Joining in

'It must be a bit of a balancing act', said Bishop Peter Doyle of Northampton (above.). He was speaking about the Ordinariate, and our need to preserve our identity yet also be seen to be no less Catholic than the parishes around us. We were at a celebration in Sacred Heart, Bournemouth. Fr Bruce Barnes, the parish priest, had invited me and members of our Ordinariate Group to join his parish for the Feast of the Sacred Heart. He himself had been an Anglican (he was a lad in the parish where I served my Title in Portsmouth) and was ordained into the Catholic Priesthood back in '97. At one time he was Fr Peter Doyle's colleague in St Peter's Winchester - hence the invitation to Bishop Peter to celebrate and preach, It was a marvellously multi-cultural Mass, with a reading in Portuguese and the Gospel repeated in Polish. Besides Fr Peter who ministers to the Polish Community in Bournemouth we had a Mill Hill Father with us concelebrating who is off to Kenya later this week.

That was a great occasion; and Fr Bruce explained that Catholics were not as good as Anglo-Catholics at celebrating Patronal Festivals. So he has retained that part of the Patrimony, together with a liking for incense, good liturgy, and congregational singing led by a very good choir. Those of us who attended from the Ordinariate felt entirely at home, and met many of the congregation at a bunfight in the palatial Hall after Mass.

Then the following day we joined with the Parish of Our Lady Queen of Peace for a Jubilee Party, which involved more eating and drinking, and a Quiz! It was all very jolly; but the night seemed pretty short for I was still preparing notices for today at Midnight, and we were back in Southbourne at 9am this morning ready for our Ordinariate Mass. Later today many of our Group were at a 70th Birthday Party, where we were joined by old friends who (at present) remain in the C of E. There I had the pleasure of blessing the new home of the Birthday Boy, Trvor Vendy, one of our stalwart band of servers.

The best thing of all today was the news that our Deacon, Fr Brian Copus, is to be ordained Priest by Bishop Alan Hopes in Bournemouth at Noon on September 22nd - but more of that later. For now, just put it in your diary.

[There may be more photographs added to this blog later - some of the Group were clicking away at all these events]

Ugly Duckling?

A former parish priest of the Catholic Church in Ringwood used to give directions: "Just look out for the sewage works". Certainly the old church used to look like some public utility - just a flat-topped box which, like all flat-roofed buildings, was prone to constant leaks.

But no more. In his sermon the present parish priest, Fr Anthony Pennicott (left: in the Narthex before Mass) said the introit hymn might well have been "There once was an ugly duckling". You will see from the attached pictures that it is ugly no longer - instead a rather resplendent swan.

My wife and I were invited because the church where our Ordinariate Group worships is in the same Pastoral Area, and the principal celebrant was Fr John Lee, who is co-ordinating Pastor (in Anglican terminology Rural Dean)of the Area. Other concelebrants were Fr Gerry and Fr Vitalis, parish priests in the Area and both from Nigeria. It was good to meet many of the Ringwood Congregation after Mass, and also to meet the Vicar of Ringwood, the Revd Dr David Miell together with his wife who is also in Anglican Holy Orders. I am not sure if I should be flattered or worried that David seemed to know my name already.



I took the interior photo (above) when people were gathering; by the time Mass started the Church was comfortably full. Afterwards, despite the chilly evening, some of the hardier souls spilled out from the Presbytery onto the lawn.



The Architect, Philip Proctor, told me how he tried to give a hint of Italy in the transformed building. He has achieved that, while it looks perfectly at home in its Hampshire setting. Congratulations to all concerned.

HAPPY and GLORIA

On the day the Queen succeeded her Father as monarch (have I told you George VI died on my 17th birthday?) we were in sombre mood at school assembly; until it came to singing the National Anthem. Very strange singing "God Save the Queen" - and surely it should be "send her victoria, happy and gloria?" Hence the name of this blog.



We seldom seem to win anything in tombolas or lotteries, so we put our names into the hat for tickets to the Queen's Jubilee. Imagine our surprise when two tickets arrived just a week ago, anabling us to be present on this final day of the Jubilee weekend.



We had to be seated by 9.15am; which entailed a journey to London on the first train of the day, the 6.10 from Brockenhurst. Then by bus to Victoria - a diverted and diverting journey because of the Jubilee, which meant we had a route march before getting into the security queue. Eventually we went under the stands erected outside the Palace (a little like entering the Roman Arena in Verona, we thought, though without the "We about to die salute thee" bit. The performance was certainly every bit as rivetting as Aida. Military bands in all manner of gear, from the overdressed scarlet and gold of the cavalry to the modest and subdued uniforms of the Royal Air Force (did I tell you I was in the Air Force?)

Of course, I managed to forget two things; money (so Jane had to pay for our coffee stops) and the camera. The result is that I was driven to sketching. There were long periods of sitting with only images on the large screen to watch, so there was planty of time for scribbling. The advantage against the camera is that you can give a hint of two events at the same time; so in the last of these images Archbishop Rowan is on the screen on the right (very hastily done - he was only shown for a few moments) and in front of the palace an impression of a few horses and riders - tho' you will have to look very carefully to find them.

We had marvellous seats, in the next-to-top row, just below the box where the Royals had watched last evening's concert. Some of the staging was still there, which will have obscured the view for some. We were luckier, with a clear sight of the entire facade of the Palace.


We had watched on earlier days on TV: there really is no substitute for being there. The crowd was enormous, and enormously good humoured. We talked with our neighbours (how un-English, you might think) a Hampshire couplemarried only in March, a lady of uncertain age from Norfolkwho goes off to Australia nexct week. We did not complain when people came back and forth along the row, we cheered everything in sight, from the wonderful black horses of the Cavalry to the ambulances and dust carts which came along in their wake. Best of all, the Queen looked truly happy, with her son and grandsons beside her - to say nothing of her glamorous grand-daughter in law, the lovely Kate.

On previous days there had been rain; we came prepared (no umbrellas, they would spoil the view from the stands) but the rain held off all morning and right until mid-afternoon. There was only one sadness to the day, the absence through illness of HRH the Duke of Edinburgh.

As the Royal Party came back from Westminster Hall to the Palace in open carriages, a few drops began to fall. It was really raining by the time they came onto the balcony, but no-one minded. And the Royal Air Force (did I tell you I was in the Royal Air Force?) put on a marvellous fly-past. Seeing the Lancaster flanked by Spitfires and Hurricanes brought a lump to my throat. I had drawn them in school exercise books when even Princess El;izabeth was only a girl.

The exit took a long while, but again with no complaining, and a cup of tea in Shepherd's Market (a very up-market former village in deepest Mayfair) revived us for the journey home. Forgive this very self-indulgent blog. You really should have been there.

The Intemperate Zone

A packed three days in London, just as the temperatures passed 80 Fahrenheit. It was a little unkind of Allen Hall to give Fr John Saward the graveyard slot on Thursday - two hours after a very filling lunch. By the end of his lecture even he was clutching a bottle of water.



So far as I can tell it was a masterly account of St Thomas Aquinas on the Incarnation and the Sacraments - fortunately his talk was recorded and will be available on line from Allen Hall, so we shall be able to fill in the bits when Morpheus overtook us.



Perhaps though I was the only one whose eyes became a little heavy at times - certainly in the shot above we are all very alert and bushy tailed.
So that was Thursday in Chelsea.

Jane had come up to town with me, and we went to Croydon for two nights staying with a cousin of mine. We returned on Friday to do our cultural bit - the Zoffany exhibition at the Royal Academy.



A revelation - I had thought of him as a court painter to George III, which he was, but he also travelled widely, even as far as India, and produced some wonderful images there. Then too he was enchanted by the theatre, and gave us images of Garrick and all the great thespians of his time. If you are able to get there soon, do: and the catalogue is greatly reduced and a wondefful bargain. We also went to the Queen's Gallery to see the Leonardo anatomical drawings - which produced in me a degree of visual overload.



Today it was London for the third day running, this time Westminster where seventeen former Anglican clergy were admitted to the Diaconate of the Catholic Church. Bishop Alan Hopes ordained, our Ordinary, Mgr Keith Newton, was a benign presence throughout, and Mgr Andrew Burnham preached splendidly on the Diaconate. Above is a picture from the moments before the Mass began. Frs Page and Elliott-Smith were no doubt glad that today, unlike Thursday, the tube did not let them down. They had struggled to get to Allen Hall and missed much of the morning session.

Many of those being ordained are old friends of mine, and it was particularly good to have Brian Copus from our Bournemouth Ordinariate Group once more properly dressed in clericals. Good too to have two other residents of Portsmouth Diocese among the candidates - John Maunder from St Agatha's Portsea and John Hunwicke (for he lives in Oxford on the Portsmouth side of the Thames). After Mass, members of the Bournemouth Ordinariate repaired to the Victoria Pub, to drink the new deacons' health.



Here on the right of the picture are Fr Brian and his wife Bärbel. On this occasion the new deacons' wives were welcomed to the sanctuary and given a special blessing just before Mass ended. What a great day! Now we eagerly await news of when Fr Brian is to be ordained priest - some of those deaconed today will be priested in their home parishes or local cathedrals as early as next week.

A Bit Deficient

Today our Ordinariate Mass was full to overflowing; St Peter's School had asked if their Confirmation Group (of almost fifty) might attend as part of their day of recollection.

It was just lovely to have so many youngsters with us - and made us realise that our bit of the Ordinariate is sadly deficient. We are mostly more than a bit post-mature! Today was different, and it cheered us all up enormously. Not only was the school there, we had some teachers and parents and our youngest worshipper was three-week old Nicola. It was a great encouragement to hear her giving voice just before the Gospel. After Mass they adjojurned to the Hall for refreshments and instruction. The day is due to end for them with a barbecue. I don't recall having that sort of day during my confirmation preparation.


The pictures here give a little impression of how it all looked. Oh, and below is the resited image of Our Lady of Walsingham, keeping guard over the West Door. We turn to face this ststue when we sing Regina Caeli (as we did today, in English) or the Angelus.



Best of all today was the news that Brian Copus, former Anglican Vicar, has received his dispensation from clerical celibacy, allowing him to proceed to Ordination. This means that he will be in the next group to be ordained Deacon, in Westminster Cathedral on Saturday May 26th. He is on the left in the picture below, telling the good news to Tom and Valerie, two friends from St Joseph's in Christchurch who worship with us on alternate Sundays.

The Abdication

My wife, born two years after me, has lived through two fewer reigns. George V was celebrating his 25th Anniversary the year I was hatched, and before Jane came into the world he had died and his elder son had abdicated.



Tonight there was a progamme about the abdication, and it was good to see that most of it depended on research by the Revd Dr Robert Beaken, who is in a 'C' parish in Chelmsford diocese. His contributions to the programme were scholarly, well substantiated, and balanced. More than could be said for most of the rest of it. There was a 'historian ' called Susan Williams who clearly has a hang-up about the established Church (and probably a good deal else too). The newsreel footage was great; the mock-ups of historical events laughably inept. Lang's aquiline features and elegant posture did not begin to match the portly actor who mimed some of the events. Most of the ecclesiastical mock-ups were filmed in St Bartholomew the Great - its Romansque arches a poor stand-in for the French Gothic of Westminster; and why were courtiers shown taking holy water and crossing themselves, or lined up in front of swinging censers? There was even a monstrance having a host inserted in it ... not at all the thing for the Established C of E in the 1930s. Perhaps they should have asked Fr Robert to oversee the production, and not merely contribute from his Lang research.

The Winter's Sleep was Long and Deep...

If you recognise the title you will recall that jolliest of hymns written by Percy Dearmer for the Feast of Ss Philip and James - which the Church of England always used to keep on May Day -

"So God doth bring the world to spring; and on their holy day,
doth the Church proclaim her Apostles' fame to welcome the first of May".

Even jollier than the words was the tune - English Traditional, "King's Langley" it is called, but it's always been "Do ye ken John Peel?" in my memory. I wonder if our Ordinariate liturgists will have any success in persuading Holy Church that this is part of the Anglican Patrimony? After all "St Joseph the Worker" was only invented as a riposte to the Red Peril, which seems to have dissolved by now. What's more, it is only a Memorial, whereas Pip and Jim (being Apostles) have a Feast Day. Perhaps the Reform of the Reform will give us back the two Saints of God on this day, rather than May 3rd?
This has developed into a wonderful sun-filled May Day here on the South Coast, (the view of the sea below is from Barton Cliff, looking towards Hengistbury Head and Bournemouth) after constant heavy rain throughout the past week and more.



We welcomed priests of the Avon/Stour Pastoral Area at our home today for their regular meeting and lunch. Our Ordinariate Group worships at Our Lady Queen of Peace in Southbourne, and we are always included in events in the Pastoral Area. It was good to be able to repay a little hospitality. In our distinguished company (below) you will see, from left to right, Fr John Lee our Co-ordinating Pastor and parish priest of St Joseph's Christchurch; Fr Gerry Onyejuluwa MSP, of Southbourne; Fr Vitalis Kondo MSP of Iford; Fr Tony Pennicott of Ringwood and Fordingbridge, and Fr David Quarmby of Highcliffe. The next event to involve the whole area is a three-day time of renewal to be based in Christchurch and running from Wednesday May 23rd. I hope very much that some of the Ordinariate will want to join in these evening sessions in preparation for Pentecost.




There was some talk over lunch (Chicken Chorizo, and two Puddings) about the advantage of being a married priest .. I could not possibly comment.