Message of Abbot Paul - Tuesday 14th June

Abbot Paul • June 13, 2022
Message from Fr Paul for Tuesday, 14th June 2022

 Yesterday was a good day in that I managed to do those things I set out to do. My mother’s visit to hospital for her pre-op checks went well, so it’s a green light now for surgery on Thursday, which she looks forward to enormously, as she longs to be free of pain and fear. I was amused, as she had dressed for a garden party at Buckingham Palace. I’ve suggested that on Thursday she wear a tracksuit, but my mum, being 95 and Italian, doesn’t do informal. I am looking forward to having some rest today. I need to build up my energy for what lies ahead, bearing in mind that the weekend also includes a wedding and first Holy Communions.

 Our Gospel passage for today, (Mt 5: 43-48), sees Jesus tackling an interesting question to do with the Old Testament, although the text as Jesus quotes it cannot be found there. First let’s see what he says:

“Jesus said to his disciples: ‘You have learnt how it was said: You must love your neighbour and hate your enemy. But I say this to you: love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you; in this way you will be sons of your Father in heaven, for he causes his sun to rise on bad men as well as good, and his rain to fall on honest and dishonest men alike. For if you love those who love you, what right have you to claim any credit? Even the tax collectors do as much, do they not? And if you save your greetings for your brothers, are you doing anything exceptional? Even the pagans do as much, do they not? You must therefore be perfect just as your heavenly Father is perfect.’”
Jesus says here of the Old Testament, “You have learnt how it was said, `You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’” How could a God of love command his people to hate their enemies?

 The truth is that at no time did God command his people to hate their enemies. God is an unchanging God of love, and he cannot hate any person, nor can he command anyone else to do so. Jesus said the greatest commandments were to love God and to love our neighbour as ourself In point of fact, this very commandment is taken by Jesus from the OT. Leviticus 19:18 declares: “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” Why then did Jesus say the OT taught that we should “hate our enemy”? He didn’t, and for a very good reason. Nowhere in the OT can any such verse be found. In fact, Jesus is not quoting the OT here, but the pharisaical misinterpretation of the OT. Notice, Jesus does not say “it is written,” as He often did when quoting the OT. Rather, he says, “you have heard,” by which He meant the Jewish “tradition” that had grown up around the OT and by which they had made the commandment of God of no effect. The truth is that the God of love commanded love both in the OT and NT and never at any time commanded that we hate other persons. This kind of misinterpretation of scripture is exactly what Jesus is battling with when dealing with the scribes and Pharisees. 

 Jesus wants his disciples to love their enemies and those who hate them, just as God our Father does and just as Jesus himself shows us so graphically in the Gospels. In fact, he offered his life on the cross as a sacrifice for the forgiveness of sinners and for the reconciliation of all men and women with God and with each other. May the Lord help us to love and not hate, to forgive and never bear a grudge.

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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.
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