct those erro...

I've been thinking about the difficult situation faced by much of our clergy in this country today. There are, what, 11 episcopal vacancies at present? That demonstrates a worrying lack of support for our priests. Priests should be united to their Bishops in a special communion of sacrament and ministry, through which the Church, the mystical Body of Christ, is built up. As St. Irenaeus testified, it is through those who were appointed bishops by the apostles, and through their successors down in our own time, the apostolic tradition is manifested and preserved. ( LG 20 ). Priests need bishops to refer to, to validate their commitment to the whole body of the Church; their unity. This is an key dimension, because a bishop has no authority apart from that of the pope, and unless he is teaching the faith of the Apostles ( LG 22 ). The fact that we have so many diocese where we have no bishops at the moment really worries me. Those bishops like ours in Brentwood who h...

Welcome to this, the Fortieth of my reflections on the theology of the Sunday readings at Mass. I'm a bit late this week, it's been really hectic with Head Teacher interviews and lots going on at work. Thank you for taking the time to read my blog. I sincerely hope that this reflection will inspire you. You might find that it answers a few questions you may have, but most of all I hope that it will show you how fantastic Sacred Scripture is and perhaps enable you to share some of my love and passion for the Bible as you begin to comprehend how layered and multi-faceted it is, and what a carefully considered part of the Mass the readings are. If you want to know how these posts came about, please read my first post in this series  here . I would like to think this regular blog would be a great help to anyone who reads at Mass, to enable them to foster a deeper understanding of the message they are trying to impart to the congregation. There are several differ...

Bishop of Brentwood Thomas McMahon with my Son, William, behind. 9th Nov 2012, Our Lady of Lourdes & St. Joseph Catholic Church Leigh-on-Sea, Essex. On Friday night we attended the wonderful celebration of one hundred years since the first post-Reformation Mass was said in Leigh-on-Sea. There was a Catholic Church in Leigh from earliest times. The Domesday Book of 1086 mentions Leigh or Legra as a small fishing village. By the sixteenth century it had developed into a prosperous port probably because of its excellent position on the busy shipping route to London. At the start of the twenty-first century Leigh is a wonderful, busy town, which though much expanded, retains a unique shopping character and much of its charm, thus it attracts many visitors throughout the year. The 1851 census reveals that there were a few Catholics among Leigh's population of 1,360. At the time Leigh would have been part of the Arch-diocese of Westminster. The priest at Sheerness in Kent...