Hull Faith Forum: Remaining talks

Monday November 10 - Catherine Laboure by Sr Brenda Matherson from the Hull Evangelisation Project

Monday November 24 - Maria Goretti - Fr Colman Ryan, Parish Priest of All Saints, Thirsk

All talks are at the Endsleigh Pastoral Centre, Beverley Road, Hull.

Hull Faith Forum: Blessed Pier-Giorgio Frassati

This Monday’s Faith Forum was on Blessed Pier-Giorgio Frassati by Fr John Paul Leonard from Middlesbrough. Before the talk, myself and Ryan Day joined Fr J-P at Fr William Massie’s place for a lovely lasagne. Ryan and I admitted we had never even heard of Blessed Giorgio, let alone what he did. Before the talk, I think nearly everyone apart from Fr Massie had never heard of him. By the end of the evening, we were left in awe of this holy man. I didn’t record this one but took some brief notes.

Father was introduced to his cause at seminary in Rome. Frassati was born in 1901 in Turin. His father was editor of the local newspaper and was quite well off. But Pier-Giorgio’s parents’ marriage was not a happy one. Father J-P said: "He was a bit of a character. In fact, he founded a group called ‘shady characters’." His sister wrote a book about him entitled ‘Ordinary Christian’. But he was far from ordinary.

Frassati almost didn’t come home from the hospital and was baptised there. He struggled through school and education. Nevertheless, the handsome man was popular at school.
His attitude towards the Beatitudes was that "Blessed be the…" meant "go and do something". Frassati was always well dressed but always responded to the beggar or anyone else who needed help. He joined numerous organisations like the Legion of Mary. The society is in decline in England, Father said, but exists to spread the message of the Catholic Church. The Legion would go out on the street and talk to the homeless. Pier-Giorgio also joined the Saint Vincent De Paul Society (SVP).

The young man was a keen mountaineer and would regularly go for walks with fellow young Catholics. He was a member of the Italian Alpine Club. It was something that Pope John Paul II had a big connection with. While doing public acts of charity, Pier-Giorgio was studying for an engineering degree.

The student would go into homes affected by illness. He did all he could to help – whether the family needed medicine or help with employment benefits. People used to die of a very young age. Pier-Giorgio was taking a risk with his own life by doing this work.

Frassati always wanted to socialise and spend time with other young Catholics. He wanted to be attached to every Catholic society going. If there was a Catholic disco dancers’ society, he would be a member of it, Fr J-P said. "If he lived in Hull, Beverley or Bridlington, he would be here tonight." He constantly wanted intellectual formation along with the formation of the heart. But he would also been keen on discussing the arts – films, literature and plays.

Eucharistic adoration was very much at the forefront of his life. He set up a fraternity of students at university dedicated to holding all night vigils in front of the Blessed Sacrament. Frassati was also a daily communicant.

During his talk, Fr J-P challenged the youngsters. "How many of you carry the rosary in your pocket and say it when walking home? Or how many of you are in town and pop into Church to visit the Blessed Sacrament? Pier-Giorgio did that naturally." Frassati parents would find his rosary wrapped up in his pyjamas during the night.

Frassati lived in turbulent political times – the rise of Mussolini and Communism in Russia. He wanted to be a politician and joined a "Catholic" party. He went to the very forefront of the political movement. If he was alive today, he would most certainly be a pro-lifer, Fr J-P said. His view was that the Catholic Church’s teaching was something the whole world is waiting for.
He died of pneumonia aged just 25. His family were said to be not aware of the many things he did. On the day of his funeral, thousands lined the streets to pay their respects. The cause for his beatification began rapidly.

Bl Pier-Giorgio is one of the patrons of World Youth Day. Pope John Paul II declared him as a role model for today’s generation. Fr J-P had the honour of venerating his relic at the recent WYD in Sydney.

It has become customary for Catholic students to pray for his intercession for success in their studies.

Blessed Pier-Giorgio Frassati – Ora Pro Nobis.

Hull Faith Forum: St Edmund Campion

The Hull Faith Forum is half way through its Autumn series and I’ve managed to get to the last two talks. The theme of the series is: Be a Saint: Examples for Young People. There have already been three talks, with two to go, all on various saints and blesseds.

Two weeks ago, head of history at Stonyhurst College, Michael Turner, came across from Lancashire to give a fantastic talk on Saint Edmund Campion. This saint is strongly linked with the Lancashire College, as it was founded school was founded in 1593 by Father Robert Persons at St Omer. The college relocated to Stonyhurst in 1794. Persons was Campion’s best friend.

I recorded the talk and have now had chance to listen to it again and make notes. Here’s a report:

Michael argued that Campion is a fantastic role model for young people today. He admitted the saint was perhaps a bit vain and occasionally a show off, someone who gets things wrong sometimes. "Campion, I think, is a very fine role model for young people, in particular for adolescents, who are in that process of life where they’re changing and thinking about things, they’re arguing and working things out for themselves." After all, the academic went through a conversion that would ultimately cost him his life.

Campion was a student and a fellow at St John’s College, Oxford, during Elizabethan England. He was a fantastic Latin and Greek scholar. He was, perhaps, one of the most eloquent tongues/academics in England. During this period, the monarch would visit top universities to hear the finest academics debate. As a young man, Edmund was brought up in Anglican faith. His degree was sponsored by people who said he had to preach in Protestant Church as a condition of support. So he became a deacon of the Protestant Church but then began to have doubts about his faith. Before taking his final degree, Campion was given a leave of absence from the university and was sent to Dublin. This was a kind of "running away", Michael said.

Around 1540, the Jesuits entered the scene. They became a force for acclamation within the Catholic Church, an Order that was simply trying to help souls. The Jesuits grew in the second half of the century and were accused of many things. Michael explained: The Benedictines were founded by St Benedict and the Franciscans by St Francis. But who founded the Jesuits? Jesus.

This was a so-called sense of arrogance that may have been very attractive to Campion. "Maybe Campion was a bit vain. "Maybe he had a high opinion of himself. After all he was very popular."
In 1570, things get difficult for Catholics while Edmund is in Ireland. The pope issues bull excommunicating Elizabeth I. It meant that Catholics were not obliged to recognise her as queen. Michael argued: "This was arguably a mistake because it made things much much worse for the Catholics at the time. And it was arguably a mistake because someone like Campion then comes under closer scrutiny."

By this time, Campion was almost living as a Catholic even thought still a deacon in the Anglican faith. He had decided on his conversion. In 1573, he travelled on foot to Rome and some think he did this as a penance to make up for his mistakes.

Campion was eventually accepted as a Jesuit and given a job teaching in modern day Slovakia. He was probably at his happiest here, busy writing plays and other literary works. Campion was ordained as a priest in 1678.

Michael said he was the kind of teacher that pupils hang out with and are perceived as "cool". In Spring 1580, the recently ordained priest was called to Rome in order to be sent on the English mission. But, like many youngsters, he didn’t want to go. Michael explained: "Very often, young people and teenagers get called to do something against their will. It’s Monday night, let’s come to this centre and hear a talk. Campion is a bit like that." But the Jesuits had to be obedient and eventually he came round to idea. The stories about the martyrs inspired him.

On 7 April 1580, Fr Campion set out with seven priests with very strict instructions. They were not to get involved in any matters of state, politics or any talk against the queen. They were simply to minister the sacraments to Catholics – not even to attempt to convert people.
The priest journeyed to Milan to see St Charles Borromeo. It was then onto Geneva, the centre of Calvanism at the time. Despite the Jesuits wearing scruffy clothes, they got an audience with Calvanist thologian Theodore Beza to engage him in debate. But because of their appearance, they were thrown out.

When landing in England, Campion split from his great friend Robert Persons who went dressed as a solider while Campion went disguised as a jeweller. He arrived in England on 24 June 1680.
There was great pressure on the Jesuits to keep moving as otherwise they would be arrested. But they wanted some way of getting ideas across. So Campion started to write his ideas down in the famous "Campion’s brag". This was not meant to be published. It was simply there as a record of his thinking if caught.

Michael said the Jesuits had been compared with Al Queida. But, whereas Al Qieda want to kill people or blow people up, the Jesuits didn’t want to do this, even though they are both committed to their causes. "It’s a mistake to compare the two," he said. The Jesuits line was "if you don’t accept what we say, let God be the judge". Not many terrorists say that.

The brag was printed in secret presses and enjoys a tremendous notoriety. In 1580, the rumour mill that Jesuits were trying to kill the monarch started up. This meant the search for priests was stepped up. Catholics households were well known and the authorities picked on them. After the publication of the brag, a pamphlet war started, with the Protestants answering Campion’s work. At Stoner Park in Henley-on-Thames, a Catholic press was set up.

Campion went from county to county staying at recusant family houses. By Easter of 1581, he had produced another work in Lancashire called "Ten Reasons". But it was the placing of brag copies on seats at St John’s College chapel at a graduation ceremony that was to be the beginning of the end for Campion. The furore it caused was "impressive".

Three weeks later, a crowd had emerged to listen to Campion preach at a Mass at Lyford Grange. After he had gone, neighbours came to visit as they heard Campion had been. They were so disappointed to have missed him. "They wanted a piece of the action." Word was sent up the road to Campion and he was talked into turning back and saying Mass there again. "I think that could represent a certain vanity on his part," Michael said.

A Jesuit lay brother, Ralph Emerson, accompanied Campion throughout his journey. Michael speculated what the conversation might have been like on the road.

Campion: "What should we do Emerson?"
Emerson: "I think we should go on really."
Campion: "Well could you explain to these people who want me to go back?"
Emerson: "Oh."

They split up, Campion went back to the house. However, government spy/priest catcher George Eliot heard Campion had been at Lyford. The priest hid in a concealed place. It took the Eliot and his men almost two days to find it. Eventually, the wall was smashed in and he was discovered.

Campion was paraded to London. "Authorities were going to make him pay, they were going to have him."

He was taken to the Tower of London and twice tortured on the rack. This was not pleasant, especially for someone who was not a particularly fit man. The torturers tore figure nails out. Fr Campion showed some weakness - he gave away names of houses where he stayed, although the government probably knew about them anyway. Nevertheless, the authorities used this to their advantage. They told the people outside: "He’s telling us, we’re breaking him."

While imprisoned, Protestant thinkers were sent to debate with his. Campion shone and the London crowds were told about his performances. They began to sing songs in support of him.
It is thought the Jesuit was offered the highest office in the Church of England. But he resisted. After being found guilty of treason at the trial, he was sentenced to death.

Michael told us about a pilgrimage the Stonyhust boys did following in the footsteps of Campion a few years ago. They walked the two miles from the Tower to Tyburn in silence. "It was very moving" he said. They were people begging, drunks and Elvis look-alikes. Campion was dragged with two other priests, his body scraping along ground in mud.

Michael said: "Just think about his death for a moment. You’re hung until nearly dead. There would be a fire and your bits would be thrown on the fire. While still alive your two metres of intestines that you learn about in biology lessons were pulled out. If you were lucky you would die quickly. But they did this in front of your friends."

On December 1, Saint Edmund Campion’s feastday at Stonyhurst is a holiday. At the Mass, two silver casts holding a rope and cloth are processed and placed on the altar. At the martyrdom, the rope holding Campion when he was being dragged was thrown to the crowd. It eventually made its way into the hands of Robert Persons. The rope, tradition has it, was worn around Persons’ neck for rest of his life as a symbol of his friendship with Campion. This is the rope put on the altar.

In conclusion, Michael said Campion went through process of change – a conversion. He was given strength to become a martyr. Catholic martyrs are different, Michael argued. They die for the truth of Jesus Christ.

"The supreme witness of the martyrs is to Christ and as they die they are being changed from followers of Our Lord into the image of Him. If we could be martyrs too, that would be the ideal."
The talk finished with the story of Henry Walpole being splashed with Campion’s blood. He too went on to convert, become a priest and ultimately a martyr.

The Faith, the Family, the future

Here is the official press release that I've sent out to the Catholic press this afternoon on the conference. I'm going to post more reports and pictures this week. Please feel free to link/reproduce on blogs as long as you attribute it to Bashing Secularism.

Families say the rosary at the conference

Families and young people from across the United Kingdom were inspired to convert England back to Catholicism through family life at a weekend conference.

About 200 people flocked to the Faith, the Family, the Future conference at the Diocese of Westminster’s All Saints Pastoral Centre in London Colney, St Albans, to reaffirm the orthodox Catholic teaching on the family.

Dominican friar and eminent theologian Father Aidan Nichols told parents and young people it was time to “pick up the torch” in the hope of restoring England back to her ancient faith and defeating secularism.

Fr Nichols said: “Seek to develop a Catholic culture in you home morally, devotionally and intellectually. In so doing you will take further the conversion of England almost without realising it.”

During his talk on “Rediscovering Catholic Culture”, Fr Nichols said it was humiliating for an ancient nation like England that has produced saints and institutions promoting virtue to be replaced by an “ethos of self interest”.

“What we’ve seen in recent years is secular elites using the legislature to inculcate on morality, or possibly a non-morality, of a very different kind and using such public instruments as OFSTED or the Equality and Human Rights Commission as well as the BBC to bring into line schools, charities and, through the role of the television in the household, the opinions of ordinary citizens,” he added.

He said Catholics had a huge fight on their hands to defeat the secularism that, as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger put it in 2003, “is beginning to turn into an ideology that imposes itself through politics and leaves no public space for the Catholic and Christian vision”.

But Fr Nichols said a return to a moral, devotional, intellectual way of life in the home would help the conversion of England.

The conference, organised by Catholic families from south London, was a mixture of talks, social activities and prayer. Mass and Benediction were held on both days of the event, which also included a Blessed Sacrament Procession and all-night Eucharistic Adoration.

A spokesman for the organisers of the conference said: “We wanted to bring families so they feel supported to share their faith and spread it. One person said this was the best and most effective support they have had in years.”

In other talks, Antonia Tully, coordinator of the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children’s Safe and School campaign, exposed a number of Government initiatives that subject children the sex education and undermine the role of parents.

She raised concerns about increasing numbers of “nurture” rooms in schools and described the government agency Connexions, that promotes organisations like the Family Planning Association and the Brook Pregnancy Advisory Service, as “pernicious”.

Mrs Tully, a mother of six, said: “It seems to me that the Government is taking over the role of parents. This is something we need to be aware of.” She went on to explain the important of parents as protectors and educators of their children.

Fr Roger Nesbitt, co-founder of the Faith Movement, said the family was a “microcosm of the Church” and that “only in Christ do we find the true meaning of marriage”.

Johannes Waldstein presented a talk originally given by his father, Michael, at the Valencia World Meeting of Families 2006. It gave a refreshing vision of the interplay between a father and his developing children and emphasised that a father can learn from his children. Johannes’s parents, Michael and Susan, are on the Pontifical Academy for Marriage and the Family started by Pope John Paul II.

Southwark Diocese vocations director Fr Stephen Langridge addressed the question of “responding to the call in our secular world” and Lancaster Diocese director of education Fr Luiz Ruscillo spoke about passing on the faith to children.

Jenny Pfang and Sian Martin, who have both taught Natural Family Planning (NFP), along with LIFE Education officer Joanne Hill, explored the heart of the Church’s teaching on love and marriage.

Sessions and activities were also held for children and teenagers over the weekend. “Understanding confession”, “Amazing Saints” and “Chastity” were just some of the workshop titles. A tug of war, sports, music sessions and a “saints trail” kept youngsters entertained.

The talks were recorded and will soon be available to buy. To do this, contact Faith and Family at faithandfamily2008@yahoo.co.uk or visit http://www.faithandfamily.org.uk/.

Holiday and Conference

I'm now on holiday for about 10 days.

Writing to you from an internet cafe in London where I've been staying with Fr Hugh McKenzie in Willesden Green for a day or so. After a late meal and quite a bit of wine and port last night, we were up at 6.40am this morning to travel a few miles to a Missionaries of Charity convent where Fr Hugh had been invited to say Mass at 7.30pm. It was a very interesting experience.

From the moment you walked in the door, you could hear the sound of scrubbing, washing machines rumbling and the general hustle and bustle of daily toil. Later, we found out that the Sisters get up at 4.40am every morning to start their prayers, have a brief breakfast, then start housework up to Mass at 7.30am. The Mass actually started at 7.25am when the sisters just went ahead and started the first hymn without a nod or whatever, which Fr Hugh looking a bit bemused by. But then he got the nod that this was the start.

During Mass, you sensed the piety and total self giving to God. At the Consecration, the sisters bent their head down to the floor in adoration. After Mass had finished, they began a series of prayers of thanksgiving that lasted about 10 minutes, ending with the litany of English saints and the Prayer for England.

We had a simple breakfast of a fried egg, bread and tea before being shown next door to the sisters' house for homeless women. They community provides shelter and food for about a dozen women on the condition that they go out and look for work and places to stay during the day. Obviously I'd seen and heard about mother Theresa's work on TV and in books but it really brings home the charity of her order when you see it first hand.

After some shopping and lunch this afternoon, I'll be on the train again when I finish this post. I'm going up to the Saints Pastoral Centre, St Albans, where the Faith, the Family, the Future Conference starts tomorrow morning. I've been asked to chair the conference and write press releases etc, which I'm delighted to do. I'll be introducing the likes of Fr Aidan Nichols. Fr Stephen Langridge, Fr. Roger Nesbitt, Fr Luiz Ruscillo and Aid to the Church in Need's John Pontifex.

I've never been to the venue and so don't know what internet access is like. As I've been laptopless for several years now, that narrows my chances a bit. But, if so, you can catch up with conference coverage on the blog when I get home next week.

Sad day in British history

I spent last night reading Hansard from yesterday’s HFE Bill report stage and third reading. I hope this gives a report about the highlights from "pro-life" speeches and my comments:

One of the most pernicious bills against the sanctity of human life in British history was passed by Parliament by 355 to 129 votes last night.

I sat gobsmacked when watching the last part of proceedings as the minister, Dawn Primarolo, had the audacity to basically say that parliament is the ethical judge of our nation and that the bill was "a handshake" between science and ethics. How can a bill, I ask, that legalises the mixing of human and animal gametes, removes the need for a father, extends the scope of embryo research so that more tiny lives will be lost, and promotes the "saviour sibling" procedure, be ethical?

When moving the Third Reading of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill, she said:

"When science throws our views and ethics into flux, legislation brings regulation and stability. The House has struck a new consensus of allowing science to stretch its wings and develop, but constraining it within what the House considers to be ethically acceptable. The US physician, Richard Cabot, said that science and ethics need to shake hands. The Bill brokers that handshake. It represents a good deal for science and society, and I commend it to the House."

This quote, I think, I significant. Not only does this bill blur the boundaries between what is and isn’t human, it also gives science a free run. It’s absurd to suggest science and ethics should come together in friendship and concede compromises. Ethics, and more explicitly natural law ethics, is the framework within which science should be flourishing. As John Hayes (South Holland and The Deepings) (Con) put it last night, "science matters, but morals matter more".

He went on to point out:

"Surely humanity means that we regard other human life as we regard our own. Such is the ethics of humanity. So it is our shared humanity that distinguishes us from animals; that determines how we should behave to one another; and determines especially that we should not deliberately distort the lives, or expedite the deaths, of fellow humans, whether those fellow human beings are born or unborn.
"Of course, if one does not believe the orthodox view of how to define humanity, and if one defines it around the idea of personhood, when personhood itself is defined by the ability to exercise autonomy and choice, it becomes entirely permissible to manipulate human cellular material in the way the Bill will allow.

"We should certainly not abandon our orthodox assumptions about those things thatbind us together, born or unborn."

In January this year, Pope Benedict said embryo research, artificial insemination and the prospect of human cloning had "shattered human dignity. He said:

"When human beings in the weakest and most defenseless state of their existence are selected, abandoned, killed or used as pure 'biological material,' how can one deny that they are being treated not as 'someone' but as 'something’?"

This was a point picked up during an excellent speech by pro-life Catholic MP Edward Leigh. I think it’s worth quoting the last part of his address even though it is quite lengthy:

"At the heart of all the debates on the Bill and of the technical arguments about these amendments appears to lie a point of view that in this country we are treating human embryos as things. I believe that human embryos are emphatically not just blobs of cells; they have the entire genetic make-up of a human being. I believe not that they are potential human beings, but that they are human beings with potential.

"Of course, they are microscopic—a grain of sand—and that is perhaps why we can view them as a spare part. However, when I thought of them as a microscopic grain of sand, as it were—as something that was not in any way recognisably human—I was reminded of this passage from Dostoevsky, the greatest poet of human nature. In addressing the brothers Karamazov, the prior of the monastery says:

'Love all God’s creation, the whole and every grain of sand in it. Love every leaf, every ray of God’s light. Love the animals, love the plants, love everything. If you love everything, you will perceive the divine mystery in things. Once you perceive it, you will begin to comprehend it better every day. And you will come at last to love the whole world with an all-embracing love.'

"There is something very dangerous in what we will undoubtedly do today. We are making ourselves less than human, in a sense, by viewing one part of human creation as a thing, a spare part, which I believe is extraordinarily dangerous."

In other brief snippets from those opposed to the bill, there was an amusing moment when Jim Dobbin, chair of the All Party Parliamentary Pro Life Group, briefly spoke:

"I begin by thanking the Leader of the House for bringing this Bill back after July. At that time, I was unfortunately indisposed, and never got the opportunity to vote against it. I shall now be able to listen to the debate, take part in it if necessary—and then vote against it on Third Reading. That will give me some satisfaction."

A highly impressive pro-life Conservative and lawyer, David Burrowes, highlighted his concerns that the bill had a loophole that would allow chimeric embryos, with an animal placenta, would technically be able to develop inside an animal womb. Despite his ability to tackle with some technical concepts, his amendment to try and cover this was defeated.

Conservative Nadine Dorries, who unfortunately is not against abortion even though she has attempted to lower the time limit, said: "If the Bill as it stands is passed, it will allow the insemination of human gametes into an animal—that is, the insemination of human sperm into an animal."

She reminded the house of the infamous Soviet hybridisation trials of the 1920s. Soviet authorities were struggling to rebuild Stalin’s red army after it had suffered many deaths and huge defeats. Stalin told his top scientist, Ilya lvanov, to breed an ultimate soldier by crossing human beings with apes. Stalin told him to breed a soldier who would not be fussy about what he ate, who did not feel pain and who was invincible.

Mrs Dorries said: "Many people in this House might think that it is ridiculous my even mentioning what Stalin did in the 1920s, but his ideas found credence among many in the scientific community and even became quite popular among evolutionary biologists in America."

When accused of being hysterical, Mrs Dorries answered:

"I am terribly sorry, but it is historical not hysterical. If the hon. Gentleman wishes to rewrite the history books and what happened in that era, he is at liberty to do so, but I am quoting factual history." She did not think the Government intended to follow this example but that "we should legislate today to ensure that such experiments will never be legal".

Despite this awful bill being well on its way to Buckingham Palace, there was some sigh of relief last night over the issue of abortion. The majority of MPs backed a motion which effectively agreed to leave the abortion amendments out of the bill. This was a victory in particular for Northern Ireland. One of the movers of the failed clause to extend the Abortion Act to the province, Dianne Abbot, said NI women were "second class citizens on this important issue of liberty and rights".

Pro-lifer Jeffrey Donaldson (DUP) gave a passionate response to her argument and backed himself up with a number of important reasons why Westminster should not be deciding the NI law on this most fundamental of issues.

He said: "The implementation of the 1967 Act, if it were to be extended to Northern Ireland, would fall largely to the Northern Ireland Assembly. It would therefore be entirely wrong for this House to legislate against the wishes of the parties in the Assembly, as those parties would be required to implement a law with which they did not agree.

"We are dealing with these matters in the context of the 1967 Act, and no hon. Member with a constituency in Northern Ireland supports new clause 30. Indeed, the hon. Member for Hackney, North and Stoke Newington (Diane Abbot) has not set foot in Northern Ireland to talk to people about this issue.

"The hon. Lady has not consulted about her new clause, even though section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998—which was passed by this House and which enacted the Belfast agreement—requires that any major legislation brought forward by Parliament or the Assembly should be subject to proper consultation and equality impact assessments."

He ended by saying that "members who have proposed the new clause are simply seeking to impose their will in a way that goes against the wishes of the people of Northern Ireland and of their elected representatives".

Bringing my analysis and Commons’ reports to an end, I touch on just one part of the legislation – the removal of the need for a father. Here, the bill allows a woman to have fertility treatment in partnership with another woman, and for that second woman to have legal parenthood. I refer you back to my Christmas 2007 post where I said:

We have a situation where this Christmas (2007) could be the last ever when we gaze upon the Child Jesus, Mary and Joseph in the crib and our society accepts that "this is the definite model of how to bring up children in our society". What a frightening prospect.

This prospect is likely to become a reality…

Burton Constable

Continuing my occasional exploration of English Catholic history yesterday afternoon, I went with my mum and dad to Burton Constable, East Yorkshire’s premier Elizabethan stately home and a Catholic stronghold during penal times. Dad has joined the archery club there are goes every Sunday. The stunning Burton estate is just a few miles from the family home and, although I’ve cycled passed many times, I’ve never been inside the Hall or grounds before. After tea and scones, mum went off for a walk while I paid £5.50 to go into the Hall.

A friend recently remarked that when pictured on my blog, particularly when visiting places of significance with our national Catholic heritage, I always seem to where my "Where’s Wally" stripy red and grey polo shirt. Yesterday, I didn’t disappoint:

The Constables have been landowners of vast areas of the Holderness coastal region since the twelfth century. By the late sixteenth century, Burton Constable was the family’s main residence. Here, they harboured priests who celebrated Mass in a secret chapel at the top of one of the Hall’s two towers. The Hall may have been chosen as a suitable location because the building has a moat surrounding it. This could have been to protect Catholics from surprise attacks.

Particularly poignant during my visit was the knowledge I was walking in the same house once lived in by at least one martyr, Blessed Nicholas Postgate, the very last man to be executed for his priesthood aged 82. I’ve mentioned him in numerous posts all of which can be found here. After his ordination, Fr Postgate was chaplain to a couple of recusant Catholic families, including the Constables, for a number of years before returning to his native north Yorkshire to minister posed as a roaming gardener. He was caught celebrating a baptism in Redcar and, despite his age, was hanged, drawn and quartered in 1679.

Although the Constables remained Catholics after the Reformation, they generally managed to evade penal laws. This may have been because both Sir John (c.1526-79) and Sir Henry Constable (c.1559-1608) suspended their recusancy during their life to pursue political positions. But, Sir Henry’s wife Lady Margaret and later Lady Dunbar remained staunch Catholics and courted danger by their support to local Catholic priests.

The Hall itself was built in stages throughout the sixteenth century. In almost every room there are subtle hints of Catholicism, but you have to look closely. I spotted a statue of Our Lady on the bedside table in one of the bedrooms and there were several paintings of the Crucifixion and the Nativity in the main halls and gallery. And then, of course, there is an eloquent chapel on the ground floor accompanied by a sacristy down the corridor. Visitors are not permitted to take photographs – but I broke the rules! I wasn’t confident enough to use a flash for fear of being spotted so the pictures are a bit dark. Here, you can see the sacristy can be doubled up to form a confessional.

The chapel replaced the small one in a remote upper room after Catholic Emancipation in 1829. Work on the room started in 1774 and it was originally intended to be a billiards room. But William Constable changed his mind and it became a coffee room. As a chapel, it was completed in 1844 and, according to the guidebook, it was "inspired by the French ecclesiastical style". I’ve been told by local priests that Mass has been celebrated here a couple of times in the last few years.

Other noticeable features include the Great Hall (on entrance) and the Long Gallery, which the family used for theatrics, light-hearted games and musical entertainment. Apart from the chapel, the most spectacular area is the Dining Room. Grand in stature with table places set, it’s the kid of place you could imagine yourself having the most fantastic evening with food, wine, good company and entertainment.

The Constables have also had a big hand in keeping the Catholic faith alive in nearby villages as well. As well as the secret chapel in the Hall, Catholics also had Mass at a private house in the nearby village of Marton. In 1789, William Constable commissioned York architect Thomas Atkinson to build a new chapel at Marton adjoining the old house. The church is still there, although we didn’t have time to visit. It was designed to have the subtle appearance of a house set back from the road. Several original features like the galley and altar survive from the original building.

I always come away from these places with pride in being a Catholic and with thanks to the people who kept the faith alive during the most testing times. When you think of the risk that Lady (Margaret) Constable and later Lady Dunbar (to whom Blessed Postgate was chaplain) took in harbouring priests who could then provide the sacraments to nearby Catholics, places like Burton Constable become significant in our Catholic heritage. A housewife less than 50 miles away in the more urban and public surroundings of York was pressed to death for doing the same as these women. Saint Margaret Clitherow was martyred for her protection of priests and is, quite rightly, universally known. There must be countless stories across the country, however, of lay Catholics from every social class and background who are not saints, or blesseds or venerables – but who risked their lives for Holy Mother Church and got away with it. These should also be remembered as an example of how the laity should look after, assist, care and, if necessary, protect our priests from both physical and verbal persecution.

Bloggers Choice Awards

Some of you may have seen this mentioned on other blogs and I am flattered to have been nominated. I don't expect to get many votes, however.

Vote for your favourite "religion" blog here: http://bloggerschoiceawards.com/categories/14. Genuine Bashing Secularism fans can click here to vote. Be warned, however, the site is terribly slow.

HFE Bill date and Harriet Harman

So, the date for the final stages of the most pernicious bill since the 1967 Abortion Act has been set for Wednesday October 22. The announcement was made by the Leader of the House, Harriet Harman, at Business Questions in the House of Commons today. All debates on any of the radically pro-abortion amendments selected will be squeezed in to just one afternoon/evening before a vote on the whole bill (called the third reading) will take place at the end of the day.

During today's question time, Ms Harman defended the amount of time the Government had given to the Bill and said a day was adequate time to consider the deadly abortion amendments. She said: "I remind the House that we have already had 81 hours of debate across the two Houses on that Bill, so we have sought to make adequate time available to debate that important issue. Additionally, there have been two full days of debate on the Floor of the House, followed by a free vote on those issues of conscience."

In answer to another question, she said: "In total, the Bill has been debated on the Floor of both Houses for 81 hours, with 10 sessions in the Lords and, so far, seven in the Commons. We have already had two days on the Floor of the House discussing amendments and new clauses on the basis of free votes on conscience issues. I stand second to no one in believing that the House should properly debate these heartfelt issues, but taking a view across all the business coming through this House, I think that 81 hours probably amounts to adequate debate."

Enough debate my backside! As if a few hours to discuss whether or not we should kill more babies a year is enough debate? Of course, we all know that in an ideal world there would be no questions asked and MPs would think it so hideous to allow abortions to be carried out in schools and prisons, for instance, that they would just cut straight to the vote. But we all know that the current parliament is the most anti-life ever, and that this most serious of topics needs a lengthy debate to make sure people realise what they are voting for.

During Business Questions, Nigel Dodds of the DUP raised the question of extending the Abortion Act to Northern Ireland. He said: "Will the Leader of the House accept that that Bill is a highly inappropriate vehicle to impose a fundamental change in relation to the law on abortion in Northern Ireland? Given that the communities and all parties in Northern Ireland are united on the issue, if devolution is to mean anything, the wishes of the people of Northern Ireland should be respected in that regard."

Well put, I think. Ms Harman's response?: "Obviously it is very important that the question of the view of the parties in Northern Ireland is taken into account, irrespective of the issue that is being raised. It is also important that the views of men and women are taken into account in all parts of the United Kingdom when services are being considered. As the hon. Gentleman said, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill will come before the House next week, and no doubt he will be able to make his points in the debate."

To Harriet Harman, one of the leading pro-abortion MPs, abortion is just a "service" which, no doubt she thinks, should be imposed on a province (both politicians and people) dead against it. During the Second Reading in May, she was accused of organising a group of Labour MPs who "browbeat and bullied" their colleagues into voting to keep with the 24-week upper time limit even though it was a free vote. According to the Daily Mail her team formed a ‘human corridor’ to channel their colleagues into the ‘No’ lobby on an amendment to cut the time limit. Of course, this blog has never backed time limit tactics, but these reports, denied by Ms Harman herself, illustrate the bullying tactics extreme pro-abortion politicians are prepared to go through.

Let us hope and pray earnestly that, by the grace of God, all MPs will vote for life. Lord help us if this bill goes through - with or without any sickening abortion law liberalisation with it.

40 Martyr Reflections: Saint Henry Morse

I know what you're thinking - "a strange looking chap"! But, seriously, this martyr had such energy for Christ and his Church in the midst of great persecution:

Henry Morse was in and out of prison like a yo-yo. He didn’t have much luck with the authorities and frequently spent a lengthy time languishing in jail. The early story of this popular saint hits home the point that even Catholic laymen were not safe on English shores in the early to mid-17th century. Landing at Dover on a short trip back home to England from seminary at Douai, Henry was instantly ordered to take the Oath of Supremacy. Upon refusing, that was that for four years, which he spent in New Prison, Southwark. It was to be the first of numerous jails he was to be held in.

But for Morse as a priest, prisons were as good a place as any to convert people back to the Catholic faith. The Prosecution at his trial declared "perverted to the church of Rome" more than 560 people in London alone. When held at York Castle shortly after his arrival on the English mission after being ordained, Fr Morse reconciled a male and female prisoner back to Catholicism and repented of their crimes. The pair went to the scaffolds professing themselves as Catholics.

Fr Henry wasn’t just a brilliant prison chaplain. He was also an effective army chaplain, ministering to Catholic soldiers out on two postings during the Thirty Years War. Perhaps most impressively, however, Fr Morse threw himself into the plague-stricken communities, visiting no less than 400 families of various denominations in the space of a few weeks. He himself caught the disease three times, fighting it off each time. His zeal and thoughtfulness were deeply appreciated and nearly 100 families on his list eventually asked to be reconciled to the Catholic Church. Fr Morse was so well-know for his piety and wisdom that many people came to get words of advice or consolation from him in the days before his martyrdom. Even the French ambassador followed him on the Tyburn-bound hurdle and dipped his handkerchief in the martyr’s blood as he hung.

Henry Morse was born in 1595 to a Protestant family at Brome in Suffolk. He was the sixth of nine sons and his older brother also became a Jesuit priest. After finishing classical studies, Henry enrolled as a law student most probably at Barnards Inns in London. While there, however, he examined his conscience and began to explore the arguments behind the Catholic faith. He went over to Flanders in June 1614 and was received into the Church. Henry began training for the priesthood.

It was on a brief holiday back to England that he was arrested and locked up for four years for refusing to take the Oath. He was released thanks to a general amnesty by King James. Henry returned to Douai and then went on to the English College in Rome where he finished his studies and was ordained a secular priest. However, Fr Morse secured permission from the Father General of the Jesuits to be admitted to the Society of Jesus once he got back to England.

Henry sailed into Newcastle in June 1624 on the English mission. He was immediately greeted by the authorities and taken in front of a magistrate accused of being a priest. For three years, he endured all the miseries of a York Castle dungeon and his health was seriously tested. But, here, he met Fr John Robinson of the Society of Jesus who supervised his novitiate. After the three years, Henry had become a junior member of the Jesuits.

Banished to the Continent on his release, Fr Morse spent time resting and recuperating. He then served as a chaplain to English soldiers fighting for the King of Spain in the Low Countries. But, in 1633, Henry returned to England secretly, using the alias "Cuthbert Claxton" and spent the next four years ministering to victims of the "black plague" in London.

His "sick list" of 400 families to visit probably beats that of any present day priest quite easily. Indeed, many Protestants were taken aback by this great act of charity virtually unheard of at that time. His example alone converted many people to Catholicism and Fr Morse became widely known as "the Priest of the Plague". But it was this remarkably charitable work that led to his latest arrest. Henry was charged having heard the confession of a nobleman and administered "extreme unction" to a dying woman. A jury found him guilty of being a priest but he was acquitted of a charge that he had "perverted" several hundred of "His Majesty's Protestant subjects." Thanks to the personal intervention of Charles I's Catholic wife, Queen Henrietta Maria, Fr Henry was bailed out and banished. He returned to his army work in Spain as chaplain to the English soldiers who were fighting the Dutch.

Despite winning the admiration of the servicemen, Fr Morse still had a strong desire to dangerously return to England. Receiving permission from his superiors in 1643, he bade farewell to his colleagues, knowing that he could well be martyred this time around. He knew full well that the law was harsh on exiled priests who returned to England.

Henry landed safely in the north but at a cottage on the boarders of Cumberland 18 months later, priest catchers seized him and took him to a constable’s house. With the aid of the constable’s Catholic wife, he escaped, only to be caught once again after six weeks. This time the priest’s fate really was sealed.

The Jesuit’s Puritan captors took him by ship to London to be tried. During the voyage, Fr Morse suffered the brutality of the anti-Papist, anti-Royalist crew. Arriving in London despite a storm that almost capsized the boat, he was sent to Newgate prison. At his trial, he was quickly identified as the same priest that had been banished and was found guilty and sentenced to death.

On the morning of February 1 1645, Fr Morse celebrated a votive Mass of the Holy Trinity in his cell "with great devotion" thanking God for the blessing of martyrdom God had given him. After Mass, prayed solidly for an hour in private before welcoming each prisoner in turn. When informed the time had come, Fr Henry prayed confidently: "Welcome ropes, hurdles, gibbets, knives and butchery. Welcome for the love of Jesus my Saviour."

He was carted off to Tyburn, with the French, Spanish and Portuguese Ambassadors looking on in awe. During his speech on the gallows, Fr Morse denied knowing anything about any plots against the king. He prayed that his death "may be some kind of atonement for the sins of this nation". His last words were those final utterances of Jesus on the Cross: "Into your hands O Lord I commend my spirit." Only after he died was Father Morse's body disembowelled and cut into four parts. His quarters were put on all four of the city gates and his head was placed on London Bridge.

Saint Henry Morse is an inspiration to all prison and army chaplains as well as to priests who visit the sick either at home, on the streets or in hospital. He carried out all these three ministries, although two of them not so formally, with great zeal and in the face of great danger. Despite being imprisoned so many times that his health was severely affected, Fr Henry found an inner strength to battle on and save as many souls as he could. Like Christ, he didn’t hesitate to mix with the social outcasts of his day, those people ravaged by the plague. Just think of how many people the priest comforted with the Sacrament of the Sick on their deathbeds. Many thought that Fr Morse’s recovery from three bouts of the deadly plague were miraculous and added all the more to his popularity as one of the most colourful and brave of the English martyrs. St Henry is a perfect example to any ill person who appears to have lost hope and his message is clear – ask the Lord for strength and trust in him.

Saint Henry Morse – Ora pro nobis.

Prescott letter

Here, I'm happy to share the letter I've sent to my MP, John Prescott, this evening asking him to oppose the HFE Bill and any abortion amendments that are added to it. The former deputy prime minister is one of the most pro-abortion MPs in the current parliament. Yet this is no excuse not to write to him, and the same goes to anyone else whose MP is pro-abortion. The more letters they get the more they will at least take note that this is a fundementally important issue:

Dear Mr Prescott,

I am writing to ask you to oppose any amendments to the 1967 Abortion Act that come to be included in the Human Fertilisation and Embryology (HFE) Bill at report stage. I would also urge you to vote against the HFE Bill in its entirety at third reading.

As you will know, a number of amendments have been tabled to liberalise the law on abortion. You have made your strong position in favour of the current abortion laws quite clear to me over the years. However, I would argue that the suggested alterations would both kill more unborn babies and hurt women in the process and, therefore, appeal to you to oppose all moves.

Among the amendments are plans to make surgical abortions available virtually anywhere, including GPs’ surgeries, health centres and even school sick rooms. New clause 9 would allow abortions by drug to be administered anywhere - even in prisons, schools and refugee centres - within nine weeks of pregnancy. I simply cannot believe how sinister these moves would be.

One of the arguments for introducing the Abortion Act was to respond to the alleged huge numbers of backstreet abortions that were claiming the lives of thousands of woman a year. It turned out that the numbers were massively exaggerated. The point, however, is that a vote for these amendments would be a vote for, effectively, backstreet abortions. It will lead to greater pressure for women to opt for abortions immediately without any time to consult, reflect and seek advice. Also, who will be responsible for disposal of foetal remains? Will they be found in the dustbin?

Another amendment seeks to remove the need for two doctors’ signatures in favour of one. Others advocate different numbers of doctors’ approval depending on the age of the developing child. All these plans would leave women even more under pressure to have an abortion and would make it more widely available. They would lead to more early abortions and reinforce the misleading and incorrect idea that the moral status of the unborn child grows as age increases. Life starts at conception and should be protected from that moment.

Perhaps the most shocking proposal is the one to extend the Abortion Act to Northern Ireland. NONE of the MPs who have tabled this amendment represents a Northern Ireland constituency. Opposition to abortion is something that unites people, politicians and churches across the province. To impose the Act here would be totally undemocratic.

I have only had time to go through a few of the tabled amendments but my message would be for you to oppose any that are selected with regard to abortion.

I would also urge you to vote against the whole bill at third reading. Putting the abortion amendments aside, the bill in its original form remains hideous. Allowing scientists to create various types of human/animal hybrid embryos for research, the removal of the need for a father, gender selection of embryos, and the creation of "saviour siblings" all undermine human dignity. I refer you to my email sent in May for more detailed concerns I have about the Government’s proposals.

Yours Sincerely,

Richard Paul Marsden

North Yorkshire

On Saturday, I made the trip over to York for a SPUC Yorkshire region meeting. On the way I picked up Anna-Marie, who has just started her degree at the Hull/York Medical School and was keen to come along.

The meeting was at the English Martyrs parish church hall. These are primarily business meetings where members of different branches give reports on their activities in the last few months. There were representatives from the Hull and East Riding, Dewsbury, Scarborough and Rotherham branches. Recently, regional chair Michael Hill has arranged for meetings to be held in places where there is currently no SPUC branch, with the hope of generating interest. There were about half a dozen York folk who saw the advertisements in parish newsletters and came to find out more about the Society’s activities. Hopefully, with a bit of support from activists in Yorkshire, there will be people willing to set up a group in the county’s capital in the near future.

Michael showed snippets from two DVDs, one by Youth Defence from Ireland about the development of the unborn child and another about the Silent No More Awareness Campaign. This shows clips of brave women who have had abortions sharing their experience with the general public by talking in prominent public places (such as outside the Houses of Parliament).

We also heard about activities of the local branches. Some have recently done street stalls, public witnesses and put up pro-life posters outside of churches. Other activities included letter writing sessions, fundraising coffee mornings and public meetings on the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill.

After the meeting, we went up to the stunning Ampleforth College in North Yorkshire to visit Ryan Day who has just started teaching history there. He is doing well although he’s pretty shattered. We spent the afternoon on the touchline watching two house rugby matches simultaneously and had a cup of tea in the Chaplaincy.

On the way back to York I got horribly lost, wrongly relying on sat nav to find where Anna needed to be dropped off. We eventually found our way. On my way back to Hull, I dropped in on St John of Beverley (whose feastday falls on my birthday) in Beverley for Mass.

Hull City

Sorry about talking about football as I occasionally do but:

Baffled and a shocked are the two ways to describe my football team’s start to their first ever season in English football’s top flight.

I had the pleasure of being at White Hart Lane yesterday. Seven minutes into the match, Brazilian sensation Geovanni – who scored a corker at Arsenal last week - lined up a free kick from 30 yards out and curled it beautifully into the top corner. There was pandemonium in the away end. But this was then followed by 80 minutes of nail biting, particularly in the second half when Spurs continued to press. I was convinced they were going to score – but it didn’t come.

Party time at the final whistle was followed by a strange kind of atmosphere I’ve experienced in recent months following Hull City. Fans go away with a rather baffled, head-scratching look on their faces. As I said to the Sky Sports reporter who interviewed me outside the ground, it’s a bit strange when you think of the grounds you’ve been to while playing in third division and then go to a place like Tottenham and win the game. After being written off as certain relegation candidates, Hull City now stand third in the Premier League. Never would I have thought that I would see that kind of table standing. The pundits are eating their words. It’s fairytale stuff.

On the train back to Hull (where I’m chilling for a couple of days) tipsy fans were practising their French ready for going to play in the European cup next season. Although hearing "tres bien" and "bonsoir" in a Hull accent was amusing, I think that’s slightly over the top.

Nevertheless, after the horror of the floods last summer, Kingston-upon-Hull is a place with smiley faces again – and they’re all wearing black and amber. Today, I’ve managed to appear on the front page of the Hull Daily Mail in a picture of fans in the stand. I look like someone at a charismatic prayer meeting, arms in the air. I assure you, however, that I was clapping…

There will be tough times ahead and the Tigers will certainly get stuffed every so often. But, with a bit of luck, we might just stay in the Premier League.