St John Paul the Great: his five loves by Jason Evert

I just glanced at the title and read, 'five loaves.' Right. No sign of the fish.

If like me, reading a book containing relentless positive anecdotes about someone who keeps people waiting by disappearing into Blessed Sacrament Chapels, is a good thing, just now, then may I recommend this book.

Not at all high brow, but takes your mind of other stuff and is of good heart.

Back from my travels

Back from my trip to Paris. My house to gare du nord is three hours even allowing a generous driving time to Ebbsfleet. Early train on Saturday morning and you can easily be at the 12.30 Mass at the rue du bac.

This time I got to go to the Missa Cantata at S. Eugène sung by the Schola Ste. Cécile on Sunday. I was a bit early, so snuck in as the previous OF Mass was ending.

The great thing is there is nothing to say. Aside from the fact there were lots of people, the church is beautiful, the music very fine indeed and yes, the congregation sing all their bits too,all you could say is that everything went along in a completely predictable fashion.

And I got the newsletter for Zephy.

#synod14

If you need to hear something to restore your faith that everything has not gone completely mad, listen to the soothing balm of Cardinal Burke.

Then there's Mr and Mrs Grygriel.

#synod14 can't end quickly enough.

La La La

Comedy gold here

Peter K rounds on the article and points out that the basis of the argument is fickle.

I will just point out two things.

That Gregorian Chant is monophonic is not an accident and is not so because people in the past were thick.

Think about it.

In the OT there are references to plucky stringed instruments.

So no-one ever plucked more than one string at a time. Ever.

People who lived in caves had bone flutes.

The Romans and Egyptians had trumpets.

Ye olde Danes had lurs, see the packets of butter.

But people never played more than one pitch at a time.

Nope.

Until organum. Yay!

That the musical expression par excellence, of the Catholic Church requires us all to share a single melody line must be telling us something important about what it means to be a Catholic.

So rather than junking it, perhaps some effort to involve ourselves and experience it might be worthwhile.

Letting the cat out of the bag

Following recent national and local events, various people have declared their hands and it is now even clearer how to get on with things.

My Graduale Triplex and Liber App look on expectantly, as another chapter of chanting begins.

Keeping going

Things have been a little surprising and perplexing recently.

Twitter is ablaze.

Strife is everywhere.

Time to hunker down.

I'm off to St Cecilia's this weekend, the following weekend is the Rosary Rally and the LMS Pilgrimage to Aylesford - simultaneously and then for me it's half term and a trip to St. Eugène and the Schola Sante Cécile on a Sunday and the rue du Bac.

Because some things don't let you down. :-)