By Liz Dodd in THE TABLET, 18 March 2020 The life of the Church goes on despite the suspension of public Masses, Cardinal Vincent Nichols said on the day that the Church took the unprecedented decision to stop all public liturgies to halt the spread of the coronavirus. Speaking to The Tablet after the Bishops’…
Author: Fr Michael Campion
Masses suspended in Catholic churches across Britain
From THE TABLET, 18 March 2020 The Catholic Church in England and Wales will suspend public Masses and other liturgies from this Friday, 20 March. The decision, which was made in consultation with the bishops of all the dioceses and archdioceses of England and Wales, was announced today. “In response to the Coronavirus pandemic, so…
Prayers in a time of ‘flu and illness
Prayers during a time of ‘flu and illness When Jesus entered Peter’s house, he saw his mother-in-law lying sick with a fever. He touched her hand, and the fever left her, and she rose and began to serve him. That evening they brought to him many who were oppressed by demons, and he cast out…
Homily, Second Sunday of Lent (A) 2020
The Bible in the time of Jesus - and still in Judaism to this day - was made up of the books of Moses (the first five in the Bible) and the teaching of the Prophets, chief amongst whom was the prophet Elijah. (The Jewish Bible contains nothing of what we call the New Testament…
Catholics becoming more liberal on social issues by Madoc Cairns
By Madoc Cairns in THE TABLET, 6 March 2020 Catholics’ views of whether abortion, homosexuality or euthanasia are justified have all moved in a more liberal direction, according to a new research report. Researchers at Roman Catholics in Britain: Faith, Society and Politics, a project funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council and based…
Historical Error
Letter to The Tablet editor, 27 February 2020 Has the Holy Father made a mistake in not permitting the ordination of women, even initially only to the diaconate? The exclusion of women from ministry can be traced not only to tradition but also to an erroneous reading of the evolution of “church” and its ministries. In common…
The only column you need to read about COVID-19
By Garrison Keillor The beauty of COVID-19 is how shiny clean everybody looks since the panic set in. I’m in New York City this week and the stores are completely sold out of hand sanitizer, Hi-Lex, alcohol, antibacterial wipes, every kind of cleaner, and when you get on the subway at rush hour and stand…
Weinstein verdict is far from a triumph
By Alice Thomson in THE TIMES, 26 February 2020 This is the age of empowerment for women,” the attorney Gloria Allred said when the American jury finally found Harvey Weinstein guilty of two charges, of sexual assault and rape, after more than 100 women said that the Hollywood producer had harassed them. Even the pussy…
How dare they call care workers unskilled
By Janice Turner in THE TIMES, 22 February 2020 The carers at my mother’s nursing home did a course on dying this week. They learnt not just how to nurse a fading old person, about pain relief and legal protocols, but delicate matters I’d never considered: if a family is fractured, siblings not speaking, how…
Homily, Seventh Sunday of the Year (A) 2020
For the second Sunday running the Gospel features the moral teaching of Jesus. We encounter two of his best known and most difficult teachings which concern nonviolence and the love of enemies. Jesus first gives his teaching on nonviolence, starting with the ‘eye-for-an-eye’ rule in the Book of Exodus (21:24) and quoted in the First…
Sunday Mass: Saturday 4pm, Sunday 10am 