Message of Abbot Paul - Corpus Christi Sunday 11th June 2023
Abbot Paul • June 10, 2023
Yesterday was an incredibly busy and tiring day, so I will take the easy way out and share with you the homily I might preach tomorrow. Let’s continue to pray for the Holy Father as he recovers from surgery. Together with him we remember all those who are sick or in any way in need of our prayers at this time. Today we will be celebrating First Holy Communions at the 11 o’clock Mass. It will be an opportunity to remember our own First Holy Communion. We pray for our candidates, their parents, and catechists.
​“Taste and see that the Lord is good.” St Basil wrote, “Through the Holy Spirit we acquire a likeness to God; indeed, we attain what is beyond our most sublime aspirations – we become God.” In the Creed we proclaim, “Et incarnatus est de Spiritu Sancto ex Maria Virgine et homo factus est.” Through the Holy Spirit God becomes man and through the Holy Spirit we become God. St Paul is really saying the same thing when he writes to the Corinthians: “The fact that there is only one loaf means that, though there are many of us, we form a single body because we all have a share in this one loaf.”
​Through our communion with the Body and Blood of Christ, we become one with him and, together, we become one in him. “He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood lives in me and I live in him.” These are words of Jesus we have just heard. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, God became incarnate and through the power of the Holy Spirit bread and wine become the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Christ. “For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats me draws life from me. Whoever eats this bread will live for ever.”
​Today we give thanks for God’s infinite love and mercy and we give thanks for the particular way in which he chose to save us and share his life with us. God’s way is that of total self-giving, the way of the Cross. Jesus invites us to enter into communion with his death and resurrection by dying ourselves to sin, to all that separates us from God and goes against his will. We are not mere passive recipients of the sacraments, but are called by God to cooperate actively, fully in Christ’s redemptive sacrifice. This is our Christian vocation. We too give our lives for the salvation of the world. “This is my body. This is my blood.” Total configuration to Christ, this is the meaning of the Mass, of Holy Communion and of Eucharistic Adoration. It is a two-way process.
​May our adoration and praise today lead us to a deeper commitment to live our lives in Christ, so that Christ can live his life in us. His words, “Do this in memory of me,” take us beyond the Eucharistic celebration to a life lived as Eucharist, a life of sacrifice and self-giving, a life of praise and thanksgiving, a life centred on Christ, a life in Christ, until God’s glory, love and mercy are fully manifested in each one of us and God is all in all. Amen.
Our brethren in Peru were delighted with the election of Pope Leo.
Bishop Mark Jabalé OSB Bishop Mark died peacefully on 9th May. Requiem Mass & Burial Thursday 5th June, 12 noon, Belmont Abbey John Peter Jabale was born on 16th October 1933 in Alexandria, Egypt of mainly European heritage. His father was Lebanese/French, and his mother British/Greek/French. He attended the Lycée Français in Alexandria until 1948, when he was sent to England, having expressed a desire to join the Navy. He enrolled at Belmont Abbey School and, upon leaving school, joined the Abbey, taking the religious name Mark. He was ordained to the priesthood on 13 July 1958. He was then sent to the University of Fribourg, Switzerland, where he obtained a Licentiate in French Literature, writing his thesis on Joseph de Maistre, the French counter-revolutionary. He later completed a Diploma in Education at St Mary’s, Strawberry Hill, where he also played rugby for the University. From 1964, he taught sport and served as a housemaster at the school. In 1969, he was appointed Headmaster of Alderwasley School in Derbyshire, though he held that post for only half a term before being recalled to Belmont to serve as Headmaster there, a role he held—apart from a sabbatical—until 1983. From 1964 he was teaching sport and then was a housemaster in the School. In 1969 he was appointed Headmaster of Alderwasley School, Derbyshire, but filled that post for only half a term. He was called back to Belmont to be Headmaster where he served, apart from a sabbatical, until 1983. Fr Mark was a rowing coach of considerable repute. During his sabbatical in 1979, he assisted Dan Topolski in coaching the Oxford crew for the Boat Race. His greatest coaching triumph came when he led a lightweight coxless four to a gold medal at the World Rowing Championships in Bled, Yugoslavia — the only gold medal won by Great Britain that year. The following year, he was invited to coach for the Olympics, but he declined in order to remain committed to Belmont. He was a steward of Henley Royal Regatta and was responsible for setting up and programming its first computerised systems. He was ahead of may in seeing the potential of new technology. In 1983, he was sent to Peru to purchase land and build a new monastery, which included raising funds in the UK. The new monastery was blessed, and the first Mass was celebrated there by the Archbishop of Piura, Oscar Cantuarias Pastor, in June 1986 together with Abbot Jerome, Fr Paul, Fr Luke, Fr David as well as Fr Mark. Dom Mark returned to Belmont as Prior and was elected the 10th Abbot of Belmont in 1993. He later wrote: “My first and most painful task proved to be the overseeing of the closure of the school.” Together with the bursar, John Hubert, he negotiated with the local NHS for the 4 houses to be leased to them. In 2000, he was appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Menevia by Pope John Paul II and was ordained bishop in St Joseph’s Cathedral, Swansea, on 7 December 2000. He succeeded Bishop Daniel Mullins as the 10th Bishop of Menevia on 12 June 2001. During his episcopate, he held several important offices: Chairman of the Department for Christian Life and Worship, Trustee and Visitator of the three foreign seminaries — the Venerable English College (Rome), the Beda College (Rome), and the Royal English College (Valladolid). He was also Bishop-in-Charge of on-going formation for diocesan priests. Upon reaching the age of 75, Bishop Jabale submitted his resignation to the Holy Father on 16 October 2008 and was succeeded by Bishop Tom Burns. He then moved to Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire, and was inducted as Parish Priest of Holy Trinity Catholic Church in March 2009, a post he held until 2014. At the age of 81, he retired to Hendon in London, where he celebrated daily Mass at a local convent, assisted in various parishes, and continued to help with confirmations in the diocese. In October 2019, he moved to Archbishop’s House, Westminster, for nine months. Finally, he returned to Belmont in 2020 as a much-cherished member of the community. He described himself as “very happy.” He remained there until his death in Hereford County Hospital on 9 May 2025, aged 91. He had been a monk of Belmont for 73 years, a priest for 67 years and a bishop for 24 years. Condolences came from Pope Leo XIV:
A homily by Abbot Brendan at a special Easter Mass for Pope Francis, attended by Catholics from across the Deanery.
Pope Francis RIP Pope 2013-2025 Born 1936, Died 2025 We are deeply saddened at the passing of Pope Francis. As the successor of St Peter he has been a spiritual father and shepherd to the church in our day, challenging us, and calling as to reach out to those on the peripheries. He was the first Jesuit Pope, but took the name Francis after the Poor Man of Assisi who modelled for him a closeness to the poor, a concern for those on the margins of society and a care for all of creation In his preaching Pope Francis always spoke of the joy of the Gospel and encouraged us to reflect the joy of our faith in our lives. He showed the compassion of Jesus to everyone. He worked tirelessly for the unity of the church and travelled even to non-Christian countries promoting a message of peace. He has left a great legacy. With the presence of the Apostolic Nuncio with the community over Easter we were able to express our closeness to the Holy Father in his final suffering. There will be a special Mass at Belmont this Thursday 24th April at 11am to pray for Pope Francis as he makes his final journey to the house of the Father. On the day of his funeral, the Office of the Dead will be sung, and Mass that day will be a Requiem. May the angels lead him into paradise; may the martyrs receive him at his arrival and lead him to the holy city Jerusalem. May choirs of angels receive him and with Lazarus, the poor man grant him eternal rest." (The In Paradisum, words from the Funeral Liturgy)
We were were honoured and delighted to be joined by the Apostolic Nuncio to celebrate Easter. His Excellency Archbishop Miguel Maury Buendía is the representative of the Holy See in Great Britain, and therefore of the Holy Father. His presence on Easter Sunday morning brought us more consciously in communion with Pope Francis, the successor of St Peter, as we heard the Gospel story of Peter running to the tomb. His patron saint is St Michael, so afterwards, at a festive lunch we were able to present him with some Belmont cufflinks with the monastery coat of arms - very similar to his as Archbishop. We were able to pray for him and his work in this country.