As Cardinal Mercier said : "When prudence is everywhere, courage is nowhere."                                                                                  From Cardinal Sarah : "In order to avoid hearing God's music, we have chosen to use all the devices of this world. But heaven's instruments will not stop playing just because some people are deaf."                                                                                              Saint John-Paul II wrote: "The fact that one can die for the faith shows that other demands of the faith can also be met."                                                 Cardinal Müller says, “For the real danger to today’s humanity is the greenhouse gases of sin and the global warming of unbelief and the decay of morality when no one knows and teaches the difference between good and evil.”                                                  St Catherine of Siena said, “We've had enough exhortations to be silent. Cry out with a thousand tongues - I see the world is rotten because of silence.”                                                  Chesterton said, “The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting. It has been found difficult; and left untried.”                                                Brethren, Wake up!

LIFE AFTER LOCKDOWN


Here is a picture of how, Deo volente, life will be when we are allowed to return to church.  Notice that everyone, particularly the ladies, has troubled to prepare themselves in their best clothes, but that the men have come to give thanks to Our Blessed Lady before going to have their hair cut! Much in this painting shows our correct pious disposition and priorities, in reverence and joy, which we ourselves are firmly encouraged to adopt. Perhaps the coronavirus will have persuaded us to put behind us the invincible sophistication which despises the piety God so loves.

In the meantime, pray to Our Lady in this month of May that the bishops of of our Isles will move quickly to restore full and safe access to the Sacraments, in a spirit of love and kindness, free from some of the childish and mean-spirited restrictions we have seen coming out of some American dioceses recently.

The painting is by Jules Breton, of 1891, entitled the Pardon of Kergoat, a village of Quéméneven in  Cornouaille, Brittany. The cousins of our Cornishmen. It hangs in the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Quimper. (click it to enlarge, it will get full-screen.)

It shows the annual canonical pardon; these processions were a common feature of parts of Northern France, and some amazingly still continue to this day. The pardons are the remission of the punishment due to absolved sins, commuting Purgatory, and are supernaturally similar to indulgences, but public community acts of short pilgrimage with this specific purpose. They were often connected to holy wells or fountains (as this one). They represent, in effect, the ultimate charity and kindness of the traditions of the Church, that no soul should suffer for a moment longer than necessary. 

In effect our Holy Father Pope Francis has enacted much the same with the widespread indulgences he proclaimed at the beginning of the Coronavirus. They are still in place – take advantage of them, see our post HERE. Perhaps our Bishops should consider restoring public Pardons.

Our Lady of Walsingham, pray for us
Our Lady of Philermo, pray for us
Saint John the Baptist, pray for us
Posted on Monday, May 11, 2020
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