Monday 20th September, 10am

Jess writes: I would like to share this as my final contribution to the blog. 

In my role as a youth communications officer for the Diocese, along with Laurie and Jordan, my involvement with the Papal visit commenced back in July with a media training day in Liverpool. Starting from then I have found the whole experience surrounding the visit awe-inspiring, thought provoking, moving and quite simply amazing! I've discovered so much about my faith and appreciate it even more. 

I have to say thank you to everyone involved: organisers, leaders, interviewees, other youth groups and pilgrims who attended and supported the visit. Since I attended the Papal events in both London and Cofton Park, I have heard in the media of many people wanting to become Catholic or come back to the faith after years of absence. I think this is great news, so let's hope the 'joyful noise' keeps on spreading!

Saturday 18th September, 9.45pm

Fr Simon Stamp, the Bishop's Private Secretary, explains his diocesan role in preparation for the Holy Father's visit. 

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Saturday 18th September, 6.00pm

Bishop Brain talks about his involvement with the Papal Visit, both personally and on behalf of the diocese.

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Friday 17th September, 10.45pm:

Central London is alive with the Pope's visit. There are people everywhere, still out on the streets after the huge events of today. Even the most optimistic will not have expected the enthusiastic response of the many thousands that turned out to greet the Pope. Perhaps the highlight was the speech to the civil dignitaries in Westminster Hall. Quite astonishing that the Pope should be able to turn the tide of opinion so dramatically in the space of a twenty-five minute address.

Friday 17th September, 9.45am:

Fr Flynn writes: I have had the immense good fortune of getting on the gallery for the Pope'e meeting with religious. Everyone is practising the hymns as we await the Holy Father.

Fr John Flynn pictured with the popemobile

Thursday 16th September, 4.35pm:

Jess, Jordan and Laurie say:
We're all in London today! Picked up our media accreditation passes which we are all very excited about. Been to Westminster Cathedral and saw Our Lady of the Taper. We were impressed by the new St David mosiac in the cathedral!
We also met John Kirby whom we have interviewed and he gave us backstage access to the screens and technology-didn't realise how much is involved! We also met up with the dean of Westminster Cathedral.
Still much to do..!
Pictures and videos to come.
Jess, Jordan and Laurie (in the M+S café)

Thursday 16th September, 4.03pm:

Fr Flynn writes: I am in the 'Media Centre' set up in Central London for the Visit. Plenty of Press-types around. So THAT is what John Wilkins looks like? Most are looking very happy at what's been happening so far. Screens, laptops and headphones everywhere as news items are sent flying round the world. I am here to help out and give a positive slant if necessary. Not that I'm needed - what a corker of a speech this morning! I think we can just let the Pope do the talking. Can't wait for the homily at Bellahouston. 

Wednesday 15th September, 9.14pm:

Monsignor John Allen, who organised the visit of John Paul II to Heaton Park in 1982, gives us an interview:

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Tuesday 14th September, 6.08pm:

 Jess writes: As a 17-year-old practising Catholic, I feel saddened by the amount of negative press (e.g. last night's horrendous Channel 4 broadcast) shown towards the Papal Visit. It would appear that all priests have now been tarred with the same brush which in turn spoils the image of the whole Church. There are countless numbers of priests who do their utmost to support young people and provide sound foundations on which we can build our faith. In my personal experience, I have been given many opportunities to participate in events such as pilgrimages to Lourdes and Walsingham, World Youth Day, and days of recollection in centres like Loyola Hall, for example.

I sincerely hope this Papal Visit will provide fresh opportunities for young and old alike to reaffirm their Christian beliefs, values and understanding.

Tuesday 14th September, 3.53pm:

Jess's mum's boss (head of St John's R.C. Primary School, Chorlton) says: "Historically, it's a wonderful occasion that Pope Benedict XVI has been invited here officially by the Queen for a state visit- But it is far more important that the youth of this land now have a much greater knowledge and understanding of who the pope is and of what his role is in the universal church. I am delighted that four of our year 6 children and a member of staff are going to have the opportunity of seeing the pope 'in the flesh' at the Big Assembly in Twickenham on Friday morning. They are all extremely excited."

Monday 13th September, 10am: 

Why the Church is right about male priesthood

As Catholic Women’s Ordination launches its bus campaign, the Dean of Studies at Allen Hall Seminary, Fr Stephen Wang offers a reflection on the male priesthood.

Source: http://bridgesandtangents.wordpress.com/

Last year the religious slogans on London’s buses were hesitant and ended with gentle exhortations: “There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.” Now they end with a shout: “Pope Benedict – Ordain Women Now!”

The latest posters, timed to coincide with the Papal visit, are funded by the campaigning group Catholic Women’s Ordination. It’s unlikely that Pope Benedict will be using his Oystercard, but the hope must be that if his Popemobile gets stuck in traffic, one of these buses will glide by and catch his attention.

The Catholic insistence that only men can be ordained as priests is incomprehensible to many people, and the cause of much personal anger and ecumenical heartache. Pope John Paul II seemed to close the door to any revision when he wrote in 1994 that this teaching “is to be definitively held by all the Church’s faithful”.

He took a surprising line. He didn’t stamp his feet and shout: I won’t! Instead he said: I simply can’t. I don’t have the authority to change something that has been such a fundamental part of Christian identity from the very beginning. The argument is not about holding onto the past for its own sake, but trying to be faithful to what Jesus wanted for his Church.

In the New Testament, Jesus chose twelve men to represent him as his first priests, as the Twelve Apostles. Every generation of Catholics (and Orthodox) since then has understood this to have been a choice that was deliberate and significant, not just for that first period of history, but for every age.

Some argue that Jesus couldn’t have done otherwise in the Jewish society of his time. This doesn’t stand up, as he was quite willing to involve women in other aspects of his mission and ministry, in ways that would have seemed revolutionary.

Others say that women’s ordination, even if Jesus had wanted it, simply wasn’t conceivable in the pre-feminist religious cultures of the last 2000 years. But this ignores the staggering diversity of cultures in which Christianity has been embedded.

Even in societies that have been broadly matriarchal (with rich Roman matrons running the early Christian house churches, or powerful medieval abbesses ruling ‘double’ monasteries of men and women); even when women ‘priestesses’ were an established part of the surrounding religious milieu – Christians still took for granted the idea of the male priesthood.

This is why Pope John Paul II, and now Pope Benedict, are saying that this is much more than a time-bound cultural norm that needs updating. It’s something deeper that touches on the very meaning of priesthood.

This teaching is not at all a judgment on women’s abilities or rights. It says something about the specific role of the priest in Catholic understanding – which is to represent Jesus, to stand in his place. The Church is saying something quite radical. On the one hand, there is a fundamental equality between all human beings, between men and women. On the other hand, this does not mean that our sexual identity as men and women is interchangeable. Gender is not just an accident.

People sense this. If I announced that I was making a film about Jesus or King Arthur or Wayne Rooney, no-one would be surprised if I said I wanted a male actor to play the lead. It’s a weak analogy, but it shows how the notion of ‘representation’ can only be stretched so far. A woman, as much as a man, can reflect the love of Jesus, and help others to know his presence through her faith and witness. But it shouldn’t surprise us if we expect a man to stand ‘in the person of Christ’ as a priest, to represent Jesus in his humanity – a humanity that is not sexually neutral.

Where does this leave women in the Catholic Church? In the same position as the majority of men (that is, all those who are not priests). It leaves them to live their faith passionately in the service of others, to use their many gifts to the full, and to realise that ordination is not the measure of an individual’s worth in the Church.

The young Catholic women I know, especially those with a strong sense of vocation in the Church, are channelling their energies into all sorts of creative projects and life-choices. Some of these choices are very humble and hidden; others involve more public responsibilities – in politics, education, social work, Christian mission, the media, etc. Most are working ‘in the world’, but some have very significant roles within the Church itself.

These young women seem less interested in internal debates about ordination, and more concerned with rolling their sleeves up and putting their faith into practice. They are Christian feminists, whether they like the title or not. But it is a feminism that is untroubled by this Catholic understanding of the male priesthood.

Monday 13th September, 9.06am:

Saint John Chrysostom says (from today's Office of Readings):

The waters have risen and severe storms are upon us, but we do not fear drowning, for we stand firmly upon a rock. Let the sea rage, it cannot break the rock. Let the waves rise, they cannot sink the boat of Jesus. What are we to fear? Death? Life to me means Christ, and death is gain. Exile? ‘The earth and its fullness belong to the Lord. The confiscation of goods? We brought nothing into this world, and we shall surely take nothing from it. I have only contempt for the world’s threats, I find its blessings laughable. I have no fear of poverty, no desire for wealth. I am not afraid of death nor do I long to live, except for your good. I concentrate therefore on the present situation, and I urge you, my friends, to have confidence.

Do you not hear the Lord saying: Where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in their midst? Will he be absent, then, when so many people united in love are gathered together? I have his promise; I am surely not going to rely on my own strength! I have what he has written; that is my staff, my security, my peaceful harbour. Let the world be in upheaval. I hold to his promise and read his message; that is my protecting wall and garrison. What message? Know that I am with you always, until the end of the world!

Thursday 10th September, 8.09am: 

Jordan says: Pope Benedict speaks about Cardinal Newman, a 'truly great Englishman' who made a lasting contribution' to the life of the Church through his 'gentle wisdom, integrity and holiness of life'. A model for Catholics everywhere!

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Monday 6th September, 12.57pm:

Jess says: We found in a DT article (05.08.10) by Simon Caldwell that Pope Benedict wanted to be a librarian. He writes:

Prior to becoming Pope, Cardinal Ratzinger was the prefect of the Vatican's Congregation for the doctrine of the faith, the Pope's doctrinal enforcer. He found this job 'burdensome' and wanted to retire to academic study of ancient documents. Had Pope John Paul permitted this change in role, it is highly unlikely Cardinal Ratzinger would ever have become Pope.

Pope Benedict has previously said he “would have liked for John Paul II to permit me to devote myself to study and research into the interesting documents and materials.......true masterpieces that help us to review the history of humanity and of Christianity.”

Sunday 5th September, 9.13pm:

Jess says: The meeting of the diocesan youth today was invaluable as we met people for the first time, were put into our groups and finalised our roles.

Saturday 4th September, 8.12am:

Ed Nally, diocesan solicitor, recently spoke to Jordan Pitt about his time with John Paul II:

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Friday 3rd September, 9.29am:

People at the last papal visit hint at what we might expect this time round:

Pat- I was in the choir and had to get up at 3am. I struggled to get my make-up on at that time in the morning. 

Geraldine- I was up for 24 hours as a steward, but no-one turned up! Very tiring.

Frances- Not going to the toilet the whole time because of the condition they were in.

Hugh- Was in police uniform and had to take Fr Clinch through because he didn't have his pass. 

Pauline- Went to both Cardiff and Heaton Park. Took a coach load of people to Cardiff, singing all the way 'Our God Reigns', where the weather was awful.

Veronica- Picking up and dropping off priests at Heaton Park. Then watching the events on T.V with nuns who were celebrating with a party.

Berenice- Burst into tears when we saw the Pope! Loved the electric atmosphere.

Bill- Wonderful experience in the choir. Unbelievable amount of priests. 

Kath- Was heavily pregnant at the time. Had to use telescopes to see!

Cath- Freezing! Huddled around for warmth at 1am in the morning. Thought being in the choir would give better views of the Pope but they were very far away!