Issue 251 November 2017

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Official Newspaper of the Archdiocese of CardiffNewyddiadur Swyddogol Esgobaeth Caerdydd

Great hymn singing marks a great occasion

By James Campbell

Christians of many denominations showed

that when it comes to singing no nation can

beat the Welsh!

And in St David’s Metropolitan Cathedral onTuesday 31 October they celebrated the 500thanniversary of the Reformation and the role ofMartin Luther by singing the great Welsh hymnCalon Lan, with such volume and sincerity offaith that I thought the roof of the cathedralwould be blown off.

What an occasion it was with all Christiansunder the banner of Cytun, the organisationwhich unites in pilgrimage those churches inWales which, acknowledging God’s revelationin Christ, brought the churches together incommunion.

In his welcome, Archbishop George Stacksaid: “This Quincentenary commemoration, andthe events relating to it, have given us amarvellous opportunity to see a more completepicture of this man, not just to theology, and tothe religious life of Europe and beyond, butalso, according to some writers, one who laidthe foundations of a a view of the world whichremains to this very day.”

The Archbishop of Wales John D.E. Davies,said: “We come with different thoughts andfeelings of thanksgiving and lament, joy andrepentance, joy in the Gospel and sorrow fordivision.”

Mr Reinallt Thomas, Moderator of the FreeChurch Council in Wales. Added: “Today werejoice in the gifts that have come to theChurch through the Reformation, to repent fordividing walls that we, and our forebears, havebuilt, and to commit to work together incommon witness and the service of JesusChrist in the world.”

Common witness indeed when we look atthe Christian denominations represented in theCathedral:• The Catholic Church

• The Church in Wales• The Baptist Union of Wales• South Wales Baptist Association• The Methodist Church• The German-Speaking Lutheran Church• The Salvation Army• The United Reformed Church• The Union of Welsh Independents• The Congregational Federation• The Presbyterian Church of Wales• The Indian Orthodox Church• The Church of Pentecost – UK• Society of Friends

Also represented were many otherorganisations working on social and helpthemes.

Archbishop George added: “At the beginningof this centenary year at the World LutheranFederal Ecumenical Prayer Service at Lund, inSweden, Pope Francis said:

‘Now we have the opportunity to mend acritical moment of our history by movingbeyond the controversies and disagreementsthat have often prevented us fromunderstanding one another.’

Archbishop George ended his address byreferring to the hymn written by Martin Rinkhart,the pastor in the town of Eilenberg at thebeginning of the 30 years war when both thewar and the plague which ensued caused himto bury 4,500 people during his time in thatparish. The Archbishop added: “We shall hear ittoday, sung in German by our own choir”

Now thank we all our God

With heart and hands and voices

Who wondrous things hath done

In whom our world rejoices

Who from our mother’s arms

Hath blessed us on our way

With countless gits of love

And still is ours today.

• More pictures of the Reformation 500 service on page 8.

• Martin Luther book review on page 6.

The power of Welsh singing…the roof almost came offSt David’s Cathedral as Cristians of all denominations

joined in singing the famous old Welsh hymn Canon Lân

2 CATHOLIC PEOPLE

Editorial Dr James Campbell-Editor. Archbishop’sHouse, 43 Cathedral Road, Cardiff, CF11 9HD Tel: (029) 2022 0411 Fax: (029) 2037 9036 Email:publications@rcadc.org andjames.campbell@southwales.ac.ukArticles to be received by the 20th of the month forinclusion in the following month.

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November

7 Requiem Mass for deceased clergy St David’s Cathedral 12.45.12 Remembrance Sunday Mass Sat David’s Cathedral 11am22 Training Day for Lay Ministers of Funerals Llantrisant 10am26 Christmas Fayre St David’s Cathedral 12am.26 Masa in Welsh St Teilo’s Church, Whitchurch, Cardiff 4.30pm

December

2 Family Fun event St Mary’s RC Primary School Chepstow 3pm

January

20 Mass of Celebration for couples married in 2017 St David’s Cathedral 2pm.

To list Archdiocesan and Deanery Events in this Diary contact: Dr James

Campbell-Editor. Archbishop’s House, 43 Cathedral Road, Cardiff, CF11 9HD

Tel: (029) 2022 0411 Fax: (029) 2037 9036 Email: publications@rcadc.org and

james.campbell@southwales.ac.uk

Articles to be received by the 20th of the month for inclusion in the following

month.

ARCHDIOCESANDIARY OF EVENTS

ARCHBISHOP GEORGE’S ENGAGEMENTS

NOVEMBER 2017

7 November Council of Priests The Cornerstone 10.30Requiem Mass for deceased clergy St. David’s Cathedral 12.45

8 November Training Day for Lay Ministers of Funerals Llantrisant 10.00

11 November St. John’s College 30th anniversary dinner 7.00

12 November Remembrance Sunday Mass St. David’s Cathedral 11.00

13 November Meeting of the Bishops Conference, Hinsley Hall, Leeds

16 November Bishops Conference Meeting concludes

22 November Training Day for Lay Ministers of Funerals Llantrisant 10.00

24 November Prize Giving, St. Richard Gwyn High School 7.00

26 November Cathedral Christmas Fair, The Cornerstone

30 November Meeting of Patrimony Committee Eccleston Square 1.00

Christian Perspectiveson Death and Dying:The launch of a new online resourceEnd-of-life decision-making is becoming

more complex with advances in medical

technologies – and many of us will die

without the ability to make those decisions

for ourselves at the time. It is therefore

increasingly recognized that we need to

discuss approaches to death as individuals,

families, and society – and that those

discussions are important now. How can we

encourage such reflection and explore

‘Christian perspectives’ on these issues?

And how can churches help?

Monday (16 October) sees the launch eventfor a new resource to support suchconversations available atwww.christiandying.org.uk.

Based on a year-long ecumenical initiativeinvolving six conferences across England andWales, the resource brings together recordedpresentations from experts with practical, legal,medical, and theological expertise to supportclergy and congregations to learn about keyissues and initiate their own discussions.Issues explored include:• How do people’s values, beliefs and

religious faith inform their wishes about careat the end of life?

• What is an ‘Advance Decision’ and what arethe different Christian perspectives onrefusing life-prolonging treatment?

• What are the social, ethical and theologicaldebates around active ‘Assisted Dying?This ecumenical initiative, led by Cardiff

University and funded by a small York-basedcharity, The Paristamen CIO, was launched inLondon. The free event gave people theopportunity to be introduced to the resource,meet those involved in producing it and learnabout how it was created.

Professor Jenny Kitzinger, from CardiffUniversity, is an expert in the ethical and legaldifficulties faced by families involved in end-of-life decision-making. She said: “This new‘Christian Perspectives on Death and Dying’work is part of an international movement to

address the challenges raised by 21st centurymedicine and reflect on the ethical and socialissues we all face.

“This resource offers an opportunity to reflecton value and, beliefs, and how they shape thechoices we make. We hope the resource willprovide crucial information about end of lifechoices and open up the conversation aboutdeath.”

The project has been co-ordinated by DrJulie Latchem, a neurological physiotherapistand social scientist at Cardiff University. Shecomments: “We were heartened by the levelof interest from the Christian community.Many people told us they wished death wastalked about more.”

Gareth Morgan, Chair of Trustees at TheParistamen CIO, said: “Death and dying arecentral themes for Christians, raising profoundethical issues. But there can be a gulf betweenofficial church positions and those of ordinaryChristians, which is why we offered funding fora project to promote wider engagement withthese questions. We are delighted with whatthe team at Cardiff University have achieved inthis project and we hope the resources nowavailable at www.christiandying.org.uk will bewidely used by the churches.”

Attendees should book their place at theLondon event using: http://goo.gl/a2GJUF<https://t.co/PACirmo7iG>

Further information: Professor Jenny

Kitzinger, Cardiff University Tel: 029

20874571

Email: KitzingerJ@cardiff.ac.uk

Gareth Morgan, The Paristamen CIO Tel:

01904 788885 Email:

gareth@paristamen.org.uk

Professor Jenny Kitzinger, from Cardiff University

CATHOLIC PEOPLE 3

Editorial

In October I was fortunate to

be able to attend the annual

‘Westminster Event’

organised by Aid to the Church

In Need.The day started with Sung Mass

in Westminster Cathedral, in itselfa good enough reason to go toLondon, followed by a day withspeakers from parts of the worldwhere Christians are sufferingpersecution. The persecution ofChristians worldwide is the worstit has ever been in history andthese people were telling usabout it first hand. They were:• Issam John Darwish, Greek

Catholic Archbishop of Zahleand Furzol, Lebanon,

• Sister Annie Demerjian ofAleppo, Syria.

• Bishop Matthew of Kukah ofSokoto, Northern Nigeria.

Father Salar Kajo, Vicar general ofAlqosh, Chaldean Diocese, Iraq

• Stephen Rashe, Coordinator ofthe Iraqi Christians returninghome on the Nineveh Plains.

• John Pontifex, Head of Pressand Information for ACNrecently returned from Iraq.‘Their stories are a witness to

Christ’s love in the midst ofsuffering and an inspiration to usin our lives’. Neville Kyrke-Smith,National Director ACN UK said inhis introduction.

The news from Lebanon wasthat Christians and Muslims live atpeace but with a population of 4Million, they are trying to copewith 1½ Million Syrian refugees.This causes competion for jobsand housing between localpeople and the refugees.

The Archbishop emphasisedthat it is better to help therefugees back to their owncountries than to encourage themto emigrate. The majority want toreturn to their homes as soon as it

is safe to do so. Some have beenoffered the opportunity to leavewant to stay and return home. InLebanon, Christians and Muslimsmeet annually to jointly pray toOur Lady on 25th March.

Sister Annie is working inAleppo, Syria. We have all seenon TV the awful result of war inthat city where schools have beendemolished by Daesh. There are 6Million children and only 2½Million are able to go to school.They will be a lost generation andwill have psychological andphysical wounds. There is noelectricity and damage to waterinstallations. Life is governed bycandles. Sister Annie heads ateam offering emergency help inthe worst affected areas of Aleppoand Hassake providing food,shelter and medicines to sufferingfamilies.

Father Salar spoke movinglyabout life in the villages on theNineveh Plains where ACN areorganising the restoring ofdamaged homes, along withwater supplies and electricity.People are returning as fast asthey can. Only the Church ishelping with humanitarian aid,ACN is a large part of this supportand ‘They never left us in thethree years of occupation’ was thecomment. USA, UK and EU haverefused assistance, the Knights ofSt Columba have offered to helpand the Government of Hungaryhave offered £2 Million. Therehave been no schools oruniversities for three years, staffhave been killed or dispersed. Thereopening of school anduniversities for the returningchildren is urgent so that they donot lose yet another year ofeducation. They want ourgovernment to push for equalrights for all minorities. They facemany challenges but want to

• Continued on page 4

Reformaion500 This was a magnificent occasion as you

can read on page 1.

All Christian faiths came together to

celebrate a joint heritage and to underline

the fact that they are all working together,

unlike some of the dark days of hundreds

of years ago.

And the celebration was given great voice

with magnificent singing of famous Welsh

hymns.

Bravo!

VincentiansAnother great celebration at St David’s

Cathedral is portrayed in words and

pictures on the following two pages.

We saw and heard from the very young to

the not so young what great work the

Vincentian organisations do at both home

and abroad.

This was inspiring staff and our thanks

and congratulations should go got the

Society of St Vincent de Paul for their

great and charitable work.keep Christians in their land.

Bishop Matthew from Northern Nigeria spokeabout persecution by Boko Haram who swoopon unsuspecting villages at night and murder,rape and kidnap the inhabitants. It is not knownwhere they come from, they are just suddenlythere. The local people hide as much as theycan.

John Pontifex spoke about his recent visit tothe Nineveh Plains where he was shown theruins of a house by the owner. In huge writingDaesh had put (in translation) ‘All Christiansshould leave, this land is not for them’. Johnwatched as they painted out the writing in theliving room belonging to Christian family.

In Our Lady and St Michael’s Parish,Abergavenny, we have a scheme wherebypeople give a small amount monthly to supportseminaries in the third world where there aremany vocations to the priesthood. This isknown as ‘Priests for Tomorrow’. (For further

Worldwide Christian persecutionexamined at conference

ChristmasFayreThere is a splendid opportunity to buyChristmas presents at the CathedralChristmas Fayre, Held in the Jane HodgeRoom at the Cornerstone on SundayNovember 26 at 12am.

The stalls include:Devotional items, including articles blessedby Pope Francis in Rome. A bottle stall,Homemade Craft items, Homemade Cakesand Biscuits, Homemade Chutneys andJames, Chocolate Tombola, Irish coffeesand Mince Pies, Quality Bric-a-Brac andQuality Classical Vinyl Records.

4 CATHOLIC PEOPLE

Vincentian FWorldwide Christian persecution examinedat conference

information phone Jocelyn on850861 or email prys-williams@uwclub.net) John wasable to take our donation directlyto the Father Aphrem, rector of theSeminary in Erbil where, in spite ofthe current difficulties, they havesixnew seminarians. Fr Aphremsaid, “Looking at the situation,here becoming a priest in Iraq islike becoming a martyr. It is verydifficult to be a Christian let alonea priest.” It is wonderful to knowthat our donation has gonedirectly to help this particularseminary. To quote an Iraqiseminarian ‘ . . an inner calling totake up the Cross and change theworld’.

In Qaraqosh an elderly lady saidto John, ‘If you do not help us,who will?’

Support Red Wednesday

And so we come on to somethingwe can all do – support REDWEDNESDAY 22 November.

Red Wednesday was startedlast year by Aid to the Church in

Need. Various buildings werefloodlit in red to draw attention tothe plight of persecuted Christiansthroughout the world.

Westminster Cathedral was oneand a gathering took place in theevening in the Plaza in front of theCathedral, where Catholics andother Christians prayed togetherand dressed in red to bring theplight of persecuted Christians tothe fore.

Westminster Abbey, Houses ofParliament, among many othersaround the country were alsofloodlit in red. This year,Westminster, Norwich Wrexham,Armagh, St Chads, Birmingham, StMargaret’s Scotland Cathedralswith various other churches andpublic buildings have promised tojoin in.

There is an information pack forschools on(www.acnuk.org/redwednesday)and for individuals please wearand item of red and pray for ourChristian brothers and sisters.

Jocelyn Prys-Williams

Church of Our Lady and

St Michael, Abergavenny

Continued from Page 3

Greetings to you all on this great and

significant occasion. A special greeting

to Archbishop George and huge thanks

for this splendid celebration.

As you know this event is happening to gatherus the 400th year of the birth of the Vincentiancharism. Many of you here will know theDaughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul, thatwe are an international congregation of 16,000members in over 90 countries in the world,founded by St. Vincent and St. Louise de Marillacin 17th century France.

Our special spirit/mission/charism is to engagewith those who experience poverty in our societyand to assist people enabling them to emergefrom whatever is causing their distress. This is thesole reason for our existence. We are proud toshare that calling with the Vincentian Family(which includes the renowned St. Vincent de PaulSociety, the Vincentian Priests, the AIC and many,many other groups all working from the valuesand inspiration of Vincent de Paul).

We are also proud to hold the commitment topeople living in poverty with all likemindedorganisations with whom we collaborate, many ofwhom are here today.

It was in 1617, while preaching in the parishchurch of Chatillon, Northern France that theyoung Vincent de Paul inspired his congregationto take responsibility for a poor family from theparish that had taken seriously ill and was in needof food and comfort. The family was saved by the

ovcoreorfirmw

stanasbe

sePeE

chcosaEv

yesiorco

400th Anniversary of the

Candle commemorates 400th Anniversary

Archbishop George welcomes Vincentians from different parishes

The Rev Fr Paul Roche C.M delivered an inspiring Homily

A young Vincentian describes their charitable activities with a statue of St Vincent de Paul in front of the lecture

Sisterand Da

The ‘Triple A’

Family Fun Event!This archdiocesan event, previously been held in Llantrisant,

Merythr & Cwmbran, to coincide with the start of Advent, is to take

place this year on Saturday December 2nd from 3pm in St Mary’s

RC Primary School, Bulwark Road, Chepstow, NP16 5JE

We aim to provide practical, fun ways to help us all prepare for theChristmas whilst keeping its true meaning at the centre of what we do.

It will be an afternoon of free flow craft activities and displays of ideas

The Archdiocesan Family Life Worker

& the Parish Community of St Mary’s

Chepstow Present the Archdiocesan

Advent Adventure

for celebratingAdvent as a family,parish or individually- Something for ALLages!

It is hoped thatfamilies will then joinus for vigil Mass at6pm - including theblessing of ourAdvent wreaths andpresentation ofsymbols for theJesse tree, andround the day offwith ‘a cuppa &mince pie’ at theback of church afterMass! All arewelcome!

There is no charge,but we encouragethose who attend tobring items for thelocal food bank, ifthey are able, in lieuof a charge.

CATHOLIC PEOPLE 5

amily celebrate great service to the world

verwhelming response to this call toompassionate action and Vincent, seeing theesponse, realised that great charity must berganised if it was to be effective. These were therst moments of what is now a vast worldwide

movement of service to the vulnerable of theworld.

Most of all today we pay tribute to all those wetand with and for in their struggle to be heardnd in their desire to improve the situations whichssail them. We are honoured and privileged toe alongside them in friendship.The Sisters came to Wales in 1932 and have

erved in Caerphilly, Cathedral Road, Cardiff,entwyn, Newport, Ammanford, St David’s andly.To use the words of Evelyn Woodward, a

harism: “survives when other people share theontagious vision, catch the mood, burn with theame fire.” (‘Poets, Prophets & Pragmatists’.velyn Woodward 1987.)

Those of us who have been placed here haveexperienced the contagious vision, the passion

and the fire with which the values of dignity,respect and enablement have been offered tosome of the most marginalized people in the

area. Together with our partners we continue a 400

ear old story which carries us into the future,multaneously preserving and modernising thatriginal inspiration all those years ago in theountryside of Northern France.

May we, together, continue to be a safe havenfor all those who need us, and a source of hopeand transformation for those who seek it. Andespecially, may we always ‘Welcome thestranger’. Please come in, the door is open.

Today we unite ourselves with the other nationalcelebrations which have occurred this year:· Southwark in February· Liverpool in June· Scotland in September· And now Wales – this special candle hasbeen carried and lit at all those celebrations andunites us together with all who have celebratedthis year. Our links are deep and true – and weare stronger together.

It’s a particular joy to be in Wales today – onthe same day that thousands of Vincentians havegathered in Rome from all over the world for the400th Anniversary symposium on ‘Welcoming theStranger’. Pope Francis recent message to the family:Towards the end:

‘may you find………….the joy of coming out of

yourself in order to go out into the world, free

from nostalgia for the past, confident in God and

creative regarding the challenges of today and

tomorrow because, as St Vincent said, ‘love is

inventive to infinity’.

I wish you all many blessings today and in the

future. May God be with you and your families

and loved ones and may joy and peace be yours.

Sr Ellen Flynn, Provincial, Daughters of Charity

Vincentian Charism Celebration of the Vincentian Family Cardiff October 2017

Young people told the congregation about their work

Archbishop George with those taking part in the Vincentian Family celebration

r Ellen, Archbishop Georgeaughters of Charity

6 CATHOLIC PEOPLE

Martin Luther – a Catholicdissident - Peter Stanford

(Hodder and Stoughton, March 2017)(reviewed by Rev Dr Philip Manghan, CatholicChurch Trustee of Cytûn: Churches Together inWales)

October 312017 marks the500thanniversary ofthe beginningsof theReformation,though, asmost historiansnow agree, notby the nailing of95 theses tothe door of theuniversityChurch inWittenberg. Itwas on this dayin 1517,however, thatthe AugustinianFriar MartinLuther sent aletter to his local Archbishop in Mainz criticising theabuses of Church leadership and in particular the‘sale’ of indulgences. This action, and thesubsequent reactions of religious and politicalleaders, launched the division of westernChristianity that has blighted the proclamation ofChrist’s message for centuries. Driven by the prayer of Jesus Christ that hisfollowers may be ‘one’ (John 17:21), the CatholicChurch in recent decades has forged significantlinks with other mainstream Christian traditions towork to overcome those divisions and seek greatercommunion. Of particular note are the ‘JointInternational Commission for Theological Dialoguebetween the Catholic Church and the OrthodoxChurch’, the ‘Anglican–Catholic InternationalCommission’ and the ‘Lutheran–CatholicCommission on Unity’. These groups, along withmany others, have sought to break down thesebarriers of division and seek new ways ofproclaiming the message of Jesus Christ in a spiritof unity. As the 500th anniversary of the publication of MartinLuther’s letter approaches, it is worth rememberingthat the Second Vatican Council’s Decree onEcumenism (1964) acknowledged that the divisionof the Church ‘openly contradicts the will of Christ,scandalises the world, and damages the holy causeof preaching the Gospel to every creature.’ TheCatholic Church, it continues, is driven by the HolySpirit to seek ‘the restoration of unity among all thefollowers of Christ’ (para 1). The Council spoke ‘withrespect and affection’ for all Christians who, despitethe obstacles between the Churches, ‘have a rightto be called Christian, and so are correctly acceptedas brothers and sisters by the children of theCatholic Church’ (para 3). More recently, and on Martin Luther particularly,Pope Benedict XVI at the General Audience ofWednesday, 19 November 2008, taught thatLuther's phrase: justification by ‘faith alone’ is ‘true,if it is not opposed to faith in charity, in love’. Inaddition, the Pontifical Council for PromotingChristian Unity with the Commission on Faith andOrder of the World Council of Churches, in thejointly prepared resources for the ‘Week of Prayerfor Christian Unity’, 2017, referred to Martin Lutheras a ‘witness to the Gospel’. Peter Stanford’s new biography and appraisal ofMartin Luther sits very well within this contemporarydesire for mutual understanding and respect. ACatholic, and graduate of History at Merton College,Oxford, Peter Stanford has written a well-researchedand extremely readable account of a man who,Stanford believes, wanted to reform the Church, notdivide it. Stanford explores candidly Luther’shorrifying, though not untypical, anti-Semiticwritings, which had a powerful influence on Nazism,and, though some scholars of History might takeissue with aspects of Stanford’s handling of thehistorical material, this is a very balanced and

Three landmark Cardiff buildings are in the running for

a top UK award.

The trio are among six projects that have all already wontheir categories in the Rics Wales award, one of the highestawards for excellence in the field.

Now they are being entered into the Rics (Royal Instituteof Chartered Surveyors) UK awards and each has a chanceto win in their respective categories.

The Rics Awards Grand Final took place in London onNovember 2.

The Cardiff Buildings going forward include theCornerstone in Charles Street, which won the Walesbuilding conservation category.

Rics Wales said: “Cornerstone is the restoration andtransformation of the abandoned, former Ebenezer Chapelin Cardiff into a multi-use hub which has provided a much-needed stimulus for Charles Street in the heart of the city.The philosophy of the project was to create a newcommunity facility using as much of the original chapelmaterials as possible, giving it back to the people of Cardiffwhile saving a prominent historic building from decay”.

Meanwhile, One Central Square – partof the massive redevelopment in front ofCardiff Central Railway Station – wasvictorious in Wales’ commercial buildingcategory.

Described as an “outstanding land-mark development”, the building provides135,000 sq.ft. of Grade A office space inthe heart of Cardiff city centre’sredevelopment zone.

Rics Wales said “Rio Architect’sinspiring design, developed byRightacres, sets a quality benchmark forthe one million sq. ft. regenerationdevelopment of this neglected city area”.

“Completed in March 2016 and fully letwithin six months, the facility raises thebar for office design in Wales and hascaptured the imagination of the city”.

And the third of the Welsh capital’s buildings to make itthrough to the UK final was Cardiff University’s BrainResearch Imaging Centre (Cubric), on Maindy Road, whichscooped the design through innovation category as well asWales’ project of the year award.

Rics Wales said: “Cubric opened in Spring 2016.Housing a combination of neuroimaging equipment uniquewithin Europe, Cubric continues to further its world-leadingresearch which has already established Cardiff Universityas one of the YK’s top three universities for psychology,psychiatry and neuroscience”.

“The new building has exemplary levels of safety frommagnetic fields and for participants and patients, is ahighly sustainable design achieving BREEAM Excellentranking and in the short time since opening has beenhighly successful.”

The three other buildings representing Wales at the UKfinal are: HM Prison Berwyn, Wrexham; Urban Village,Swansea; and Harlech Castle.

Article from SOUTH WALES ECHO – Saturday 14thOctober 2017

Cornerstone in running for top award

The Prince of Wales unveiled aplaque to commemorate hisopening of The Cornerstone

CATHOLIC PEOPLE 7

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entertaining account of Luther’s life andtheology and the political context thatenmeshed him. A minor annoyance isStanford’s use of ‘mass’ with a lower case‘m’, instead of ‘Mass’ with an upper case‘M’, when referring to the liturgy of theEucharist. On a number of occasions,Stanford refers to the ‘German masses’ orthe ‘mass of German people’ and one hasto re-read the sentence twice to ascertainif the reference is to a large group ofpeople or the Mass. The Catholic ‘Mass’always has a capital ‘M’ – it is not amathematical unit of measurement. Importantly, Stanford sees recentdevelopments within Catholicism, and theconciliatory nature of comments from theVatican, as a sign that, ecclesiologically,Martin Luther was perhaps a little closer totoday’s Catholic Church than mightpreviously have been thought. He pointsout that many of the developments of theSecond Vatican Council (1962-1965)were integral to Luther’s vision. Forexample, the Council’s recognition of thevocation of the laity in the Church, theplace of Scripture in Catholic prayer andliturgy, the Mass in the vernacular, the fullparticipation of the laity in the liturgy andthe growth of local Bishops Conferences,indicate, for Stanford, that if Luther werealive today, he might wonder what all thefuss was about. The fact that in Wales, the ‘Cytûn:Churches Together in Wales’, 31 October2017 national service to commemoratethe 500th beginnings of the Reformation,which was based on the service preparedby the Lutheran-Catholic Commission onUnity, From Conflict to Communion, heldat St David’s Catholic Cathedral in Cardiffand led by Archbishop George Stack, is aclear indicator of the Catholic Church’scommitment to ecumenism. PeterStanford’s biography of Martin Luther is atimely reminder that, within mainstreamChristianity, there is more that unites usthan divides us and that the proclamationof the Good News of Jesus Christ to anincreasingly sceptical world, is enhanced,not hindered, by the ecumenicalmovement.

Historian publisheschronicles of Englishnuns in exileIn 1598, the first Englishconvent wasestablished in Brusselsby a group of womenwho chose to flee anincreasingly anti-Catholic England tofollow the religiouslife. In the twocenturies thatfollowed, another20 enclosedconvents wereopened acrossFlanders andFrance. A new book byhistorian DrCarolineBowden fromQueen MaryUniversity of London(QMUL) publishes for the first time thechronicles written by the Augustinian nunsin Bruges. The book vividly depicts life inan English convent in exile.In theory, the nuns were cut off from theoutside world. In practice, says DrBowden, they were deeply connected totheir local communities and to widerreligious networks in Europe. TheChronicles of Nazareth (the EnglishConvent) describe a group of

extraordinary women - strongly influencedby continental intellectual culture, and whoin turn contributed to a developing EnglishCatholic identity, shaped by theirexperiences in exile. Living in exile, members of the conventwere well-aware of their importance to thesurvival of English Catholicism for women,according to Dr Bowden. “Keeping fullrecords served to maintain a reputationwhich would attract influential and well-heeled benefactors and suitably-qualifiedmembers.”Dr Bowden says the Bruges Chronicles,published for the first time in this volume,introduce the reader to members at everylevel, from impressive community leaders,to domineering priests, to candidates whofailed to live up to expectations and weretactfully nudged out. It also gives space tothose who lived out their lives in quietcontemplation.She says: “We meet Prioresses who takeon major challenges in fund-raising to payfor building projects, managedisagreements over spiritual direction andadjust to new relationships with secularauthorities, the impact of theEnlightenment, and finally war. There aresome intense personal dramas that unfoldalongside nuns who followed themonastic rule to the letter and served thecommunity faithfully over many years.”The first two volumes of the Chroniclestake account of life in the convent until the1793, when the survival of the communitywas seriously threated by the invasion ofFrench troops. The membership of theEnglish Convents was first explored by theWho Were the Nuns? project, funded byArts and Humanities Research Council(AHRC).

Case study

A profile of Mother Augustina More,

Prioress 1766-1807

Prioresses at Bruges were elected for lifeusing secret ballot. Augustina More wasthe last descendant linking the conventdirectly to St Thomas More, a significantconnection for the community. She hadonly been professed for thirteen yearswhen elected Prioress, and her qualitieswere respected both inside and outsidethe walls of the enclosure.This is reflected in the size of thecommunity she led. Candidates were notattracted to cloisters where leadershipwas considered weak. Mother More

reformed community rules and sheled them through thechallenging time ofreforms, based onEnlightenmentprinciples. As othercontemplativecommunities were shutdown, individual members,both men and women,were taken into the conventand sheltered until they wereable to make plans.For Mother More, the lastyears in volume two are filledwith the appalling uncertaintiescreated by events in France.We see how the leaders of theconvent were trying to decidehow to deal with the valuables,who could be trusted, how to getthe best deal, how to look after theelderly and the sick. She hadboarders from the West Indies as

well as Europe in the community. One ofthem (a small boy) had a black nurse withhim which would have been an unusualsight in those days.

Case study

Dealing with a scandal, Sister Perpetua

Errington (1681-1739)

Baptised Dorothy in a well-known

Northumbrian family, she professed in1681, choosing the name Perpetua. Shewas described as frequenting the parlour,where she was ostensibly talking tosoldiers of William III’s army with theintention of converting them toCatholicism. However, on the night of1696 she left the convent in hernightgown with John Grant. She was notmissed until the following day becauseher attendance at divine office was soirregular.When Reverend Mother using her“emperor” key opened her cell they foundher habit and veil abandoned. Shemarried John Grant in Sluys, and wasfound there living in poverty by a familymember. She refused to return to theconvent and left for Scotland. Five yearslater word came from her brother that shehad died.Later the nuns learned that in fact thewoman who had come to his house anddied there was an imposter suffering fromsyphilis. Dorothy was still alive and hadcontacted a bishop in Scotland sayingthat she wished to return to the convent.The nuns offered to pay the expenses ofher journey, but nothing more was heardfor several months. They had given uphope when she appeared in 1707 (elevenyears after she left) accompanied by aBenedictine monk. She explained that herreturn was prompted by the death of herhusband and her brother John had paidfor her travel. She was accepted by the communityprovided she agreed to a trial separationof a month and to follow the Rule closelyin future. The Sunday following, shereceived her habit and prostrate beforethe community, begged pardon. TheChronicler writes “She was receivedamong us as a reunited member of ourcommunity, with the kiss of peace fromeveryone... We hope God’s infinite mercywill complete the work he has so happilybegun.”

Listening – Hearing theHeart by Robin Daniels

Available from: Marston 01235 465500e enquiries@marston.co.ukIP 9781909728745Price £8.99 plus ppEdwina Gillett, Editor of the Catholic Voiceof LancasterWe all think that we do it –listen – that is.But do we?To listen well we need to fully focus onwhat is being conveyed to us. But howoften do we mentally contrive,simultaneously, to develop our responseor counter argument. Nowhere is thismore prevalent than in Radio and TVdebates and even in Parliament whentalking over another (sometimes evenshouting, as if this becomes moreconvincing) seems to be the norm. Doesthis sound familiar in our own daily lives?Listening by Robin Daniels takes us out ofthe daily hubbub and draws on a wealthof his own personal experience as well aswriters, poets and scriptural texts to helpus find another dimension to listening thatis through the heart. And he explores howmusic can help and the importance ofsilence in the process.It is not a long book but it is full from startto finish of helpful material that takes thereader through a variety of situations andtechniques that would be helpful toanyone wishing to improve their ownability to listen but especially thoseinvolved in pastoral or counselling work.So often we are caught up with what wewant to get across and we can becomeoblivious to what is being said to us. Isthat true of our prayer life too? If so,Robin’s book is for you too.

8 CATHOLIC PEOPLE

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A joyous ceremony to mark the Reformation

TheArchbishop of

Wales TheMost Reverend

John D.E.Davies and theArchbishop of

Cardiff TheMost ReverendGeorge Stack

greet eachother

Speakers from all denominationsaddressed the congregation

In unity…the Archbishop of Wales, Archbishopof Cardiff and Mr Rheinalt Thomas, Moderatorof the Free Church of Wales.

Greeting the congregation after the service - Mr Rheinallt Thomas,Moderator of the Free Church of Wales, Archbishop George Stackand the Archbishop of Wales, the Most Reverend John D.E. Davies

The Cathedral Choir paid tribute to theoccasion by singing in German theLutheran hymn Nun danker all Gott

Representatives for all Welsh Christian faithsprocessed into the Cathedral