Message of Abbot Paul - Sunday 24th September 2023
Abbot Paul • September 23, 2023
Many parishes, especially in rural settings, will be celebrating their Mass of Thanksgiving for the Harvest around this time. It’s an ancient Christian practice in all parts of the world to pray when seed is sown in early Spiring and then to give thanks when the harvest is collected in the Autumn. There are special texts in the Missal to use at these times of year. The Harvest Festival also reminds us of how important it is to give thanks to Almighty God for the gifts of food and drink, of work and remuneration, signs of God’s love for his people and of his immense generosity towards us. May we always remember to say grace before and after meals, even if it’s just a quick snack taken on the go.
​Today’s Gospel from Matthew (Mt 20: 1-16) is the parable of the labourers in the vineyard, a moving story that reminds me so much of our life in Peru, where Fr Luke, Fr David and I noticed on our very first morning in the parish of Tambogrande how the town square was full of working men and boys from 3am onwards, waiting to be taken on and given work for the day on farms round about. The Spanish word for these workers is ‘jornalero’ which literally means someone taken on for the day. In fact, we soon discovered that, in many ways, we had been transplanted into biblical times in the lifestyle and customs of our new neighbours and parishioners, from whom we had so much to learn about being Christian. Our text reads, “Jesus said to his disciples: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a landowner going out at daybreak to hire workers for his vineyard. He made an agreement with the workers for one denarius a day, and sent them to his vineyard.” In the course of the day, as more men are needed to finish the day’s workload, more are contracted. This goes on from the first to the eleventh hour and the wage promised is a denarius. In Peru in the 80s, the going rate was under £1 a day. Today, as a result of the pandemic and climate change, there is little or no work, so that pittance now seems to have been a good wage. But to go back to the parable: at sunset the landowner appears and settles up with the day’s workers and to each he gives a denarius.
“When the first came, they expected to get more, but they too received one denarius each. They took it, but grumbled at the landowner. ‘The men who came last,’ they said, ‘have done only one hour, and you have treated them the same as us, though we have done a heavy day’s work in all the heat.’ He answered one of them and said, ‘My friend, I am not being unjust to you; did we not agree on one denarius? Take your earnings and go. I choose to pay the last comer as much as I pay you. Have I no right to do what I like with my own? Why be envious because I am generous?’ Thus, the last will be first, and the first, last.” It does seem unfair, but this is a parable, not real life, and it’s about God and the kingdom of heaven. God is generous and in heaven there will be no class system, no rich and poor, no privileged and oppressed. All will be blessed with the beatific vision. When we see God face to face, there will be nothing to complain about, but God would like us to set about living the values of his kingdom here and now. We mustn’t wait until eternal life for there to be true justice and perfect charity in our world. Christians are really supposed to make a difference. Lord, help us today to live as you would want us to, to act justly at all times and to remember that you taught us to pray, “Thy kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven.” Let us also remember those who, even today, are not paid a just wage and all those who have lost or will lose their jobs as a result of the economic turndown caused by Covid, the war in Ukraine and, above all, climate change all over the world and in the United Kingdom as well. Lord, look with mercy and kindness on your people, and thank you for all your gifts, especially the gift of the harvest and the gift of food.
Let us also remember that in England today we keep the feast of Our Lady of Walsingham, as in other countries they keep Our Lady of Ransom, a particularly important feast in Peru, where I lived and worked so happily for twenty years. May Our Lady pray for us all and protect her children with her maternal care. 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.