Message of Abbot Paul - Thursday - 16th May 2024
Abbot Paul • May 15, 2024
​The weather yesterday in Herefordshire was quite spectacular, nothing like the forecast had predicted, but hot and sunny, ideal weather for the May Procession in honour of Our Lady. It’s always a great occasion, uplifting and devotional, where hundreds of faithful disciples of Jesus openly show their love for his Holy Mother and ask her intercession for their loved ones and all those who need her protection and her prayers. It invariably ends when thousands of rose petals float down from heaven, or at least the church tower, and envelope Our Lady with glorious light and colour. Our simple faith is always strengthened by this and similar wonderful occasions.
​We continue our reading of the High Priestly Prayer, which Jesus said in the presence of his disciples at the end of the Last Supper, (Jn 17: 20-26). In this section of the prayer, Jesus commends to his Father’s loving care those who, in due course, would become his disciples, as a result of the witness of the Twelve.
“Holy Father,
I pray not only for these,
but for those also
who through their words will believe in me.
May they all be one.
Father, may they be one in us,
as you are in me and I am in you,
so that the world may believe it was you who sent me.”
Jesus prays for you and me and for all those who will follow us through our witness, for this handing on of the faith carries on from one generation to the next. Jesus prays that we may be one in the Father and the Son, in the same way as the Father and the Son are one in each other. Our unity is to reflect that of God himself, three persons in one God. The tragedy of Christianity is its divisions, which give an anti-testimony to the truth of the Gospel and redeeming work of Jesus. One of the Church’s most important duties is to pray and work for unity. This is not some vague, pious hope, but the will of God. Jesus focuses more than once on this need for unity. We are to be, ”so completely one that the world will realise that it was you who sent me.”
​​“I have given them the glory you gave to me,
that they may be one as we are one.
With me in them and you in me,
may they be so completely one
that the world will realise that it was you who sent me
and that I have loved them as much as you loved me.”
Our unity will also be a sign of God’s love for us, not one sign among many, but the fundamental, essential sign that God loves us.
​Not only does Jesus want his disciples to be united, but to be with him where he is, that we might see his glory.
“Father, I want those you have given me
to be with me where I am,
so that they may always see the glory you have given me
because you loved me before the foundation of the world.”
The Father has loved the Son from before time began. The Son is eternal as the Father is eternal, the Spirit being that love which unites them to one another and to us. Even before we were created, God loved us in Christ. We were created to be loved by God.
“Father, Righteous One,
the world has not known you,
but I have known you,
and these have known that you have sent me.
I have made your name known to them
and will continue to make it known,
so that the love with which you loved me may be in them,
and so that I may be in them.”
The Son has revealed the Father to us and the depth of the Father’s love and he will continue to make that love known in the way we love one another, a love which will bear witness to the love of God. The love which is in us is that self-same love with which the Father loves the Son and is the gift of the Holy Spirit. This all sounds too good to be true and it’s hard to believe that we are worthy of God’s love. But “God is love” and there can be no doubt that he loves us. This doesn’t make life easier or our sufferings less, but we do begin to make sense of it all, as well as of the ultimate purpose of life. Why was I born? To be loved by God and to love in return.
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.
