Message of Abbot Paul - Monday - 29th January 2024
Abbot Paul • January 28, 2024
​Yesterday was one of the happiest days I’ve ever known. I woke up around 3.30am and couldn’t get back to sleep, so the best solution was to get up and allow Toby to sleep on my bed. I read for a while, prayed and replied to messages before taking a shower and going out for a long walk in the dark with Toby, always our favourite walk of the day. After morning office and a quick breakfast and preparing Toby’s two meals for the day, I set out for Leominster and the first Mass of the day. After chatting for a while with parishioners, I drove on to Bromyard and the Parish Mass there. It was a full house with almost 20 children taking part in the offertory procession and children of the choir singing the most beautiful communion hymn in Malayalam. I had lunch and spent the afternoon with dear friends, something that filled me with the deepest joy and happiness. Then back to Leominster for the evening Mass, peaceful and prayerful, and so on to Belmont for supper with the brethren and Compline, then a final walk with Toby. As the Psalmist wrote, “How can I thank the Lord for his goodness to me?”
​Today’s Gospel passage from Mark, (Mk 5: 1-20), the healing of the Gerasene demoniac, is one of the longest stories in this short Gospel and much has been written about it. It is full of fascinating details, but unfortunately, it’s not possible to delve into all of them here, much as I would like to. This is the most detailed description we have of a demon-possessed man in the Bible. This episode takes place just as Jesus and the disciples land on the other side of the lake after the night crossing during which Jesus calms the storm. It’s the possessed man who seeks out Jesus and what a sight he is. He falls at the feet of Jesus, crying out for fear of what Jesus can do to him by his divine authority, but Jesus isn’t talking with the man directly: he is talking with the unclean spirits. Their name is Legion, as there are so many of them. They ask to be sent into a huge herd of pigs feeding on the mountainside and Jesus allows this. As a result, about 2,000 pigs rush headlong into the lake and drown.
The reaction is twofold. The townspeople are frightened when they see the man, who was formerly possessed, now healed and in his right senses. They plead with Jesus to leave. They cannot cope with God’s power of healing revealed in Jesus. On the other hand, the man whose life has been restored, begs Jesus to take him along with the disciples, but Jesus refuses, saying, “Go home to your people and tell them all that the Lord in his mercy has done for you.” It is an invitation to thanksgiving, but also to the mission of evangelisation, of sharing the good news of Jesus and the coming of the kingdom of God. In fact, we read, “So the man went off and proceeded to spread throughout the Decapolis all that Jesus had done for him. And everyone was amazed.” Now the story is protracted and laden with some gruesome detail. It’s a miracle that’s not reduced to a few short sentences. Please read it through and compare it with the version in Luke (Lk 8: 26-39.) A useful exercise would be to make a list of all the things the Lord has done for you and then to give thanks again for each one of them. It is rare for someone to be possessed as the man in the Gospel was, but we have our own minor possessions, you could say, our personal manias and obsessions, that probably need healing. Let us ask the Lord to put our house in order while there is time.
From Francis to Leo: A special event with Christopher Lamb of CNN in conversation with Austin Ivereigh who commentated for the BBC on the transition from Pope Francis to Pope Leo.
On 12th June an Ecumenical Service was held at Hereford Cathedral to celebrate the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicea.
Archbishop Mark O'Toole, of Cardiff-Menevia presided at the Requiem Mass for Bishop Mark, while Abbot Brendan conducted his burial. Cardinal Vincent Nichols preached a homily full of warmth and affection for Bishop Mark which is reproduced below.
Bishop Mark Jabalé OSB RIP Given at his funeral by Dom Alexander Kenyon Baby Jean Pierre (Mark) Jabale was born on October 16th, 1933, in Alexandria, Egypt. As he said, himself, his background could be considered “cosmopolitan”: his father was Lebanese / French and his Mother, British / Greek / French. He also reminded people that he wasn’t Egyptian. Through his mother, Arlette, he was related to St. Jean Vianney, so it was, perhaps, no surprise that he followed in his priestly footsteps. His father, Jean, was MD of Fiat and Simca cars Europe and, maybe surprisingly or not, he did love a car – not, however, Italian cars, but German; he loved his Audis. Perhaps we should begin today by remembering his mother and father, his brothers Christian and Paul and his nieces, here today, Aline and Nathalie and Isabelle and their families – they were so dear to him and he to them and I know they miss him enormously. Young Jean wanted to join the Navy and came to England, to Belmont Abbey school but the Lord had other ideas – he ended up joining the rather land locked monastery, our dear, late Fr. Raymund opining that he wouldn’t last a month. After a rather uninspiring course of priestly studies (his words, not mine) he studied for a Licentiate in French literature in Fribourg, then a Dip Ed at Strawberry Hill and played Rugby there – the Papist Witch Doctor as he was affectionately known. Teaching followed, at Belmont, Housemaster, acting Headmaster, then to Alderwasley, our prep school in Derbyshire as Headmaster, and then back to Belmont soon after as Headmaster. In 1983 he went to Peru to build our first monastery there only to realise there was little money. So, he returned to the UK to put in a stint of fundraising with his usual zeal and determination. With his mission accomplished he was asked by Abbot Alan to return to Belmont as his prior in 1986 – Peru remained close to his heart. In 1993 he was elected Abbot. In his time as Abbot, he had to preside over the closure of the school, necessary but no less painful for him. In 2000 he was appointed coadjutor Bishop of Menevia and succeeded Bishop Mullins in 2001. He retired as Ordinary in 2008 and “retired” to Chipping Norton as parish priest, then Hendon, saying Mass for the nuns and helping with confirmations. After a spell at Archbishop’s House, Westminster, living with his great friend Cardinal Nichols, he came home to Belmont – it was as though he had never been away and he loved being back in the monastery, particularly praying the Office with the community. That’s the list, of sorts, but it doesn’t really say “who” he was. I haven’t mentioned his outstanding contribution to rowing – the 1979 coxless, lightweight four gold medal at the world championships in Bled, which almost didn’t happen as, at the last minute, he was told there was no money to send the crew. He begged, cajoled and got them there – the video footage of the final is compelling. He transformed Henley Royal Regatta, writing a computer programme for the race results – he was well ahead of his time. He coached the Oxford Boat, ran the Heads of the River Schools Regatta, and more. What an achievement from someone who had never sat in a boat but learned on the job, as he said, “from books, mainly”. It was his determination, his commitment, his love of people and his drive to share what he had that is, perhaps, one of the key things to celebrate about him. And it was underpinned by his rock-solid faith – nothing overly pious, nothing showy, but a faith and a love of the Lord built on granite. Even his occasional lack of patience (sorry Mark) extended to that faith; ‘why won’t God call me?”. At the risk of being irreverent my response was always “would you want you?”. But God did want him, and he knew it. God had a purpose for his Apostle during his life and he now rests with Him in eternity. His purpose was, simply, to bring the joy of the Lord into the lives of others, in many and varied ways. A few weeks before Mark died, Pope Francis died. When the late Pope was seriously ill the son of friends of mine who entertained Mark and I to lunch regularly, was distraught at overhearing mum and dad say the Pope may die. He couldn’t stop crying. “But darling”, they said, “you don’t know the Pope, why so very sad?”. “We do know him” came the reply, “it’s Mark”. “No, Mark isn’t the Pope”. “Oh, so when the Pope does die will Mark be Pope then?”. Mark loved that one. When Mark himself did die said son would only be pacified by picking flowers from the garden and bringing them to church for him. He wanted to show how much Mark meant to him and wanted to give a little something back. That is the real biography – a man loved, respected, a man who shared what he had, above all his faith, a man who touched so many lives and made them better.  Rest in peace our dear friend.
Our brethren in Peru were delighted with the election of Pope Leo.
