Message of Abbot Paul - Monday 20th June
Abbot Paul • June 19, 2022
Yesterday we were blessed to celebrate First Holy Communions at Belmont, seven delightful youngsters, who had faithfully completed the course. It was a joy to welcome them into the fellowship of communicants, where they join their parents, families and friends. The church was filled to overflowing with thirty guests coming from Poland alone. Afterwards there was a party for the first communicants in the parish centre. I’m deeply grateful to our catechists and to those who helped in any way.
Also yesterday the monastic community travelled down to Cardiff to sing Vespers at the Cathedral to welcome Archbishop Mark O’Toole to the Archdiocese and to bid farewell to Archbishop George Stack. Vespers was sung in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament and ended with Benediction. You can watch the service on the cathedral website. Unfortunately, I couldn’t be there because of the first communions and then travelling down to South Wales to visit my mother, who today returns home from respite care. I will be accompanying her. Archbishop Mark is being enthroned today. Do keep him in your prayers as he is also being installed as Bishop of Menevia on Thursday.
Today in England we keep the feast of our first saint and martyr, St Alban, to whom in Wales we add Saints Julius and Aaron, also martyrs. May we, like them, bear witness to Christ by valiantly living our faith in a spirit of martyrdom. Our Gospel passage for today follows our reading of Mathew’s Sermon on the Mount, (Mt 7: 1-5), where Jesus asks his disciples not to judge others. “Do not judge, and you will not be judged.” And why? Because we often exaggerate others’ faults, yet do not recognise our own. We can be quite hypocritical when it comes to judging or criticising others. Jesus says, “Why do you observe the splinter in your brother’s eye and never notice the plank in your own?” Lord, may we take your words to heart and stop looking too closely at others’ faults. Surely our own faults are enough to cope with!
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.
