I'm back...

Alas, I forgot my camera so there is a distinct lack of pictures. I shall 'vet' my fathers and brothers photographs as and when! It was hot, very hot, and alas I got a bit burnt...

...the main reason I wish I would have taken my camera was because of the local church; St Theresa of Jesus... it was dreadful! It was a 'modern' building, with a pretty plain sanctuary and a pillar blocking the view of the Tabernacle...

...as if that wasn't bad enough it was a 'Eucharist service' instead of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

Apart from that I read quite a bit and enjoyed receiving the funny looks from fellow holiday-makers as I laughed whilst reading the "Yes, Minister" and "Yes, Prime Minister" books.

mini-break...

I'm off to Spain at 6.30 this morning (flight from Bristol to Alicante.) A family holiday is always nice. I will be away from 22nd - 28th...

Prayers for a safe journey would be appreciated!

In Domino

Metropolitan Cathedral Church of St David, Cardiff...

OK, I realise that is a rather long post title, but, well... this could be a long post! I have a book on my shelf and it’s the history of the above mentioned church, St David’s Cathedral, Cardiff. It contains some beautiful pictures (black and white) of how the cathedral looked before the bombing in the 40s. There is also an ‘after’ shot, which I will also post; but let us first begin with a picture of how the cathedral looks now....

Pretty non-de-script, nothing of any actual interest, apart from the cathedra. I have it on good authority that it is in fact the original Abbot’s ‘throne’ from Belmont Abbey, and that there is a part missing, the missing part is said to be an Abbot’s mitre! **note no high altar**

So, what is the point of this post? I'm not just going to 'bash' the cathedral at which I attend Mass.. I am going to praise it for what it used to look like, and what, with a little care and attention the cathedral could look like again...
I know the picture is black and white but you can get an idea of what the cathedral looked like. This too had problems, the sanctuary was far too small for a cathedral, however it wasn't built as a cathedral or even intended to be one at all. St David's was the principal church of Cardiff, but the archdiocese wasn't constructed until 1916, the church was built in the 1800s.
How amazing it would be to have the last two pictures in colour! I am told that the cathedral was truly beautiful, one can get a taste of the beauty by looking at these pictures. The next picture may shock you...

After the incendiary bombing all that was left was a shell, the sheer beauty of the pre-WWII church disappeared and what was replaced was pile of rubble.

Cardiff has quite a rich history, quite a rich religious history. With one of the most powerful Catholic families in Briton (well they were converts) owning most of Cardiff, I speak of course, of the Bute's.

I pray that sooner, rather than later the people of the archdiocese will return to the faith.

Our Lady Help of Christians
pray for us

St David
pray for us

No electricity...

I woke up this morning (at 6am) to face every Westerners worst nightmare... no electricity.

There had been a leak over night from one of the upstairs apartments and as the water trickled down each floor it took that floors electricity with it.

So I went about my business, using the candles from my 'devotional area.'

Morning Prayer this morning was blissful, none of that background noise which usually accompanies my supposed "quiet" moments! It was utter bliss.

My point? I think it did me the world of good, too often we take electricity for granted, and when it's gone we don't know what to do. I got more uni work done this morning (by candle-light) than I have most of the year, so far!

My advice, take a little time out of your day, turn off devices that can be turned off and sit in silence, say a few prayers, pray a few psalms, then sit and listen. God is all too often inundated with our requests but we too frequently don't listen for the answer.

She's gone...

St Therese has gone, but the memory of the visit of her relics will live on for generations! I will always remember the flocks of people making their pilgrimage to Cardiff's Cathedral to spend a few minutes with the Little Flower, asking her intercession or thanking her for prayers being answered.

I have trawled through the Flickr page of the Bishop's Conference, looking mainly at pictures from the visit to Cardiff. I have a few favourites, which I will put up in this post. The pictures are all from the Flickr page, so full credit goes to them!
This is the first of my favourite pictures. It features one of the sisters from the Dolgellau Carmel, they were certainly most welcome! Most of them seemed quite frail, but they were so full of Love! They were all smiling!
Here is my second favourite image, why? Well it features three flags of great importance to me as a Welshman, a Briton and a Catholic. They are; the Welsh flag, the Union flag and the standard of St David. Also, Canon Peter Collins (with the biretta) is in full choir dress, a rare glimpse of a by-gone era.
The last image is of Archbishop Peter Smith during the preparation of the gifts. Mainly because it's a good picture, but also because I'm baffled by why the book is facing the wrong way... I was on the sanctuary and didn't notice a thing!!

Modern technology.

Modern technology. This “phrase” conjures up so many thoughts and so much feeling. Mobile phones, computers, television, the internet etc... they all fall into the collect idea of “modern technology.” You are reading this blog because of two of the “modern technologies” mentioned by me namely; computers and the internet.

My question is; do we rely too much on it? Have we forgotten what *real* silence is?

I was listening to a homily today; the homilist was a Franciscan Friar of the Immaculate. He spoke briefly about today’s Saint; St. Teresa of Avila. He spoke of her vocation, what she was eventually called to do. But he spoke about what lead to this, a life of prayer. A life of silent prayer.

It is hard for many of us to pray during the day, harder still if the television/radio/computer is on; if we have an e-mail we have to send to someone or a phone call which has to be made by the end of the day. “I can always pray later” I often tell myself, I usually forget, but when i do eventually pray he who is always ready to listen is attentive, He never goes away, I praise him for staying close!

Too often our lives are filled with ‘hustle’ and ‘bustle’ how are we supposed to hear the Lord if we don’t take a few minutes out of our day to sit in silence, before a lit candle, crucifix or even the Blessed Sacrament, if you’re fortunate enough to live close enough to a church with regular adoration? The answer for many of us is we don’t or we can’t.

I beg, beseech and implore you to take the time, as the friar said in his homily, set aside a few minutes of your day, every day, for prayerful reflection.

St Teresa of Ávila
pray for us

Flat blessing!

The flat blessing took place on Sunday 11th October. Canon Peter presided over a short ceremony in which he blessed all 4 'rooms' including the hall. He then stayed for a cup of tea and some cake.

I plan to take a photo of the focal point of the flat, It will be posted sometime soon.

In Domino