I WROTE LAST WEEK of the need to show strong loyalty to the pope as the successor of St Peter and the Vicar of Jesus Christ on earth, the same loyalty as Catholics were bound to show to his predecessors. Loyalty to the pope is a distinguishing mark of Catholics
Continue readingThe following is the text of the fourth in our Lent programme of talks. It was delivered by Father Ashley in Church on 28 March 2017, and a recording is available on our Webcam page. You can also download or print a copy. Introduction: St Augustine’s two cities Having spent some
Continue readingEARLIER THIS MONTH we celebrated the fourth anniversary of the election of Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio as Pope Francis – he is shown here on the visit he made, not long after his election, to celebrate Mass on the island of Lampedusa with refugees encamped and those caring for them, praying
Continue readingThe following is the text of the third in our Lent programme of talks. It was delivered by Father Ashley in Church on 21 March 2017, and a recording is available on our Webcam page. You can also download or print a copy. While much of our sessions so far has been
Continue readingA basketball in my hands is worth about $19. A basketball in Michael Jordan’s hands is worth about $33 million. It depends on whose hands it’s in… A baseball in my hands is worth about $6. A baseball in Mark McGuire’s hands is worth $19 million. It depends on whose
Continue readingThe following is the text of the second in our Lent Programme of talks. It was delivered by Father Ashley in Church on 14 March 2017, and a recording can be found on our Webcam page. You can also download or print a copy. Next Saturday evening at Mass the
Continue readingThe following is the text of the first in our Lent Programme of talks entitled THE CHURCH AND THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES. It was delivered by Father Ashley in Church on 7 March 2017, and a recording can be found on our Webcam page. You can also download or print
Continue readingIf you google Shrove Tuesday (Tuesday this week) you tend to get numerous images of piles of pancakes, perhaps reflecting its alternative name, Fat Tuesday. Children might well think that the word ‘shrove’ means a pancake; after all the traditional English name for Monday this week, Collop Monday, does refer
Continue readingIN THE CONTINENT OF EUROPE, last Tuesday was kept as the feast day of two of the six patron saints of Europe, the brothers Cyril and Methodius. Because of the popularity and growing commercialisation of St Valentine’s day, (who is not in the Church calendar anyway because the facts about
Continue readingTODAY IS RACIAL JUSTICE SUNDAY. These reflections are part of what has been prepared by a group of Christians from Belfast for all the churches in this country to use today (for the full text go to www.ctbi.org.uk): A comprehensive definition of racism is that it is a system of
Continue reading