The Diocese's finest

This photograph was taken at the Chrism Mass in St Chad's Cathedral on the Wednesday of Holy Week 2009. My thining pate can be just seen, as indicated on the picture.

More open spaces ...

So, following yesterday's walk with my trusty dogs (Benedict XVI and Joseph Ratzinger) to the East of the parish, along the towpath, I decided today to travel West to explore more of the cleared sites of ST1.

I've uploaded them to the same flickr site, and you can see them added to the map.

I should emphasise again that while there are some areas of new building, and new landscaping, the sheer extent of demolition is impossible to ignore. Indeed, it is overwhelming. 

Open spaces.

I'm not the only one to notice that Stoke-on-Trent is through a massive process of demolition with little evidence of building taking place.

My own parish - Hanley - which broadly covers the ST1 postal area - is being progressively cleared with very little building taking place. Admittedly there have been some new houses built (though that seems to have stopped) and the towpath to the canal was closed almost for a year while that was restored - rather well, I admit. But look across the Stoke-on-Trent skyline. How many cranes are visible? I mean the construction type - not the birds - though the answer is the same: 0.

Just to give a flavour, when I walked the dogs around just part of the parish yesterday, following the newly restored towpath, I took photos of the scenery. I should emphasise that I did not deliberately seek out demolition or clearance sites - the parish is not especially large. Neither did I visit the largest area of clearance which is well to the West of where I walked. I used my iPhone because it geotags the images, so it should be possible to pinpoint more or less exactly where they were taken.

You can see the images (and map) here. The images of 'Botteslow Park' are particularly striking.

It is clear that many of these are not temporary sites. Some have grass and daisies growing. Others have been banked in order to prevent vehicles driving onto them. Some are more recently cleared. Others are buildings waiting to be demolished.

This is the state of the City Centre of Stoke-on-Trent.

There is little evidence of construction taking place. And they plan to knock down more.

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Update (21 April): more images have been added to the flickr set and the accompanying map showing the areas to the west of the parish.

Sentinel Dream Wedding promotion turns to Nightmare

A wedding competition being run by the Sentinel, the North Stafforshire newspaper, is running into considerable difficulties with competitors, thanks to 'print errors' and other editorial bungling.

The competition relies on those entered getting friends, relatives, and work colleagues submitting votes by buying copies of the paper and submitting the forms including within them. About 180 couples have entered, and yesterday was the last day that coupons were printed in the paper. The ten couples who get the most votes at this stage will enter the next round. The prize is a wedding package of almost £16,000. Multiple votes are allowed, providing they are on unique handwritteen forms from the newspaper. The publicity announced that coupons purchased on 20th April to will count as double.

I know a little about this as I know two couples who have entered - one of whom is our eldest son and his fiance. Personally I dislike this kind of competition. Clearly it is a promotion which will sell very many more copies of the newspaper than usual, and though I wish my own son well, the chances of winning (although rather better than the National Lottery) are rather slim.

Be that as it may, the family and friends have been working hard buying copies of the Sentinel and filling in the coupons up to yesterday - the final day in which coupons appear in the paper. Yesterday, between them, they bought several hundred copies of the paper - probably like many others.

And it is yesterday's paper which has caused the trouble.

First, the paper included an article about the efforts of one couple to promote themselves - on the last day coupons were printed. My son was one of many to protest - according to the Sentinel switchboard and the journalist who he spoke to. An interesting story - yes. But why not run the story after the last coupon had been printed, rather than promote one couple on the day of the last and indeed double coupon? The answer: there will be articles about other couples in the next few days. I'm afraid this is not much of an answer.

And secondly, the paper indeed printed the coupons - which are intended to count double - but thanks to 'a printing error' forgot to indicate on the coupon that it is indeed from the 20th April and so a double coupon. If cut out and submitted, then it could only count once - there is no way of distinguishing it from the other coupons. A query to the newspaper admitted the error (with some exasperation - again not the only call) and suggested that the coupons be submitted with the surrounding article so that it is clear which paper they are from. Of course - you would only know this if you had (1) noticed the mistake (2) asked the Sentinel what to do.

I am sure my son and his fiance is not the only couple who have bought - or encouraged others to buy - large numbers of the newspaper yesterday (and also of course in the past few weeks). My son says he is so sick of the mess that he is going round to the Sentinel offices with 500 copies of the paper to ask for his money back. I don't suppose he will do this quietly - or that he will be the only one to complain.

It is a bad mess up for the Sentinel - who are not a bad paper and whose journalists I respect. It's not so much bad journalism as bad management, which the paper can ill afford. Local papers are struggling everywhere, and promotions like this will be more and more important to maintain a reader base. The paper has recently moved to morning, rather than evening publication and is now making a big effort to embrace some of the new media technologies. Of course, in new media a mistake can be quickly corrected. What is set in print is set in print. Oh dear.

Open spaces.

I'm not the only one to notice that Stoke-on-Trent is through a massive process of demolition with little evidence of building taking place.

My own parish - Hanley - which broadly covers the ST1 postal area - is being progressively cleared with very little building taking place. Admittedly there have been some new houses built (though that seems to have stopped) and the towpath to the canal was closed almost for a year while that was restored - rather well, I admit. But look across the Stoke-on-Trent skyline. How many cranes are visible? I mean the construction type - not the birds - though the answer is the same: 0.

Just to give a flavour, when I walked the dogs around just part of the parish yesterday, following the newly restored towpath, I took photos of the scenery. I should emphasise that I did not deliberately seek out demolition or clearance sites - the parish is not especially large. Neither did I visit the largest area of clearance which is well to the West of where I walked. I used my iPhone because it geotags the images, so it should be possible to pinpoint more or less exactly where they were taken.

You can see the images (and map) here. The images of 'Botteslow Park' are particularly striking.

It is clear that many of these are not temporary sites. Some have grass and daisies growing. Others have been banked in order to prevent vehicles driving onto them. Some are more recently cleared. Others are buildings waiting to be demolished.

This is the state of the City Centre of Stoke-on-Trent.

There is little evidence of construction taking place. And they plan to knock down more.

In Gavarnie ... The wrong sort of snow

Each year most of the HCPT groups have a day trip up to Gavarnie in the Pyrenees. It is a village on the traditional pilgrim route to Compostella, and was I think the last place in France before the dangerous climb into the mountains. The little Church here has a cupboard containing the skulls of three unfortunate (though not recent!) pilgrims.

The village is nowadays more a base for skiers and other tourists to the region. The views are quite spectacular and at this time year - even when Easter is late - we see snow on the ground, and of course on the peaks of the mountains.

Last year, Easter being early, there was lots of snow, and a little anxiety that the roads might not be passable. In the event, the kids and helpers went sledging and went home thoroughly wet and exhausted.

A feature of the visit, for each group, is the group mass. Groups generally celebrate mass out of doors in the stunning surroundings (too many groups to use the church, and it's often warmer outside). Last year it was difficult for all groups to find a suitable spot, and we were one group that used the Church. This year outside was impossible, because it was just the wrong kind of snow - wet, and slushy, and yukky ... and the chapel was not safely accessible for all members of the group. So we, in Group 20, shared mass with another group in a room in a cafe, well actually, an Auberge. Other groups found similar corners in other inns and hostelries, but here is the nice part of the story: in all the snow there was not a place for every group in the Inn, so one had mass in a storeroom, another in a barn, and one in the stables where the donkeys are kept.

Ah - it might be Easter, but it sounds more like Christmas to me.

Lourdes with HCPT

I am in Lourdes at the moment having an excellent time with HCPT the Pilgrimage Trust as the Chaplain to Group 20 from North Staffordshire. The weather is a bit mixed, and though I am hoping to do a couple of blog posts I have mainly been twittering and using audioboo.

You can follow my tweets, see some not very brilliant photos, and listen to the audio by going to twitter.com/frpeter.

The Trust Mass - a rather extraordinary happening - is tomorrow (16th April) and will be broadcast live ok the Internet. Go to www.hcpt.org.uk and follow the link from there. The mass is at 10am here, which is 9am in the UK.

Who are you looking for?

Who are you looking for?  (Good Friday Homily)

Three times this question comes at the beginning of today’s passion. Three times, Jesus asks ‘Who are you looking for?’

The question calls to mind the basis human quest for meaning, for purpose, for truth. The philosophers search for meaning. The teenager questions the truths which have been passed on to him. The sick and the bereaved often ask the question ‘why’ or ‘what if’? Scientists seek the origins of life and the beginning of the universe. Even the atheist - especially the atheist - searches for truth, and believes, with a fervour, that he has found it.

Human beings seek truth. The Catechism tells us that every person has a yearning for God - though everyone might not see it in this way. St Augustine put it even more poetically: “Our hearts are restless, till they find their rest in you”.

At the beginning of the baptism service, the priests asks the parents “What do you ask of God’s Church for your child?” Usually they answer simply, “baptism”, but they may answer “Hope”, “Love”, “Eternal Life”, “Salvation”.

The trouble is, all humans ask the question, but many come up with different answers.

Some of those answers, as Jesus said to the Rich Young Man, are not far from the Kingdom of God. In this liturgy, for example, we pray for the Jewish people who of all peoples are bound in a covenant with God and of all those who do not yet embrace Christ, are closest to his Kingdom. There are others we pray for too, who do not believe, yet who - as we will say ‘might find [Christ] by sincerely following all that is right’. One theologian described these good people outside our faith as ‘anonymous Christians’.

But there are those whose answers are far far away from the Kingdom.

‘Who are you looking for?” Jesus asks - and the answer which comes back “Jesus of Nazareth” sounds like the correct one, the true one. Here is all truth, all love. Here is the perfect man, like us in all things but sin. Here is the Son of God, the Word made flesh. But they come not to worship like the Wise Men of old, but rather, like Herod in the same tale - to destroy the Truth - because they fear it.

And in his actions, Jesus shows us what the Truth really is, what the Meaning of Life really is, what the Purpose of all things really is. Not a set of ideas - though they are important; Not a scientific explanation - though that may have its part; Not an easy simple answer, expressed in a few words - though words do matter.

No, what He shows us is that Truth is a Person, the giving of Life to gain Life, a Sacrifice, an Act of Love.

Just the beginning ...

The eyes which looked from the manger into his mother’s loving gaze
The eyes which looked with compassion on the rich young man
The eyes which wept over Jerusalem
are now cold and lifeless.

The ears which heard the song of the angels
The ears which heard the voice say from heaven “This is my beloved Son”
The ears which heard the crowd cry out “Crucify him”
now hear none of the sobs made over his body

The lips which said to the paralysed man “your sins are forgiven you”
The lips which told the parables of the Good Samaritan and the Prodigal Son
The lips which said “I am the resurrection and the life”
now, drained of colour, smile and speak no more

The hands which stilled the storm
The hands which blessed the children
The hands which healed the blind, deaf and lame
now rest motionless, pierced and bloodied.

The feet which climbed the mountain to pray
The feet which walked on the water
The feet which were washed with the tears of the penitent woman
are now twisted, maimed and mutilated.

The heart which beat for love of sinners
The heart which longs for the peace of the world
The heart which beats with our hearts
beats no more.

Christ has died. He is laid in the tomb. The Great Silence begins.

But the story has just begun.

A mucky tradition

What is it with the washing of feet?

For us, in our heavily shoed and socked culture (well, for men, anyway) the washing of feet seems a rather odd custom. After all, unlike Jesus’ day, it is not something we normally do to welcome visitors to our house. We might expect them to remove their shoes to protect the carpet, but for us to wash their feet ... I don’t think so. And while ladies may often bare their feet, men do rarely. Couldn’t we rather just note the symbolism of the gesture, the warmth of the welcome, the humility of Christ.

Yes, we could, but let us not lose sight of the physicality of the gesture. In fact, Holy Week is all about physicality. Jesus does not say the disciples are welcome, or portray a humble attitude, but he washes their feet. He does not sit and meditate in silence, but he prays out loud, ‘Father take this cup away from me’. He does not just say our sins are forgiven, or pray for reconciliation with the Father, but he suffers and dies on the cross. He does not just tell us that one day we shall dwell with him in heaven, but his body rises from death and eats with his disciples. It is not simply ideas, or thoughts, or beliefs. These are actions, events, physical encounters.

And so too with the Mass. He does not simply say - you are in communion with me - you are close to me in spirit - I will always be in your heart and your memories. No, he says do this to remember me. He takes bread and wine. He blesses, breaks and shares. He says this is my body and blood - not represents, not stands for, nor reminds you of - but is. Physically, really, truly.

Whatever our ideas, or thoughts, or beliefs, however much or little we understand, what we never must neglect is what we do. Actions speak louder than words.

That is why we wash the feet.

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This is adapted from my homily for Maundy Thursday

Holy Week starts here

Is it wrong, I wonder, for me to say that I love Holy Week?

It seems a bit wrong - after all - it is an immensely sad time, when we recall betrayal, torture, suffering and death. The music with its minor keys takes up the sad tone. The ceremonies in their plainness and their drama are poignant and moving. It is Easter, after all, which is the time of joy  … not Holy Week.

But of course, we embark on Holy Week knowing already the end of the story. We traipse the way of the cross guided by the light of the resurrection. The betrayal and agony in the Garden of Maundy Thursday would be bleak, were it not for the promise of new life revealed in the Mass. The suffering and sacrifice of Good Friday would be crushing, were it not for the laying of his body in a tomb which waits for a new dawn. And as we set the new fire on Holy Saturday - we already know that the sacrifice has burnt away sins and his light leads us on to his new life.

And this weekend, as we hold our Palm Crosses, which at the same time represent both the cheers and jeers of the crowds, we share in this hard road which leads to his victory. It is a Holy Week not because it is sad, but it is a Holy Week because together we walk this road with Christ. And that I think is why I love Holy Week - because like life itself, it is journey which we never walk on our own.

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This is adapted from my homily for Palm Sunday. For more homilies go here.

The date of Easter ...

We had a meeting of Eucharistic ministers this evening. Well, extraordinary ministers of the Eucharist, as we are supposed to call them, though this is rather a mouthful. They renew their commitment next week, on Maundy Thursday, and we will also be admitting some new ministers.

But we have a problem. Several of the ministers, very well established members of the parish, cannot be here. It is not because they are working, or can't get transport, or because they have to look after children or an elderly relative. No, the reason they won't be here on Maundy Thursday is because they will be on holiday. In Holy Week. I have already been told by several altar servers that they will not be here in Holy Week - we will struggle with some of the ceremonies because of this. Another parishioner tells me that though she will be with us on Good Friday she won't be here for Easter because she too will be on holiday. In Turkey. Not much chance of her finding a Catholic Church there.

What can we do? The odd raised eyebrow and even the sarastic commdent has little impact. We are trying hard to recruit altar servers and ministers of the Eucharist, so striking them off because they are on holiday in Holy Week is not likely to be a fruitful course of action. Too late now, but I wondered whether way back at the end of last year I should have made a point of telling people not to plan to go away for Holy Week, or at least to make sure that they will going somewhere where they can be sure of finding a Catholic Church on Easter Day. Something to try and remember for the autumn.

Of course we do need some perspective and proportion in all this. Easter has always been a holiday time, and aren't holidays and holy days much the same thing? Should we begrudge the worker his or her break from toil?

Then I had another thought. In modern society - secularised and secularising society - there is often renewed consideration of the date of Easter, and in particular the unsettling effect which the variable date has on the routine or working life. In particular, schools often find an early or late Easter can make very long or very short spring and summer terms, and in the secondary school this can be very disruptive to the timetable of exam preparation. Every couple of years  we hear of local authorities making proposals for fixed length terms, the Easter weekend being only that, with the statutory days off for Good Friday and Easter Monday only.

And I have always been one of those who wailed in protest at this. It relegates the importance of Easter ... it is advanced secularisation ... it neglects the importance of Easter for the Catholic school.

But now I am beginning to wonder. If schools were usually working in Holy Week, there would be much less pressure for workplaces to have this as a holiday time too. People would not be naturally led to take holidays away over this holy season. And actually it may allow us to rediscover the Triduum, as the Long Easter Weekend, which would be given far greater precedence. And perhaps in this Catholic Schools could take a lead - at the very least by never allowing Holy Week to be a holiday week.

Otherwise, I am left only with the raised eyebrow, the sarcastic comment and the hopeless resolution to remember to mention something in the autumn.