Rowan Williams: The wishful thinker

Rowan Williams has given a lecture at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. The Guardian has written an article with some lines causing my eyebrow to raise every so slightly:

"Williams said the Anglican communion was proof that churches could stay together in spite of their difference."

"Williams challenged Roman Catholic thinking on female bishops, saying there was no proof that their ordination damaged the church"

Ok, is it just me or do those two statements make you think, 'What planet is this guy on?!'. The Anglican communion together? I don't know how on earth this can be the case when the Pope has had to create an ordinate to cater for the numerous cries of certain Anglican bishops who have felt the Anglican communion has completely gone off the rails. The notion that the ordination of women priests and bishops hasn't damaged their church I find bizarre. In my opinion, a sign of damage or fracture is when large numbers seek to distance themselves from any decisions made by their own hierarchy, or as has been the case, bishops distancing themselves from other bishops! This is not 'one body in Christ', it's a house divided against itself (Mk 3:25).

For the rest of the article, click here.


Benedicite.

Your help is needed

Dear Readers of this blog,

My tutor Rev. Dr. Robin Gibbons is an Academic at Kellogg College, Oxford. He is the Administrative Director at the 'Centre for the Study of Religion in Public Life' (CFTSORIPL) and is in need of some help.

With my help, he has embarked on a blog which is looking at the infringement of religious freedom in the European Union. As many will have heard or read, the European Union has issued a ban on the displaying of the Crucifix in classes because it apparently 'excludes' people (ironically!). His blog, linked very closely with the CFTSORIPL at Kellogg College, Oxford, aims to collate numerous articles online which demonstrate a restriction of religious freedom (not just Christian) in the European Union. Your help is needed to bring to our attention any articles you stumble across, and we will post them on the blog. Your help will work towards a further understanding of what is happening in the EU. In all honesty, religious freedom doesn't look good so we need to do all we can before say clerics are banned from wearing clerical dress, as an example.

For the time being, please email me here as I will be primarily looking after the blog till my tutor gets up to speed with the technology. Your help with this endeavor is invaluable!

Please pray for Fr. Robin Gibbons, a Eastern Catholic Melkite priest, and for the centre in Oxford.

The blog can be found here. It's a bit naked at the moment but with your help, that'll change! If you have a blog, we would both appreciate it if you could kindly promote the blog and its mission.

Benedicite.

Israel approves further housing developments in East Jerusalem

Israel has controversially approved the development of '900 additional housing units at a Jewish settlement in East Jerusalem' says the BBC. Once again Israel is not listening to international voices and is pushing ahead with its own agenda. This interests me particularly as I am about to embark on a 'review' on the State of Israel today which is  much larger today than it was in 1948, largely down to the 1967 'Six-Day War'.

I do worry about the repercussions of such moves by Israel. I was at the Wimbledon Synagogue on Saturday for the Shabbat service as part of my Religious Studies course, and security was tight. The Synagogue has high fences all the way round, and it took a while for the initial group to get through. It is not unusual for Synagogues to be attacked and there has been a rise of anti-Semitism in Britain - here is an article I looked at for my Judaism module.

Let us pray that Israel may act with prudence and that somehow there maybe more peace in that troubled region.

Benedicite.

My Redeemer Lives

A rather moving video I re-stumbled across. Dick and Rick Hoyt, the father and son who ran the Ironman triathlon in the 80s I believe. With God, anything is possible!

Benedicite.

Deep inner voice

It has been another thought provoking visit to Downside, my fourth visit this year if I recall correctly. Much of this week involved me being in my room doing university work which needed doing. Fortunately, I have completed a good amount of work, so on that front things are looking well!

The weather was typically British: dull, cold and wet. I was able to go for a decent walk on the Sunday with one of the novices and had some fruitful conversation. Despite the fact monasteries are meant to be 'quiet' places, I think you tend to have some of the most meaningful conversations there which stay with you far beyond the cloister walls. These conversations enabled threads of prayer to develop, enriching the week long experience. I didn't really get involved with the 'manual work' this time a) because of the weather and b) I needed to get on with my work. I did manage to do quite a bit of spiritual reading and have been given a number of books to read before my next visit.

I am beginning to realise more and more the 'need' for silence and to a degree 'solitude', in my life. There are times one gasps at the thought at what God might be calling one too. Once you think you've overcome one anxiety, another tends to arise. This isn't a problem necessarily, it's the way one deals with it. If these moments  and situations are used as a directive tool towards the Lord, then they are certainly worth enduring. As the 'battle' in my mind began to arise about how much silence and solitude one needs, I stumbled across this quote in 'The Silent Life' by my much loved spiritual writer, Thomas Merton:

"Not all men are called to be hermits, but all men need enough silence and solitude in their lives to enable the deep inner voice of their own true self to be heard at least occasionally."

 'The deep inner voice of their own true self' - this stuck with me for at least the last few days of my stay. They linger with me still. I don't think many of us realise the NEED for silence in our lives. Yes, of course there are times where we might remark, 'Oh, it was good to have a bit of quiet' - but do we understand why? Why do we need it?

"My life is a listening, His is a speaking. My salvation is to hear and respond. For this, my life must be silent. Hence, my silence is my salvation." Merton in 'Thoughts in Solitude'.

Salvation...

In order to be saved we must recognise the presence of love, love in its essence. One can only realise love when one stops to think, even if it's for the briefest of moments. If that brief moment was then extended bit by bit so that it infected all aspects of our lives, then perhaps we would be more aware of the loving Spirit moving in our day to day living, and perhaps the world would be filled with more loving people.

A line I came across in one book puzzled me for a little while, so I asked the Novice Master and then I returned to my 'cell' and thought of a possible distinction. I read somewhere about 'being in the image of God' and 'being in the likeness of God'. My interpretation is that to be in the image of God (which we all are) is to be capable of love, and indeed worthy of love. To be in the 'likeness of God' is thus whether we imitate the love which is God. A person therefore who fails to love, fails to be what he was created for. There is nothing more depressing than seeing a person who cannot love, a person living and 'being' below their designed capacity (I think it's arguable whether one is 'being' if unable to love).

Love enables us, it is our 'petrol' or 'gas' (for you Americans!). Caritas, charity, is a model form of love. I think 24k Caritas is 'silent Caritas'. Thus it is a form of love rooted in the silence of God and in the mission of the Gospel. What better sign of 'Silent Caritas' (Latin translation anybody?) is there than the cross? Love silenced in the greatest act of charity man has ever encountered. The task of the monk is to live this. Indeed, in some way, it is what all the faithful are called to: live the cross.

"Into your hands Lord, I commend my spirit. You have redeemed us Lord, God of truth." Ps. 31:5

Benedicite.

Back in the world

I am now back home and out of the cloister at Downside Abbey. I had a profitable week and one which has given me quite a bit to ponder over.

I must continue to unpack now. Apologies for the short post.

Benedicite.

The Cloister Calls

I am returning to Downside Abbey (for photos from previous visits, check here and here) for the week today so there will be no posts on this blog in that time, as I will have no access to the internet. I hope I will get hold of the Apostolic Constitution regarding Anglican converts when/if it comes out in the time I am in the cloister; I'm sure some of the monks will be able to get a copy!

Please pray for me whilst I am there, and be assured of my prayers for all followers and readers of this blog.

Yours in Christ Our Lord.

Benedicite.

Be a real man!

The CNA reports of a new book being released by a Fr. Larry Richards called, 'Be A Man: Become The Man God Created You To Be'. In his book he attempts to offer his thoughts on a renewal of the masculine identity, as he puts it 'being masculine without being macho'. This reminds me of the Holy Father's comments about 'gender blurring' which seemed to anger so many people. I put a comment on another blog about masculine identity being God given along with the male body (similarly female identity is as God given as the female body).

It should be an interesting read, so that'll be on my list of books to get.

Benedicite.

There will never be peace in the Holy Land

I had a very interesting lecture yesterday for my module on Judaism (I am doing a BA in Theology AND Religious Studies). We had Professor Dan Cohn-Sherbok, a rabbi of Reform Judaism, who is a research professor at my university. His lecture was primarily on Zionism and the role of the State of Israel but then went into the the topic of peace in the Holy Land. He justified very well the need for a Jewish state which he says is even more justified after the Shoah in World War II; in other words the State of Israel offers a place of refuge for Jews in case of further persecution (which is realistic given the persecution of Jews pretty much from the word go). He did well to offer a voice for the Arab Muslim communities living in Palestine who have been evicted from there homes despite the fact generations of their families have lived in areas now occupied by Jews.

There has been conflict from the very beginning of Israel's modern existence and Cohn-Sherbok managed to explain why there will never be peace in the Holy Land, even by having a two state solution. There are groups of Jews who will not accept anything less than all the territory they hold was given to them by God, and they will be willing to put their lives on the line or to use any tools of violence they can get their hands on till they get what is, in their eyes, rightfully theirs. Similarly, there are Arab Muslims who also have an ardent desire not to give Jews what they believe God gave them, more so because they were never significantly represented for at least a thousand years in the land they wish to now have. One added danger nowadays is the fact Israel has nuclear weapons. Professor Cohn-Sherbok highlighted why Iran should not have nuclear weapons, if anything for its own benefit. He explained how some Jews will at any cost defend the State of Israel, even to the extent of using nuclear weapons against them! This would have horrific consequences not just for the Middle East, but for the world. The events in the Holy Land can then be reflected across the globe given the presence of Jews and Muslims worldwide. Let us not forget our dwindling number of Arab Christians who often feel they can no longer stay in their homeland. This is evident by the growth of Eastern Christian communities here in the UK; my tutor after all looks after the Melkites, who are primarily Arab speaking Christians (the language of which is reflected in their Liturgy).

I recall listening to Patrick Madrid's podcast dispelling Protestant claims that the Catholic Church is the whore of Babylon because it apparently sits on one of Rome's seven hills. Apparently, this is not the case; the Vatican does sit on a hill, but not one of the 'Seven' Rome is famous for. Another place that sits on seven hills is Jerusalem. I won't start speculating now so I'll just leave that with you. As with a lot of things in Revelations, you could attribute many of the writings to anything. Jerusalem is the focus point for many, and any events that happen there can be mirrored across the globe. It's hard to see how peace will ever make it to the Holy Land.  Without losing all hope, I doubt personally there can ever be peace there. There will be times of less violence and times of more violence. If only the sites in the Holy Land weren't so significant for Jews and Muslims because otherwise I'm sure the Jews would have been happy having any other bit of land in the world. But God didn't promise them any bit of land...

Benedicite.

Donum fac remissionis

(My temporary shrine for All Souls)

"Mors stupebit et natura,

cum resurget creatura,

judicanti responsura"

"Death is struck, and nature quaking,

all creation is awaking,

to its Judge an answer making."

Eternal Rest, grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May they rest in peace. Amen.

May the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

Benedicite.