Saints This Month - 30 April St Pius V

Pius V was Pope during one of the most turbulent and unstable times in the history of Christendom. Europe had been torn apart by the reformation and by the time of Pius’s election in 1556, Protestantism was strongly established in many regions of Europe. Pius V was the right man to lead and accelerate the Catholic reformation.

He joined the Order of Preachers in 1518, a year after Martin Luther had published the 95 Theses. His Dominican life, from the beginning, was very much concerned with defending the Church against the heresies of the time. After teaching in Pavia, where he had published many apologetic works, he was sent on an inquisitorial mission in Como.

His virtuous defence of the Church was also complemented by a zeal for reform within the Church. Many of the criticisms of the Church stemmed from the moral laxity of certain clerics, especially the Popes. As a Prior, Pius insisted on discipline and simplicity within his houses. His example and reforming nature led to his elevation to the episcopate. He was held in such high regard that he was made a Cardinal and given the honour of the Supreme Inquisitorship.

He was elected Pope in 1566 at the age of 62. He immediately began to create an atmosphere of discipline in the Church of Rome. He reduced the cost and excesses of the Papal court and compelled residence amongst the clergy. Within the city of Rome he expelled prostitutes and regulated the inns. His most important work however was the enforcement of the canons and decrees of the Council of Trent. In 1570 he promulgated a new edition of the Roman Missal. He also excommunicated Elizabeth I of England in an attempt to win England back to the Church.

He was pivotal in forming a Holy League to defend Europe from the Turks, culminating in the victorious Battle of Lepanto. Pius was made aware of the triumph in a vision, attributed the victory to Our Lady's intercession and instituted the feast of Our Lady of Victory, now celebrated as Our Lady of the Rosary.

Pius V was the right Pope for the right time. His leadership consolidated and strengthened the Church in the most turbulent of times. He united the Catholic Princes of Europe when they were under threat from foes both spiritual and military. His reforms and reinforcement of discipline were a shot-in the-arm for the Catholic reformation and provided a base for renewal and resurgence in the Church.

Spiritual notes from a small island...... The Cloud of Unknowing

The Cloud of Unknowing is a fourteenth century work by an anonymous English author. Over the years, there has been much speculation about the identity of the author, and it has often been said that he was a Carthusian monk. One thing that is clear from the text is that its author was certainly learned, well versed in scholastic theology. There is also a very clear influence of Pseudo-Dionysius, whom the author quotes directly in chapter seventy: 'The most Godlike knowledge of God is that which is known by unknowing’. Pseudo-Dionysius, who was then widely thought to be a follower of Paul (see Acts 17), is used as source and authority for the ideas that The Cloud proposes. The author asserts that we can know more about what God is not than about what God is. This theology informs his approach to the contemplative life, and in this he stands among many influential writers, including St John of Cross, who wrote some two centuries later.

Pseudo-Dionysius held that there were two ways of knowing God, through reason (logos) and through contemplation (mustikon theama). The former comes from investigation of what God has revealed, especially in the Scriptures. This knowledge can be negative - God is not x - as well as positive - God is x - but not in any way that we can comprehend - God is utterly other. The Dionysian contemplative way relies on negative theology as its basis. We are limited in what we can know about God, but we can enter into the mystery through contemplation, illuminated by God’s grace. Contemplative knowledge comes only when the senses are purified of reliance on the created order for ideas about God. 

It is this which concerns the author of The Cloud. Whilst the author is reliant on his Scholastic and Dionysian background for his theoretical framework, his work is concerned mainly with the practice of contemplation. The first sense we get from reading the book is that the call to the contemplative life is just that: a call. And this is a work for those who think that they have that call, and are willing to respond humbly, and desire to love God with their whole heart. To undertake this contemplative path involves ‘forgetting all created things’, and the contemplative will find ‘only darkness, as it were, a cloud of unknowing’. This is nothing more than the beginnings of a reaching towards God. This darkness is not a state of mind, something akin to depression, but rather a state of a lack of knowledge. The person is reaching out for the one who is unknown. To live in this cloud, there has to be a ‘cloud of forgetting’ between the person and the created order.

What then does the contemplative think of during meditation? How can one think of and strive for that which is unknown? The author’s answer is: ‘I do not know!’ Feeding the neophyte with images would immediately destroy the foundation of his or her striving for God. This is not to say, however, that the contemplative has no need of knowledge at all. Study of the Word of God is essential, since it is like a mirror, in which we see the face of our conscience. Any dirty marks on the face should be washed by confession. Later, when these aids have been used, the contemplative is better prepared to be still and silent in the presence of God, using a single word to help focus attention. Words such as ‘God’ or ‘Spirit’ can be clung to as a way of keeping all other thoughts about the created order at bay. During prayer many thoughts may come, but these can be harmful. Memories can have a negative effect, even become sources for the deadly sins of anger, pride, sloth, envy, avarice, gluttony and lust. Above all, the author of The Cloud makes it clear that the contemplative path requires humility. This requires self-knowledge, being realistic about who we are, both the good and bad aspects. It is imperfect to start with, because our motives for humility are mixed. We may be motivated by a curiosity about ourselves, rather than a desire to be humbled to receive from God. Only God himself can draw a person through grace to perfect humility, where God, and God alone, is sought.

The Cloud has much to say on the story of Martha and Mary. Mary is the example of the contemplative, who simply sat silent and still with the Lord, ready to drink in what he had to reveal to her. Martha’s activity was important and good, but she had not understood that Mary had a different calling, that of contemplation. The Cloud also makes the link between contemplation and relations with others. It seems strange that in contemplation we are to forget the created order. Does this not have a negative effect on relations with others? The answer seems to be no. When a contemplative has dealings with others, he does not make distinctions ‘between friend or foe’. The effect of the contemplation is that each person is seen as having equal value or dignity. The contemplative endeavour should feed back into the world.

Although not all of us will have the call to be a contemplative of the kind that The Cloud is written for, there are nevertheless many things in the work that are of value for us all. In particular we should remember that God is utterly other, and resist the temptation to think that we know and understand God's ways. A God that can be pinned down and domesticated is a 'god', an idol. We are to be humble in approaching God, opening our hearts and minds to what he reveals in the Scriptures, through the Church, and in prayer. Humility is not only something which concerns the contemplative religious, but is essential for all who wish to grow in their spiritual and moral life. We are also to bear in mind that contemplation is only genuine if it transforms us, making us more aware of the awesome love of God, and empowering us to love others as we should. Leaving behind all images and ideas in contemplation is not a form of escapism, a way of denying the goodness of creation, but rather a way of searching for God that will transform the lives we lead as part of that created order.

An online text of The Cloud of Unknowing may be found here.

Spiritual notes from a small island..... Mother Julian of Norwich: Showings of God's Love

Very little is known about Mother Julian of Norwich (d.1442). Not even her name is left to us, and she is called after the church of St Julian in Norwich, where she lived as an 'anchoress' walled up in a small room attached to the church. She belongs to a great flowering of medieval English mysticism but unlike the Rhineland mystics, Julian and the other English mystics did not live in a religious community, and Julian lived a hermit's life (albeit with a cat).

From her little cell in Norwich, she journeyed into the heart of God, and over many years she received visions - "by bodily sight, and by word formed in my understanding, and by spiritual sight" - of God's passionate love for all humankind. And these 'Showings' were intended for a greater audience, and thus she wrote them down and preached from her anchorite's cell, and to many people, what she had contemplated of God's grace and love. The collection of her writings, 'The Sixteen Revelations of Divine Love' (c.1393), is thought to be the first book written by a woman in English, and has been likened to a traveller's first-hand description of what she had seen and experienced.

As with most Christian mystics down the ages, what they learn through contemplation is meant to be preached and given to others, so that all may benefit from their gift of spiritual insight. For such is the direction of Love: that it flows outwards and seeks the good of the other. So, Julian says at the end of her work: "Would you know Your Lord's meaning in this thing? Know it well. Love was His meaning. Who showed it to you? Love. Why did He show it to you? For Love."

Mother Julian is rightly popular today for her 'optimism', notably her teaching that we are loved into existence and held in being by God's love, and that at the end of all things, "all will be well" for "all that is done is well done, since our Lord God does all". This expression of God's wise providential care is coupled with her famous image of God's love. She saw that all creation is being held in God's hand, as small and insignificant as a hazelnut, and all this God held in being because of his eternal and unchanging love. Of course, her doctrine of being and providence is not by any means new; her revelations are an assimilation of the Scriptures and the wisdom of the Fathers and Catholic theologians. For example, St Thomas Aquinas certainly taught that God, who is Love, is the reason that creation exists - that there is something rather than nothing - and the continuation of created being is evidence of God's undying love which is holding all things, including us, in being. Julian, however, sees these metaphysical doctrines with child-like clarity and we can be grateful to her for popularising this Catholic doctrine of creation. Indeed, it is all too easy to forget that all of creation is good, and its very existence is a sign of God's on-going love and care; Julian reminds us of this. Similarly, she reminds us of the promise given in the Biblical book of Revelation that Christ has conquered all evil, so that at the end of time, all things will be made new in Christ and so indeed, all will be made good again. Thus, Julian emphasises the eternal embrace of divine love, in which we have been "loved and known in his endless purpose from without-beginning". Wrapped up in the clothing of God's love that "embraces us... so that he can never leave us", so Julian also emphasises the confidence that we ought to have in God's goodness, for in his providence and love "he has made all things profitable to us".

Nevertheless, Julian is also aware of sin and the need for conversion through love and humility. Like the best Catholic theologians, she says: "I saw truly that sin is no-deed" for there is no goodness in sin, and only the good has being, for it is held in being by God's love. Sin, then, is a falling short of good and sinfulness describes the lack of good in a deed; its no-deed, so to speak. Julian says that "because of our changeability we fall often into sin". Only God is constant and true; we, however, are "affected by the promptings of our enemy, and by our own folly and blindness". Hence Julian does not fear sin. Indeed she considers it to be an inevitable part of the human condition. However, what she does fear is the sort of dread that paralyses us from approaching God after we have sinned. How many still avoid receiving God's forgiveness in the sacrament of confession because of fear, or how many deny they have sinned because they fear admitting failure and imperfection?

For Julian, then, what is to be feared is the lack of contrition, and indeed, the fear that may arise from sin and lead to despair. St John tells us that perfect love casts out fear, and so Julian emphasises that we have to be founded in God's love and confident of his mercy so that when we sin, we should not run away "with this false dread of our wretchedness and the pain that [the Devil] threatens us with" but we should rather be "aware of our wretchedness, and flee to our Lord" and then, "meekly and patiently bear the penance that God gives us", suffering alongside our beloved Lord Jesus who endured the Passion for our salvation. So, she says, "the remedy is that our Lord is with us, keeping us, and leading us to fullness of joy". Again, she says, "He is the ground of all our life in love; and furthermore... he is our everlasting Keeper, and mightily defends us against those enemies of ours who fiercely attack us", and our need of Christ is greater, the more we fall into sin. The admission of our sinfulness and our need for a Saviour requires humility on our part, and it would actually be spiritual pride to deny this and avoid the embrace of the Divine Physician.

So much more can be gleaned from her writings, but we can see three elements played out in what has been mentioned thus far. At the beginning of the Revelations, Julian says that she asked for three wounds in her life: "the wound of true contrition, the wound of kind compassion, and the wound of earnest longing for God". The first wound is essentially about ourselves: it is the wound that we all bear as sinful creatures, and once we are at peace with our sinful condition, we can accept our need for Jesus Christ, our Saviour and "flee to him". The second wound concerns our relationship with other people, whom we should treat with kindness, and this is evident in Julian's writing, her gentleness, and the fact that she was a well-known spiritual counsellor in her time. The third wound concerns our relationship with God, and it is this that she says "dwelt [in her heart] continually". This desire for God, which is written into every human heart, and grows in love, the more we know and experience God's love, providence and mercy, is that which directs us to our final end in God and leads us home to him. And it is this divine love for God and from God that oversees the other two 'wounds'. Hence she says: "As his love for us is never broken for our sins, even so it is his will that our love should not be broken either for ourselves or for others. But he wills that we should hate the sin in itself, and endlessly love the soul of the sinner, as God loves it; then we would hate sin as God hates it." So, the soul which longs for God, longs for goodness and being, and so shuns sin which is no-deed, absence of good and of being.

With these wounds imprinted on the heart, Julian has given us the core of the Christian faith; the Christian's confidence in God and hope in salvation through a loving God who is the cause of our good and being. Thus, fr Jordan Aumann OP has said that Julian is of "considerable importance in the history of spirituality and precisely because she gives testimony to the workings and manifestation of grace in the mystical life." That mystical life is not restricted to the few but is promised to all of us who, like her, would have Jesus Christ as Friend.

An online text of The Revelations of Divine Love can be found here.

Bearly tall enough...

"And now we know the excellence of this pillar, which the bright fire lights for the honour of God. Which fire, though now divided, suffers no loss from the communication of its light, because it is fed by the melted wax, which the mother bee wrought for the substance of this precious lamp" (from the Exsultet).

Hearing it was made by honeybees Br Ursus volunteered to light the Paschal candle.

A Dominican Vocation

I suppose I must have been about twelve or thirteen when the thought first came to me of giving my life to the service of God in some sort of exciting and radical way; at the time I was an Anglican, and the only way I knew of to do this was to become a clergyman. Such thoughts as these led me to think and find out in more depth about what I believed, and this process of investigation eventually resulted in me deciding to become a Catholic, which I did just as I was leaving school; at the time I wondered whether perhaps it was to the Catholic Church, rather than priesthood, that God had been leading me all along.

My first year at university, however, which was also my first year as a Catholic, led me to conclude that this was not the case. The university chaplaincy provided a place where I could deepen my knowledge of the Faith, and also taught me the joy of belonging to a vibrant Christian community: indeed, some of us spent so much time there, it was almost like a religious community! And during this time, rather than going away, that sense of some sort of vocation to the priesthood became stronger, and, in a context where there were other people thinking about the same thing, it came to seem more realistic too.

So I decided to go and speak to my chaplain, and his first suggestion was to go and take a look at the Dominicans: this was very convenient, because there happens to be a Dominican priory in Cambridge, where I was studying, and a couple of the friars, as well as some Dominican sisters were involved in the chaplaincy. All the Dominicans I met seemed like very interesting people, and at the same time, what I came to learn of the Order appealed to me: the focus on preaching and apostolic work, nourished by a religious life in community, seemed to me like the best of both worlds (an opinion which I, unwittingly at the time, shared with St Thomas Aquinas).

The next step, then, was to get in touch with the Vocations Director, who gave me various things to read about the Order, as well as encouraging me to visit some of the other houses of the province: this only confirmed the impression that I was on to something here. Then, as part of my degree (in modern languages), I had to spend a year in Russia, where I was able to see the Faith being lived in very different surroundings and also, during the time I spent in St Petersburg, to get to know the only Dominican community in Russia.

I returned to England for the final year of my studies fairly sure that I wanted to apply for the Order: I knew this sense of vocation wasn’t going to go away, and if I was wrong, the only way to get rid of it would be to try it out and see it didn’t work, while if I was right, then it would obviously make sense to apply. In either case, there seemed to be no advantage in delay, so I applied for admission that year. After various interviews, I was accepted, receiving the habit the September after I graduated.

A vocation to serve in the Church as a priest or religious is something public, confirmed by the public action of the Church, and so I can only be sure of it when, if it is indeed God’s will, the Provincial receives my solemn profession and, later, the Bishop lays on his hands in ordination: in the meantime, I’m praying that God will indeed grant me this grace, because so far I’ve absolutely loved being a Dominican. Please pray for me too!

Br Gregory Pearson is a first year student.

Spiritual notes from a small island..... St. Aelred of Rievaulx - 'Spiritual Friendship'

St. Aelred was born in Hexham in the North East of England in 1110. He came from a family whose members were noted for their learning, and had noble ties. Aelred was educated at the court of King David I of Scotland, and served as steward of the king’s table. During this time, he read Cicero’s On Friendship, which had a lasting influence. At the age of twenty four, he entered the Cistercian Abbey at Rievaulx, and was elected as its Abbot in 1147. His most notable works include The Mirror of Charity, Dialogue on the Soul, and The Pastoral Prayer. Not surprisingly, Aelred's outlook is a synthesis of his classical education and the Cistercian tradition. We find in his writings a strong influence of the thought of St. Bernard of Clairvaux, in particular, the emphasis on love. His theology was formed in the crucible of monastic life, and it is in living this life that he developed a sense of the importance of experience in developing theological ideas, and for progress in the spiritual life.

Monastic life has at its heart a tension, between the eremitical dimension and community life. Each monk is in some sense a loner, a solitary. But nevertheless, he lives in community, in relation to others. This reality has important lessons for all of us. We are all unique individuals, but we must also relate to others. So often, modern 'spirituality' emphasises the individual and his or her lone quest for God. But the search for God is one which requires relations with others. Aelred's Spiritual Friendship is about this very thing - the role of friendship in the search for God.

The dialogue structure of Spiritual Friendship immediately shows the importance of others in the spiritual life. Modeled on Cicero's De Amicitia, Aelred presents a dialogue between himself and other monks, whom he considers his friends. It starts as a dialogue between Aelred and Ivo, with a third, Christ, present with them. They aim to learn about friendship from a friend, and in the presence of Christ, who calls us friends. The dialogue shows a process of mutual discovery. The two friends identify that there are different levels of friendship. There are friendships based solely on sense pleasure, which is the lowest kind. There are also friendships based on temporal advantage and possessions. The highest level of friendship is based on Christ's New Commandment of love, a 'spiritual friendship' attained through conforming to Christ by wholesome interaction, without thought of gain. This kind of friendship is important because it is humanising, and raises the two friends to love of God through their love for each other

So we can see that in Aelred's thought, the moral life is central to the life with God and others. True friendship must involve a mutual striving for perfection, for harmony with each other and for union with God. The two friends selflessly support each other. This means that we must discern carefully who should be our friend. The growth in friendship is gradual, and we should be prudent in deciding who will be given access to our innermost thoughts. Vicious tendencies in either party will always be an obstacle to true friendship.

The five vices Aelred thinks are most destructive are slander, reproach, pride, betrayal of confidence and detraction. Unless both parties are perfect, these vices will inevitably show themselves. However, they can be overcome if there is repentance and a purpose of amendment. Those who are quick to anger, the fickle, and those who are overly suspicious of others will struggle to find true friendship unless they are able to amend their ways. True friends treat each other with a Christ-like gentleness and sympathy. They are constant in their love, frank, and congenial. When the friendship has these characteristics, it can be said to be a true friendship, a 'spiritual friendship', one which builds up both parties and helps them journey towards God.

Aelred's ideas are a challenge to many modern concepts of the spiritual life. If we are to grow towards being united with God, we must grow and develop in our relationships with others. It is not simply about 'me and God', to the exclusion of the other. The spiritual and the moral are intertwined, and we cannot have spiritual growth if we do not develop in the way that we relate to others. We need constantly to examine our relationships with others, and if necessary, be prepared to modify them so that they really are paths towards union with God.

Gaudium Paschale!

The Dominican brothers at Blackfriars Oxford wish all Godzdogz readers

a blessed and joyous Easter!

Above is a view of the priory church during the Easter Vigil, and below, fr David Rocks OP sings the Exsultet. A recording of the Exsultet, made perviously, is found below:

Easter Sunday - O Happy Fault!

Readings: Acts 10:34, 37-43; Psalm 117; Colossians 3:1-4 [or 1 Corinthians 5:6-8]; John 20:1-9

At the Easter Vigil when the Exultet is sung, we hear the words O happy fault, O necessary sin of Adam, which gained for us so great a Redeemer! Reflecting on these words can help us understand what Christ has done for us by His death and resurrection.

When the human being was first created, he was in a state of original justice. There was a relationship of trust and friendship between God and humanity. His body and soul were so united in accordance with God’s will, that the human soul had an inherent disposition which preserved the body from death and corruption.

The first sin of humanity was a betrayal of this trusting friendship with God. Humanity desired the wisdom and knowledge of God so that he might become equal to God and no longer subject to His will. With this great rebellion, the perfect order and harmony of creation was lost and humankind became subject to death. Even though this is all we deserve, God did not abandon us in this sorry state. He sent His only Son into the world so that death could be conquered and humankind’s original friendship with God could be restored.

In St John's gospel we read that the High Priest Caiaphas said it is better that one man should die for the people, rather than that the whole nation should perish. The reasoning Caiaphas uses is rather like the reasoning some modern utilitarian philosophers use. But Jesus did not accept His own death because He wanted to preserve the status quo; rather, He freely accepted His death because He wanted God’s reigning presence to break forth into the world. In Christ’s death and resurrection we see that God’s justice is real. He vindicates the innocent; He is full of mercy, compassion and forgiveness; He loves us more than we can know.

With Christ’s conquering of death, it is not simply a matter of things being restored to how they were before the Fall - much more has happened. God has freely given to humanity that which humanity originally tried to take by force. Because God became truly like us, and died and rose again for us, we now have the opportunity of becoming truly like Him.

Lamentation of the prophet Jeremiah

Each day during Tenebrae, the first reading is taken from the book of Lamentations, and it is sung in English to a traditional Dominican chant tune. Below is a video from the Lamentation sung on Holy Saturday morning by fr Robert Gay, OP.

Tenebrae on Good Friday

Below is an edited video of two responsories from Matins, and of the Benedictus sung during Lauds, which are all part of the Office of Tenebrae celebrated in Blackfriars Oxford on Good Friday morning.



Translations:

The veil of the temple was torn, and all the earth shook.
The thief cried from the cross, saying: 'Remember me, Lord, when you come into your kingdom'.
Amen, I say to you, today you shall be with me in paradise.
Remember me, Lord...

They betrayed me into the hands of sinners, and threw me amongst the wicked, and they had no pity on my soul.
Strong men have gathered against me, and like giants they stand over me.
The kings of the earth stood by, and princes gathered together.
And like giants...

Oratio Ieremiae

The prayer of the prophet Jeremiah, from Lamentations chapter 5, is chanted during Tenebrae on Holy Saturday. It is sung this year at Blackfriars, Oxford by fr Lawrence Lew OP, and below is a new video and recording of the Oratio Ieremiae:

The Prayer of Jeremiah the prophet:

Remember, O Lord, what has come upon us: consider and behold our reproach.

Our inheritance is turned over to aliens, our houses to strangers.

We are become like orphans without a father, our mothers are as widows.

We must pay for the water we drink; the wood we get must be bought.

We are dragged by the neck; no rest is given to the weary.

We have given our hand to Egypt and to the Assyrians to get bread enough.

Our fathers have sinned and are not, and we have borne their iniquities.

Slaves have ruled over us; there was none to redeem us from their hand.

We fetched bread at the peril of our lives because of the sword in the desert.

Our skin is scorched as an oven because of the violence of hunger.

They ravished women in Zion and virgins in the cities of Judah.

Princes were hung up by their hands; no respect was shown to the elders.

Young men were shamefully used and boys collapsed under the loads of wood.

The old men have gone from the gates, young men from the choirs of singers.

All joy is gone from our hearts; our dancing is turned into mourning.

The crown is fallen from our head; woe to us because we have sinned.

For this our heart has become sick; therefore our eyes have grown dim.

Because of Mount Zion that is destroyed jackals prowl all over it.

But you, O Lord, will remain for ever, your throne from generation to generation.

Why do you forget us for ever, forsake us for so many long days?

Restore us, Lord, to you and we shall be restored; renew our days as from the beginning.

But you have utterly rejected us, furiously angry against us.

Jerusalem, Jerusalem, return to the Lord your God.

Holy Saturday - The Stillness of the Tomb

Today is a day of strange quietness.  We have lived through the sorrowful passion of Our Lord, walked with him the Way of the Cross, and stood at its foot with Our Lady and St. John, hardly daring to believe that God incarnate could be so treated.  But at last, his terrible suffering is over. Those who condemned him, mocked him and tortured him can do no more to hurt him now: he has passed beyond their reach. 

In the silence of this day when Christ is present in the tomb we have a chance to reflect on the depth of the love that brought him to give his life for us, to see his death both as an atoning sacrifice and as a victory over death and the powers of hell.  Now he has descended to the dead to free those who died in the peace of God and reside in Abraham’s bosom, and to take them to his heavenly kingdom.  Those who have awaited him for so long, from our first parents Adam and Eve, to the last God-fearing people to die before him, are finally taken from this place of waiting into paradise. 

And yet, this day feels strange because it is so in-between.  We mourn the death of Our Lord and saviour; yet still await his triumphant resurrection.  We feel sorrowful and yet we are filled with a joyful hope, for we know that his death is not the end.  This mysterious, liturgical time of waiting is a powerful way in which to understand the situation of the Church militant – the Church on earth, for we believe in a God who has already come to us and made his home among us, revealed himself to us as the God who is love, and yet we await his glorious return when he will make all things new. 

On this day of liturgical anticipation, let our hearts be made ready to celebrate the resurrection of Our Lord and saviour, so that we may face him without fear when he comes again to judge the living and the dead.

  

Good Friday - Humbled for a Season

Readings: Isaiah 52:13 - 53:12; Psalm 31; Hebrews 4:14-16, 5:7-9; John 18:1-19:42

The Good Friday liturgy begins with a dramatic gesture that hearkens to the words with which we began our Lenten journey. Just as we were told "remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return", so the priest recalls this by falling prostrate, humbling himself to the dust of the earth. For the word humilitas comes from humus, meaning earth or ground. The act of prostration is, according to the Nine Ways of Prayer of St Dominic, an expression of humility on account of our sinfulness and St Dominic could be heard saying, as he lay flat on the ground, "God, be merciful to me a sinner". Our Lenten journey, then, has been about this: coming back down to earth, having exalted ourselves; humbling ourselves before God and seeking His mercy.

In Blackfriars we follow the medieval practice of creeping to the Cross which involves three prostrations as we approach the Cross to venerate it. Again, St Dominic's Nine Ways tells us that he would perform the prostration "to teach the brethren with what reverence they ought to pray", for this was the posture of adoration. This, then, is the posture befitting a creature before God, and so, the prostration shows justice restored, making right what humankind, by their sinfulness and rebellious pride, had done wrong. Thus we express now, before the Tree of Life, the humility and obedience that our ancestors, Adam and Eve, had not shown before that Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil in Eden. And so, creation is restored to its proper order.

However, it is not sinful humankind that restores justice and puts right its relationship with God. It is not we who have humbled ourselves before God and merited His forgiveness. None of this is our doing. As the liturgy proclaims in these days, Christus factus est pro nobis..., 'Christ for our sake became obedient unto death, even death on a Cross'. And this is what the Good Friday liturgy recounts. The prostrations symbolise the humbling of Jesus Christ, our God who became Man because of His love for us, and who suffered and died for our sake. Through His profound humility and obedience shown on the Cross, He has restored order to His creation and won for us and for all people, God's forgiveness and salvation. And so, this Friday is called Good, for on this day all is made good again.

And the antiphon continues: Propter quod et Deus exaltavit illum..., 'Therefore God has exalted Him'. We are wont to exalt ourselves but Christ is exalted by God and raised high on the Cross, his Throne of Glory, to draw all humanity to himself. And so, we creep to the Cross, humbly approaching our humble King enthroned on the Cross, the suffering High Priest at His Cruciform Altar, and we kiss the Cross as a sign, not of betrayal (as Judas did), but of embrace, acceptance and love. Through this kiss, we signal our desire to be one with Jesus Christ, to share His humility, and so, to share the exaltation and glory of Him who is "the source of eternal salvation for all who obey Him" (Hebrews 5:9).

Scenes from Holy Week in Blackfriars

From Monday to Wednesday of Holy Week this year, the Dominican students prayed the Stations of the Cross in our priory church in Oxford. Each day, a different brother led the meditations, pausing at one of the stations to preach a short reflection. The videos of those reflections were posted on Godzdogz earlier this week. Below are some photos from the Stations of the Cross:









On Spy Wednesday (8 April), Churches Together in Central Oxford organized its annual Walk of Witness through the busy shopping streets of Oxford. Once again, the brothers and congregation from Blackfriars were the largest group represented at this ecumenical event as we walked silently through the city following behind a large wooden cross:



On Maundy Thursday morning, the priory church was full for Tenebrae, the offices of Matins and Lauds, sung with readings and chanted responsories. At the close of Tenebrae each day, the cantors lead the choir in a litany of prayers at the foot of the High Altar. Below is a video of this segment of Tenebrae, followed by a translation of the text.



Lord, have mercy (in Greek & Latin).
Christ the Lord was made obedient unto death.

You who came to suffer for us:
Christ, have mercy.

You who, your arms stretched out on the cross, drew all ages to yourself:
Christ, have mercy.

You who prophesied: 'I will be your death, O Death':
Christ have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.
Christ the Lord was made obedient unto death.
Lord, have mercy (in Greek & Latin).
Christ the Lord was made obedient unto death:
even the death of the cross.

Maundy Thursday - Do this in remembrance of me

Readings: Exodus 12:1-8, 11-14; Psalm 116:12-13, 15-16bc, 17-18; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; John 13:1-15

It may surprise us that the Church has chosen as the gospel for the liturgy of this Holy Thursday not one of the accounts of the Last Supper according to Matthew, Mark or Luke. They describe, in a direct way, the meal Jesus held with his disciples. But the gospel of John does not give such an account. There are no “words of institution” and nothing is said about bread and wine which are given as the body and blood of Christ. So, why do we hear instead about the washing of the feet on this feast day on which we remember the institution of the Eucharist in the cenacle?

The Gospel of John is often called the “spiritual gospel”. It describes the same reality – the life and death of the God-man Jesus Christ – from a different perspective and in a different language compared with the other three Evangelists. And so we can discover in the report of the foot-washing a spiritual reflection on the meaning of the Eucharist. Indeed, all four accounts of the Last Supper are about the forgiveness of sins, friendship, love and unity.

Where the synoptic gospels report the Last Supper, John shows us the foot-washing; where they show the Eucharist, he shows a washing with water; where they reveal a drink that brings forgiveness, he presents a washing which brings about unity, communion with Christ. It is such a remarkable dialogue between Jesus and Peter: “He came to Simon Peter; and Peter said to him, ‘Lord, do you wash my feet?’ Jesus answered him, ‘What I am doing you do not know now, but afterward you will understand.’ Peter said to him, ‘You shall never wash my feet.’ Jesus answered him, ‘If I do not wash you, you have no part in me.’ Simon Peter said to him, ‘Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!’ Jesus said to him, ‘He who has bathed does not need to wash, except for his feet, but he is clean all over; and you are clean, but not every one of you’” (John 13:6-10).

Jesus refers to another bath which has already taken place which is why he has only to wash the feet of the disciples. When we recognize therein the sacrament of Baptism, and interpret Jesus’ foot-washing as the Eucharist, we find exactly this idea. The bath of Baptism has made us clean from original sin and all sins. But nevertheless the washing of the feet, the Eucharist, is necessary to wash away the “everyday sin”. Jesus says: “Unless I wash you, you have no share with me.” We cannot reject this washing saying that we have not sinned and do not need it. Day by day we get dirty; Christ wants to wash our feet from the dust of the street. We should not refuse his humble service.

John reflects on the deep meaning of the Last Supper. It is an act of humility out of love. The washing of the feet is an act of humility out of love. And both the Eucharist and the symbolic foot-washing bring about unity – unity with Christ and with our neighbours. Christ washes the feet of his disciples in order that they may have part in him. And he asks them to wash each other’s feet: “I have given you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you” (John 13:15). This is his new commandment: “Love one another; even as I have loved you, you also must love one another” (John 13:34). This is his “do this in remembrance of me”.

Wednesday of Holy Week - The Twelfth Station of the Cross

Br Gregory Pearson OP gives a reflection on the Twelfth Station of the Cross - Jesus dies on the Cross - in a video specially pre-recorded for Godzdogz.

Tuesday of Holy Week - The Tenth Station of the Cross

Br Mark Davoren OP gives a reflection on the Tenth Station of the Cross - Jesus is stripped of His garments - in a video specially pre-recorded for Godzdogz.

Monday of Holy Week - The Third Station of the Cross

Br Graham Hunt OP gives a reflection on the Third Station of the Cross - Jesus falls for the first time - in a video specially pre-recorded for Godzdogz.

Holy Week Services at Blackfriars

Palm Sunday
Masses at 8.00, 9.30, 11.15 (Polish) and 18.15, with blessing and distribution of palms

Monday of Holy Week
12.00 Stations of the Cross led by fr Graham Hunt OP
18.15 Mass
19.30 Ecumenical Stations of the Cross held at St Mary Magdalen Church

Tuesday of Holy Week
12.00 Stations of the Cross led by fr Mark Davoren OP

18.15 Mass

Wednesday of Holy Week
12.00 Stations of the Cross led by fr Gregory Pearson OP
13.20 Walk of Witness, beginning at New Road Baptist Church
18.15 Mass

HOLY THURSDAY
9.30 Tenebrae
18.00 Polish Mass
20.00 Mass of the Lord's Supper, followed by watching until midnight

GOOD FRIDAY (Day of Fast and Abstinence)
9.30 Tenebrae
15.00 Liturgy of the Lord's Passion
18.00 Polish liturgy

HOLY SATURDAY
9.30 Tenebrae
11.00 Polish blessing of food
12.00-13.00 Confessions
17.00-18.00 Confessions
18.00 Vespers
19.00 Polish Vigil
23.00 Easter Vigil and First Mass of Easter

EASTER SUNDAY
Masses at 8.00, 9.30 and 11.15 (Polish)
13.05 Midday Prayer
18.00 Solemn Vespers

Easter Monday
11.15 Polish Mass
18.15 Mass, followed by Vespers

Palm Sunday - Spectators or Participants?

Readings: Mark 11:1-10 (Blessing of Palms); Isaiah 50:4-7; Psalm 21; Philippians 2:6-11; Mark 14:1-15:47 (Mass)

At the beginning of Lent it seems that there are things we can do, fasting, praying and almsgiving, practical works of asceticism and charity, in order to participate in what the Lenten season is about. A few weeks in, though, the liturgy begins to direct our focus away from ourselves and on to Christ, in particular by relating him to many Old Testament figures - Jonah, Jeremiah, Susanna, Moses - prophets or innocent sufferers whose experience and mission anticipate those of Jesus. By the time we get to Holy Week it can seem that all that is asked of us is to be spectators, no longer participants, onlookers amazed at the glory that is being unveiled.

And yet it seems impossible to remain purely a spectator. Some of the less central figures in Mark's account of the passion show this in different ways. The woman whose love leads her to anoint Jesus scandalises by her extravagance and yet is praised by Jesus for her way of participating in his paschal mystery. Her symbolic action, he says, will be told in remembrance of her wherever the gospel is preached. A bystander in Gethsemane is moved to cut off the ear of the high priest's servant, thinking that perhaps this is a way to be helpful. His action is only implicitly rejected by Jesus (explicitly so in Matthew's and Luke's accounts). Is this bystander the young man who then runs away naked (Mark 14:52)? This is a strange verse, almost surreal, perhaps intended to make us think of Amos 2:16, 'those who are stout of heart among the mighty shall flee away naked on that day, says the Lord'.

Simon of Cyrene is forced to participate, helping Jesus to carry the cross. He becomes a living parable, then, of the teaching of Jesus that it is only those who take up the cross and follow him who can be his disciples. Mark alone mentions Simon's sons Alexander and Rufus, a personal detail perhaps to help his readers identify a family known to them, who could no longer be counted simply as bystanders and onlookers to the passion of Christ but had become sharers in it. The centurion too seems to have something forced from him as he witnesses the death of Jesus, a sudden expression of faith that echoes the voice of the Father at the baptism and the transfiguration: 'truly this man was the Son of God' (Mark 15:39).

We may feel that in Holy Week we are invited to be bystanders and spectators only but it is impossible to remain neutral about these events. It is impossible to remain indifferent about what was done to this man (if only to include Him with all the many millions of innocent people whose suffering cries out for justice). If we hang around and watch this drama unfold and allow it to touch our humanity we will find ourselves drawn to get involved as His love evokes our love and His obedience evokes our faith.

Coming soon - Spritual Notes from a Small Island

Although these days there seems to be a decline in the number of people going to Church, there are many people who would claim to be 'spiritual'. There is a great thirst for the spiritual, but this so often takes the form of an interest in the New Age spiritualities, or in meditation practices influenced by the oriental religious traditions. People who are at least culturally Christian find in these spiritualities something exotic, exciting and new. Many people seem under the impression that Christianity has little to offer.

As Christians we would wish to challenge this notion. In our own Catholic tradition, there is a wealth of material on the spiritual life, and some of the spiritual writers are amongst the most revered saints of the Church. Over the centuries, Britain has been blessed by a wealth of writers who were concerned with the spiritual life. Yet how many of us can say that we know anything about this rich heritage? Recovering our Christian spiritual heritage in Britain is perhaps an important way of revitalising our faith, and of offering something inspiring to those who are seeking to experience the Divine in their own lives.

Over the coming months, we shall attempt to offer summaries of some of the most influential spiritual writings that have come from people in Britain over the centuries. We hope to show that their teachings have a perennial freshness and a relevance that make them enriching for us now in the twenty-first century.

Lent Week 5 Friday - Speaking Truth

Readings: Jeremiah 20:10-13, Psalm 17:2-7, John 10:31-42

Today’s readings focus on conflict, misunderstanding and the desire to silence those whom we disagree with or do not understand. To be in a situation where you are misunderstood or where what you say, true though it may be, is rejected is a very difficult situation to be in. To use a modern phrase “people don’t get you”. To be in a situation where people reject you because of what you believe and know to be true can be emotionally, and in drastic cases, physically painful. This is the situation that the prophet Jeremiah is in, in today’s readings.

“Terror from every side! Denounce him, Let us denounce him!” People are baying for his blood and trying to trip him up, so that they may condemn him, “perhaps we will seduce him into error. Then we will master him and take our revenge!”

In today’s Gospel passage Our Lord is not faring much better, he too is experiencing the force of an angry mob. We are told in the opening line that they were fetching stones with which to stone him. Why was this? Jesus had affirmed a truth about himself, about his identity. In the situation of today’s Gospel, Jesus is being rejected for claiming to be God, for being God among us. Jesus asks his detractors “I have done many good works for you to see, works from my Father; for which of these are you stoning me?” Those who wished to stone him answered “we are not stoning you for doing good work but for blasphemy: you are only a man and you claim to be God”. They do not disagree or even deny that he is indeed doing good works. This is not the issue. What they wish to stone Jesus for is proclaiming a truth, the truth of his identity. This truth is so unpalatable to them that, despite the good they see him do, they wish to destroy him. The uncomfortable truth of Jesus identity has so blinded his hearers that they cannot even bear to allow him to live, lest they should have to hear it again and again.

In society nowadays to claim that something is a “truth” may cause you trouble. You may find yourself labelled as intolerant, closed minded, exclusive, or heaven forbid, politically incorrect. How many times have we heard it said that a Christian education inhibits children from being socially integrated, and may lead to a fragmented and intolerant viewpoint. As Christians we must fearlessly witness to our faith, fearlessly, kindly and lovingly. This may cause us to be “stoned” by the labels of misunderstanding. However Our Lord has walked the path before us and cleared the way. These are painful experiences, but as Christians we must trust in our Saviour and rely on his aid. As the psalm today says “My God is the rock where I take refuge”.

When we face misunderstanding or hostility because of our faith let us take refuge in the arms of our loving Saviour and respond with his love.

Lent Week 5 Thursday - Eternal Life with God

Readings: Genesis 17:3-9; Psalm 105; John 8:51-57

The covenant that the Lord makes with Abraham is beyond belief. Exceeding fertility will belong to Abraham, bringing him many descendants and the rule of many nations. But much more radical is the promise of Jesus: “Whoever keeps my words will never see death.” The Jews to whom he spoke recognised this. Even the covenant made with Abraham did not save him from death, nor the words of the prophets. This man Jesus seeks some false glory.

Jesus points essentially to his unity with the Father. He knows that of which others could only speak. Apart from the Father, he is not. He is profoundly one with the Father, and it is the Father who glorifies him and is glorified in him. It is his sonship, his perfectly shared love with the Father, that is present among them. He speaks the word that comes from that love and glory. Those who hear that word participate in that eternal love. From there they can never see death.

Jesus is not greater than that which was promised to Abraham, than that which was spoken by the prophets. Jesus is himself what was promised. Words cannot describe that promise, but in the presence of that spoken word, life is eternal.