'Repent . . . and follow me.' Sunday Reflections, 3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

Calling of Peter and Andrew

Duccio di Buoninsegna [Web Gallery of Art]

Readings (New American Bible: Philippines, USA)

Readings (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, England & Wales, India [optional], Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Scotland, South Africa)

Gospel Mark 1:14-20 (New Revised  Standard Version, Anglicised CatholicEdition) 

Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.’

As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake—for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, ‘Follow me and I will make you fish for people.’ And immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending the nets. Immediately he called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him.

Speaking in Rome to members of ecclesial movements on the evening of Saturday 17 May 2013, the Vigil of Pentecost, Pope Francis told this story:

One day in particular, though, was very important to me: 21 September 1953. I was almost 17. It was 'Students’ Day', for us the first day of spring — for you the first day of autumn. Before going to the celebration I passed through the parish I normally attended, I found a priest that I did not know and I felt the need to go to confession. For me this was an experience of encounter: I found that someone was waiting for me. Yet I do not know what happened, I can’t remember, I do not know why that particular priest was there whom I did not know, or why I felt this desire to confess, but the truth is that someone was waiting for me. He had been waiting for me for some time. After making my confession I felt something had changed. I was not the same. I had heard something like a voice, or a call. I was convinced that I should become a priest.

What is striking is that the young Jorge Mario Bergoglio experienced God's call to the priesthood unexpectedly and within the context of confession. In today's Gospel the call of Simon and Peter, of James and John to follow Jesus is within the context of a call to conversion: repent, and believe in the good news. 

In the First Reading God sends a very reluctant Jonah to Nineveh to call the people there to repentance. And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth.

An old photo of Portobello Bridge, Dublin [Wikipedia]

Last Monday on  Nationwide on RTÉ, Ireland's national radio and TV service, a young Irish Dominican friar, Fr David Barron OP, told how he remembered the very moment when he decided to give up his job in banking, in which he was very happy, to become a Dominican priest: One evening, coming on the bus from Trinity (Dublin University) into Rathmines, coming over Portobello Bridge, I still remember, I finally gave in and said, 'I'll give it a go' [11:17 - 11:29 in the video].

The Prophet Jonah Before the Walls of Jericho

Rembrandt [Wikipedia Commons]

The First Reading, from the Book of Jonah, shows the people of Nineveh, from the King down, believing the reluctant prophet and then fasting and repenting.

In the Gospel Jesus preaches, Repent, and believe in the good news. It is in the context of that proclamation to the people in Galilee that Jesus invites Simon and Andrew, James and John, to follow him. Each of the four could make the words of Pope Francis their own: For me this was an experience of encounter: I found that someone was waiting for me. Yet I do not know what happened . . . I was not the same. I had heard something like a voice, or a call. That call was to lead the four of them to leave everything to follow him, a decision that was to bring three of them to martyrdom. The young Jorge Mario Bergoglio could not have had the slightest idea that listening to God's call would lead him to Rome.

About 16 years ago I did a mission appeal in a parish in England where the then recently appointed parish priest had inherited a filthy rectory/presbytery/convento from his predecessor. He had managed by then to clean up only his own bedroom. He could not invite me to stay at his place because the guest room was filthy and so had me put up by a neighbouring parish priest.

The people of Nineveh cleaned up the 'room' of their inner heart by turning away from sin and allowed the word of God to enter. The Gospel suggests that the two sets of fishermen-brothers had done the same and were able to hear and respond to the call of Jesus there and then.

May we do likewise, with God's grace, especially through the sacrament of reconciliation / penance / confession.

Jesus calls each of us through baptism into an intimate, personal relationship with him. He eventually reveals to us, within that relationship, the specific vocation to which he invites us - to marriage, to the priesthood, to religious life, to remaining single. We can only hear that specific invitation from Jesus if we constantly repent of our sins and accept his loving forgiveness and mercy.

Responsorial Psalm

New American Bible Lectionary (Philippines, USA)

Two significant Dominican ordinations in Ireland and Australia

Last Saturday, 8 July, Archbishop Joseph Augustine Di Noia OP, Assistant Secretary at the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith in the Vatican, ordained Fr Philip Mulryne OP to the priesthood in St Saviour's Church in the heart of Dublin.

Archbishop Di Noia and Fr Philip [Irish Dominicans' website]

The new priest has an unusual, though not unique, background in that he is a former professional footballer, having played for Manchester United and a number of other British soccer clubs between 1997 and 2009, and for Northern Ireland 27 times during that period.

Father Philip entered St Malachy's Seminary in his native Belfast in 2009 to study philosophy in preparation for becoming a priest in the Diocese of Down and Connor, which includes that city. But while studying theology in Rome he felt a call to the Dominican Order and joined their novitiate in Cork in 2012.

Brother Robert Krishna OP [Source]

On Saturday 15 July Archbishop Anthony Fisher OP will ordain his fellow Dominican, Brother Robert Krishna, to the priesthood. Brother Robert's story is a little more unusual than that of his newly-ordained confrere. He is from India and his journey led him from Hinduism to atheism to agnosticism to Anglicanism in Australia and, finally to Catholicism. 

The Catholic Weekly report [my emphases added] says:

Around this time, Br Robert encountered some Catholics at Sydney University.

One thing which impressed him was the fact that there were many young Catholics who were happy in living what the Church teaches.

“I was converted through their example and conversations, rather than through their arguments” he said.

Of the latter, one which sticks out was the exasperated comment of the chaplaincy convenor at the time, Robert Haddad: “You’re never going to get all the answers to all your objections, and at some stage, you need to make a leap of faith.”

It was a throwaway line, but it contains a truth which bothered Br Robert until it ended up convincing him. He was received into the Church in 2003 and confirmed a year later by then-Bishop Anthony Fisher OP, who had just been ordained a Bishop. Robert Haddad was his confirmation sponsor.

God always speaks to us through those happy in living what the Church teaches. And so often God speaks to us through a throwaway line. I remember one such line by Brother Finn, a Christian Brother, in religion class one day when I was in secondary school. Only the best fellows join the Columbans, he said. He had no idea that I was considering becoming a Columban priest. He was referring to former students of his who had taken that step. His throwaway line encouraged me.

St Saviour's Church, Dominick St, Dublin [Wikimedia]

The seed of my own vocation to the priesthood was perhaps sown in this church, where Fr Mulryne was ordained last Saturday. My father loved the solemnity of the High Mass and often took me to one on days such as Easter Monday and Whit (Pentecost) Monday, sometimes to the Dominican church in Dominick Street and sometimes to the Capuchin church in Church Street (St Mary of the Angels). Dubliners usually refer to their churches by the name of the street that they are on rather than on the patronal name. As a child I did not particularly appreciate the High Mass.

Whenever my mother took us 'into town' - the city centre - we usually went by Church Street and would drop in to say a prayer. Occasionally she would take the longer walk and go by Dominick Street where we would also drop in and say a prayer. I remember when I was six or seven being attracted by the white habit of the Dominican friars I saw. Looking back I know that the seed of my vocation was being sown there, though I wasn't aware of it. However when at 13 and 14 I began to seriously think of the priesthood I never considered the Dominicans. But I am grateful to God for the part that they, and my parents, played in my own faith and vocation journey.

A year ago Archbishop Robert Rivas OP of the Diocese of Castries in the Caribbean ordained eight Dominican priests in St Saviour's Church.

Fr Gerard Dunne OP, the vocation director of the Dominicans for many years, gives some ideas on why the Order is attracting men leading successful professional lives in an article by Doreen Carvajal published in The New York Times in 2013, For Friars, Finding Renewal by Sticking to Tradition.

'Sticking to Tradition' did not preclude the Irish Dominicans from being ahead of almost every other order and congregation in Ireland in evangelising 'this digital continent', as Pope Benedict called the internet. May God continue to bless them and, through them, the Church, especially in Ireland and in Australia.

St Dominic Adoring the Crucifixion

Fra Angelico OP [Web Gallery of Art]

The Dominican habit and my vocation

A Dominican friar

Today is the feast of St Dominic. When I was a child my father, John, whose 25th death anniversary is 11 August, used to take me to High Mass on days such as Easter Monday and Whit Monday. Sometimes it would be to St Mary of the Angels Capuchin Church in Church Street, Dublin, sometimes to St Saviour's Dominican Church in Dominick Street, not too far away from the Capuchins. He loved High Mass. As a child I didn't!

He probably brought me to St Saviour's on other occasions too because I distinctly remember, when I was six or seven, being attracted by the habit of the Dominican friars I saw there. I guess that that was God stirring within me a sense that he was calling me to be a priest. When I began to think seriously about the priesthood at the age of 13 I never considered the Dominicans as I wanted to be a missionary priest - and a secular one, not a religious. But the Irish Dominicans have worked in Trinidad for many years, something I don't think I was aware of at the time.

St Dominic, El Greco (painted 1586-90)

Some years ago the Irish Dominican friars decided to go back to wearing their habit in their priories. All their vocation literature shows them wearing it. They have been doing very well for vocations in recent years and their blog, Irish Dominican Vocations, is well worth checking out. Read There are No Vocations! on 30 July.

The vocation director, Fr Gerard Dunne OP, told me a revealing story when I met him in 2010. One of the friars was to celebrate Mass in a nearby convent of religious sisters. As it was within walking distance he decided to wear his habit. On the way he met a not young religious sister from another convent who upbraided him for doing so. Habits were 'old hat'. Further on a young man stopped him and said, 'You're a priest, right? Well I'm getting married tomorrow and I'd like to go to confession'.

Speaking of confession, I met a friend today home from Belgium where she lives with her Belgian husband and their three children. She told me that her parish priest refuses to hear their confessions. 'Confession belongs to the past', he says. She doesn't know what to do. 'We have to come to the Philippines to go to confession'.

It's noteworthy too that as the Catholic Church dropped so many symbols, Friday abstinence, Lent - what we have now is 'Lent Lite' - and other things, we have become more aware of the Ramadan fast of Muslims and respect it, and sport has replaced Mass as 'liturgy'. In the past we in the West wore our 'Sunday best' going to church. Now the vast majority don't bother going to church but dress up to support their team in sporting events. In fact it has become a rip-off where teams change their gear, of which they have two or three different sets of colours, every year so that the companies they're associated with will sell more unneeded clothing, sometimes made by underpaid workers. and they know that children will put pressure on their parents to buy the new, unnecessary gear.

Ordinations of Fr Denis Murphy OP and Fr Maurice Colgan OP, St Saviour's Church, Dublin, 18 September 2011

I'm well aware that a habit or a clerical suit doesn't make a person a saint. Before Christmas 1981 when travelling on a train from London to Glasgow, wearing a red sweater and jeans, a woman asked me if I was a priest. Around the same time - I was home for Christmas from studies in Toronto - I went to visit the parents of a young Irishman I had come to know in a prayer group there. His mother opened the door. She had never met me before and didn't know I was coming but greeted me with a big smile and said 'You're very welcome, Father!'

But symbols are important. On recent visits home to Ireland I have made a point of wearing clerical dress most of the time. I have been approached by people young and old precisely because of this, once in the airport in Abu Dhabi by a newly graduated student from a Dublin university. He old me he was one of very few of his contemporaries who practised the faith and he appreciated the affirmation he got. On another occasion, flying from Abu Dhabi to Dublin I got into a genuine dialogue of faith with a Muslim man who not only had the Quran saved in his mobile phone but parts of the Bible also.

So on the feast of St Dominic I thank God for my Dad who dragged me unwillingly to St Saviour's all those years ago and for the friars I saw there whose white habits, without my being aware of it at the time, carried a quiet, personal message from God.

Take a look too at Irish Rosary Priest, the blog of 91-year-old Fr Gabriel Harty OP who is spending August working at Knock Shrine.

'Engineer brothers down tools for life in the priesthood'

Fr James Doyle, Fr Brian Doyle OP, Bro Rory Doyle OFMConv

The photo above, courtesy of the Irish Dominicans, was taken on Saturday 3 September in Murrintown, County Wexford, in the south-west of Ireland, when Father Brian was ordained priest by Bishop Denis Brennan of Ferns. His brother Father James (Jim) is a priest in the Diocese of Ferns, which includes most of County Wexford, and his twin Brother Rory is also preparing for the priesthood as a Conventual Franciscan.

The three brothers are featured in today's Irish Independent: Engineer brothers down tools for life in the priesthood. The twins have doctorates in engineering. Father Jim worked with the Irish agency Concern in Cambodia and Burundi and found his vocation there.

Father Brian with his parents Joan and Brian senior (Irish Dominican Vocations)

Ten years ago I did mission appeals on behalf of the Columbans in the Diocese of Lancaster in the north-west of England. I met two of the three Burns brothers who, like the Doyle brothers, gave up very successful careers to become priests. I met two of the three Foulkes brothers who were also priests of the diocese. The third had already died.

We Columbans have been blessed with sets of three brothers, from Australia, Ireland and the USA. But in today's Ireland, where so many have left the Church, where so many are disheartened by scandals involving priests, it is very heartening to read about the Doyle brothers who  have one sister, Judith, who married last year. It is particularly heartening to read about it in the most widely read daily newspaper in Ireland.

The photos below are all taken from the Irish Dominican Vocations Blog of Fr Gerard Dunne OP.

Brother Brian during the Litany of the Saints

 Father Jim lays hands on his brother's head

 Bishop Brennan giving the sign of peace to Father Brian

It was seeing Dominican friars in their white habits in St Saviour's Church, Dublin, where my father used to take me occasionally for High Mass, that first stirred an interest in the priesthood in my heart. I was around seven at the time. Though I never seriously considered being a Dominican I am grateful to God for that early 'signpost', which has also been a signpost to many young men in Ireland in recent years, including two Irish diocesan priests who have joined the Order of Preachers. Here is a video from the Irish Dominican Vocations Blog that features that 'signpost'.

'"Come" said Jesus.' Sunday Reflections, 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A, 7 August 2011



Come

Jesus says, ‘Come, through all the turmoil,

the storms which threaten to engulf me.

He calls out to me.

He wants to pull me towards him.

Jesus is present in the storms of my life.

He is in the boat with me.

He says, ‘Trust me!’

He is also saying, ‘I need you.

We’re a balancing act, dancing together!

I need you to believe in me.

I need you to be me on earth.

You need my power and love to grow

and reveal me

to your brothers and sisters.

When you don’t trust,

you sink!

You are swallowed up

in life’s sorrows.

You block my power

to work through you’.

The painting and reflection above are by Sr Maria Forrestal, an Irish Franciscan Missionary of Mary who has worked in the Faroe Islands in the North Atlantic for many years. Among other things, Sister Maria maintains the excellent website of the Catholic Church in the Faroes.

 

Readings (New American Bible, used in the Philippines and the USA).

 

Gospel (Matthew 14:22-33; Jerusalem Bible, used in Australia, England & Wales, Ireland, Scotland)

Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side while he would send the crowds away. After sending the crowds away he went up into the hills by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, while the boat, by now far out on the lake, was battling with a heavy sea, for there was a head-wind. In the fourth watch of the night he went towards them, walking on the lake, and when the disciples saw him walking on the lake they were terrified. 'It is a ghost' they said, and cried out in fear. But at once Jesus called out to them, saying, 'Courage! It is I! Do not be afraid.' lt was Peter who answered. 'Lord,' he said 'if it is you, tell me to come to you across the water.' 'Come' said Jesus. Then Peter got out of the boat and started walking towards Jesus across the water, but as soon as he felt the force of the wind, he took fright and began to sink. 'Lord! Save me!' he cried. Jesus put out his hand at once and held him. 'Man of little faith,' he said 'why did you doubt?' And as they got into the boat the wind dropped. The men in the boat bowed down before him and said, 'Truly, you are the Son of God'.

Soiscéal (Matha 14:22-33, Gaeilge, Irish)

San am sin chuir Íosa d’fhiacha ar na deisceabail dul ar bord agus imeacht roimhe go dtí an taobh thall fad a bheadh sé féin ag scaoileadh na sluaite uaidh. Agus tar éis a scaoilte dó, chuaigh sé an sliabh suas ar leithligh chun guí, agus nuair a bhí an tráthnóna ann bhí sé ansiúd ina aonar. Bhí an bád faoin am sin mórán staideanna amach ón talamh, á bocadh ag na farraigí, mar bhí an ghaoth contrártha. Sa cheathrú faire den oíche, tháinig sé chucu ag siúl ar an bhfarraige. Nuair a chonaic na deisceabail é, agus é ag siúl ar an bhfarraige, bhí siad buartha: “Taibhse atá ann!” ar siad, agus scread siad amach le barr eagla. Ach labhair Íosa leo láithreach: “Bíodh misneach agaibh!” ar seisean, “mise atá ann, ná bíodh eagla oraibh.” D’fhreagair Peadar é: “A Thiarna,” ar seisean, “más tú atá ann, ordaigh mé a theacht chugat ar bharr an uisce.” Dúirt Íosa: “Tar!” Agus tháinig Peadar amach as an mbád agus shiúil ar bharr an uisce ag déanamh ar Íosa. Ach nuair a d’airigh sé chomh borb agus a bhí an ghaoth, rug an eagla air; thosaigh ag dul faoi uisce agus scread sé amach: “A Thiarna, saor mé!” ar seisean. Shín Íosa amach a lámh láithreach, agus ag breith greama air dúirt: “A fhir an bheagán creidimh, cén fáth ar tháinig amhras ort?” Ar dhul isteach sa bhád dóibh, thit an ghaoth. Agus iad seo a bhí sa bhád, d’umhlaigh siad síos ina láthair ag rá: “Go dearfa, is tú Mac Dé.”

+++

Sister Maria's painting evokes in me a sense of my vocation. Jesus invited Peter to step out. Peter did but then hesitated. Each person's vocation is unique. Some know from their childhood where God is calling them, some from early adolescence, as was my experience, some at a much later stage. But however one experiences God's call at some stage one has to step out.

A priest I knew here in the Philippines, the late Fr Vincent San Juan SJ, spent most of his life as a priest in the family life apostolate, working particularly with couples. I heard him speak of ballroom dancing as an image of the relationship of a husband and wife. The man usually leads, though not always, the woman following his moves. When I reached adolescence in the mid-1950s rock 'n' roll hat hit the scene and ballroom dancing disappeared for my generation. I used to envy my parents, uncles and aunts when I'd see them dancing with such skill, teamwork and enjoyment!

Sister Maria shows Jesus and Peter involved in a dance. Jesus is holding Peter's hand even before he steps out. I remember how my father taught me to swim and to ride a bicycle. He held his hand under my chest in the water, giving me a sense of security. Then on one occasion I realised his hand wasn't there anymore. I was swimming on my own. It was the same with cycling. My Dad kept a grip on the saddle until he judged that I could manage on my own. I remember the great joyful sense of freedom I felt on both occasions. But I would never have learned to swim or ride a bike without 'stepping out' as Peter did, even though he then lost his nerve.

Fr Gerard Dunne OP sees the present crisis in the Church in Ireland as a time for a young person to answer God's call to the priesthood or religious life. I quote here from a recent post in his blog, Irish Dominican Vocations, Why consider a vocation in the midst of a crisis?

The church and its people are not just survivors who grit their teeth in the face of either internal turmoil or external opposition. The church doesn't just survive - it lives. It lives because Jesus Christ lives in and through the church. In the midst of this present crisis we must humbly admit that we are the recipients of the graciousness and unconditional love of Jesus Christ who promised never to abandon his disciples: "And know that I am with you always; yes, to the end of time." (Matthew 28:10) The church has existed and lived these 2000 years because of God's grace manifested through the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

During these dark days I am often reminded of the words of Blessed John Paul II in Toronto during a World Youth Day event when he addressed the young people saying: "At difficult moments in the church's life, the pursuit of holiness becomes even more urgent. And holiness is not a question of age; it is a matter of living in the Spirit......We are not the sum of our weaknesses and failures; we are the sum of the Father's love for us and our real capacity to become the image of his Son."

While many might argue that this is the worst time ever to consider a religious vocation, I see it as the most desirable time to discern life as a sister, brother, nun, priest and indeed Dominican. Here's a few reasons:

Firstly, God continues to call and invite people to a life of service and community, especially when the church faces and unprecedented crisis like the one we presently face. Our history proves this. In the middle of the great injustices of the Spanish Inquisition God called St Teresa of Avila to a life of mysticism and ultimately of reform of her Carmelite order; Saint Francis had a dream of rebuilding God's house and in response chose to live a life of radical simplicity through simplicity, prayer and penance - in stark contrast to the wealth and corruption of the twelfth century church. A couple of hundred years later when there was unrest in the church and a divided papacy Saint Catherine of Siena responded to God's call to live the Dominican life and later became a mediator for peace and the reunification of the papacy.

The church still benefits from the virtue of these heroic men and women and the many more like them who heard God's call and invitation to live a radical Gospel life in the midst of a church in turmoil. I am confident that with the help of God's grace that we will be telling similar stories in the future of today's heroic men and women who responded to the challenges of religious life.

Another reason to consider a religious vocation is that our church needs the creativity, idealism, faith and spirituality of a new generation. In the midst of our crisis the poor in our world continue to suffer from a lack of education, healthcare, social services. In a culture that suffers from inequalities, violence and disregard for human life, people need to hear the prophetic message of justice, peace and dignity. And in the middle of the crisis that the church now faces, people more than any other time in history need to hear the Gospel preached.

One further reason: the church needs more than just service. In a society that glamourises wealth, sex, power and money the church needs the continued witness of young people (and not so young) who are willing to give their all for holiness by living a life of chastity, obedience and poverty. Because we are a sacramental church we need priests to preach the Word with integrity and minister in times of joy and pain with sensitivity. When the world is plagued by polarization and division we need the hope for the Christian community that is inspired by people who come together to live and share their faith, values and mission.

By considering a religious vocation, there is nothing to lose. Why? Because all vocations are oriented towards holiness and a deepening of a relationship with God. I would continue to encourage people to consider religious life for the sheer joy that it can bring. Of course there are challenges and sacrifices but there is a deep consolation in knowing that you are following God's will or plan for you and that you are making a significant contribution to the life of the church and those that you live with and serve.
These are definitely trying times for the church especially in Ireland. But they are not the first, nor will they be the last. Keep on considering your vocation - and do not be afraid.

The full text of Father Gerard's post is here.

 

Nicene Creed

Credo in unum Deum, I believe in one God,

Patrem omnipoténtem, the Father almighty,

factórem caeli et terrae, maker of heaven and earth,

visibílium ómnium et invisibílium. of all things visible and invisible

Et in unum Dóminum Iesum Christum, I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,
Fílium Dei Unigénitum, the Only Begotten Son of God,
et ex Patre natum ante ómnia saecula. born of the Father before all ages.
Deum de Deo, lumen de lúmine, God from God, Light from Light,
Deum verum de Deo vero, true God from true God,
génitum, non factum, consubstantiálem Patri: begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father;
per quem ómnia facta sunt. through him all things were made.

Qui propter nos hómines et propter nostram salútem For us men and for our salvation
descéndit de caelis. he came down from heaven,
Et incarnátus est de Spíritu Sancto ex María Vírgine, and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary,
et homo factus est. and became man.

Crucifíxus étiam pro nobis sub Póntio Piláto; For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate,
passus et sepúltus est, he suffered death and was buried,
et resurréxit tértia die, and rose again on the third day
secúndum Scriptúras, in accordance with the Scriptures.
et ascéndit in caelum, He ascended into heaven
sedet ad déxteram Patris.and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
Et íterum ventúrus est cum glória, He will come again in glory
iudicáre vivos et mórtuos, to judge the living and the dead
cuius regni non erit finis. and his kingdom will have no end.

Et in Spíritum Sanctum, Dóminum et vivificántem: I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
qui ex Patre Filióque procédit. who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
Qui cum Patre et Fílio simul adorátur et conglorificátur: who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified,
qui locútus est per prophétas. who has spoken through the prophets.

Et unam, sanctam, cathólicam et apostólicam Ecclésiam. I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.
Confíteor unum baptísma in remissiónem peccatórum. I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins
Et exspécto resurrectiónem mortuórum, and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead
et vitam ventúri saeculi. Amen. and the life of the world to come. Amen.


Here in the Philippines the Nicene Creed is rarely used at Mass, a great pity. The English translation above is the new one that will come into effect in most English-speaking countries on the First Sunday of Advent. The Philippines isn't an English-speaking country, though it is widely used in Mass, especially in the larger cities. It is one of the official languages of the country. I haven't heard any official announcement from the bishops as to when the new translation will be implemented here. I will probably use the opportunity of the change to introduce people to the Nicene Creed, which is the 'default' one for Mass.

View of the Catholic church (Mariukirkjan) and convent (Kerit) from Varðagøta, Torshavn, capital of the Faroes.

 


'An age that is twisted out of its true pattern'

There is a striking translation of Philippians 2:15, from the first reading in today's Mass, in the Knox version: You live in an age that is twisted out of its true pattern, and among such people you shine out, beacons to the world, upholding the message of life. The RSV reads: . . . children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world . . .

Today I came across a video produced by the Dominican Friars in the Philippines, Lumen Ecclesiae, which shows St Dominic as a 'Light of the Church' in an age that, in its own way, was 'twisted out of its true pattern'.

When I was a kid my late father used to take me sometimes to High Mass in St Saviour's, Dominick St, the Dominican church in the heart of Dublin. I remember very clearly the first stirrings of interest in the priesthood because of the white habit of the friars, even though subsequently I never felt any call to be a Dominican. The Irish Dominican Vocations blog shows that God is still using that same habit to draw young men to the priesthood and to the Dominicans.