Portsmouth Roman Catholic

Above is the face of little Jacinta of Fatima.  She died around 10 years old after the visions of Our Lady at Fatima.  But this is a recent photograph of her for her body has been blessed by God to lie incorrupt. Jacinta was a child with a loving heart.  When in a game she was dared to kiss her brother she said no and looking around asked if she could kiss a crucifix on the wall instead.   Taking the image from the wall she kissed it and then looked at the crucified Christ    She asked her older cousin Lucy why he was nailed so horribly and Lucy told her the story of the crucifixion and why Jesus died.   She burst into tears and vowed she would not hurt Jesus in this way. When Mary appeared to the children she told them how many souls were being lost since they had nobody to pray for them and to offer sacrifices for them.  She even showed them a vision of what Hell could be like.   Jacinta was so moved that so many were going to hell ...

It was the Catholic and Protestant vote on Abortion that won the Presidency for Trump.   Latinos, Afro-American, and many Christians turned away from Hilary Clinton and her support for Planned Parenthood and the donation of organs from murdered babies.    The baby in the womb is a creation of God and  certainly no Catholic has any right to weigh their conscience against the Almighty.

In Matthew 19 we read not only the teachings of Jesus on Divorce and Remarriage but the account of the Rich young man who asked "What good deed must I do to earn eternal life?"  (Jerusalem Bible translation}.   Jesus goes on to answer    Jesus tells him to keep the rules, sorry, keep the Commandments.  "Which ones?" asks the young man.   It is a surprising reply for a Jew in those times, although as I indicated it is now surprising today when so many badly instructed clergy believe that this part of the dialogue should be ignored and we should move quickly on to the bit that talks about giving to the poor.   But Jesus had been asked a question about how to earn eternal life and he answered with the basics.   "These, you shall not kill. You shall not commit adultery.  You shall not steal.  You shall not give false witness.  Honour your father and your mother.  You shall love your neighbour as yourself" At this point the dialog...

In the Bible story of Lazarus who fed himself as a glutton while a poor man at his gate was ignored, when he eventually was in Hell and begging for water he asked "Let me come back at least to win my friends" Jesus replied "If they do not believe now not even one from the dead will convince them" This truth is borne out by the story of Fatima. In a world where there was evil, war, where the commandments of God were broken, where the warnings of Jesus about sin and Hell a re ignored and so many are going to Hell, truths spoken by Jesus in Scripture, not even a miracle worked by the Mother of God, seems to be able to turn mankind from sin. We would rather keep our comfortable Christianity and somehow pretend that since it challenges us to truths that disturb our inner peace we can somehow dismiss the Apparitions. In the picture we have three children, Jacinta 7, Francesco 8, and Lucia 11. Are we to suppose that these children tricked 70,000 people by conjuring up an...

Today in our parish a wonderful pastoral letter by our bishop was read out.   Our Bishop Egan has brought something new to our Diocese, concern for the young and a realisation that few young people  have an interest in the Church because we have failed them.   When I and others first pointed out that young people were not coming to Church anymore we were dismissed with "O they come back later on" and it was useless to argue that it was 'later on' and they were not coming back.   There was that feeling that in our New Church everything had to be perfect since the catechesis programmes were organised by those with an 'adult faith'.   But now we have a Bishop who is not afraid to speak out, and in the Diocese of Portsmouth that takes a lot of nerve even for a Bishop.    There was one thing the Bishop got wrong.  These young people do not lapse after Confirmation the majority have stopped going to Mass long before Confirmation.   I found this ...

January 12, 2017 The Catholic bishops of Ireland, who are making their ad limina visits to Rome in January, will speak with Vatican officials about a proposal to allow a return to ministry by clerics who left the priesthood to marry. However, the Irish prelates will not discuss the proposal with Pope Francis. Bishop Leo O’Reilly of Kilmore, who first introduced the proposal to welcome back married priests, told the  Irish Catholic  that the topic had been raised at a meeting of the Irish hierarchy, but the discussion was “inclusive,” and so the Irish bishops will not present the idea to Pope Francis. However, Bishop O’Reilly said that the topic was likely to arise when bishops speak with other Vatican officials

It was the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate who launched this internet radio station on the 8th December last from their base in Gosport.   It was only a couple of days ago  that I finally got round to  finding it on the internet and I am now sorry I took so long.   OK we all have busy routine lives and it is hard sometimes to reorganise but I will certainly be making new plans and listening to more of Radio Immaculata.   I have only so far listened to the internet programme between  2pm and 4pm but what I get then is the Rosary led by Bishop Egan and some young people.  Then there is an Ave Maria hour where  stories from the Bible and lives of saints are made live by professional actors.  It is a serious that goes back to the 1930's.  We then have the Divine Mercy in a unique way where we follow the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary and the visions of St Faustina.  It is really lovely.   today I found that this was followed...

In the Gospel of Mathew 25:41 we read the terrible words of Jesus "Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire which was prepared for the Devil and his Angels"   I remember Monsignor Ronald Knox when he was first appointed an Anglican priest going to a parish and preaching on Hell   He was told in no uncertain terms by the elders to never again raise the subject of hell for it disturbed the congregation.  They came to Church to feel good about God and themselves  I suppose they did not want to live in a religion of fear.  But why should a christian who loves and serves God have any fear of hell.  But on the contrary a Christian who does not love and serve God will be aware of Hell and fear it.   It is about good catechesis.  I remember the retreats of my youth when two priests would arrive in the parish on a Sunday to give a week long retreat.   The people loved the priests and would speculate which one would speak on hell.  One nig...

In seven years you will return here to celebrate the centenary of the first visit made by the Lady “come from heaven”, the Teacher who introduced the little seers to a deep knowledge of the Love of the Blessed Trinity and led them to savour God himself as the most beautiful reality of human existence. This experience of grace made them fall in love with God in Jesus, so much so that Jacinta could cry out: “How much I delight in telling Jesus that I love him! When I tell him this often, I feel as if I have a fire in my breast, yet it does not burn me”. And Francisco could say: “What I liked most of all was seeing Our Lord in that light which Our Mother put into our hearts. I love God so much!” (Memoirs of Sister Lúcia, I, 42 and 126 The above is a quote from Pope Benedict when he visited Fatima 10 years ago.  I do not know if Benedict will return but I do know that the Church must return there.  For it is at Fatima that the Church will again find its mission,   Ther...