Newsletter 10th November 2013.
Today is Remembrance Sunday. The 11am Mass today will be a Requiem Mass for the repose of the souls of those who died during the World Wars.
There is a second collection today for the Archbishop’s Administration Fund.
Next Friday evening at 7.30pm at the Church of Our Lady of Grace, Charlton, the Archbishop will celebrate a Mass for the Deanery at the end of the Year of Faith. There will be a reception in the parish hall afterwards.
Next weekend Father Mansel Usher will be coming to stay. He came here as student and was ordained as a priest for his home Diocese in South Wales earlier this year. He has always remained a good friend and we are delighted to welcome him back to celebrate some of the Sunday Masses. He will be able to give you his blessing at the end of Mass.
Monday is the feast of St. Martin of Tours.
Tuesday is a busy day. The AGM of a Trust which helps retired priests will be held at the Clarendon hotel. I am the Chief Administrator of the Trust so I will have to ensure that all is in order for the meeting. After the meeting there is a lunch which is always most enjoyable.
Time now to give you a recipe from Spain. You will need some broad beans. String them carefully and cut into chunks. Cook them gentle until they are firm but not too soft. Refresh in cold water and put in a pan with some olive oil, some flakes of ham and some pieces of garlic and add some black pepper. Fry gently in the oil, turning the beans so that they do not catch and serve hot. (This was the first course when we enjoyed lunch at the station in Madrid during our recent visit.)
The railway journey from Madrid to Valladolid is almost most interesting. On the way there we took the old line out Madrid, past the Escorial Palace and through the Guadarama mountains to Avila and then across the flat plains of Castile. On the way back we used the new high speed line with tunnels through the mountains. The top speed was 298 km per hour and we reached Madrid in 50 minutes compared with 2 and a half hours for the old route.
A prayer to the Holy Spirit:
Father, you taught the hearts of your faithful people by sending t hem the light of your Holy Spirit. In that Spirit give us right judgement, comfort and guidance. We ask this through Christ Our Lord. Amen.
Today it is appropriate to quote the words of Laurence Binyon:
They shall not grow old, as we that are left grow old.
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.
Luckily the storm did not cause too much damage in the garden. We lost several branches from the sycamores at the end of the garden and the tree man has come to cut up the fallen logs and to trim the trees where the branches have fallen off. In recent years we have trimmed several of the trees on a regular basis and this has prevented damage when there are high winds. On other matters I am keeping my basil inside but find that it needs a lot of water as otherwise it starts to fade.
Some more from Thomas Merton:
Grant us prudence in proportion to our power, wisdom in proportion to our science, and humaneness in proportion to our wealth and might. Bless our earnest will to help all races and peoples to travel in friendship along the road to justice, liberty and lasting peace. Grant us above all to see that our ways are not necessarily your ways, that we cannot fully penetrate the mystery of your designs and that the very storm of power now raging on this earth reveals your hidden will and your inscrutable decision.
Just room to mention the great nephew once again. At two plus he is enjoying his play group, but looks forward to seeing his great uncle and his grandpa so that we can keep him informed about important things – racing Morgans, ancient Rover cars, steam engines and London buses.
Best wishes to you all,
Monsignor Nicholas Rothon