Coughton Court

I got an unexpected lieu day from work for today and took the opportunity to drive an hour and a bit from Kettering to one of the gems of English Catholic heritage - Coughton Court in Warwickshire. This was an historical trip in complete contrast to last Tuesday. Then, I went to the home of Robert Cecil, Catholic catcher. This week, it was a visit to the house of the many people he persecuted.

Coughton Court is the home of the Throckmortons, one of the most important Catholic families in England. Here, during penal times, St Nicholas Owen built holes for priests to hide in, Mass was said in secret and Lady Digby along with several Jesuits waited anxiously for the outcome of the Gunpowder plot. Not only did the Throckmortons play a leading role in keeping the One True Faith going in England, they were also inflencial in securing Catholic emancipation in the nineteenth century. The family produced the first Catholic Member of Parliament who sat in the House of Commons after emancipation and had links to the first English Cardinal of the Vatican after persecution. Coughton Hall is a breathtaking, real life illustration of how the Roman Catholic Church survived in England.

I knew I must have made a good choice when I spotted the veteran Tory MP Sir Patrick Cormack wandering around the restaurant area. Can't be a bad place if he's come, I thought.

As you come up the staircase with portraits of all generations of the Throckmortons, the first area you come across is the Drawing Room. Here, tradition has it, is where Lady Digby, Fr Henry Garnett, Nicholas Owen and other Jesuits awaited news of the Gunpowder plot. The Throckmortons were related to the Catesby and Tresham families, whose sons were two of the chief plotters (Robert Catesby and Thomas Tresham). The fantastic book "God's Secret Agents" by Alice Hogg describes it like this: "On Wednesday, 6 November Robert Catesby's servant Thomas Bates rode into Coughton, bringing news of Guy Fawkes' arrest and of the plot's discovery."

If this room gives you a thrilling sense of living history, wait until you walk into The Little Drawing Room. This contains one of many extraordinary tools that helped the Catholic faith to be kept alive. The Mass Cabinet, that has always belonged to the Throckmortons, acted as a secret altar on which Mass was said. The late 17th century Anglo-Dutch veneered cabinet on a stand is disguised as an ordinary piece of furniture to prevent attention being drawn to it. But this is far from ordinary. When opened up an exquisite mirror recess is revealed. This was used to place the host during Mass.

The real-life reminders of the underground Catholic network intensify as you climb up a narrow spiral staircase to the Tower Room. By the late sixteenth century it became a watch house to monitor comings and goings. This part of the building is likely to have been used to celebrate Mass. Today, it contains two prominent reminders of the penal times.

A faded painted canvas called the "Tabula Eliensis" dominates the south wall of the Tower Room. This depicts Ely Abbey at the top, a city where many Catholics were captured. Further down, it has all the arms of the Catholic gentry that were imprisoned for recusancy under Elizabeth's reign. The canvas would have been transported around various houses in the Catholic network and displayed at Mass. It was discovered stored away by a member of the family in the beginning of the last century.

At the other side of the room, a small opening reveals another one of the priest holes built by the expert carpenter Saint Nicholas Owen. For me, this further illustrated the skill of the Jesuit lay-brother's talent without which the underground church may never have survived. The design of the hiding place is completely different to the only other of his I've seen a Oxburgh Hall in Norfolk.

The hole is in the north-east turret. Two compartments were built by Owen, one on top of the other. The lower section would have been used by priests and members of the household during any searches or times of anxiety. The floor of the hide would have connected up to the original staircase connecting the ground and first floors of the tower. The compartment above was a decoy to excite priest catchers. The true hiding place under the void in the floor would have been difficult to detect. Imagine being one of the people who discovered the hole one day in 1910 equipped with a mattress, rope ladder, small piece of tapestry and a folding leather altar.

A climb up a second flight of the spiral staircase brings you out on to the roof. There are some beautiful views in all four directions. This is a good point to pick out the two churches on the estate. The nearest and oldest is the fifteenth century Anglican Church. The one further away in the distance is the Throckmortons' own Catholic Church, St Peter, St Paul and St Elizabeth. It was ordered to be built by Sir Robert George, the 8th Baronet. It was finished in 1850 when Catholics were allowed to organise parishes again. The building cost £3,500 and was a kind of statement that Catholics were again allowed to practice their faith in public after centuries of secret adoration.

Passing through the Dining Room with its massive table and exquisite gold-coloured velvet chair made from the wood of the bed King Richard III slept in on the night before the Battle of Bosworth, you come to the Tribune. This is another amazing room full of Catholic artifacts, sacred vessels and priest's vestments from various eras. It is here that Mass would have been heard from The Saloon below. On display, there is a beautiful chalice veil as well as chalices, patens and Latin missals from the penal times. There is a green chasuble once warn by Sir Anthony John Benedict Throckmorton, the 12th Baronet. He was a priest but left the ministry to marry. The vestment is made from his mother's wedding dress. Other spectacular items of note in this room are the chemise warn by Mary Queen of Scots at her execution and Catherine of Aragon's cope.

The last significant room of the house is the Saloon. Up until the new Catholic Church was built in the grounds in 1853, The Saloon was Coughton's Catholic chapel. In 1910, the room was transformed into what it looks like today. A staircase was brought from nearby Harvington Hall, another significant recusant stronghold. It dates back to the penal times and would have been used by Jesuit priests to scurry up to hide when priest catchers were close by.

On one of the walls there is a portrait of Cardinal Charles Januarius Acton dressed in red. He is the brother of Elizabeth Acton, who became Lady Throckmorton when she married Sir Richard Throckmorton in 1829. In fact, the cardinal celebrated the wedding. Although English, he was born in Naples in 1803. His father was engaged in the Neapolitan trade when he succeeded to the family estate. Charles and his elder brother were sent to England to be educated. First, they went to a school near London kept and then to Westminster School, where they were taught by a Protestant tutor. He held numerous positions in the Vatican before being given his red hat. Cardinal Acton died of ill health in the same city of his birth.

As you come out of the house, there's plenty more to see. There's vast gardens (if your in to that sort of thing) and, of course, you've also got both churches to visit. The Catholic Church is a bit of a novelty as its known as the "Throckmorton family Catholic Church". Imagine having you own family church. Inside, it's quite simple but pretty grand for a Catholic church on a country estate. The only thing I'd say is that it lacks a statue or memorial to St Nicholas Owen, who, quite clearly, has strong links to the place. There again, I may have missed something.

A day at Coughton Court is probably a must for an English Catholic sometime in your life if you're able to get there. The Throckmortons are celebrating their 600th anniversary this year, which probably makes them the oldest Roman Catholic family in England. Here can be found a fine example of how to bring children up in the faith and how to keep the faith through hard times, even when the danger of death is a real threat. Indeed, Coughton Court, with its strong looking tower and countless tales of piety and devotion to Christ, is one of the few places that could help inspire the re-evangelisation of England.

(Apologies for the lack of pictures from inside. You aren't allowed to take any inside and there are National Trust people swarming around everywhere so you can't even take a sneaky one. Apologies also for the delay in posting this. I've been working on it for a couple of nights now to give you a comprehensive report.)

Assisted suicide judgement

It's all very well for five law lords to say they are not changing the law on assisted suicide but surely they must realise the significance of their disturbing landmark judgement in the Purdy case today?

Ms Purdy is a prominent campaigner for legalised assisted dying and when Dr "death" Evan Harris is sniffing around on camera in the background, you know there's trouble. Mrs Purdy will tell you that today's judgement is a very simple clarification. But, in reality, the slope has just got a lot more slippy on the way down to the moral abyss of assisted dying/suicide/euthanasia, whichever form of killing you want to call it. Anyone who doesn't think this is deluded.

The former Lord Chancellor, Lord Falconer, tabled an unsuccessful pro-assisted suicide amendment to the Coroners and Justice Bill a few weeks ago. Reacting to today's ruling he completely contradicts himself by saying:

"It's not changing the law, but it is in practice carving out an area where no proceedings will be brought in a criminal court.

"I think you are dancing on the head of a pin in one sense if you are saying it's not changing the law."

The aforementioned Dr Harris said:

"This is a real boost for the campaign to legalise assisted dying for the terminally ill. It's now time that politicians start listening to public and legal opinion, and take steps to protect the interests of those vulnerable people who know their own mind, recognise it's their own life, and want to choose a death with dignity."

Speaking to the press outside the Lords, Ms Purdy said the judgement meant "we had got our life back". I must say I was rather puzzled by what she meant. Considering the MS sufferer had just won the right to have the law clarified on whether her husband would be prosecuted if he helped her to travel to Switzerland to die, I think her statement seems quite ironic to the rest of us.

As with most people, and I know it comes across as a cliche from our side, I'm sorry Ms Purdy has to live with such a serious condition. But it could happen to any of us. This decision may well lead to people feeling they are a burden on society. Once we give people the right to get help to kill themselves, we are changing the definition of human nature. Life is from conception until natural death, not from birth to whenever we feel like it.

Of course, with this news, comes a whole wave of outrageously biased and scaremongering press and media reports, especially from, of course, the BBC. Take their second report on the 10 O'Clock news, for instance. We're all getting older, there's a risk of having a serious illness sometime in life (since when hasn't there been?) - the debate on whether people can end their life will obviously intensify. Or the BBC online report, which only seems to realise that there is actually debate about this issue until the third to last paragraph.

It's on these types of days when I think it might be better to emigrate - and not to Switzerland. We are rapidly becoming a morally redundant nation.

But Catholics, Christians and the pro-life movement shouldn't let today's catastrophe make them think "everything will happen anyway". We should take a leaf out of the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children's book. SPUC intervened in the case, compassionately but competently putting the concerns of countless people across. The euthanasia/assisted suicide battle, perhaps already started before this ruling, has certainly intensified today. Lets get involved in it and defend the weak and vulnerable from this deadly direction. We can start by bombarding the Director of Public Prosecutions Keir Starmer with public consultation submissions before permanent policy is published next spring.

Season Ticket

I arrived back from work yesterday to an envelope that made me very excited - my Hull City season ticket for next season has arrived!

I must say I've been close to getting withdrawal symptoms since the season finished in dramatic style almost two long months ago with the Tigers staying in the Premier League by the proverbial skin of their teeth.

I'm not able to go to every home game because of work. But getting a season pass is the only way of guaranteeing a seat these days. It also gives you priority to apply for away tickets to go to amazing grounds like Old Trafford, Stamford Bridge, the Emirates (Arsenal) and Anfield. I'm aiming to get to places I've never been to before in the 2009/10 season. In all, I've been to knocking on 40 football league grounds and am keen to add to the list in the next few months. I'd love to go to Anfield in particular but it just depends on work and whether I can get a ticket.

Roll on August 15 - the start of the season.

Burghley House

On Tuesday I had the day off and took the opportunity to visit "the largest and grandest house of the first Elizabethan age". Burghley Hall in Stamford is just 40 minutes or so from me in Kettering. It is an impressive building built by Sir William Cecil, although most of the house today would not be recognisable to him.

Cecil, of course, is not the greatest friend of Catholics. I think the mere fact he was Lord High Treasurer and secretary of state to Queen Elizabeth I from 1550 backs up this theory. He kept an eye on recusant Catholics, advised the monarch on how best to deal with them and drafted laws to catch them out. Cecil suggested to Queen Elizabeth the planting of the "Bloody Question" to Catholic priests. Those who swore they would not take arms against the Pope could be accounted as traitors. Although it was not put on the statute books, it was virtually impossible to answer for Catholic priests who would either suffer in body or in soul with any way they answered. But these factors are not necessarily a barrier to visit this prominent historical landmark.


After what turned out to be a pretty awful lunch in Stamford town centre, I payed the extortionate price of £11.30 to get into the place. I think the entry was just about worth it. Although Cecil designed Burghley House, he was busy with his work as leader of the Privvy Council and rarely got to live in it. The main part of the House has 35 major rooms on the ground and first floors. There are more than 80 lesser rooms and numerous halls, corridors, bathrooms and service areas. Not all of them are open to the public.

The state rooms in particular are worth a good look. Some of the royal bedrooms are almost too detailed, with tapestries and paintings hanging everywhere you look. The dramatic painted ceilings are breathtaking. Many of them were executed by Antonio Verrio. The George rooms are colourful and detailed from floor to wall to ceiling. Then you walk through to the "Heaven Room" where you have mythological "gods and goddesses disporting themselves as gods and goddesses are wont to do..." In stark contrast, the next room is a Classical Mythological vision of hell with the mouth of Hades, skeletons, people being stabbed and women whose bodies turn into dogs half way down. It's a horrible but striking scene. (Sorry, they didn't allow photographs to be taken indoors)

Throughout the House there is a wide range of religious paintings, with a particular emphasis of the Nativity. Others illustrate the key points in Jesus' life and there are also pictures of various well-known saints.


After a look round for about two hours, it was time for a personal tradition on a historical trip such as this - a cream tea. I had tea and a hot scone at the Orangery Restaurant, part of the House. It was over £4, making the day an expensive one.

By this time, the gardens were just about closed so I had a quick look and then went for a walk in the vast grounds of the House probably more famous for its horse trials. Another lovely feature is the large population of deer, introduced in Cecil's time. I think this lot were quite curious of me and began to move away when I got within 20 metres to take a photo:

All in all I'd recommend a visit. Maybe go for a festive lunch later in the year at the restaurant. The Christmas Menu is already being advertised and offers some delicious sounding three course meals for just £20.

Pope encourages cyclists

Our cycling supremo Bradley Wiggins CBE is doing the business in arguably the most gruelling sporting event on the face of the earth. The 2,200 mile Tour de France is reaching its final stages and, for the first time in my lifetime, a British cyclist may well finish on the podium. Wiggins, a double gold medallist at the Beijing Olympic Games, seems to have really turned his attention to the road and is making a fantastic effort.

And, on Tuesday, riders had a special treat as they tackled the 16th Alpine stage and passed near to the Italian town of Introd where the Holy Father is enjoying his holiday and recuperating from his recent injury. Pope Benedict sent the cyclists a special message:

"For the occasion of the passage of the Tour de France in the Valle d'Aosta, the Holy Father (who is spending some days at Les Combes near Introd) addresses his cordial greetings to all the athletes and to the organisers of the race, at the same time extending his thoughts to all sports men and women currently involved in various activities and competitions. His hope is that involvement in sport may contribute to the integral development of the person, and that it may never be separated from respect for moral and educational values."

It's good to see Pope Benedict referring to sport again. In 2005 he said sport can bring respect, loyalty and solidarity between peoples when he addressed UEFA representatives at a general audience. The pope said that sport "if practiced in respect for the rules, becomes an educational instrument and a vehicle for important human and spiritual values". He added that games can contribute to "building a society characterized by mutual respect, loyalty of behaviour, and solidarity between peoples and cultures".

It's not one of the pope's area of expertise, particularly in light of his predecessor John Paul II's love of skiing, climbing, goalkeeping in football and rugby (I think he had a couple of caps for Poland?). But, as universal Shepherd, it's good too see Benedict encouraging fair competition and exercise to develop the human person.

Laughing Catholic children

The Daily Telegraph reports about complaints by local residents against children at a Catholic school who they say laugh too loudly. Neighbours near to SS Osmund and Andrew's RC Primary School in Breightmet, near Bolton, claim they are being confined inside their homes due to the "unbearable" screams of laughter from the youngsters a playtime.

The newspaper reports: "Nearly 150 people who live near the 384 pupil school which aims to 'nurture the Christian values of love and respect for others' have signed a petition demanding that Bolton Council takes steps to reduce the noise."

Not all of the pupils will be Catholic but I guess most of them will be Christian. The fact thay they are laughing loudly is a fantastic sign. I'd like to think it's because they've been taught about the Incarnation, life, death and Ressurection of Jesus Christ, true God and true Man, Saviour and Redeemer - and are overjoyed by it.

SPUC Public meeting

Last Tuesday the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC) Hull and East Riding branch held a public meeting led by SPUC national director John Smeaton at St Joseph's Church Hall, west Hull. John has done more than 20 of these meetings around the country in the last few months. They are intended to outline the pro-life battle ahead and to encourage people to join a peaceful, law abiding resistence movement to abortion.

Before the meeting, about a dozen of us (mostly branch members as well as other friends) met in Fr William Massie's presbytery for tea. We had cold meats and salad.

About 70 turned up to the meeting from as far away as Robin Hood's Bay in north Yorkshire. Posters advertising the event were sent to every parish and religious house in the Middlesbrough Diocese. It showed. There were people from Scarborough, Hornsea and Hedon to name but a few places (apart from various parts of Hull) represented.

John started by saying that whatever the pro-life movement has won or lost over 42 years, we are here. Between 60 and 70 concerned people turn up at a meeting in Hull on a Tuesday evening. Pro-life people are members of the wider community and are involved in all sorts of walks of life.

He spoke about various articles of European Conventions and the Universal Declaration on Human Rights that protect the right to life. These were virtually ignored in the recently passed Human Fertilisation and Embryology (HFE) Bill that enshrined the creation of Human/Animal hybrid embryos into law. Gordon Brown accepted responsibility for this legislation. He wrote to every member of parliament urging them to support the proposals even though it was a free vote. Mr Brown said he respected people's objections for "religious" reasons. But John explained objections were for ethical reasons.

John was careful to point out that his attacks on Gordon Brown in the talk were not party political in any way. After all, David Cameron supports abortion up to birth for disabled babies and the original HFE Act was passed by the Thatcher government.

Church leaders courageously spoke out against the proposals and what they said "reverberated in peoples' hearts and minds". At the time Cardinal Keith O'Brien said: "It is difficult to imagine a single piece of legislation which more comprehensively attacks to sanctity and dignity of human life than this particular Bill." John added that already about 2.2m embryos had already been experimented on or destroyed when this bill came up.

The Bill extended the powers of the HFE Authority. The extension of embryo research provision was brought about despite the fact that no treatments whatsoever have come about through embryo research.

On the issue of disabled babies being aborted, the national director said this clause in the Abortion Act is the most shameful thing to happen in modern times. It was the first time a particular group of human beings could be singled out for killing just because they are disabled.

John addressed the issue of time limit amendments in the HFE Bill and the reasons why SPUC opposed this approach. He said it was counter-productive because the Society knew there was no where near enough "pro-life" MPs to support the proposals. This was confirmed in the votes. There was a danger that a trade off would happen if these amendments were attached to a particular bill. This happened as well with pro-abortion MPs tabling clauses that would have, for instance, allowed abortions to be performed almost anywhere, by midwives and nurses as well as doctors and, crucially, in Northern Ireland (not covered by the 1967 Abortion Act). Thankfully Mr Brown (who has one of the most pro-abortion records of any MP) decided not to give any time for these to be debated. This might have been for political reasons (there was a by-election in Glasgow in a constituency with a strong Catholic population). But John said it happened because of lobbying. "Your lobbying was fundamental to all of it," he added.

By using the democratic process and the proper channels available to us, we can make a huge difference. "This was a chink of light in pagan England. By behaving in a proper way, we can make a difference at the right time."

John then went through how our country got to this situation. "If 10 or 11 years ago you were to tell someone that parliament would legalise human animal experimentation, you would have been laughed out of court."

He also spoke about the scandal of secret access to abortion (including the morning after pill) through schools, including some Catholic schools. "This is the worst thing ever to happen to our families," he said. One of the functions of the morning-after pill is to soften the lining of the womb to prevent an embryo from implanting. The Warnock Committee said scientists could basically do what they liked to embryos up to 14 days. "This is pure utilitarianism at its most naked."

Making it clear that he was speaking as an individual and not conveying SPUC policy, John said the most prophetic document of the 21st century was Humane Vitae. Talking about China's One Child Policy, he said 180 governments around the world financially support forced abortion and sterilisation. On the first day of his presidency, Barack Obama re-instated this funding.

Turning back to the government policy of secret abortions in schools, he said the Connexions advice service reminds children of their legal right to secret abortion. It is written in their staff training manuals.

John ended by saying we should "stand up and reclaim our own families" and "seek to establish a powerful, peaceful resistance movement to abortion".

After rapturous applause, it was time for questions. The subjects covered included the awareness of the Vatican as to what is happened in the UK, what can primary school teachers do to give the pro-life message, whether headteachers refuse clinics and is the only way that will change the tide a complete re-evangelisation of the UK? People also got the chance to ask John questions at the end and some of us went back into the presbytery for tea and coffee.

Despite the seriousness of the situation pointed out in John's talk, you might be surprised to learn the mood among those at the meeting was joyful and happy. There was a real sense of a joyful pro-life community committed to sticking together and upholding the dignity of every human person. There were people of all ages, from babies to pensioners. In particular, John said there were more young people at the meeting compared with the other 2o-odd he has done. This is so important, fostering the new generation of pro-lifers. There were not only Catholics present but Baptists and other Christian denominations. This is true ecumenism in action.

Padley Martyrs

Another Sunday, another pilgrimage in honour of the English martyrs. This time it was the annual pilgrimage of the Padley martyrs. The joint Hallam and Nottingham Diocese Mass marked the exact day (421 years ago) when Blesseds Robert Ludlam and Nicholas Garlick were arrested at Padley Manor House, the home of John Fitzherbert, in 1588.

Set in the beautiful hills of the Peak District National Park, the 13th/14th century Padley House sits on the north bank of the River Derwent. This time I sat on the hard rocks among thousands of crawling insects for Mass in the grounds of the house now owned by the Catholic Church.

I went to stay with friends in Sheffield for the weekend and heard about the pilgrimage through them. I decided to go as I never manged to get to Padley while at university. After Mass at the Chaplaincy (named after the Padley martyrs) on Sunday morning, I jumped on a train from Sheffield station to Grindleford in Derbyshire, a 20 minute journey. I walked down to the village for something to eat and then walked back up to the station and on down a country lane towards the chapel. Bizarrely, some villagers from the houses either side had put out a box of second hand books next to their gate to flog them to pilgrims. I spotted the "Da Vinci Code" on the top of the pile of one box. I don't think they had quite got the idea.

There was plenty of time to look around the manor house before Mass started. The chapel reminds you of a quality style barn on a farm. There are striking stained glass windows of both Blessed Robert and Nicholas as well as members of the Fitzherbert family.

Sir Thomas Fitzherbert was a staunch recusant and spent from 1559 to 1591 in various prisons. He died in the Tower of London on December 1 1591. He had granted tenancy to his brother John during this time. Padley Manor became a missionary haven for priests for almost thirty years.

In 1588, Padley was raided by the Lord Lieutenant of Sheffield, the Earl of Shrewsbury and two priests were found - Nicholas and Robert. They were sent to Derby Jail and eventually found guilty of high treason and sentenced to death. The night before their execution, the pair shared a cell with a fellow priest, Richard Simpson. It is understood that Richard was seriously considering conforming to the Protestant Church but Bls Nicholas and Robert urged him to join them in martyrdom. A woman convicted of murder also shared the same cell. During the night they were able to reconcile the woman to God, and on the scaffold the next day she openly professed her faith. They were hung, drawn and quartered on St. Mary's Bridge, Derby, on July 24 1588.

Nicholas Garlick was born at Dinting near Glossop, North Derbyshire, in about 1555. He went to Oxford University as a student of Gloucester Hall (now Worcester College) at the age of 20 in 1575. He spent no more that six months there probably because from 1559 people taking a degree were required to swear an oath of acknowledgement of the Queen's supremacy as the head of the church in England. Instead, he went back to his home county to Tideswell and ran a free school there.

Nicholas went to the English College at Rheims to start his studies on July 22 1581. He was ordained a priest less than a year later. Ten months passed before he left for the English mission. Nicholas Garlick's movements in England in 1584 were followed by Thomas Dodwell, a former student at Rheims who had turned spy. He was arrested in London, imprisoned and then banished from England. But less then two days after arriving back in Rheims in 1585 he was on the way back into dangerous England. Little is known of his ministry before being arrested a Padley House.

Robert Ludlam was born in the mid 16th century. Two accounts are in conflict about where he was born - one says Whirlow, Sheffield, but another says Radbourne near Derby. He entered St John's College, Oxford in 1572. Eight years later Robert was at Rheims and ordained a year later.

In April 1582 he set out for England. Monk Fr Robert Bagshawe wrote of Robert: "for his majesty and good life and zeal to win souls to God, was beloved of all that love the Catholic Church."

Before the start of Mass there was a bloke practising the music with the congregation. As it is a joint pilgrimage between two dioceses, he asked people from both Hallam and Nottingham to welcome each other with a round of applause. Then he asked whether there was anyone else. I put my hand up and shouted I was a naive of the Middlesbrough Diocese. I got a clap as well. A bit embarrasing.

The Mass was celebrated by Bishop Malcolm McMahon with Bishop John Rawsthorne at his side. Preaching was Father Anthony Dolan, archivist of Nottingham Diocese. He spoke about the history of the pilgrimage, which has been going for well over 100 years. He also detailed the road to getting the chapel into Catholic hands and restoring it to its former glory.

We sang the Credo in Latin and most people spontaneously stood to boom out Faith of Our Fathers across the Valley after Communion. The Mass was attended by between 400 and 500 people of all ages. Noticeably, there was quite a few young people, far more than were at the Postgate Rally seven days prior to the feast of the Padley Martyrs I'm afraid.

And this is the key - to get more young Catholics going events like these. The story of the martyrs are inspirational and these brave saints and blesseds provide fantastic role models then any pop starts or famous actors.

(Sorry the pictures are small and rubbish. I forgot to take my camera with me. These are taken from my mobile phone)

Assisted suicide clause defeated but serious worries for the future

Thank God that Lord Folkner's amendment to open the floodgates to legalised assisted suicide failed on Tuesday. However, it's rather concerning that the majority against it was only 53. And, even more worrying, were some of the chilling statements by proponents of the amendment.

These are summarised by Lord "assisted dying" Joffe:

"...whether the amendment is passed or not is not relevant to the final decision that will be taken. In a democratic country, where 80 per cent of the population support assisted dying, it will eventually be decriminalised."

Lord Joffe, one of parliament's leading campaigners to legalised assisted suicide, made a bumbling speech towards the end of Tuesday's debate in the House of Lords. Ruffling through dozens of papers, regularly changing the line of his argument and stuttering throughout, Lord Joffe's contribution was a series of ill-thought out mumbles. And to top it all off, his microphone sounded like it was faulty. Like many of those speaking in favour of the bill, he was keen to point out at the outset that this was a "narrow amendment" - and then proceeded to tell us about why assisted suicide should be legalised. But what I did gather from his speech was an important observation:

- that the people who help their terminally ill relatives to travel to Switzerland so they can end their life are described as "loved ones" and deserve protection from the law


How can anyone who helps their relative to kill themselves be described as a "loved one"? Lord Joffe's says such people are "acting out of love and affection for the people whom they are accompanying to Switzerland or elsewhere in order to give those people whom they love care and support..." Helping someone to kill themselves is not an act of love. An act of love is to care for the person in their suffering and provide better palliative care.

In his speech, Lord Joffe pointed towards the Oregon law as the model for legalised assisted dying. he said:

"...in Oregon there were a number of terminally ill patients who received prescriptions and did not exercise them. The evidence that we heard in Oregon was to the effect that this was so. Those patients who had prescriptions felt that, when they received their prescription, an enormous load was lifted from their shoulders because they knew that, if things got out of control, they could end their suffering by ending their lives."

And this brings me to the second area of concern in the debate - the notion of suffering.

In his speech Lord Low of Dalston said:

"Eighty-two per cent of the general public surveyed in a 1996 British Social Attitudes Survey thought that they should have the right to ask a doctor to end their life if suffering from an incurable and painful disease...

As a disabled person, I lead a full and fulfilling life, which I hope will go on for as long as possible. As I say, when the time comes for it to end, I hope that I could avail myself of the benefit of legislation such as is enshrined in this amendment. As someone who is not afraid of disability but, like many people, who is afraid of terminal illness, I urge noble Lords to support the amendment."

Lord Goodhart said:

"for a small number of people and a small number of diseases—notably, motor neurone disease—palliative care is in many cases insufficient. The last weeks of the people who suffer from those diseases will be grim, painful and degrading, and I do not believe that they are acting wrongly in wanting to commit suicide to cut short a horrible ending. If they need help, I do not think that their helpers are acting wrongly in giving them that help. That is why I support the amendment...

The noble and learned Lord, Lord Mackay of Clashfern, based his argument on respect for human life. My argument is also based on respect for human life. When someone close to the end of their life, in pain and distress, wants to die, it is no respect for their life to force them to stay alive."

Listening to these arguments being passionately put by pro-death politicians makes me think one of the only ways (apart from the sanctity and dignity of the human being) to persuade people that assisted suicide profoundly wrong is dangerous to society is to offer a way of how suffering can be a good thing and how it is a necessary part of life. The only key to unlock the explanation of suffering is Jesus Christ on the Cross.

Pope John Paul II's encyclical Evangelium Vitae and the Catechism of the Catholic Church help us greatly to find that key. I pick out the relevant parts:

"In a social and cultural context which makes it more difficult to face and accept suffering, the temptation becomes all the greater to resolve the problem of suffering by eliminating it at the root, by hastening death so that it occurs at the moment considered most suitable...

"Various considerations usually contribute to such a decision, all of which converge in the same terrible outcome...

"All this is aggravated by a cultural climate which fails to perceive any meaning or value in suffering, but rather considers suffering the epitome of evil, to be eliminated at all costs. This is especially the case in the absence of a religious outlook which could help to provide a positive understanding of the mystery of suffering..."

The Catechism says:

"On the cross Christ took upon himself the whole weight of evil and took away the "sin of the world," of which illness is only a consequence. By his passion and death on the cross Christ has given a new meaning to suffering: it can henceforth configure us to him and unite us with his redemptive Passion...

"Suffering, a consequence of original sin, acquires a new meaning; it becomes a participation in the saving work of Jesus."

In suffering, we are united with Christ on the Cross. It is very difficult for so many people to cope with pain, especially when serious illness is involved. The young, old and disabled can have a real battle on their hands when a illness results in them losing some of their sense and abilities. But in Jesus Christ, Saviour and Redeemer, the sick have a Wonderful Counsellor.

Let us hope the growing number of people who express their pro-suicide message in polls or politicians who vote for it in the lobbies come to know this liberating message.

Postgate Rally

In a field of nettles and cow pat overlooking the stunning North Yorkshire Moors, about 200 Catholics proudly honoured their county's courageous martyr and all those of England and Wales. This is a part of England where small villages have Catholic churches in a prominent position and are still very much open. You could say you are breathing Roman Catholic air. The annual Mass in honour of Blessed Nicholas Postgate, this year in picturesque Egton Bridge, was celebrated in scorching sunshine. Umbrellas were used for a strange reason from the Yorkshireman's point of view - to shade from the sun.

A procession of priests, including monks from Ampleforth Abbey carrying Bl. Postgate's hand and chalice, paced down under a railway a bridge and past a pub named after the martyr as locals and visitors looked on curiously at the spectacle. The priests turned into the field that would inevitably have been trodden in by Fr Postgate. Unlike his time where Mass was held in secret, this was the start of a Mass in open air, something that wouldn't have been possible without the witness of the elderly priest and that of other martyrs.

It was Bishop Terence Patrick Drainey's first Postgate Rally since becoming Bishop of Middlebrough. In his homily, he said he was inspired by the English martyrs and asked for their intercession regularly. His strong connections with Ushaw College (which was originally Douai) and the Royal English College in Valladolid brought him into contact with many of them. Before being installed, Bishop Terry went to York to pray to St Margaret Clitherow and then to Beverley to install a baptismal font at the Church of St John of Beverley. He said the Diocese of Middlesbrough had a rich Catholic heritage and a lengthy list of saints. The priest of the moors had a "powerful powerlessness", he said.

Fr Postgate was hanged, drawn and quartered in his early 80s, the last of the penal time martyrs to be executed. After his ordination, Fr Postgate was chaplain to a couple of recusant Catholic families, including the Constables at Burton Constable Hall, East Yorkshire. After a number of years he returned to his native north Yorkshire to minister posed as a roaming gardener.

He is most renowned for his work in the Esk Valley and Pickering areas of North Yorkshire. He celebrated Mass in various locations. They were advertised by white sheets being put on hedges in a nearby field. By 1665, he is said to have increased the regional Catholic population by 2,400. After decades of evading the authorities, priest catchers barged into a house in Redcar where he was celebrating a baptism. His fate was sealed.

The Bishop announced at the end of Mass that people could venerate Blessed Postgate's hand, that was wrapped in a small red veil. The concelebrating priests went forward one by one. As soon as they started to process off, people scurried towards the altar to kiss the sacred relic.

This is one of my favourite events of the year when I can make it up there. I drove up from Kettering on Saturday evening to Ampleforth to stay with Ryan Day who teaches there. We went for a sublime meal at the White Swan in Ampleforth village. It looked like a popular venue for a Saturday evening. In the morning, we went up the road to the glorious Ryedale town of Helmsley for breakfast. Back at the college later in the morning we had a game of tennis before the heavens opened. We made our way to Egton Bridge across the rugged North Yorkshire Moors at about 1.30pm.

Luckily, the weather improved which meant the decision was taken to have Mass outside. Afterwards, some of us went up the road to Whitby for the best fish and chips in the world. Fr William Massie kindly paid for me as I could not find a cash machine anywhere (don't worry, I'll pay you back). After eating I spotted Fr David Grant with some of his Bridlington parishioners. Father, a keen historian, brought me a lemonade in a pub and told me some of the tales of Postgate and the other martyrs. It was then time for the long drive to Northamptonshire. It's amazing what you can do in just over 24 hours.

Apologies that there's no pictures to illustrate the Rally at the moment. I did take my camera but I discovered it had a dead battery on arrival. However, after asking Mr Catholic and Loving It if I could nab some of his photos, he gave me his camera and asked me to take over for the afternoon. I think the agreement allows me to use the pictures. When he uploads I'll put some up here.

Cardinal John Henry Newman to become Blessed

This evening, I opened the Vatican Information service email that drops into my inbox and was filled with joy as I scrolled down.

It reads:

DECREES OF THE CONGREGATION FOR THE CAUSES OF SAINTS

"VATICAN CITY, 3 JUL 2009 (VIS) - Today, during a private audience with Archbishop Angelo Amato S.D.B., prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, the Pope authorised the congregation to promulgate the following decrees:"

Then, under miracles:

"Servant of God John Henry Newman, English cardinal and founder of the Oratories of St. Philip Neri in England (1801-1890)."

What a great day for English Catholicism. It's not often you see miracles approved for the cause of an Englishmen. In fact, there probably hasn't been one in my lifetime. How exciting.

Amid all the stuff about lack of vocations, dwindling Mass numbers, child abuse scandals, increasing secularisation, closure of Catholic adoption agencies because of an ass of a law, rampant abortion, creeping euthanasia - it is announced that we have beatified Englishman for the first time in decades. What a breath of fresh air. Lets hope Newman will inspire young Catholics to be counter cultural.

Public meeting

A public meeting led by John Smeaton, National Director of the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC), takes place in Hull on Tuesday, July 14. John's talk will be on the pro-life battle ahead.

It's on at St Joseph's Church Hall, Pickering Road, Hull, HU4 6TN and starts at 7.30pm. Light refreshments will be provided.