This is heaven ....

6 oz plain flour, 6 oz medium oatmeal, 2 teaspoons ground ginger, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg:

4 oz butter, 3 oz soft brown sugar, 4 oz treacle, 6 oz golden syrup - warmed and stirred:

1 egg, 1 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda and 1/4 pint of milk:

Contents of pan and jug added to the contents of the bowl, and mixed thoroughly:

And after 45 minutes (recipe says 1 hour, but this will depend on your oven - my oven is electric, fan assisted and I have the cooking time down to just over 40 minutes) at 150 degrees Centigrade:

Behold ... Parkin.

Now, there are some delicate steps in this process - like how to get golden syrup and treacle from their tins to the weighing scales, and from the scales into the pan, without "trails" across the work surface; and how to watch the clock carefully for that 40 minutes mark. And I leave you to imagine just how sticky the washing up is while the cake itself is cooking!

"Christ, our Light"

There was rather a nice moment at the start of the Easter Vigil in which I took part last night. If you start at the bottom right hand corner of the photograph above, and count along three buildings you will alight on the Catholic Church of St Margaret of Cortona and All Saints, Canning Town.

The Vigil began with the Blessing of the New Fire and the lighting of the Easter Candle in the yard behind the Church. Rather than then taking the "short way" down the side of the Church and in to the Church by way of the door (the door is off the street, hidden from view at the left hand end of the Church as in the photograph), we processed the "long way". This involved leaving the yard by the vehicle entrance on to the road at the back of the Church. The procession then went along the block - with several relights of the candles of the faithful along the way - and emerged on to the main road at a point that can be determined by counting two buildings further along to the left from the Church in the photograph above. I can't answer as to whether or not the Easter Candle had to be re-lit - I was to busy being incompetent at keeping my own candle alight to notice.

The procession then gathered on the pavement in front of the Church for the second "Christ our Light" and "Thanks be to God", with the deacon holding the Easter Candle high for all to see.

A few people stopped by, to see what was happening.

A fascinating moment of "new evangelisation" that one would not normally associate with the Easter Vigil!

A specifically lay character to participation in the Eucharistic celebration

This is intended to contribute to this discussion, mostly in the comments, at Fr Peter's blog, but would be too long to post as a comment there. It is a write up of a catechesis I used in 2006, as part of a series on participation in the Eucharistic Liturgy, during monthly Eucharistic Adoration in the parish.

The Feast of the Presentation of the Lord on the 2nd February prompts a reflection on the Presentation of the Gifts.

The offertory prayers of the Mass, which follow the procession to the altar with the bread and wine, are as follows:

Blessed are you, Lord, God of all creation. Through your goodness we have this bread to offer, which earth has given and human hands have made. It will become for us the bread of life.
[Benedictus es, Domine, Deus universi, quia de tua largitate accepimus panem, quem tibi offerimus, fructum terrae it operas manuum hominum: ex quo nobis fiet panis vitae.]

Blessed are you, Lord, God of all creation. Through your goodness we have this wine to offer, fruit of the vine and work of human hands. It will become our spiritual drink.
[Benedictus es, Domine, Deus universi,quia de tua largitate accepimus vinum, quod tibi offerimus, fructum vitis it operis manuum hominum:ex quo nobis fiet potus spiritalis.]

A Jewish prayer of blessing used at the synagogue:

“Blessed be thou, Jahweh, our God, King of the universe, who formest light and createst darkness, who makes peace and createst all things: Who in mercy givest light to the earth and to them that dwell thereon and in his goodness renewest creation every day continually. How manifold are thy works, Jahweh. In wisdom hast thou made them all, the earth is full of thy possessions….

“With abounding love hast thou loved us, Jahweh our God … for the sake of our fathers who trusted in thee, and whom thou didst teach the statutes of life, be gracious also unto us… put it into our hearts to understand, and to discern, and to hear, and to learn, and to do all the words of instruction in thy Torah in love. And enlighten our eyes in thy commandments …”[1]

We can reflect more closely on the words of these prayers: “Which earth has given and human hands have made” …"fruit of the vine and work of human hands”.

The bread and wine that are carried in procession to the altar represent the whole of creation. The bread and wine are to become the Body and Blood of Christ, and already in the presentation of the gifts they are already treated as a sign of Christ’s presence[2]. Christ is the alpha and omega, the beginning and the end of all creation. He is the origin of all that we receive in creation and the destiny to which it is all intended. If we offer Jesus Christ to the Father - as we will in the Liturgy of the Eucharist - then we are offering all of creation to the Father.

The Latin text of these prayers expresses the sense that what we are offering as we bring the bread and wine to the altar is something that we have received: “from your abundance we receive this bread/wine”.

We now turn to the second part of each phrase: “which earth has given and human hands have made” … “fruit of the vine and work of human hands.” As well as offering something that we have in the first place “received”, we also offer something that we have “made”.

The presentation of the gifts is a point in the Liturgy where the character of the lay vocation is particularly present. It is the special vocation of lay people to make the world a better place by their engagement in secular affairs. This comes about through our every day activity, in our families, in our schools, at work, in all the ways in which we take part in social action. At the presentation of the gifts, when we offer the whole of creation represented in the bread and wine, we are offering a creation that we have in some way “made”. We are offering our attempts to make the world a better place.[3]

There is a strong sense in the offertory prayers of our “offering back” to the Father what we have “received”. In Christ, we offer back to the Father a creation that has been made new in the coming of Christ, and that we try to make new in our living of the Christian life. The offertory procession expresses a dynamic of first receiving from, and then offering back to the Father, the whole of creation in Christ.[4]

The presentation of the gifts is a richly Marian moment in the Liturgy. This is seen when we compare the feast of The Presentation of the Lord in the Temple to what is happening at the presentation of the gifts during Mass. Mary offers her first-born to the Lord, fulfilling Jewish custom; she offers Jesus to the Father. Jesus, the alpha and omega, the beginning and end of creation, is offered to the Father. Mary, who is “full of grace”, represents the highest achievement of creation and she stands at that point where creation is ready to receive its saviour and redeemer. She is the one who “receives” the saviour and redeemer on behalf of the whole of creation (annunciation/nativity) and who “offers” him back to the Father (the Presentation). This is exactly the dynamic of the offertory procession, and more so when we see Mary as the figure of the Church, “receiving” the saviour and redeemer and “offering” him back to the Father in the Eucharistic Liturgy.

The presentation of the gifts is a feminine moment because of the element of “receiving”. This “receptivity” is a profoundly feminine feature of the Church. In the offertory procession, the “feminine” Church (Bride) brings to the “masculine” priest (Christ the bridegroom) the gifts to be offered to the Father.

If we are trying to “live the word of scripture” each week, our experiences during the week in trying to live that word are offered in the gifts of bread and wine. We can hold them in prayer, along with any other things we have done during the week to live out our Christian faith.

We can always arrange for girls to bring up the bread and wine at the offertory procession to reflect the feminine and Marian character of this part of the Mass.

We can think carefully about our choice of offertory hymns, to either reflect the Marian character of this moment in the Mass or to reflect the dynamic of “receiving” and “offering back”:

“All I have I give you, ev’ry dream and wish are yours. Mother of Christ, Mother of mine, present them to my Lord.”

“Holy Virgin by God’s decree’ you were called eternally; that he could give his Son to our race. Mary, we praise you hail full of grace.”

[1] Extracts from a berakoth preceding the recitation of the schema in the synagogue. Louis Bouyer Eucharist pp.62-63.
[2] cf the prayer “Pray brethren that my sacrifice and yours …”
[3] If, in the Eucharist, we see the key element as being that of Jesus “handing himself over”, of giving himself “for us”, then the aspect of the handing of the gifts by the lay people to the priest also takes on a sense of representing our “handing over of ourselves” in love for others. It represents our “handing over of ourselves” in living out Eucharistic charity towards our neighbours in the world.
[4] This dynamic also reflects the two meanings of communion that we examined in the first catechesis - sharing in the life of God (receiving) and sharing in the gifts that we have all received from God (offering back). The Jewish berakoth quoted above also has this double dimension.

The Easter Triduum: the washing of the feet

The washing of the feet at the Mass of the Lord's Supper has become a bit of minefield. There seem to me to be two areas of discussion which have the effect of taking away from this rite its authentic meaning.

The first area of discussion is rubrical, and has to do with the fact that the rubric expects that it will be men - male gender - who will be chosen to have their feet washed. As soon as the question is asked about the possibility of women being among those having their feet washed, a new agenda of male/female equality is imposed onto the rite, when the rite itself can make no sense of such an agenda. This is so even if the parish priest declines the request, and takes the subsequent flak. One priest's response to this is to choose this year to omit the rite of the washing of the feet .

The second area of discussion (which, in the realities of parish life, often occurs along with the first) is to see in the Mass of the Lord's Supper an indiscriminate celebration of ministries of all kinds in the Church. The Mass of the Lord's Supper then becomes the occasion for the renewal of commitment or calling of lay ministers of Holy Communion, readers, and so on. This question is raised in this discussion, particularly in my own comment, though the discussion focusses mainly on the role of extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion. This is all based on seeing the rite of the washing of the feet as a symbol of "service" in the Church, "service" being understood in a wide and all-embracing way. There are certainly times when it is appropriate to place the celebration of a blessing or induction for a particular ministry into a liturgical celebration such as Mass. But usually this will be a celebration of Mass on an occasion when the Mass does not have an exceptional character of its own. The Mass of the Lord's Supper does have a quite exceptional character of its own, which I think militates against such an addition of para-liturgical celebrations - such additions or insertions just "don't belong".

The key to getting this right seems to me to be the rubric in the Missal that refers to the homily during the Mass of the Lord's Supper:

The homily should explain the principal mysteries which are commemorated in this Mass; the institution of the Eucharist, the institution of the priesthood, and Christ's commandment to brotherly love.

1. As a celebration of the institution of the ordained priesthood, it is not appropriate to see in the Mass of the Lord's Supper a celebration of other (lay) ministries. It is an utter derogation from the meaning of this liturgical celebration properly understood. This removes the second area of discussion mentioned above.

2. The commandment to brotherly love needs to be seen as a celebration of Jesus's love shown towards the Twelve; the love of Jesus (its Head) towards the Church (his Body, represented in the Apostles); and the love of Jesus towards the Church that is continued today and expressed in the service of the priest towards his people. The integrity of this representation needs men to be chosen to have their feet washed, so that the service of Jesus to the figures of the Church is correctly represented. This removes the first area of discussion mentioned above.

To summarise, from memory, the homily that I heard yesterday evening.

Jesus loves those who were his own "to the end". He wants to give himself to them, definitively and for ever. So he hands himself over to them in his Body and Blood that are the Eucharist; and he hands himself over to them in the Church, represented by the Apostles. Jesus still loves us "to the end" in the Church. He needs priests, the Church needs priests, for this to occur in the Sacraments, and most especially in the Eucharist. This is the service of the priest to his parish - in celebrating the Sacraments and most especially the Eucharist. The washing of feet by the priest represents this service of the priest to the parish.

The sense of "Christ's commandment of brotherly love" referred to in the rubric on the homily is therefore profoundly related to the priesthood as the visible sign and existential realisation of that love. And this is the correct sense of the rite of the washing of feet.

An end to collective worship in schools?

One of the resolutions debated at the annual conference of my trade union (the Association of Teachers and Lecturers), taking place in Liverpool this week, reads as follows:

THAT Conference believes that a daily act of worship should not be a statutory requirement in a secular school.

This resolution was defeated. The context of this resolution is a review that is currently being undertaken, by the DCSF, I think, of the law in this regard. Many large secondary schools simply disregard the law anyway; their assemblies often take place on a "year group" basis, and the last word you would use to describe them is "worship". Compliance with the law in primary schools is, I think, higher, with a greater openness to genuinely religious content.

My own thinking on this is that I am not attached to the idea of a compulsory act of worship. In so many situations, what happens in schools does not really match the intended act of worship of the legislation. However, I would also be equally opposed to the absence of religion, and religious practice, from the life of schools. I think Pope Benedict XVI talks about an "appropriate secularity" in the public sphere - by which he means that the public square should have a permissive and facilitating function with regard to the practice of religion, rather than defining and directive function. Whether members of ATL Conference understood the word "secular" in this sense, or in a sense of wanting to banish a religious presence entirely from schools, I do not know.

What I think I would like to see in non-religious schools are the same sort of chaplaincy arrangements that exist in hospitals and ports. These are multi-faith chaplaincies, that include within their briefs the idea of providing care for those of no religious belief as well as those of different religious beliefs. For some people the care is "pastoral" or "spiritual" rather than "religious"; for those of religious belief, that care is "religious". Often lead chaplains who are ministers of one or another denomination work with a team of volunteers of different denominations from the local community. I do know that, in my own local NHS Hospitals Trust, the presence and activity of the chaplaincy team is valued by many, both patients and staff.

Why shouldn't schools employ chaplains to lead generic multi-faith teams in the same way? The every day presence of people with religious faith in the schools could be far more effective pastorally than "assemblies", and, from OFSTED's point of view, it could contribute significantly to the "spiritual development" of pupils.

Tony Blair does not teach the Catholic faith

The BBC News website reports Tony Blair's interview with Attitude under the title "Blair questions Papal gay policy"; and The Times reports it under the title "Tony Blair tells the Pope: you're wrong on homosexuality".

The two headlines, of course, each disguise a hidden assumption. The first disguises an assumption that the Catholic Church's teaching on homosexuality has the nature of a "policy", in a political sense, a "policy" that can be changed. It isn't a "policy"; it is Catholic teaching; doctrinal teaching on faith and morals, to use a quite unambiguous turn of phrase. It is expressed as follows in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the most comprehensive presentation of Catholic faith:

Tradition has always declared that 'homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered'. They are contrary to the natural law. They close the sexual act to the gift of life. They do not proceed from a genuine affective and sexual compementarity. Under no circumstances can they be approved.... Homosexual persons are called to chastity.

And, one might add, equally called to chastity (in the sense of abstention from sexual activity) by Catholic teaching are those of any sexual orientation who are not married. I am sure that, somewhere on this blog, I have posted along the lines that the question of a correct understanding of male/female sexual complementarity is not just a matter of morals, but also a matter of theology. It is present in how the nature of the Church (female, bride of Christ) is understood in relation to her spouse (Christ, the bridegroom, male). But I can't find that post at the moment!

And the second headline, though it seems to admit that we are dealing with a teaching rather than a policy, assumes that Tony Blair is allowed to define what is and what is not Catholic teaching. Which he isn't. It should be quite clear now, and the evidence is there in Tony Blair's own words: his views on homosexuality are not compatible with Catholic teaching.

Two clear consequences follow:

1. Tony Blair should not be allowed to be seen as in any way a spokeseman for the Catholic point of view on matters related to homosexuality. The teaching office of the Bishop seems to be a most appropriate vehicle for achieving this.

2. Tony Blair's Faith Foundation should not be seen as representing in any way a collaboration with the Catholic Church. Since its founder is not being true to Catholic teaching - and, one assumes, fidelity to other religious traditions is not going to be a feature of the work of the Foundation - then it should not be seen as a genuine dialogue between the different religions. It will be a forum for liberal religion. As a real exercise in inter-religious dialogue it is a dead duck, and needs to be seen as such. This could be seen by prominent Catholics simply steering clear of the Foundation and not allowing it to be given any credibility.

UPDATE: A more detailed comment on the interview itself, and links to other media coverage, can be found at The Hermeneutic of Continuity under the title "Blair openly attacks the Pope".

The Marian character of the Lenten Season (7)

The Commending of the Blessed Virgin Mary

When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing beside her, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold your son”. Then he said to the disciple, “Behold your mother”. And from that hour the disciple took her into his home.[1]

This exchange, recorded only in St John’s Gospel, is honoured and celebrated by a particular Mass in the Collection of Masses of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The exchange represents a movement from the ministry of Jesus in his physical body on earth towards the ministry of Jesus in his mystical body that is the Church. It reflects the ending of the Lenten season, where we move into the celebration of the Paschal mystery in the Triduum - Christ’s suffering, his death and then his Resurrection. The Opening Prayer of this Mass demonstrates this, and, in its reference to us being “adopted children” indicates the baptismal character of Lent and of the Easter Vigil:

All-holy Father, you chose the Easter mystery as the way of our salvation; grant that we, whom Jesus entrusted from the cross to his Virgin Mother, may be numbered among your adopted children.[2]

The introduction to this Mass in the Collection of Masses of the Blessed Virgin Mary identifies a two-fold commending. Firstly, all the disciples of Jesus, represented by the person of St John, are commended to the care of the Blessed Virgin.

Lord, receive the gifts we joyfully present that they may become the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, who on the cross entrusted all his followers in the person of John to the Virgin Mother as her children …[3]

The texts of the Mass make the connection between this commending and the way in which the Virgin Mary accompanies Jesus in his suffering on the Cross, knowing that it would redeem the world:

The mother of Jesus stood by the cross and tenderly looked on the wounds of her Son whose death she knew would redeem the world.[4]

The first reading for this Mass is from the Second Book of Maccabees, telling how the mother of seven sons watched each of them die rather than break God’s law:

Most admirable and worthy of everlasting remembrance was the mother, who saw her seven sons perish in a single day, yet bore it courageously because of her hope in the Lord.[5]

The mother’s care for her sons is here presented as a type of the Virgin Mary’s care for the sons and daughters of the Church. In our lives we can turn to the Virgin Mary to find that same care, particularly in times of suffering.

Secondly, the Virgin Mary is entrusted to the love and care of the followers of Christ. The Prayer over the Gifts for this Mass, quoted above, continues:

… and entrusted her to them as living signs of his own love for her.[6]

This second aspect of the commending of the Virgin Mary asks of us two things. It asks us to love the Virgin Mary with the same love that St John had in “taking her into his home”. And, if we see the Virgin Mary as a representative figure of the Church, it calls us to a love for the Church. Our relationship to the Virgin Mary/ Church should be modelled on that of Christ, who gave himself up for the Church. It will therefore be a penitential love, appropriate to the season of Lent.

At the foot of the cross of Jesus, by his solemn and dying wish, a deep bond of love is fashioned between the Blessed Virgin Mary and his faithful disciples: the Mother of God is entrusted to the disciples as their own mother, and they receive her as a precious inheritance from their Master.

She is to for ever the mother of those who believe, and they will look to her with great confidence in her unfailing protection. She loves her Son in loving her children, and in heeding what she says they keep the words of their Master.[7]

[1] John 19:26-27
[2] Mass of the Commending of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Opening Prayer.
[3] Mass of the Commending of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Prayer over the Gifts
[4] Mass of the Commending of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Verse before the Gospel
[5] Mass of the Commending of the Blessed Virgin Mary, First Reading, 2 Maccabees 7:20.
[6] Mass of the Commending of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Prayer over the Gifts
[7] Mass of the Commending of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Preface