More on December 1 @ the Venerabile in Rome

Pope Benedict XVI sent this message to the bishops, students, and alumni celebrating the feast of the Martyrs at the Venerable English College in Rome:

Through God’s grace, the Catholic community of England and Wales is blessed with a long tradition of zeal for the faith and loyalty to the Apostolic See. At much the same time as your Saxon forebears were building the Schola Saxonum, establishing a presence in Rome close to the tomb of Peter, Saint Boniface was at work evangelizing the peoples of Germany. So as a former priest and Archbishop of the See of Munich and Freising, which owes its foundation to that great English missionary, I am conscious that my spiritual ancestry is linked with yours. Earlier still, of course, my predecessor Pope Gregory the Great was moved to send Augustine of Canterbury to your shores, to plant the seeds of Christian faith on Anglo-Saxon soil. The fruits of that missionary endeavour are only too evident in the six-hundred-and-fifty-year history of faith and martyrdom that distinguishes the English Hospice of Saint Thomas à Becket and the Venerable English College that grew out of it.

Potius hodie quam cras, as Saint Ralph Sherwin said when asked to take the missionary oath, “rather today than tomorrow”. These words aptly convey his burning desire to keep the flame of faith alive in England, at whatever personal cost. Those who have truly encountered Christ are unable to keep silent about him. As Saint Peter himself said to the elders and scribes of Jerusalem, “we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:20). Saint Boniface, Saint Augustine of Canterbury, Saint Francis Xavier, whose feast we keep today, and so many other missionary saints show us how a deep love for the Lord calls forth a deep desire to bring others to know him. You too, as you follow in the footsteps of the College Martyrs, are the men God has chosen to spread the message of the Gospel today, in England and Wales, in Canada, in Scandinavia. Your forebears faced a real possibility of martyrdom, and it is right and just that you venerate the glorious memory of those forty-four alumni of your College who shed their blood for Christ. You are called to imitate their love for the Lord and their zeal to make him known, potius hodie quam cras. The consequences, the fruits, you may confidently entrust into God’s hands. . . .

When I visited the United Kingdom, I saw for myself that there is a great spiritual hunger among the people. Bring them the true nourishment that comes from knowing, loving and serving Christ. Speak the truth of the Gospel to them with love. Offer them the living water of the Christian faith and point them towards the bread of life, so that their hunger and thirst may be satisfied. Above all, however, let the light of Christ shine through you by living lives of holiness, following in the footsteps of the many great saints of England and Wales, the holy men and women who bore witness to God’s love, even at the cost of their lives. The College to which you belong, the neighbourhood in which you live and study, the tradition of faith and Christian witness that has formed you: all these are hallowed by the presence of many saints. Make it your aspiration to be counted among their number.

Please be assured of an affectionate remembrance in my prayers for yourselves and for all the alumni of the Venerable English College. I make my own the greeting so often heard on the lips of a great friend and neighbour of the College, Saint Philip Neri, Salvete, flores martyrum! Commending you, and all to whom the Lord sends you, to the loving intercession of Our Lady of Walsingham, I gladly impart my Apostolic Blessing as a pledge of peace and joy in the Lord Jesus Christ. Thank you.

Read the rest here in The Catholic Herald.

Tolkien the Artist

Per this article in The Guardian, J.R.R. Tolkien's imagination expressed itself not merely in words but in images:

The film series of JRR Tolkien's The Hobbit is unlikely to come anywhere near matching the author's own visualisation of his imaginary world. We know what director Peter Jackson thinks the landscape of Middle Earth is like, from his previous films of The Lord of the Rings, as well as pre-released images from the first instalment of The Hobbit. Jackson's use of location to make the fantastic seem real is impressive. Yet his images are ponderous compared to the ethereal drawings and paintings in which Tolkien pictured places such as Rivendell and the Shire.

Tolkien imagined his otherworld of hobbits, elves and wizards in pictures, as well as words. The Hobbit was first published in 1937. As he wrote it, in the 30s, he made beguiling pictures and designs that map and depict the landscapes through which Bilbo Baggins was to journey.

Tolkien designed the cover for that first edition of The Hobbit. It immediately promises a rich and strange world within: layers of trees in green, white and purple fold over one another towards stylised mountain peaks and the great disc of the sun. Runes are inscribed along the edges of the design. Runic writing is the script of the elves in Middle Earth – but Tolkien did not invent it. Runes were used by the Vikings to inscribe memorials and spells. The Viking connection is telling, for Tolkien's art has a Scandinavian quality. The dreamlike elegance of The Hobbit's original cover is reminiscent of modern northern European art as well as ancient Viking designs.

Read the rest here.

St. John Almond, One of Forty

St. John Almond is one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales, executed during the reign of King James I:

Saint John Almond was born in Allerton in the year 1576 into a Catholic family in a time when being a Catholic was against the law. John spent much of his childhood in Allerton, near Liverpool, and at Much Woolton in Lancashire for his school years, before moving to Ireland with his parents where he was to finish his education and stay until reaching adulthood.

He then went on to study in Reims, France, where he pursued his vocation into the priesthood.

At the age of 20 he went to the English College in Rome where he would be ordained into the priesthood in1598 and then returned to the dangers of England as a missionary priest in 1602. It was during the end of his time in Rome that he gave a public defence of theses that cover the whole course of philosophy and theology, and known as the "Grand Act" which was warmly congratulated by Cardinal Caesar Baronius and Cardinal Francesco Maria Tarugi.

John’s love for his homeland and his fellow English Catholics made him eager to return and once there he travelled from house to house, village to village and town to town ministering to Catholics and sternly defending the Catholic Faith to those that opposed or questioned him. Saint John Almond never tired of trying to win back [P]rotestants to the [C]atholic creed through his discussion and modesty. . . .

It was during the November of 1612 that seven priests made good their escape from prison. The successful escape was considered to infuriate the Catholic persecutors and it was the Protestant bishop of London, Dr. [John] King, who was most [irritated] at John Almond. Thus it was on the 5th December 1612 that Saint John Almond was taken to Tyburn to be hung, drawn and quartered.

He was known as a 'reprover of sin' and many considered him as a good example to follow because of his ingenious and acute understanding, sharp and apprehensive in his conceits and answers, yet complete with modesty. Saint John Almond was full of courage and was ready to 'suffer for Jesus Christ, who had suffered for him'. He courageously displayed modesty and humbleness and died with the name of Jesus upon his lips.

The illustration above left is for a book written by Reverend Kenneth Alfred Almond and available from Amazon.com. I presume there's some family relationship, although I cannot verify it. Book description:

Perhaps one of the lesser-known Forty Martyrs of England and Wales, Saint John Almond lived in precarious times, when your religion was not just a matter of choice, but a matter of life and death. This was the time of the Spanish Armada, the Gunpowder Plot, the Golden Age of Elizabeth I - a world where Shakespeare's words filled the theatres and many traitors swung at Tyburn. This broad historical study explores the key events of John Almond's life and looks at them in a historical context alongside key events of the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. As well as providing a sound basis for any study of these times, this study contains a thorough examination of the events leading up to John Almond's martyrdom - his imprisonment in Newgate, judgment in front of a biased bench and final public execution at Tyburn - and offers a starting point for anyone interested in this era or the saints that lived through it.

Advent Resources: Magnificat and Laudamus Te

Every year, the Magnificat monthly prayer book publisher produces an Advent Companion book (it also presents a Lenten booklet) with daily meditations and other devotions for the season leading up to Christmas, including the great O Antiphons. This year's edition includes an essay on "Christmas in England" by James Monti, author of The King's Good Servant But God's First: The Life and Writings of St. Thomas More and of a book set for release next March, A Sense of the Sacred: Roman Catholic Worship In The Middle Ages.

Of course, Mr. Monti mentions English Carols, festivites during the Christmas Season, the Puritan attack on Christmas, and other highlights. Perhaps because his essay is focused on Christmas, he does not include consideration of the Ember Days during the Advent season.

For that, you would need the new publication, Laudamus Te--except that the Advent issue may be sold out! Still available as an ebook perhaps and here's a sample which shows an article on the Ember Days in the Table of Contents. Note that the Christmas issue is at the printer and will ship December 16:

What is Laudamus Te? It is The Magazine of the Extraordinary Form of the Latin Liturgy of the Roman Rite:

It is the mission of Laudamus Te to bear witness to the sublime beauty of the ancient Latin liturgy, to foster renewed devotion to its merits, and to aid the faithful in entering more deeply into its sacramental mysteries.

Since the sacred liturgy is at the center of Catholic life, it seems fitting to have a devotional magazine focused on deepening our mystical participation in this sacramental experience. Laudamus Te follows the liturgical seasons of the 1962 calendar, providing daily Mass readings for the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Catholic Mass as well as explanatory essays, commentaries by various saints and the Church Fathers, and devotional writings by priests, religious, and laity. Our aim is to draw Catholics into a better understanding of the Mass as a whole and to bring about fruitful meditation and deeper devotion, as well as to educate and inform those who are new to the Extraordinary Form.

My husband and I attend Sunday Mass in the Extraordinary Form regularly and we both have 1962 missals, but I'm thinking of subscribing to Laudamus Te (I have purchased single copies of the Advent and Christmas issues already).

One of the Lay Victims of the Titus Oates' Plot

Blessed Edward Coleman:

A controversialist, politician, and secretary of the Duchess of York, date of birth unknown; executed at Tyburn, 3 December, 1678. He was the son of a Suffolk clergyman and, after a distinguished career at Cambridge, became a Catholic and was employed by the Duchess of York. As her secretary he became acquainted with continental statesmen from whom he sought pecuniary help when in difficulties. In 1675 he offered his services in favour of Catholicism to Père La Chaise, the confessor of Louis XIV; again in 1676 he was in communication with Father Saint-Germain, offering his assistance to prevent a rupture between England and France. These attempts to procure money failed, but he succeeded later in obtaining £3500 from three successive French ambassadors whom he supplied with daily information regarding the proceedings of Parliament. He became a suspected character, and on the discovery of the Titus Oates Plot, conceived in 1678 for the ruin of the Duke of York whose Catholicity was suspected Coleman was named as one of the conspirators. Conscious of his innocence he took no steps to protect himself, allowed his papers to be seized, and gave himself up for examination. He was tried 28 Nov., 1678, being accused of corresponding with foreign powers for the subversion of the Protestant religion, and of consenting to a resolution to murder the king. His defense was that he had only endeavoured to procure liberty of conscience for Catholics constitutionally through Parliament, and had sought money abroad to further this object. He denied absolutely any complicity with the plot against the king's life. His foreign correspondence of 1675 and 1676, when examined, proved him to be an intriguer, but contained nothing that could connect him in any way with designs on the king's life. However, in spite of the flagrantly false testimony of Oates and Bedloe, he was found guilty, drawn to Tyburn, and there executed. He was a good linguist, writer, and controversialist. His controversy with Drs. Stillingfleet and Burnet resulted in the conversion of Lady Tyrwhit to the Catholic religion. His writings were: "Reasons for Dissolving Parliament", "Two Letters to M. La Chaise, the French King's Confessor" (London 1678, reprinted in Cobbett's "Parliamentary History"; "The Tryal of Edward Coleman" etc. (London, 1678); "Legacies; a Poem", etc. (London, 1679).

He was beatified on 15 December 1929 by Pope Pius XI. Wikipedia gives more detail, from the Dictionary of National Biography in its entry for this martyred victim of Titus Oates' Popish Plot.

Book Review: Catholicism Pure and Simple

Books are marvelous things: there just cannot be too many of them (although my husband might demur) because each one of them is a human voice speaking human thoughts to another. There are many books of Catholic apologetics, many books that explain what the Catholic Church teaches--some are basic, some are detailed and advanced, some are encyclopedic and designed for quick reference--and each serves a purpose for different readers. Father Dwight Longenecker states his purpose and the outline of his book Catholicism Pure and Simple clearly:

This book presents the basics of the Catholic faith in simple, straightforward language. You will not find here complex philosophical arguments, insider churchy talk or complicated theological language. I have avoided hi-falutin' references and obscure quotations. There aren't any academic notes or quotes in Greek, Latin and Aramaic. This is meat and potatoes religion. This book does not answer all the questions or make all the arguments. It simply starts by explaining why we believe God exists, and then goes on, step by step to explain who Jesus Christ is, what his life and death mean and how the Catholic Church came about. It explains what it means to be a Catholic and how one lives the Catholic faith. This book is an excellent text book for someone who is in RCIA or confirmation class. It also provides an excellent back-up and refresher course for Catholics to know their faith better.

Although he does not use "complex philosophical arguments", Father Longenecker does begin with common philosophical issues--religion and human nature; suffering and free will; human longing for meaning and love; happiness, morality, creation and order, the meaning of life--and addresses the reader directly in discussing these issues in the first section, "Is Anybody There?" He then reviews the history of Revelation from the Old Testament to set up his presentation on Jesus in Section Two, "The God Man."

After an introductory chapter in which he addresses God's plan to go beyond the prophets and kings of the Old Covenant by sending His Son to bridge the divide between God and man, Longenecker begins the story of Jesus with His mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary--who, in her Immaculate Conception, "was simply all that a human woman should be." He makes an excellent connection between her free will "Yes" to the angel's message of the Annunciation and God's preserving her from all sin so that she would be able to make that decision: "this fulness of God's grace meant that Mary was fully human and fully free."

In the next four chapters, Father Longenecker describes Jesus's life and death, His teachings and actions, the miracles and healings; His revelation of the Father, His Passion and Death, and of course, His Resurrection and appearance to His followers.

Section Three, "The Fire of Life" covers the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, the transformation of the Apostles, the doctrine of the Holy Trinity--and the meaning of these actions in our lives with our Baptism and the indwelling of the Holy Trinity in our souls; our transformation; our cooperation with God's work in the world; the gifts and the fruits of the Holy Spirit; and the Church.

Section Four, "The Great Battle" lays out the struggle between good and evil in the world, and our individual role in battling against evil (and working for good)! This brings Father Longenecker to the Sacraments and Prayer, The Holy Bible, saints and the Church--with a special chapter on the Holy Eucharist in the chapter aptly titled "The Ultimate Weapon"!

Section Five, "Welcome Home" is focused on the Catholic Church, from the viewpoint of the Parish, Church History (including the Great Schism and the Reformation), the hierarchy and the Magisterium, and the uniqueness of the Church as both Divine and human, Holy and sinful, Perfect and wounded, Infallible and yet capable of personal error. Finally, Longenecker addresses the Four Last Things: Heaven and Hell, Death an Judgment, providing a very coherent overview of Purgatory.

Father Longenecker sent me a free copy of his book in return for my honest opinion and review. His vocation as a pastor and as a father (he is a former Anglican minister, a married man who was ordained a Catholic priest under Blessed John Paul II's "pastoral provision" for former Anglican ministers) shines forth in every page on this book as he anticipates and addresses common concerns and issues. He blogs here and his website is here.

December 1 at the Venerable English College

According to this Vatican news story, yesterday was a big day for the Venerable English College in Rome, as they honored their canonized and beatified martyr alumni:

Saturday 1st of December is the day the Venerable English College here in Rome remembers the martyrs of England and Wales in a special way.
Throughout 2012 the Venerable English College has been celebrating a significant milestone in the history of English and Welsh Catholicism: six centuries and a half since the founding of an English and Welsh hospice on this site hidden away in the heart of Rome.
Founded in 1362 it is the oldest English institution outside of England. Although the English presence in Rome precedes this by some five centuries with the establishment of the Schola Saxonum alongside the Vatican Hill in the 8th century.
However with the split between Rome and Elizabeth I, it no longer became possible to train priests at home; and so the Hospice became a seminary to prepare young men for the “Mission to England and Wales”.
So this 1^st of December some 120 people are expected for Mass on Martyr’s Day . Among them Archbishop Nichols of Westminster who will be principal celebrant. Presiding in choir will be his predecessor, the Archbishop Emeritus of Westminster, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, Rector of the Venerabile from 1971-77. Other bishops are expected to concelebrate – coming from England and Wales and from the Vatican.
On this same day the College will be honoured by the presence of Their Royal Highnesses 'The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester' representing 'Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II' at this celebration marking the close of the anniversary year. A reminder of the significant contribution made by the Hospice to the British heritage over several centuries; and in particular of the Royal patronage enjoyed by this house in Tudor times.” 

This page on the College website includes a list of the martyrs, starting with St. Ralph Sherwin, executed with St. Edmund Campion and St. Alexander Briant at Tyburn in London on December 1, 1581.

Van Eyck in the Netherlands

From the Wall Street Journal, an article about a special exhibit at the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam (my emphasis added):

Visitors should be aware that because of the iconoclastic purges of the Protestant Reformation—in which thousands of paintings, sculptures and other devotional objects were removed from churches, abbeys and convents across northern Europe and systematically destroyed as violations of the Ten Commandments' ban on graven images—pictures like these are extremely rare. Only about 36 Netherlandish paintings of the pre-Eyckian era are now known to exist. So what you see in Rotterdam is very nearly the most complete display of early Netherlandish painting possible—a triumph for the curators and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the public, as such an exhibition will probably not occur again.
More about the exhibit here.

Of course, England endured waves of iconoclasm, as this Folger Library website attests:

The conflict over idolatry, which began on the Continent with Luther and Calvin's polemics against Rome, eventually crossed the Channel into England with Henry VIII's break with Rome. Protestant sympathizers translated and published iconoclastic works such as John Ryckes' Image of Love (1525) and John Calvin's sermons. Opponents published their own counterarguments; Thomas More, for example, refuted Ryckes' Image of Love in his Dialogue Concerning Tyndale (1529). The main argument of the defenders was that images were "laymen's books" enabling the illiterate peasantry to acquire knowledge of the Christian faith and grow spiritually. Images of Christ and the saints, the argument went, were not objects of worship, but didactic aids. As Protestant ideas spread and took hold, however, the tensions over the use of images, and whether such use constituted idolatry, became more intense. Thomas Cranmer and Hugh Latimer preached against them. Nicholas Ridley attacked idolatry in A Treatise on the Worship of Images.

Following the accession of Edward VI, royal injunctions ordered the removal of all images from English churches in 1548. Iconoclasm reached a fevered pitch during Edward's reign, resulting in the defacement of baptismal fonts, the destruction of stained glass windows, the whitewashing of pictorial depictions on walls, the painting over, or actual removal of, mounted crosses depicting the crucifixion of Jesus known as roods. During the reign of Catholic Mary I, many images were restored and the Edwardian injunctions repealed. However, in subsequent reigns, iconoclastic activity returned, although it was more sporadic, and the re-established and moderated injunctions for the removal of images were not always uniformly enforced, revealing the ambivalence of the populace. Nevertheless, the destruction of images, as a subject of theological debate as well as an activity, remained an on-and-off issue from Edward's reign to the Glorious Revolution as the English sought to construct a Protestant identity.

Blessed Richard Langley

From the Catholic Encyclopedia:

Layman and martyr, b. probably at Grimthorpe, Yorks, England, date unknown; d. at York, 1 Dec., 1586. From his father, Richard Langley, of Rathorpe Hall, Walton, he probably inherited Rathorpe, but for the greater part of his life continued to reside on his estate at Ousethorpe, in the East Riding. His mother was Joan Beaumont of Mirfield. He married Agnes, daughter of Richard Hansby, New Malton, by whom he had one son, Christopher (b. 1565), and four daughters. (See "Visitation of Yorkshire", ed. Foster, London, 1875.) During the troublous times of the Elizabethan period Langley gave over his energies and a very considerable part of his fortune to assisting the oppressed clergy; his house was freely offered as an asylum to priests. He even constructed a subterranean retreat, perhaps beneath the Grimthorpe dwelling, which afforded them sanctuary. This refuge was betrayed to the President of the North, and on 28 Oct., 1586, a strong band of military was despatched, several justices and ministers of the new religion joining in the quest, to make a domiciliary visitation of the Grimthorpe and Ousethorpe houses. Two priests were found in hiding at the former; at the latter Langley himself was seized. All three were carried to York, committed to prison, and subsequently arraigned before the President of the North, the priests because of their office and Langley for harboring them.During the investigation Langley was steadfast in his adherence to the Faith. He would not take the oath of the queen's ecclesiastical supremacy, nor compromise his religious heritage by seeking to ingratiate himself with the lord president or Privy Council. It was feared that the jury which had first been empaneled to decide upon the case might return a verdict in accordance with the dictates of justice, it was therefore discharged and replaced by another of tried fidelity to the prosecutors. Langley was condemned to death, without any evidence being adduced to establish the fact that he had knowingly sheltered seminary priests, and was hanged, drawn, and quartered at York. His remains were refused honorable burial, despite the importunity of his friends.

This site (thanks to Christine Niles) offers illustrations to supplement the text. Langley clearly risked everything to protect priests and thus receive the Sacraments. But that was a felony, not an act of treason--so why he was hung, drawn, and quartered isn't so clear (perhaps he not only refused to swear the oath but named Elizabeth a heretic or schismatic). The detail about the jury is important--the prosecution did not really have the evidence to convict the martyr, so they had to find a more willing jury to convict the martyr! He still had friends who were brave enough to ask for his remains; this demonstrates again the strength of Catholicism in Yorkshire, which extends well into the reign of James I.

The identities of the priests captured with him is also unclear.

Pope Pius XI beatified him among many others in 1929.

Radio Interview with Christine Niles on "Forward Boldly"!

On this great feast day -- the last day of Ordinary Time -- the eve of the First Sunday of Advent, I'll be speaking to Christine Niles on her radio show, Forward Boldly!

Today we celebrate four martyrs of the English Reformation--one Supremacy Martyr from the reign of Henry VIII, Blessed John Beche, who refused to surrender Colchester Abbey and three Recusancy Martyrs from the reign of Elizabeth I: St. Edmund Campion, St. Alexander Briant, and St. Ralph Sherwin (read more about them here).

Christine Niles and I will talk about the English Reformation starting at 9:00 p.m. on the Fidelis Radio network. You may call in with comments and questions at (626) 226-1464.

More about Christine, whom I've gotten to know on facebook!--

After a number of years wandering in the non-Catholic wilderness, Christine returned with great joy to the one true faith in 2003 and has never looked back. With a graduate degree in theology from the University of Oxford and a Juris Doctor from Notre Dame Law School, she is currently a licensed attorney and mother of four.

The title of the radio show is taken from the battle cry of St. Joan of Arc. Riding before the army of soldiers, holding high her battle standard on which was emblazoned the names of Jesus and Mary, she would cry out, “In God’s name, forward boldly!”

Like St. Joan, who displayed fierce courage and fearlessness in the face of the enemy, as Christians, we are also called to ride out boldly to fight on behalf of Truth, cutting down all enemies and rescuing souls from death, using the weapons of prayer, sacrifice, personal holiness, & evangelism through word and deed. And like this saint, we are called to take the offense. Not meant merely to sit back and ward off the blows that may come, we are, rather, called to ride forth to wage war against the enemy and attack, giving no quarter.

Because of her tenacity, courage, fidelity, and humility, this radio program has been entrusted to the care of the Little Maid, that through her intercession it may be used as a vessel to spread Truth and crush error. St. Joan of Arc, pray for us!

So have some coffee after dinner and join us tonight at 9:00 p.m. Central/10:00 p.m. Eastern.