Moblogging From Rome

An opportunity came my way a month or so ago to be able to go to Rome, tomorrow, for the amazingly cheap price of £20, all in! The downside to that great deal means flying out at 6am in the morning, and flying back at 11pm tomorrow evening. A long day, but I decided it would be worth it.

In real terms I'm going to get about 8 - 9 hours to do what I want to, and my loose agenda is to go from Termini down the road to Santa Maria Maggiore, then down to the Colosseo, a long walk up to the fontana di Trevi, then up to Piazza Spagna, on to Piazza del Popolo, then another long walk down to the Vatican. That's a fair few miles! After the Vatican, I will be getting the tube back to Santa Maria Maggiore, where I intend to participate in the Vigil Mass. All in, that agenda will more or less take in the time I have.

I'm hoping to take lots of pictures on my phone (I use the N95 8GB these days) and hope to moblog. I made a trial post here before Christmas, and it worked well. The picture comes through at a small size, but it can be clicked on to be viewed in it's full state. I've no idea how this will work, and because I want to keep my data costs down I will be keeping my data allowance for email usage only, so I'll get to see how it looks when I get back.

Saints Meme

Mulier Fortis posted this Meme over on her blog the other day and I got a tag to join in. I am not a net newbie, in many respects but can someone explain to me the name, Meme, where does it come from, what does it mean?

Anyhow, the rules for this Meme are as follows:

1. Answer the questions! You can give a reason for the answer if you like.
2. As for tagging people, you tag as many as you want or as little...minimum of one. There's no obligation to play.
3. Last of all, have fun!

Sounds simple enough. So, here we go:

1. First Saint you "met"?
My first experience with a Saint was way before I joined the Catholic Church. Officially I've only been part of the Church for just over two years, after my 'conversion moment' back on the 1st January 2006. I've gone through RCIA which is just completing and I get fully received into the Church this Easter!
Anyhow, my first experience of a Saint was with Sant' Antonio di Padua. Antonio is my middle name, and after I got married to an Italian lady I was introduced to the wonderful idea of 'Onnomastico' where you celebrate the feast day of your Saint. The feast day for Sant' Antonio is June 13th.

2. Favourite Saint(s)?
My experience with Saints is still something new, and I am learning more and more every day. I have a special affection for Our Holy Mother, and love praying the Rosary. St Joseph is very personal for me, and after much studying of Saints in the last few months (where most of my limited understanding of Saints comes from) so I could find a Saint to share on my confirmation, it was St Joseph I heard call. St Joseph is amazing, a just and righteous man, and no matter how long I live I will never be a tenth of the man St Joseph was. Other favourite Saints, with not many surprises I guess, include St Peter, St Paul, St Teresa of Avila and St Francis of Assisi. I also love the story of St Joseph of Cupertino, called The Dunce, and who is Patron of people taking exams.

3. Patron saint for the year?
I never knew about this; we can take a Patron St personally for the year? How do you do that? Who gives you the Saint? Would anyone like to suggest a Saint for a newbie Catholic?

4. Favourite book by a saint?
I hadn't read any, til recently. My study time has been taken up reading the Bible, and reading the Catechism. Any Catholic must be intimate with both as a minimum. Just recently I have started to look into readings of the saints. For Lent I am reading from the Early Church Fathers daily, by the end of Lent I will have read ten of the Church Fathers. I have just started The Way of Perfection, which is just amazing, by St Teresa of Avila, and I have also recently purchased The Confessions of St Augustine.

5. Saint book you are reading now?
The Way of Perfection, St Teresa of Avila

6. Favourite film of a saint?
I don't think I have ever seen one. I did see a TV mini series on Italian TV about St Francis, though.

7. Favourite Autobiography/Biography of a saint?
I've not yet read one. I have so many things to learn, to read, I don't know where to start!

8. Favourite novel/book by a saint?
I can't answer that yet.

9. Saint (besides your favourites) you'd want to meet?
I had to give this a lot of thought, for reasons already explained. I don't know enough, yet, to be able to give an insightful answer to this question. And, whilst in thought, I got a strong image of San Gennaro (St Jenarius). His feast day is September 19th, and he is the patron of Naples. The Cathedral in Naples holds a vial of the blood of St Gennaro, and on his feast day it liquefies. It is said that if this miracle happens then Naples will be protected for another year. The Neopolitans are very proud of their patron Saint.

10. Saint you look to for help?
At the moment I am developing my relationship with St Joseph, so it is he whom I turn to help at the moment.

11.Favourite saint quote?
Oh, how little I know, and how much I have to learn. But I do like this quote, from St Jerome: Read God's Book continually; never let the sacred volume be out of your hand. Learn, so that you may teach.

12. Favourite Holy Card?
Erm, not sure I have one, to be honest.

13. Favourite story of a saint?
It is regarding St Joseph of Cupertino. By all accounts he was gracious, kind, warm hearted and always ready to please, but when it came to learning he just couldn't get the hang of it. It seemed things wouldn't stick in his head. He wanted to join the Franciscans, but because of his poor efforts at study, he failed. After a few attempts he was admitted once again to the order to try and become a full member, with the hope that he could learn enough to be ordained. It is said:

He could never expound a Sunday Gospel in a way to satisfy his professors; one only text seemed to take hold of him, and on that he could always be eloquent; speaking from knowledge which was not found in books. It was a text of St. Luke (xi, 27): "Beatus venter qui te portavit."

Finally, came the time for Joseph to take his oral exam in front of the Bishop. This is what happened:

Minor Orders in those days were easily conferred, and even the subdiaconate; but for the diaconate and the priesthood a special examination had to be passed, in presence of the bishop himself. As a matter of form, but with no hope of success, Joseph was sent up to meet his fate. The bishop opened the New Testament at haphazard; his eye fell upon the text "Beatus venter qui te portavit," and he asked Joseph to discourse upon it. To the surprise of everyone present Joseph began, and it seemed as if he would never end; he might have been a Master in Theology lost in a favorite theme. There could be no question about his being given the diaconate. A year later came the priesthood, and Joseph had again his ordeal to undergo. He was examined with a number of others One by one the first candidates were tested, and their answers were far above the average. At length the bishop, more than satisfied with what he had heard, cut the examination short, and passed the rest unquestioned. Joseph was among the fortunate candidates who were asked nothing, and was ordained along with the rest. He was twenty-five years of age.

14. If you could go anywhere on a pilgrimage to a saint's homeland, where would it be?
I missed out on being able to attend our Parish trip to Lourdes for the feast day on the 11th February, and Lourdes remains at the top of the list of places I would like to go.

15. Any Blesseds or Venerables that you would like to become canonized?
I'm sure there are many worthy, but none I know enough about to comment

An interesting list of questions. and oh boy, I still have so much to learn about my Faith, but that is one of the things I love about being Catholic. The Faith is so rich in history and there is so much around it, I could spend every day for the rest of my life learning, and still only scratch the surface of it all.

Now, the idea is is I 'tag' someone to join in here, so if you've read this far and you would like to join in, post up on your blog your Q&A and drop a note in the comments box so I can come and have a read.

Claude Newman

I don't recall where I saw this linked from earlier, I opened the link then was away from my PC for a couple of hours, so I can't give credit to the link, but anyhow, please if you have a few minutes open this link at On The Side of Angels. Maybe you know the story of Claude Newman, maybe you don't (I did not) but even so, it's worth a read.

New Blog Time

Found a new blog, via Mulier Fortis called Child of Mary

Pop over and take a look.

Down a bit.....

This is a great photo, I found it earlier on the Telegraph blogs:

There

I don't know where 'There' is. 'There' is a place, but you can't just go 'There' you have to arrive, and you arrive in a certain way. 'There' is the place you arrive when you are kneeling in front of the Blessed Sacrament. 'There' is the place you reach when you are fully concentrated on Christ. I don't know where 'There' is, but 'There' is immense, a huge and vast place, so deep and so rich, so moving and so overwhelming.

I don't know where 'There' is, but I want to go back 'There'.

A Sign of Love

This is NOT a sign of Love
In Many shops now, you will see toys like this one, sometimes embroidered with loving messages, as we approach Valentine's day. It is an indication of how generally warped the view of society is when an icon of the Devil is used to represent Love. The Devil has taken this Saint's day, taken it for himself. He has confused the whole concept of Love with lust and sex. So instead of celebrating Love, people use Valentine's day as an excuse for fornication. The Devil is symbolised as a cheeky, happy sign of carefree Love, when in reality he is anything but.

It really bugs me when people abuse the Saints in this way, people who otherwise wouldn't have a clue about what Saint's feast day it is. It happens on St Patrick's day, too, when that Saint's Holy Feast day is turned into an excuse for drunkenness and gluttonous excess.

The 'cheeky Devil' is not a sign of Love. Instead, I offer you something different, something that breathes Love, something that has Love woven through every part of it. This is Love, and if you can't see Love here, I'd suggest you are not looking properly:

Blog Surfing

One of my favourite habits when I have a few moments to waste on the internet is blog surfing. This is when I select a blog from the list on my bloroll, and select a bog from their blogroll, and read through, then pick a blog from that blogroll, and so on. You get the idea.

I was doing this just the other night, and from the Standing on my head blog I found the Roving Medievalist blog, an excellent blog, to be recommended. Whilst reading through I found this post, and I thought it to be one of the best posts on a blog I've read in a long while. Here's a taster:

Making a stand is a good thing. Working for just laws is a good thing. But good can be perverted, if it's made into a god. You can march on Washington all you want, but you're not doing God's will if you hate the opposition. You can vote Republican until the cows come home, but you're not doing God's will if you place a party or a cause above God's Church. You can vilify "baby killers" all you want, but don't lie to yourself. You're not called to vilify. You're called to love. You're not called to imprison them. You're called to forgive them. You're not called to build God's Kingdom on earth by political means. You're called to do God's will by being Christ-like.

Click here to get the rest of the post, and be sure to check the blog in full. You'll find some excellent photos posted.

What's in your pocket?

I am a fan of technology, in particular mobile phones. The modern era of mobile communications brings with it many benefits, and the devices we use are becoming increasingly more advanced. For example, I use a Nokia NSeries N82. It is loaded with features, built in GPS, WiFi, internet connection, 5.0 megapixel camera, FM radio, MP3 player, etc, etc. I have recently acquired an 8GB memory card for my phone, and that means I can carry around with me loads of music files. I also have hours and hours and hours of talks from the likes of Father Corapi, Scott Hahn, the One True Faith with Michael Voris, and many others. There is some Gregorian chant, some quality classical music, and more. I also have two copies of the Bible on my phone, one RSV text and one Douay Rheims, both downloaded from Olive Tree. I also download podcasts, such as those from Catholic Answers and Word on Fire. Using the WiFi connection on the phone iti s simple to connect to my home broadband connection and download the podcasts, which I usually listen to in the car on the way to work.

There is so much you can use phones for, more than just phone calls. It almost excuses Nokia for calling their phones 'Multimedia Computers' these days, that's almost what they are.

I saw a clip on the SQPN website, an excellent spoof of the Apple iPhone advert. It reminded me so much of how I use my phone. I'm not a big iPhone fan, but all the same the ad is excellent:

Buy Catholic books and help Westminster Cathedral

In an effort to help raise money for the Westminster Cathedral fund, I have started my own affiliate bookshop with Amazon. You can get to it by clicking on the picture in this post, or by clicking here, or by clicking on the permanent link set up in my side bar. I've selected a category for Catholic books, just browse through the pages available or search by title/author in the search bar. All orders are fulfilled by Amazon, just as if you had purchased directly through that site. The benefit of buying through my store is commission is generated for every sale made, but all the prices are the same as the Amazon main site.

50% of all commission earned through the scheme will be donated to the Westminster Cathedral fund, with the other 50% going to worthy charitable causes. Please take a look. If you don't buy now, remember the shop in the future, anytime you want to buy a book.

Westminster Cathedral Appeal

Westminster Cathedral is in need of repair. In total, £3million is needed to help with the repair bill.

I was in the Cathedral just after New Year, and I will be going back in a couple of weeks as I participate in the Rite of Election.

The Cathedral is a magnificent building, and work needs to be done now to ensure that it will stay open to the public. It is expected if we do nothing now, within ten years the Cathedral could be closed to visitors on safety grounds.

I'm sure various fund raising events will take place to help reach the total required, but we can all make a personal donation if we wish to the fund. The Cathedral receives no support from the government, and does not charge an entrance fee for visitors. The every day running costs of the Cathedral are immense, already, any help offered to the Cathedral for the repair fund will be gratefully received, I'm sure.

I don't know, exactly, how many Catholics there are in the UK. But, as ever with these things, if all made a small contribution the final result would be large indeed.

If you would like to make a donation to the fund to enable the work of these urgent repairs, you can do so by clicking this link to the Westminster Cathedral Appeal site

Please, where possible, Gift Aid your donation.

New Bible

I picked up a new bible the other day from the Church shop. From CTS, it is based on the Jerusalem Bible, which is the translation we have in Mass.

The CTS Bible is well laid out, I find the text easy to read, although it is slightly small. The headings are useful, and there are some introductions to the books which is very useful. I've always wanted a good Bible with decent notes and the CTS Bible is better than my RSV Bible in this regard. At the back of the Bible there is a list indicating which readings are taken on which day through the three year cycle, again a nice touch and very useful.

I'm not a Bible scholar, so I can't really comment too much on the translation quality of the text; for me the fact that it is the same as that used in the Mass is a plus. In Luke 1:28 the verse reads "Rejoice, O highly favoured" When I prefer "Hail, full of Grace." which is how my RSV translates the verse. But then, for example, I personally prefer the way the CTS presents the verses from the second letter to Timothy, 4:2-4 than the way it is translated in the RSV.

I've learnt that there is no such thing as the perfect Bible. There is just one issue I cannot accept and that is the use of inclusive language. Thankfully, the new CTS Bible doesn't seem to use it. Overall it's a nice Bible, well put together, sturdy and stout. It has that feel of a good book when you hold it in your hand. I got this for just £10, which is a very good price.

You can get more information on the CTS Bible from here, where you can also download pages extracted from the book in .pdf format.

Nativity scene

This is the nativity scene at my Church, Our Lady of Lourdes in Harpenden.
Picture taken on an N82 and posted from the N82 via email.

Merry Christmas

Today we celebrate Christmas. It is a day for giving, when we give gifts, we give our love, and we give of ourselves to others. We also give thanks, thanks to God for the greatest gift of all, His Son, our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

Merry Christmas to all.

Remembrance Day

The 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. Commemorating the time the guns fell silent across Europe after the first World War, this is when we remember all those who have given their life in war. Those who died to give us the freedoms we have. Those who died on the opposite side, too. War is a nasty business, and it effects so many people, family and friends of those who die, the lives of the losers in war and the lives of those who win.

I don't like war, I don't agree with war, but I respect those who give their lives and risk their lives and often receive life altering injuries doing something I don't think I could do.

To all who have lost loved ones, to all who came back injured, to all who just came back, and especially to all who gave their lives in war, both past and present, I will remember you in my prayers today.

All Saints Day

Today is the feast of All Saints. So here, in no particular order, is a list of 5 (of many) Saints I admire:

St Joseph
A prayer to St Joseph:
O blessed Joseph, faithful guardian of my Redeemer, Jesus Christ, protector
of thy chaste spouse, the virgin Mother of God, I choose thee this day to
be my special patron and advocate and I firmly resolve to honor thee all
the days of my life. Therefore I humbly beseech thee to receive me as thy
client, to instruct me in every doubt, to comfort me in every affliction,
to obtain for me and for all the knowledge and love of the Heart of Jesus,
and finally to defend and protect me at the hour of my death. Amen



St Teresa of Avila
A prayer of St Teresa of Avila:
O my God! Source of all mercy!
I acknowledge Your sovereign power.
While recalling the wasted years that are past,
I believe that You, Lord,
can in an instant turn this loss to gain.
Miserable as I am,
yet I firmly believe that You can do all things.
Please restore to me the time lost,
giving me Your grace,
both now and in the future,
that I may appear before You in "wedding garments."

Amen.


St Anthony of Padua
Prayer to St Anthony of Padua:

Good Saint Anthony, in God's providence you have secured for His people many marvelous favors. You have been especially celebrated, good Saint Anthony, for your goodness to the poor and the hungry, for finding employment for those seeking it, for your special care of those who travel, and for keeping safe from harm all who must be away from home. You are widely known also, good Saint Anthony, for securing peace in the family, for your delicate mercy in finding lost things, for safe delivery of messages, and for your concern for women in childbirth. In honoring you, Saint Anthony, for the many graces our Lord grants through your favor, we trustfully and confidently ask your aid in our present need. Pray for us, good Saint Anthony, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ. May it be a source of joy, O God, to your Church that we honor the memory of your Confessor and Doctor, Saint Anthony. May his spiritual help always make us strong, and by his assistance may we enjoy an eternal reward. This we ask through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.

St Peter
A prayer to St Peter:
Blessed Apostle Peter,
to whom God has given the keys of the kingdom of Heaven,
and the power to bind and loose,
grant that we may be delivered through the help
of your intercession from the bonds of our sins.
O, Holy Shepherd,
Prince of the Apostles,
pray for us that we may be made worthy
of the promises of Christ.

Amen




St Francis of Assisi
The prayer of St Francis:
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury,pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.


O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen

Ave Maria

Every once in a while, you find something special on the web. I found this clip on the Alive and Young blog. It is a video clip of Bobby McFerrin, leading the audience in a rendition of Ave Maria. I wonder where the event took place, I'm impressed enough people in the crowd knew the words to sing.

Enjoy.

When is an unborn baby not an unborn baby?

In 2006, an average of 530 unborn babies were killed in the UK, every day. I blogged it here.

Today, I read an article at the Daily Mail online, about how 1,000 unborn babies die unnecessarily each year due to a shortage of midwives. You can see the full story here.

Each story is an absolute tragedy. The preventable, needless loss of life in both situations is very upsetting.

The difference in the two articles is in one, the unborn baby will be called anything but, to allow society to accept the senseless slaughter of innocent life. Whilst in the other, all of a sudden it *is* an unborn baby, to allow the article to carry emotional weight and a political slant.

After all, what person wouldn't be upset at the needless loss of unborn babies?

Pope to make climate action a moral obligation

The Pope is expected to use his first address to the United Nations to deliver a powerful warning over climate change in a move to adopt protection of the environment as a "moral" cause for the Catholic Church and its billion-strong following.

The New York speech is likely to contain an appeal for sustainable development, and it will follow an unprecedented Encyclical (a message to the wider church) on the subject, senior diplomatic sources have told The Independent.

It will act as the centrepiece of a US visit scheduled for next April – the first by Benedict XVI, and the first Papal visit since 1999 – and round off an environmental blitz at the Vatican, in which the Pope has personally led moves to emphasise green issues based on the belief that climate change is affecting the poorest people on the planet, and the principle that believers have a duty to "protect creation".

Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, head of the Catholic Church in the UK, said last night: "This is a crucial issue both today and for all future generations. We are the stewards of creation and we need to take that responsibility seriously and co-operate to care for the created world."

A Papal tour of America will be particularly potent during election year in the US, where Catholics number around 73 million, and is being discussed in Rome after Pope Benedict accepted an invitation from the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon. For the Pope to take his climate-change message to the high-profile UN platform will be considered hugely influential to the fifth of the world's population who are Catholics, and will act as a rallying call for action in Africa and Asia, which have seen a rise in Catholics in recent years.

News of the speech comes as Vatican City has become the first fully carbon-neutral state in the world, after announcing it is offsetting its carbon footprint by planting a forest in Hungary and installing solar panels on the roof of St Peter's Basilica in Rome.

It also follows a series of interventions by the Pope on the environment. On 2 September he told a 300,000 youth audience: "Before it is too late, it is necessary to make courageous decisions that reflect knowing how to re-create a strong alliance between man and the earth." On 7 September, he said there was a "pressing need for science and religion to work together to safeguard the gifts of nature and to promote responsible stewardship".

UK diplomats have held a number of behind-the-scenes meetings with Vatican officials on the environment. A Whitehall source said last night: "Benedict is the spiritual head of 19 per cent of the world's population and a highly respected figure. If the Pope's words are taken on board by his community that is one big constituency for change and could well turn the tide on climate change and environmental degradation."

Source

Pope in 'freedom' blast at Islam

The Pope has again risked provoking the wrath of the Islamic world, by criticising its treatment of Christians.

Benedict XVI attacked Muslim nations where Christians are either persecuted or given the status of second-class citizens under the Shariah Islamic law.

He also defended the rights of Muslims to convert to Christianity, an act which warrants the death penalty in many Islamic countries.

His comments came almost exactly a year after he provoked a wave of anger among Muslims by quoting a Byzantine emperor who linked Islam to violence.

Yesterday, near Rome, the 80-year-old pontiff made a speech in "defence of religious liberty", which, he said "is a fundamental, irrepressible, inalienable and inviolable right".

In a clear reference to Islam, he said: "The exercise of this freedom also includes the right to change religion, which should be guaranteed not only legally, but also in daily practice."

Addressing the problem of Islamic extremism, he added: "Terrorism is a serious problem whose perpetrators often claim to act in God's name and harbour an inexcusable contempt for human life."

Last September, radical British Muslims said Pope Benedict should be executed for "insulting" the Prophet Mohammed.

Throughout the Middle East and Africa, Christians were subjected to violence in retribution for his remarks.

His latest comments, however, come just days after one of the Church of England's-senior bishops warned that Muslim leaders here must speak out in defence of the right to change faith.

The Bishop of Rochester, Michael Nazir-Ali, told Channel 4's Dispatches programme of his fears for the safety of the estimated 3,000 Muslims who have converted to other faiths in this country.

A poll earlier this year of more than 1,000 young adult British Muslims found that 36 per cent believe those who convert to another faith should be punished by death.

Pope Benedict is particularly concerned about the persecution of Christians in Iraq since the invasion of 2003.

Before then, there were about 1.2million Christians in the country. But the number has dropped to below 600,000.

Source