Portsmouth Roman Catholic

The raising of a teaching to a Dogma means that the particular teaching was part of the deposit of Faith handed down by the Early Church.  In 1854 Pope Pius IX  consulted the bishops of the world and declared the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception, that Mary was born free from that inclination to sin that we inherited from Eve, that original sin, and in the eyes of the fathers she was seen as the New Eve.  Mary lived with the apostles and the early disciples and they knew of her holiness.   They knew what Gabriel had said  "Hail Full of Grace", they knew what Jesus said about her "She heard the word of God and kept it", but most of all the word Jesus used in referring to her as "Woman" taking us back to Genesis when God said to the serpent  "I will put enmity between thee and the woman"   When Jesus was seen as the New Adam we remember the words that followed "and between his seed and yours"   Simply put The battle between the woman and

In the 1960's I was a young man who believed everything in the Catholic Church and believed every Catholic who attended Mass believed just like me.  Our teachers in school were devout catholics who at the Chidrens Mass led us through everything the priest was doing and saying. Then I received the first shock .    After Vatican II I was in London and heard a talk by Cardinal Heenan to the priests of his Diocese.  It was on one of those early reel to reel tape recorders.   He was speaking about the re-action of the German Bishops in particular to a proposed Schema on the Virgin Mary.   "It will put the Ecumenical Movement back ten years" they cried.   They had prepared and controlled the agenda and the more honest Catholic bishops on this point were routed.    But they fought back and in the document on the Constitution on the Church they insisted that devotion t Mary should continue and went on to declare her Mother of the Church.   Cardinal Heenan told the priests &quo

Of all women you are the most blessed, and blesses is the fruit of your woman.    Why should I be honoured with a visit from the Mother of my Lord?   Look, the moment your greeting reached my ears, the child in my womb leapt for joy.   Yes blessed is she who believed that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.   Luke 1:42 The above is the extraordinary greeting of Elizabeth to her cousin Mary.   “Why should I be honoured with a visit from the Mother of my Lord” she asks.  A woman approaching old age is saying this to a girl in her early teens.   So to her Mary is no longer ‘just another woman.   She is a woman above all other women, she is the Mother of Jesus, the Saviour   Then comes Marys reply…..”he has looked upon the lowliness of his handmaid, and from now onwards all generations shall call me blessed…”   So let us be clear Mary claims nothing on her own merits, It is Got and God alone who gave her the many blessings she has. But the story of Mary starts whe

In 1948 a group of people left the Holy Ghost Church in Basingstoke carrying a wooden cross.    Their destination was Walsingham and they were walking    Another 13 crosses were being carried from other parts of England and Wales, and all but the Welsh took roundabout routes, so that they would all arrive in Walsingham together.   It was a march for Peace and the crosses were planted in the grounds of the Catholic Church to form the Stations of the Cross.    The Basingstoke Cross is still there, and is the Fourth Station, Jesus meets his Mother. But why was Basingstoke chosen for this great honour?   The answer is that Basingstoke before the Reformation had its own shrine to Our Lady and was a place of pilgrimage.   We know very little of the details but its existence is testified to by Basingstoke historical writers and the shrine of Walsingham itself.    The statue was taken from the town and burned by Thomas Cromwell, acting for Henry VIII, and thrown into the Thames at Chelsea

.......we will have none of the reticence of those who are ashamed, no deceitfulness or watering down of the Word of God, but the way we commend ourselves to every human being is by stating the truth openly in the sight of God.....(from My Previous Blog A Diocesan Pastoral Council is to be held soon to discuss how to bring baptised Catholics back to the Church.   It is another initiative by our Bishop that I applaud.   One of the 'notorious' things I have done in the past is write to the previous bishop drawing his attention to the falling Mass attendance which was taking place.  I mentioned that this would have serious consequences on Diocesan Finance.    The figures were published in the Diocesan Year Book.  The only response I got was that these figures disappeared in future publications.   A revolution was started in Catholic schools and parishes in the  seventies and although it proved an utter failure nobody wanted to take responsibility and of course it was all blamed

Since we have by an act of mercy been entrusted with this work of administration ( evangelisation) there is no weakness on our part.    On the contrary, we will have none of the reticence of those who are ashamed, no deceitfulness or watering down of the Word of God, but the way we commend ourselves to every human being is by stating the truth openly in the sight of God............We are only the earthenware jars that hold the treasure, to make it clear that such an overwhelming power comes from God and not from us.      St Paul 2Corinthians 4: I remember one time in the not so distant past a number of Catholics watching some videos on the Catholic Faith.   A number of people who were with an RCIA meeting came into the room to have coffee.   They saw part of the video and one remarked that this was what he was interested in.  Others agreed.    At that time the RCIA programme taught very little of the Catholic Faith since 'scholars' had decided to take "People from wher