Message of Abbot Paul - Saturday 8th October 2022
Abbot Paul • October 7, 2022
When Fr Luke, Fr David and I settled in Tambogrande, northern Peru, in 1981, with the intention of founding a monastery, one of the many fascinating customs we found was associated with birthdays. Apart from the fact that these were celebrated in grand style, often over several days, an important aspect, perhaps the most important, was to congratulate the mother of the person celebrating their birthday, as it was she who had given the gift of life to her son or daughter. We were struck by the beauty of this custom. This is also one of the main reasons why devotion to Our Lady is so strong in Peru: it was Mary who conceived and bore a son, Jesus our Lord and Saviour. Mary always leads us to Jesus.
In today’s brief Gospel passage from Luke, (Lk 11: 27-28), we discover something very similar in Jewish society at the time of Jesus. “As Jesus was speaking, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said, ‘Happy the womb that bore you and the breasts you sucked!’ But he replied, ‘Still happier those who hear the word of God and keep it!” What a charming vignette this is. While Jesus is speaking, a woman in the crowd raises her voice to bless his mother, Mary. “Blessed is the womb that bore you and the breasts that suckled you.” Indeed, they were truly blessed, but Jesus tells us why they were so blessed: the very fact that Mary heard the word of God and obeyed it. The Incarnation is the result of Mary’s obedience to God’s word. Jesus wants us all to follow his Mother’s example. Let us pray for the grace to do that always.
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.
