The Good Will Club

Last Saturday, an article titled ‘Time to stand up for our beliefs’ written by Cardinal Cormac Murphy O’Connor appeared in The Times newspaper. The gist of the article was, in the Cardinal's words, that '[t]here is an urgent need for respectful dialogue and co-operation between all interested parties, whether Christians or members of other faiths, agnostics or secularists.' to stop the haters of religion from marginalising it. I enjoyed reading the article. For one thing, the Cardinal takes a swipe at the most boring man in the world, Professor Richard Dawkins, accusing him of misrepresenting the faith and calling his beliefs 'narrow and rigid'. If I could be bothered, I would buy a copy of every book that the professor has ever written and repudiate each and every anti-religious point contained therein. However, because he is so boring, I refuse to do so. The cardinal also takes a swipe at those who would banish religion from the public sphere altogether. In respect of Christianity, he calls them Christophobes. If Sir Elton Toilet wasn't such a dullard, he would be a Christophobe. As it is, as his latest outburst in Australia shows, he is just turning into an embarrassment for anyone with more than half a brain cell between their ears. In case you don't know what happened, Sir Elton was asked 'if he had a message for Howard, whose government overruled a local law allowing gay unions'. La John's message, born of the wisdom that can only come with age? "Up Yours!" The Gay Rights movement loses another voice.

What I liked less about the article was not so much what was written in it but what came before it. Regular readers of Cally's Kitchen may remember my posts on the removal by the Bishops of England and Wales of the Holy Days of Obligation to the nearest Sunday during the summer. This removal, undertaken after much consultation with absolutely no one, has been rightly challenged, most recently, by journalist Christina Farrell in an interview with Fr Michael O'Boy, the new head of Westminster's evangelisation unit, in last week's (24.11.06) Catholic Herald. I should say that I have met Fr O'Boy, I have even been to a restaurant with him; not just the two of us, but with mutual friends, and I can confirm that he is a very pleasant man. However, I don't buy for a minute his assertion in the Catholic Herald that the removal of the Holy Days is to help overworked priests. Perhaps they are overworked, but he does say that Westminster has enough of them. And as for the idea that the removal is justified because "they've done it in America." I think I had better move on very quickly before I say something I regret.

Anyway, it is my contention that the cardinal's words would carry even more weight if he had not abandoned the Holy Days to the nearest Sunday and if, as well as sharing quality time with Church of England bishops, he proposed that Catholics show their faith through visible means rather than simply sitting round a table with people of all faiths and whatever. The principle mission of the Catholic Church is exactly that - mission - not to be part of a Goodwill Club.

Robinson Out - ? In

Andy Robinson: Yesterday's man

So, Andy Robinson has been removed from office by the RFU. As his resignation statement reveals, even to the last, he believed that he was the man to take England forward to the Rugby World Cup next year,

"I was confident that I would coach the England team through to a successful World Cup in 2007, notwithstanding the setbacks that we have had through the autumn. It is my understanding that I had, and still have, the support of the England players and the England management team. In the last 48 hours, I have been advised by senior colleagues that those who have governance over me - the RFU management board - do not, and will not, continue to support me as England head coach. For six years I have been proud to work with some outstanding people in the England team management and in the England squad. They all understand the responsibility, sacrifice and hard work that it takes for England to win. I would like to thank each of them for their support and professionalism throughout. I leave very much hoping that... the professional game in this country admits that the current structure and system for developing elite rugby players and performance in the international arena is not working. If that is so then my successor may have a sensible platform from which to meet everyone's expectations for England success."
(from BBC On Line's report)

Unfortunately, his result over last few months told against him. Indeed, his record as England coach as a whole does not bear much scrutiny - he lost 13 games out of 22. Whatever happens next, I would like to recall that it is really only as coach of the national team that Robinson has failed. His whole career before then was one step up after another. The BBC On Line report has a precis:

1964: Born Taunton, 3 April
1986: Joins Bath
1988: Makes England debut against Australia
1992: Leads Bath to league and cup double in first season as captain
1997: Appointed Bath coach after resignation of Brian Ashton
1997: Sir Clive Woodward installed as his assistant at Bath
1998: Leads Bath to Heineken Cup glory with a 19-18 win over Brive
2000: Appointed assistant England coach
2000: Named as assistant coach for 2001 Lions tour to Australia
2003: Helps England secure the World Cup
October 2004: Appointed England coach

So, I hope that Robinson is offered another chance to prove himself in the role where he won the most glory - that of forwards coach at the 2003 RWC.

Who will take Andy Robinson's place? Among the candidates, Harlequins own director of rugby, Dean Richards, has been mentioned. For all the obvious reasons, I hope that he is either not offered the post or does not accept it! And if he does, I don't mind saying that I hope Harlequins take the RFU for all the money it can so that we can get a suitably brilliant replacement. Whether it is "Deano" or Warren Gatland (ex of Wasps) or A. N. Other, they will be made to earn every penny that they are paid. The Six Nations begins in just two months time and then the RWC five or so months later. So much to do, so little time to do it.

Dean Richards: Tomorrow's man for England?

British Catholic Bloggers

A New Blog

I have started a little project: an A - Z of British Catholic Bloggers. As you will find out if you visit it, the list is very much no frills at the moment. As time allows I will try and make it a little nicer to look at. If you have any ideas or suggestions as to how this might be done then just let me know! In the meantime, if anyone knows of any blogs that ought to be there that aren't (or any that are but ought not to be), just drop me a line at britishcatholicbloggers [at] googlemail.com.

Ground Rules

There aren't many, but in my web wonderings I have drawn a line at including blogs that haven't been updated in the last six months.

Who's Out There

To the best of my knowledge, there is no other such list out there. If you know of one that makes my little offering redundant, please let me know to spare my blushes!

The double life of Stanley Unwin

Dawn Eden has this wonderfully surreal video from You Tube. Everyone knows that Gerry Anderson gave us Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet and Joe 90, but not many know that he almost also gave us Father Stanley Unwin - agent of B.I.S.H.O.P - and his incredible shrinking companion. Don't believe me? Then take a look at this...

When I first saw the video, I wondered if Anderson may have named the priest after Tolkien's publisher (see the post's combox), however, it turns out that another Stanley Unwin - a comedian - was the inspiration for the character.

Stanley Unwin, publisher

Stanley Unwin, comedian

The Robin and the Wren

While updating the blog this morning, I looked out of my window into the garden and saw a robin and a wren in quick order. Beautiful birds. The robin was especially well met for its Christmas association (although doesn't the legend say that it gained its red breast after a drop of Our Lord's blood fell on it as it tried to comfort Him on the cross?).

Even the trads don't always get it right

Although neither side will ever admit it, Catholic traditionalists and liberals both have a contribution to make to the theological life of the Church. But neither is immune to slipping into absurdity from time to time.

Being inclined towards the cause of the traditionalists it is too easy to point out the failings of the liberals, so let's reverse that today. Gerald Augustinus, author of the tirelessly traditionalist The Cafeteria is Closed, has a love affair with the Church of England. That is to say, he loves to bash it. As Darth Vader would say, that is "all too easy." But it does lead Mr. Augustinus down a dead end street when he calls for the return of C of E buildings to the Church. If only for money reasons, the Catholic Church in England would never want those churches back. As beautiful as they are (and they are) she just doesn't have the money to look after them. Admirably, however, money is not on Mr. Augustinus's mind, but with such hyperbole that only an American can manage, he states that,

Dr. Rowan Williams should be asked to kindly return all the churches his denomination stole from the Catholic Church, it's not like anyone actually attends Anglican services in England.

Perhaps Mr. Augustinus knows more about church going figures in England than me, but I would say that if no one attends "Anglican services" then no one attends Catholic Masses either for the figures attending both are going down. And yet, they are still higher - much higher - than the number attending football matches. I would not want to stop this - or any - American from bashing the Anglicans, but if he is going to do so, it really ought to be from a position of truth, not nonsense. It might tempt one to say that American Catholics are loud mouth idiots with their heads stuck too far up the rear end of their creed to know what reality is, otherwise.

Compared to one or two of his correspondents, however, Mr. Augustinus is positively measured in his posts. In a comment on his post concerning the Catholic - Anglican declaration which was signed by the Pope and "Archbishop of Canterbury" (Mr. Augustinus's inverted commas not mine) this week, and the saints who are 'common to our traditions', one blogger not only doubts the validity of that common tradition but admits that they 'don't even consider the C of E to even be Christian anymore.'. This is plain and simple nonsense. Anglican theology is deeply muddled. So is the faith of simple Catholics. Yet both struggle on as best they know how. One might argue that at least the simple Catholic remains under the wing of the Church. He has that advantage, but I don't think Anglicans remain outside the Church in the knowledge of the truth. It has to be taught to them. But it never will be if we are so foolish as to call such faith as they posses false.

Since I have been critical of the Cafeteria's correspondent, I wouldn't normally give their identity. However, I must add to the above that that person has their own blog, which I rather like and encourage you to have a look at. The author got it wrong on the position of the Church of England, but they get it right in lots of other ways. The blog is called Byzfaith and is authored by a Catholic in the Byzantine Rite. Check it out.

A Happy Arrival

Tonight I am in literary heaven as Amazon.co.uk delivered the third and final volume of C. S. Lewis's Collected Letters along with the Reader's Guide and Chronology to the life and works of J. R. R. Tolkien (by Christina Scull and Wayne G Hammond). All three books will be treasured by this lover of all things Lewis and Tolkien!

Autumn Internationals

After last night's disappointment up North, it has been an equally bad day for the Rugby Union home nations - England lost 14 - 25 to South Africa after being 14 - 3 up at half time. Poor old Andy Robinson. I said previously that he should stay as coach because to remove him would cause unnecessary uncertainty in the team too close to the World Cup next autumn. However, what do you do (if you are the RFU) when not only has England lost again but has now lost three out of four autumn internationals* without showing any signs of improving as a team?

Scotland had a bright start against Australia but eventually lost 15 - 44. A similar stuffing is currently being meted out to Wales at the Millennium Stadium by the All Blacks, who, as I write, are winning 3 - 31. There was a very interesting game in Paris, this afternoon, when France beat Argentina by the narrowest of margins: 27 - 26. France are the second best team in the world. But Argentina are nobody's fools, now: they beat England two weeks ago after training together for just four days before hand. There has been talk about Argentina joining the Six Nations. Given that they are in the southern hemisphere, I don't see why they can't join the Tri-Nations, however, these results prove that whichever tournament they join, they will do it credit. Let's hope the Argentinian Rugby Union - currently in a parlous financial state - can settle down and start to develop the game there.

* or, eight out of their last nine games

Sale vs Harlequins Live!

Sale Sharks 17 Harlequins 12

This evening I listened to the Sale/Harlequins game on the radio. Instead of writing a report afterwards, I kept a running account of the development of the game. Here is how it went...

***

If you are reading this between 7:45pm and 9:30pm on Friday 24th November then click on the refresh button as I am doing live updates of the Sale/Quins game. If you would like to listen to the game yourself, visit the Guinness Premiership page (click on 'match centre' then 'live match centre'). This live updating is a brave new experiment so let's see how it goes...

7:35pm
Ten minutes to kick off. Harlequins will not have a better chance to beat the Premiership champions. Sale have players away with England, injured and suspended. Harlequins, on the other hand, visit Edgeley Park on the back of five wins in a row.

7:40pm
A quick overview of the other weekend games.
Tonight's big game is the West Country derby between Bristol (2nd) and Gloucester (1st). I think Gloucester will take that game.

Tomorrow & Sunday:
Wasps (3rd) vs. Leicester Tigers (4th). Home win as Leicester travel badly and are also missing players for England.
Bath (11th) vs. Newcastle (8th). I hope for a Bath win as Newcastle are right behind Harlequins in the table.
Saracens (6th) vs. Worcester (12) A win for us and for Worcester would be good.
London Irish (9th) vs. Northampton Saints (9th). Tricky as both teams are on our heels. A draw?!

7:45pm
I have to type faster as I go the Guinness Premiership page and the game has already started!

7:48pm
Sale (Larrechea) miss a penalty. Commentator says winds were expected but have not come.

7:51pm
First mention of David Strettle. An excellent player. He'll be in Dubai next week for the Dubai 7s next week. Nice for the team to get some recognition. Unnamed Quins player is getting treatment. Briefly. The game is on again with a Quins attack.

7:52pm
A penalty to Harlequins! Come on Jarvis!

7:52pm
And Adrian Jarvis... scores! 0 - 3 Harlequins. The crowd sounds noisy.

7:55pm
Oh no! The commentary has been lost and I am left with an advert for another BBC Radio Manchester programme! Gahh!

7:56pm
Contact restored. No change in score. Phew.

7:57pm
More on conditions: the commentator says that they are good for rugby and that the pitch is also in good shape... oh no! Contact has been lost again!! In its place, an interview with Ryan Giggs so that isn't so bad. 4 - 0 to Manchester United on Sunday!!

7:59pm
DJ says we can go back to Edgeley Park.. no, we can't. Oh dear.

8pm
We're back! Oh no, Sale have scored a drop goal (Larrechea) so it's 3 - 3. Commentator's sidekick says he thinks Sale will win as Harlequins are not very aggressive.

8:02pm
Sigh. The commentary has been lost again. The DJ sounds very disappointed. But is keeping a stiff upper lip. Back to Ryan Giggs. I can't even go to the commentary on the BBC website as it is using the BBC Radio Manchester commentary as well. Well, over to Come All Within to check on the updates there!

8:04pm
Here is what a very annoyed Quins fan thinks of the poor old BBC:

Oh f*** this, the f***ing BBC do this every single week.
I'm trying to listen to Bristol Glaws now, but it's not much better.

8:06pm
We're back. Sale have another penalty. Will Larrechea score... who knows, the commentary has gone again!! This is rather embarrassing.

8:08pm
To make matters worse, my computer is being very slow too. I am using Firefox and am moving between tabs - or trying to. Back to the commentary, Sale have scored twice: a penalty and a try by Magnus Lund. The conversion is missed. 11 - 3 Sale. As soon as the ball misses, guess what happens...

8:12pm
One poster at Come All Within says Quins' form is back to the bad early season standard so we could be in for it as Sale are playing well. The commentary is coming and going like a bus.

8:17pm
A penalty to Sale - scored by Larrechea. 14 - 3. Dean Richards has some work to do at half time.

8:22pm
Sale almost hit the Quins try line... a forward pass saves us!

8:25pm
Last night, I saw The Prestige - about two feuding magicians. Harlequins could do with some magic right now. Sale continues to attack.

8:27pm
Commentary lost again! Will we get it back before half time...?

8:30pm
Still no commentary. It must be half time now. Phew. Dean Richards had better be at his best tonight - and with some help from paul Volley and Andy Gommarsall. Harlequins are being pushed from pillar to post and will be lucky to escape a beating in the second half at this rate. Well, if they can believe in themselves there is no reason why they can't recover so we shall see.

Credit to Sale though. A poster at Come All Within has put this list of first team players who have been lost to England or injury:

1. Sheridan/Faure
2.
3. Turner
4. Jones
5. Cox
6. White
7.
8.
9.
10. Hodgson
11.
12. Bell
13. Elvis
14. Cueto
15.

Ten out of fifteen yet they are ruling the roost! Before tonight, Harlequins were top of the bottom half of the Premier League. We could be 11th by Monday. What gloom! I wonder how the derby is getting on... The Guinness Premiership website says 11 - 6 to Bristol, so still all to play for there. A break now till the 2nd half... if the commentary returns.

... actually, looking at the table, because of the way the fixtures are, we can only go down to ninth if results don't go our way, so that's not so bad. Never mind, it's all academic as we will romp over Sale in the second half... back to the break...

8:42pm
The second half may or may not half started but who can say as BBC Radio Manchester has still not reappeared. This could bring my experiment to a sudden end. This is too much stress for a Friday night. Time for a G&T.

8:50pm
Still no sound, so I am checking the Harlequins website - and it tells me good news (there are Quins fans at the game who are txt messaging the score): Adrian Jarvis has scored a penalty. the score is 14 - 6. That might calm some nerves. It could be the start of the fightback. On on the Quins!

8:56pm
No further news to report. Hallo to all my readers. Especially those in America. I hope you are enjoying the Thanksgiving holiday. Are your radio commentaries as unreliable as this one has been?!

8:58pm
News at Come All Within that Larrechea has missed a drop goal. Come on Quins! BTW: If we do lose but stay within 7 points of Sale, we get a bonus point, which could be useful later on.

9pm
The comeback continues! A Harlequins fan at the game has reported that Adrian Jarvis has scored another penalty. It's now 14 - 9. One try behind...

9:03pm
Berry, who was sleeping next to my desk has got up and seated himself in front of the monitor... time to go and give him some food.

9:06pm
Sound back - via the BBC website! I only thought to check it again after one of the Come All Within posters mentioned the commentator saying something. The good news is that Quins are on the attack. We can do this!

9:13pm
Commentator's sidekick says the game is nowhere - Sale have got all nervy. The ball is being kicked back and forth as if a tennis game. My nerves are nowhere as well. We're so close!

9:16pm
Harlequins scrum after a Sale kick struck a Sale player's head! Tomorrow's big game is Wales vs. the All Blacks. I look forward to that. Hopefully Wales will cause an upset! If only Ireland were playing NZ, that would be a game and a half.

9:17pm
Penalty to Harlequins. But it's a long one... Yes! Three points! 14 - 12. Less than a penalty behind Sale with just over five minutes left. Whose nerves are the toughest?

9:21pm
Less than three minutes to go. Sale in possession...

9:22pm
Tussle between Ceri Jones and Sale player, Bruno. Further up the pitch, Sale score a penalty (Larrechea). 17 - 12. Injury time. That could be that.

9:25pm
Penalty to Quins in their own half. Jarvis puts it into touch.

9:29pm
That's the end. Sale win - just: 17 -12. Lots of mistakes by both sides. It sounds like Quins played better in the second, but the damage was done by then. Is this a case of back to the drawing board or just a bad day at the office? We'll find out next week when Harlequins play Newcastle (A).

The Inquisitive Cow on Building Homes, Parks and The Magic Flute

dúnadan: Hallo from a field somewhere in central Dorset - but not far from Dorchester - where, after last week's misunderstanding, I have successfully rendezvoued with my friend the inquisitive cow. Hallo cow!
inq. cow: Hallo dúnadan. I am present and correct.
dúnadan: Jolly good. So, let's get stuck in with a question that my dad, aka Arathorn, asked after reading our interview last week, which is, why do evergreen leaves neither change colour or fall from the tree.
inq. cow: Ah. This question is as easy for an animal to answer as 'how are houses built' for a human. The first thing to say is that in actual fact, evergreen leaves - or rather, needles - do fall from their branches, for example, when they die of old age. As this can be after several years of life, it only seems like they never die. The reason why evergreen leaves live for so long is that unlike deciduous leaves, evergreen leaves have a thick wax coating on the outside and cells on the inside that protect them against freezing. You see, deciduous trees get rid of their leaves because they - the leaves - will otherwise freeze during the winter to the detriment of the tree.
dúnadan: I see. But if they live for longer, that will surely make the tree - whether it be a spruce, fir, conifer or pine---
inq. cow: Or cedar.
dúnadan: Indeed. It must make them all very vulnerable to attack from tree based insects.
inq. cow: It would, if they were not such tough trees to begin with. Not only are the leaves very tough but they contain chemicals that are very bitter for insects to taste. In fact, they may even cause neurological damage and kill it.
dúnadan: Goodness. Alright, I think that answer's Arathorn's question. So let's move on---
inq. cow: Do you know how to build a house, dúnadan?
dúnadan: Umm... well, I suppose you dig your foundations and work upwards from there.
inq. cow: Oh dear. That's essentially true, but as I found out when Farmer Bill built DaughterGillian's house, there is a little more to it than that. You have to make sure that the earth will take the weight of a house. Remember the man on the rock.
dúnadan: Ah, well, who would ever build a house on sand?
inq. cow: The Pisans did the next worst thing when they built the Leaning Tower in clay. After you have checked the suitability of the ground, you have to remove all underground obstacles - rocks and tree roots for example.
dúnadan: Then can you build?
inq. cow: Well, then you put in the foundation. Not forgetting, of course, to place your sewage pipes, unless you want a stinky house!
dúnadan: A home by itself is good, but a home in a pleasant area is wonderful. One thing that makes for a 'pleasant area' is a park. I understand that you learnt something about the origin of parks this week.
inq. cow: Being a cow and a country dweller, I only recently learnt of the existence of parks. Thanks to Mr. Winterbottom of the Acting Society, I understand that the first parks were in ancient Persia. They were, effectively, hunting grounds for the king. But they may also be said to come from ancient Greece, where you had meeting spaces on which took place a diverse number of events: religious ceremonies and athletic training courses, for example. There was no further development of parks until the post Renaissance period. Then, they incorporated what we now call zoos.
dúnadan: Not cows I hope.
inq. cow: Moo! I do not know. Early modern parks sustained different types of activity, however, contemporary parks - or so I am told - are like those from ancient Greece in that a very broad range of activities can take place within them. Hmm. It makes me think that this field will soon be called a park. Cows graze, we have an archeological dig going on...
dúnadan: Has there been any word of Tecumseh Squirrel this week?
inq cow: No, but a legion of squirrels does take a little time to put together.
dúnadan: Yes. So, how was Mr. Winterbottom?

Emmanuel Schikaneder also played
the part of Papageno

inq. cow: He was very looking forward to playing Tamino in village production of Die Zauberflöte.
dúnadan: Oh, a wonderful opera!
inq. cow: Mine too - the battle between good and evil, knowledge and ignorance! I am wholeheartedly on the side of Sarastro against the Queen of the Night, although, she does have two of the best arias. Moooo!
dúnadan: I rather like Papageno. Interestingly, Mozart was a Freemason. They probably think that they are very knowledgable, but most people will look upon it as a secret and obscurantist organisation.
inq. cow: Both Mozart and his librettist Schikaneder were Masons. It was a brave move to use Masonic imagery in this opera as membership of the organisation was not approved of back then.
dúnadan: Well, I think at this point we ought to round things up...
inq. cow: Before we finish, happy belated Thanksgiving to our American readers!
dúnadan: Do you know what they say thank you for?
inq. cow: Well, now, I thought it was for the Harvest season, but Trinny the Eel informs me that it is for the safe arrival of the Pilgrim Fathers in America. She is not wholly fond of Thanksgiving because the Pilgrim Fathers survived thanks to a Red Indian named Squanto who taught them how to hunt animals including... eels.
dúnadan: Oh dear. Well, I shall skirt round the subject if I see her. In the meantime, thank you for your time, Gerrie, have a good week.

read more interviews with the inquisitive cow here

C. S. Lewis: School Days and Joy

In September 1908, Jack Lewis left home for the first time to attend Wynyard School in Watford, Hertfordshire. It was to be the beginning of a diverse experience of English public schools and school masters. Wynyard was run by an Anglican priest named Robert Capron. He was mad and treated the boys under his care brutally. For this reason, in his spiritual biography, Lewis calls Wynyard Belsen. After only week at Wynyard, Lewis wrote a letter to his father in which he pleaded to be taken away, but this wish would not be granted until the next year - by which time the Reverend Capron had been certified insane.

Albert Lewis decided that Jack should now be taught closer to home: at Campbell College, just a couple of mile from Little Lea, the family house. Despite describing Campbell as like living in a large railway station, Lewis enjoyed his stay at Campbell College: through a teacher nicknamed Octie he found the poem Sohrab and Rustum (by Matthew Arnold) which 'I loved at first sight and have loved it ever since'. Unfortunately, Jack's stay at Campbell was very brief and he left in November of 1910. Initially, he was kept at home to recover from a bad cough. Upon his recovery, Mr. Lewis decided to send Jack to Cherbourg School, a prep school at Malvern, and he arrived there at the end of January 1911.

At Cherbourg, Jack began to find his academic feet, but lost his religious faith. The immediate cause of this was a school matron named Miss Cowie who was given to esoteric speculations regarding religion, but other, more deep seated, reasons lay behind her, for example, the death of Mrs. Lewis. At Cherbourg, Jack met the interesting Pogo. Percy Gerald Kelsal Harris was a dandy, a few years later, however, on the battlefields of the Great War, he would become a war hero.

In Surprised by Joy, Lewis describes his search for joy 'that unsatisfied desire more desirable than any other satisfaction'. He had glimpsed it in beside a currant bush in the memory of a toy garden which Warnie had brought to him, in Beatrix Potter's Squirrel Nutkin, and again in Longfellow's translation of the Norse poem Drapa

"I heard a voice, that cried,
'Balder the beautiful
is dead, is dead!'
And through the misty air
Passed like the mournful cry
Of sunward sailing cranes.

'I knew nothing about Balder,' said Lewis, 'but instantly I was uplifted into huge regions of the northern sky, I desired with almost sickening intensity something never to be described (except that is cold, spacious, severe, pale, and remote) and then, as in the other examples, found myself at the very same moment already falling out of that desire and wishing I were back in it.'"
Lewis's fourth experience of joy came when he saw Arthur Rackham's illustrations to Siegfried and the Twilight of The Gods. Lewis became addicted to northernness and it was not long until he was listening to Wagner's Ring opera cycle.

This discovery of the literature of the North would bring to Jack a life long friend, but before their paths could meet, there was more difficulty to endure when he graduated to Malvern College, for now Jack entered the darker world of the English public school system - the world of fags, bloods and tarts, of 'inner rings' and social climbing.

quotations from C. S. Lewis A Biography Roger Lancelyn Green and Walter Hooper

C. S. Lewis A Potted Biography

C. S. Lewis (1898 - 1963)

On this day in 1963, C. S. Lewis died aged 64. The following is his brother Warnie Lewis's account of his death.

Friday, 22 November 1963, began no differently from any other day for some weeks past. I looked in on Jack soon after six, got a cheerful 'I'm all right' and then went about my domestic tasks. He got up at eight and as usual breakfasted in the kitchen in his dressing gown, after which he took a preliminary survey of his cross-word puzzle. By the time he was dressed I had his mail ready for him and he sat down in his workroom where he answered four letters with his own hand. For some time past he had been finding great difficulty in keeping awake, and finding him asleep in his chair after lunch, I suggested that he would be more comfortable in bed. He agreed, and went there. At four I took him in his tea and had a few words with him, finding him thick in his speech, very drowsy, but calm and cheerful. It was the last time we ever spoke to each other. At five-thirty I heard a crash in his bedroom, and running in, I found him lying unconscious at the foot of his bed. He ceased to breathe some three or four minutes later.
(C. S. Lewis A Biography Hooper & Lancelyn Green)

The grave of C. S. Lewis and his brother Warnie in Headington, Oxford

Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them.

A Doctor In Rome

The Captain of the Recusant Cricket Club writes a pained but commendably loyal post regarding the service conducted at the English College in Rome by Archbishop Rowan Williams. If I hadn't had one rant already this week, I might well have been tempted to use this unfortunate event as the basis for another. Instead, I shall let myself be inspired by the Captain (whose restraint is all the more commendable given the great event that is about five hours away now) and be similarly circumspect. Kind of. The truth is, Dr Williams should not have been allowed in the sanctuary of the chapel at the English College let alone use it to celebrate a service there - and in the presence of Cardinal Cormac Murphy O'Connor. Dr Williams is not a heretic because he is not 400 years old. However, his orders are invalid and his church is in schism from the One, True Church. The part of a Catholic church that he knows best should not be the sanctuary but the confessional.

In the past few days, I have been invited to list Cally's Kitchen on a general Christian Bloggers directory. I am open to the idea and may do so (If you have a Christian blog and would like to list it there, I am sure they would welcome you. Visit the website here). I have also heard about the foundation of a Christian Muslim Forum. Both ideas are commendable and I hope that they do well. However, one thing that makes me very wary when Catholics get together with Protestant Christians, and Christians with people of other faiths is the possibility of sharing worship.

Christians have no business worshipping with non Christians because they do not believe in Jesus Christ. Catholics have no business worshipping with other Christians because although they know the Saviour, they have not remained true to His word re: Peter. I do not argue that the Catholic Church should have nothing to do with other or non Christians outside church, but it seems to me to be dishonest to invite them inside. The minute we invite them into the sanctuary we muddy the waters of our faith. We tell them - even if only implicitly - something that isn't true: their church is alright because theologically speaking, it ain't. That does not do us or our separated brethren any favours at all. In fact, it does both us and them a very grievous disservice. The Catholic Church and Protestant ecclesisal communities need to be honest for once and say (if they can) our ultimate aim is institutional reunification and until we achieve it we should go so far with each other and go no further. As anyone who has ever waited for the prize rather than chase after it before time will know, the capture at the proper time is much, much sweeter and a wonderful example of faith.

A Moral Dilemma

Should we obey a law when we know it to be wrong? I say 'know' deliberately here because the matter that I am thinking of does not admit of doubt.

Catholic bloggers will be aware that Cardinal Arinze of the Congregation of Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments has just written letter to the Presidents of the Catholic Bishops' Conferences around the world to correct a translation error in the Novus Ordo Mass. I am, of course, talking about the Ad Multis affair. I haven't seen anyone give the word in its context, so here it is (yes, this is just an excuse to have a little Latin on the blog!):

Accipite et bibete
Ex eo omnes:
Hic est enim calix sanguines mei
Novi et aeterni testamenti,
Qui pro vobis
Et pro multis effundetur
In remissionem peccatorum
Hoc facite
In mean commorationem.

and in English:

Take this, all of you,
And drink from it:
This is the cup of my blood,
The blood of the new and
Everlasting covenant
It will be shed for you
And for all men
So that sins are forgiven.
Do this in memeory of me.

So, what is the error? Well, ad multis means for many not for all. If you would like to read the full text of Cardinal Arinze's letter, Fr. Tim Finigan has published it on his blog here. Now, given that there is no controversy over the proper translation of ad multis, from where comes my opening question? Well, this afternoon I was reading In the Light of the Law - the blog of canon lawyer Edward Peters. Fr. Peters describes how he read of a priest who said that he long ago substituted for all for for many at Mass. Now, you would have thought that this priest would be praised for being accurate to the original language of the Mass. But not quite. In his response, Fr. Peters quotes Canon Law, which states:

1983 CIC 846.1 ... "[T]he liturgical books approved by the competent authority are to be observed faithfully; accordingly, no one is to add, omit, or alter anything in them on one's own authority." Sacrosanctum Concilium 22.3 made exactly the same point, and expressly stated that priests were bound by this norm.

He goes on,

The Code and Council are unambiguous here. Thus, one no more needs a personal precept from a bishop in order to be bound to observe this liturgical law, than one needs a personal directive from an IRS agent to file one's taxes by April 15, or needs a direct order from a traffic cop to be required to obey a stop sign. Quite simply, as John Paul II stated when he promulgated the 1983 Code, "canonical laws by their very nature are to be observed." (my emphasis).

My sympathy here is with the unamed priest. What value or legitimacy can a law have if it is wrong? If we say that the priest was wrong surely we must in the end say that St. Athanasius was wrong too, despite the fact that he was right. Well, I know that there are other issues at stake here, but it is a very interesting dilemma all the same.

Birthday Meme

The dúnadan has been tagged by Paulinus. This meme focuses on events that have happened on the date of his birthday. Normally, I would pass over an opportunity to advertise my birth date, however, since it has already passed for this year and the meme is an interesting one, I thought I would give it a go.

Firstly, here are the instructions:

1) Go to Wikipedia
2) In the search box, type your birth month and day but not the year.
3) List three events that happened on your birthday
4) List two important birthdays and one death
5) One holiday or observance (if any)

So, here goes:

List three events that happened on your birthday
1) 69 - Second Battle of Bedriacum, forces under Antonius Primus, the commander of the Danube armies, loyal to Vespasian, defeat the forces of Emperor Vitellius. Vespasian and his son Titus were responsible for the destruction of the 2nd Temple in Jeruslame

2) 1812 - Napoleonic Wars: The Battle of Maloyaroslavets takes place near Moscow. I once read that Jane Austen never mentioned the Napoleonic Wars once in her books despite the fact that they were raging during her lifetime. Good for her. There is more to life than politics and wars.

3) 1980 - Government of Poland legalises Solidarity trade union. Brave, brave men.

List two important birthdays and one death
51 - Domitian, Roman Emperor (d. 96). What a nice person to share one's birthday with!

1971 - Caprice Bourret, American model and actress. Recently, she was up before the beak for drink driving or such like. Gilraen happened to be passing the court when she saw the press pack outside. She never recognised Caprice as she came out, so asked someone who she was. When the person told her, she misheard and thought they said 'a priest'. Well, there's an argument in favour of women priests!

1991 - Gene Roddenberry, American television producer (b. 1921) I think Star Trek was overrated. It put its political agenda before the story and allowed the writers to get away with some terrible storylines.

One holiday or observance
Zambia - Independence Day (1964) I don't know much about Zambia except that it is just above Swaziland in Africa, separated by Zimbabwe.

Right, I tag SisterEvs, Paul Burgin and Fr Nicholas

Robert Altman

Requiescat in pace

I never knew much about Robert Altman until I read Richard E. Grant's Wah-Wah Diaries and With Nails: Film Diaries. Grant starred in several of Altman's films, The Player, Prêt-à-Porter and Gosford Park among them, and the two were good friends. Judging by Grant's diaries, Altman was quite some man - a cinematic genius. He had a very unconventional filming style, using multiple cameras and encouraging his actors to ad lib scenes. He was also a very decent bloke.

I am sorry to say that although I bought a copy of Gosford Park after reading Wah-Wah and With Nails, I never got round to watching it. Well, perhaps now would be a good time to see why Robert Altman was so well regarded in the film industry.

May he rest in peace.

Jackson forced out of Hobbit prequel

Bad news for Tolkienistas in The Times today. It is being reported that Peter Jackson, co-screenwriter, director and co-producer of The Lord of the Rings film trilogy has been told by New Line film studio - aka the money behind LotR - that he will not be asked to make the two film Hobbit prequel*. The reason for this decision is, to no one's surprise, money. Jackson has taken New Line to court over money that he believes the film studio owes him for The Lord of the Rings. The Times reports that,

According to the Jackson e-mail, the film company used the lure of directing two new Tolkien films as leverage to put the lawsuit to one side. He wrote: “Our manager, Ken Kamins, got a call from the co-president of New Line, Michael Lynne, who in essence told Ken that the way to settle the lawsuit was to get a commitment from us to make The Hobbit, because ‘that’s how these things are done’.

“Michael Lynne said we would stand to make much more money if we tied the lawsuit and the movie deal together, and this may well be true. But it’s still the worst reason in the world to agree to make a film.”

Jackson refused to tie the making of The Hobbit to a settlement of the lawsuit. He said: “Deciding to make a movie should come from the heart — it’s not a matter of business convenience.” Any compromise on his part would ensure that the Hobbit film was “doomed”.

Jackson has my respect for sticking to his guns, despite his love of Tolkien's works. But what a shame this matter could not be worked out. Hopefully, The Hobbit will be made and will be brilliant and a success, but is there a director who will be able to bring Jackson's love of the source material and cinematic genius to the project? I certainly hope so. So must New Line because they have now got rid of the guarantee that The Hobbit will live up to the expectations generated by its sister film.

Jackson's letter to The One Ring website

* Reading Jackson's letter, this would seem not to be The Hobbit in two parts but The Hobbit and another story from Tolkien's legendarium.

Blogger Beta

Oh dear. Not long ago I transferred Cally's Kitchen to Blogger Beta, but have just found out today that Beta has not given me access to its new layout feature. As a result, all those changes that would have made CK the best looking blog this side of Mars will have to wait and I will have to rely on, er, continuing to providing good content to pursuade readers to return.

Berrydict's farewell to a friend

It was not the Pope's habit to go visiting the offices of the various dicasteries, but today he had no choice. Into the offices of the Congregation of Bishops he went. The very surprised staff jumped to their feet. "Have you seen Berrydict?" The Pope asked. They shook their heads furiously. So, off he went. The Pope asked the same question of the staff in the offices of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints and Evangelisation of Peoples, but the Papal Cat had not been there either.

Finally, he came to his old office, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. When the Pope opened the door, no one was very surprised, in fact, they liked it when he paid them visits. This was because the monsignors who worked here had done so since the days when the pope was a cardinal and had been in charge of this selfsame office, so he was a friend to them. This familiarity also meant that they could often guess what he was going to say, and so, it was as the Pope was opening his mouth to repeat his question that the senior monsignor replied, "No, your holiness, we haven't seen him at all." while pointing underneath his desk with his pen. The Pope smiled and nodded in reply. Motioning to Cardinal Bertone behind him, he entered the room casually.
"It is a very warm day out..." he said, "perfect weather for a little walk in fact." Cardinal Bertone entered the office with the white papal cat basket. The Pope knelt down beside the desk where Berrydict was hiding. "Come on, Berry, let us go." Berrydict hissed and crouched right down to the ground. He knew where this walk would take them - it was that time of the year! That's right, it was time for Berrydict to go and get his vaccination boosters. Where was Monsignor Catswein when you needed him? Unfortunately, it was time for his boosters as well, so he had already been collared. Berrydict's owner sympathised with his cat's lack of desire to visit the visit, but needs must; with a firm hand, he reached under the desk, pulled Berrydict out and placed him in the cat basket.

Such was Berrydict's annoyance that for the whole of the journey to the vets, he sat down facing the inside of the basket and would not respond to his owner's entreaties. Fortunately, it was not a long journey to the vets as it was half way down the Via della Conziliazione, on the via Giovanni XXIII - three and a bit minutes due to traffic in the papal car.

The veterinary practise on the road of the papa bona was run by a longtime friend of Berrydict's owner, Sig. Paolo Ferranti. He was a good man and a strict one too. Hence, even though the Pope and his entourage had just entered his practise, there would be no question of letting him jump the queue. Sig.Ra Roncalli and her perennially ill dachshund would still come first.

This was a significant decision, because Berrydict's basket was thus placed next to that of another cat. Berrydict glanced round, just to see what was going on behind him. When he saw the cat, he paused, for he recognised her. It was Oriana Furllaci, the controversial writer.
"Hallo!" she said, turning round. To his surprise, Furllaci did not reply, but just looked up at him. She had sad, tired eyes. For a moment, Berrydict thought he had made a mistake because Furllaci had made a career out of having something to say, either in conversation with other people - for example, with Henry Catinger and Clawda Meir, or through her own books on Islamb. Furllaci was also an atheist, but had met Berrydict previously and got on well with him. They shared some of the same views on Islam. Berrydict was just about to turn away from Furllaci when she spoke. Her voice was very, very weak, and though she said but a few words, it was clear that it cost her a great amount of energy to do so.
"Hallo Berrydict... it is nice to see you..." Berrydict turned back and stuck his nose right up against the bars of the cat basket.
"And you too."
"Enjoy me while you can," she replied, with a wan smile, "I shall not be here much longer."
"Is this it for you?" Berrydict asked. Death is a constant threat to animals so they do not speak shyly of it.
"Yes." Furllaci replied, "They are going to let me sleep. And I am glad."
"So will the angels be." Orisona Fallaci's eye lit up, just for a second, but they did so.
"Do you think-? I wish I could believe that."
"You have done a good work, Ori', God will remember that."
"I don't know... I think back and... I have hissed alot... I caterwauled a great deal... I have offended many people... I don't know..." Furllaci's eyes went dull again and her head, which she had lifted up briefly, rested once more on the floor of her cat basket.
"But you needed to in order to be heard! Just like John the Baptist!" Furllaci smiled.
"You are too, too kind... it was all for nothing, though, people didn't listen."
"They will. If things continue as they are, they will." Fulacci's eyes began to close.
"Berrydict, would you... would..." Furllaci sighed. She did not have the energy to speak. There was a long pause as she fought for the words. Finally, she whispered curtly. "I hate this cancer."
"Do not dwell on it, even now," Berry said, urgently, "you loved the truth more. Sleep in that. I cannot say that I agreed with everything you ever wrote about the Islamb, however, you said some things that needed saying and which were good to be said. I am glad of it." As Berrydict spoke, there was a movement of Furllaci's head. Was it a nod? Her eyes were almost closed now. There was a voice further away and a human hand took hold of Furllaci's cat basket as if to lift it. Another conversation began and the hand that had taken hold of the basket handle was stayed. Furllaci's eyes opened ever so slightly. "Berry... thank you... thank you for your love... even though we are so different."
"We are both cats of God. Not so different." Berry replied, smiling fondly.
"If... there is a God... what... what... what shall I say to... him?"
"Sorry and thank you. Then you will be able to enjoy the best conversation with him forever!" Furllaci gave a little chuckle. Berrydict was the papal cat and so raised his right paw to give the papal blessing. Orisona opened her mouth to say thank you, but no words came. As her eyes closed, her last sight was of the sign of the cross being said and motioned over her. She was an atheist, but all felt well. As Berrydict lowered his paw, he saw Furllaci's close and her head drift to one side. The basket was raised, but the vet would not be required.
"Goodbye," Berrydict said, wiping a tear from his eye, "May the God of animals and men be with you."

index of Berrydict stories
who is Berrydict?

Back Pain for the Good Fight

Perusing the Orthodox / traditionalist Catholic blogosphere, one occassionally comes across blogs that are so achingly traditionalist that one could well imagine that it is an imposition for the authors to speak English rather than Latin. Two blogs that I have lately come across are rather like this.

Firstly, Anathema Sit. A recent post includes this photograph from the Elevation of the chalice.

The author invites us to observe how the priest (who is indeed tonsured) correctly places his finger and thumb - which have touched the Host - so that they do not touch the chalice. Now, it may well be the correct thing to do but really, I think a line does need to be drawn between what ought to be done to ensure a correctly celebrated Mass and what extra may be done to show reverence towards God. Anathema Sit is an interesting blog that is well worth a look, although, it should come with a health warning for anyone who has experienced any liberal inclinations within the last ten years. Actually, make that since Vatican II, just for good measure.

The second achingly traditional blog is called The Devout Life. It features this photograph:

and asks the question, "Sorry, which one of you is in persona Christi again? I'm confused."
I am sure this is a good, deeply theological question, but I am having trouble seeing it. My answer would be 'they all are.' Just like every priest who celebrates Mass at 11am every Sunday morning is. If one is going to be confused about which priest is acting in persona Christi during one Mass one might as well be confused about all the Masses that take place at the same time. And for an extra dollop of confusion, we can ask how a priest can be in persona Christi when Christ is present in the sacred species.

I am poking a little fun at Anathema Sit and Devout Life and it is true that I don't agree with everything that they write, but both have much to commend them. Check 'em out.

The Vice Chair Speaks on Ségolène and other (less important) matters

this meeting is called to order

"In opening this meeting we acknowledge first the apologies of those who cannot be with us tonight. First and foremost among them is, of course, the Chair. As you will all be aware, the delightful Ségolène Royal recently won the battle to become the French Socialist party's candidate for next year's Presidential election. As you will also be aware, the Chair is quite the fan of Mlle Royal and such was the excitement over her successful nomination that he has had to have a long lie down to recover. We hope that he will recover from the party--- sorry, toast --- in time for the next meeting.

"In the meantime, unwelcome news reaches us from France where Mlle Royal has, most, most unfortunately, starting giving hints as to what her policies as President of the 5th Republic will be. The Daily Telegraph reports that an adviser of Mlle Royal's (named M. Gilles Savery, who shall hereafter be called M. Gilles Unsavery) as saying that dearest Ségolène "wants Britain to choose between being a "vassal" of the United States, and embracing a French-led drive for European integration." On behalf of the Chair, I would like to propose that this house believes that it is not becoming for someone as beautiful as Mlle Royal to stoop to the depths of politicians. In other words, let us have less of this:

and more of this:

"Casual, friendly and rustic... an aspiration for all good women."

"Of course, Mlle Royal is not the only news this week. In London, former KGB officer and outspoken critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Alexander Litvinenko, lies seriously ill in hospital after being poisoned. In a case like this, surely the way to find the would be killer is to ask 'who benefits most' from the killing. The answer can only take us to the Kremlin. Just as it did after the murder of Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya, who was also a critic of President Putin. However, the Vice Chair heard a Russian analyst talk about this matter on the BBC World Service and she pointed out that murdering Politkovskaya would be the last thing the Kremlin would want to do because of course all the fingers would be pointed at it. Of course, it could be a double bluff... the Cold War is over but the spooks remain in the shadows.

"Finally, three mad Englishmen caused a rumpus in New York when they threw $4000 into the air. Said one of the group of hatters, "The world would be a better place if people were more courteous, but the English are very sceptical, so we decided to come to New York... Oliver, the group's founder, said: "I want people to have a little more common courtesy towards their fellow human beings. We hope this encourages people to give something back." A laudable aim. Unfortunately, it also caused a stampede for the cash. This house would like to record that it would never act so basely in the face of free filthy lucre. To prove it a demonstration will take place on the green straight over this meeting..."

"These final minutes are being written by the Vice Chair as the Secretary, Mrs Sopwith-Camel, and the committee along with several - alright, all - attending members of the public had to depart rather, well, hastily. Probably to go home.

"Oh dear, I can hear arguing outside already. This meeting is closed."

The Inquisitive Cow on the Durotriges, Volcanoes and Autumnal Leaves

dúnadan: It is Monday morning and I am in the middle of a field with a big hole in it somewhere in central Dorset. That's right, it's Monday, because when I came on Friday to interview the inquisitive cow, she was the invisible cow!
inq. cow: Well, I wasn't invisible, I just wasn't here. I am very sorry, dúnadan, I forgot to tell you that I would be staying overnight with, well, friends.
dúnadan: That's alright. Father Bill was very accomodating. He said I could stay in the barn. After the third bottle of cider it was really quite comfortable.
inq. cow: He is a true gentleman...
dúnadan: Hm. So, about this hole. It is not any hole, of course, but the result of your archeological dig.
inq. cow: That's right. We thought we might have discovered a villa but it looks like it could be a military barracks. The mosaic that we discovered is not a picture but an outline of a battle plan against the Durotriges tribes. You can guess whose interest in archeology increased after we uncovered the whole mosaic.
dúnadan: Where is Tecumseh now?
inq. cow: He has disappeared. I strongly suspect he has gone to try and raise a legion.
dúnadan: So, about the Durotriges.
inq. cow: Yes, they were a confederation of tribes based in Dorset. Unlike many of the British tribes in the Roman age, they lived on hillforts - just like their ancestors had done a thousand years earlier.
dúnadan: Why did they not move on?
inq. cow: Well, the hillfort was a safe place. Security before prosperity. The Durotriges were stern fighters and may have been mentioned by Seutonius in his account of Vespasian's British campaign. I cannot confirm this, however, as my copy of Seutonius' Life of Vespasian strangly disappeared on the same night as Tecumseh Squirrel.
dúnadan: Life would be so much simpler round here if squirrels hibernated! Let's move on, I understand you have been teaching Farmer Phil about volcanoes. Why would a farmer be interested in volcanoes?
inq. cow: Farmer Phil isn't, but his son, Phil jr, is... let's take a walk over to his farm.
dúnadan:... so here we are, in Farmer Phil's field, where we are standing underneath a marquee in the present of a giant model clay volcano! It must be a good ten feet in hight. The lower part of the volcano has been sprinkled with cut grass while twigs for trees have been inserted.
inq. cow: Farmer Phil's intention is to rig the volcano so that Phil Jr can explode it on Christms Day. He doesn't intend to simply build this shell, however, and have fire come out of it - he wants to make the volcano as realistic as possible.
dúnadan: Hence, he asked you to advise him on how volcanoes erupt. How does it happen?
inq. cow: Well, let's remove the curtain from the table on which the volcano stands. You will note that the volcano rests on a rigid plate. This is the lithosphere. We cannot see it, but underneath the middle of the volcano, the lithosphere is divided in two. For the readers, the reason we cannot see this divide is because underneath the lithosphere is the rock mantle.
dúnadan: There is a fluid between the lithosphere and mantle.
inq. cow: Indeed. That is the athenosphere. The athenosphere allows the lithosphere to move. It is this movement that is ultimately responsible for volcanic eruptions. Moo! What happens is that the two plates of the lithosphere collide. In doing so, they drive each other downwards into the mantle rock. This process, called subduction, causes the driving crust to heat up and the mantle rock to melt into magma. Because magma is less dense than mantle rock, it rises quickly - just like a helium balloon does in the air - so that magma chambers are formed. And then, boom!
dúnadan: Argh! >the dúnadan falls onto his backside<
inq. cow: If the pressure on the magma is high enough, the volcano will erupt!
dúnadan: Gerrie, you scared the life out of me!
inq. cow: Wait till you see this vocano go off on Christmas night! Of course, I have greatly simplified the process of what happens when the lithosphere plates react to each other, but it seems you understand the essentials in this case.
dúnadan: I think I do! Blimey, can we talk about something more peaceful? Why do leaves change colour in the autumn?
inq. cow: That's easy. Leaves gain their colour from their chlorophyll cells. In the autumn, the tree stops producing chlorophyll causing the leaf to change colour. You see the yellow leafed trees over by Farmer Phil's house? They are yellow because they have the chemical xanthophyl in them. Xanthophyl defines their pigmentation.
dúnadan: Let me test you... in what year did the Battle of the Fei River take place, who was involved and what was the outcome?
inq. cow: Now, dúnadan, you think you are trying hard but you aren't! Do you remember when we talked about Shijing poetry? Well, as well as instructing me in Chinese, he taught me a little history. Therefore, I can tell you that that the Battle of the Fei River took place in the fourth century anno domini and was between Fu Jiān and the army of the Eastern Jin whose kingdoms lay south of the Yangtze River.
dúnadan: I'm sure I once played a game called Yangtze... anyway, once again, your knowledge proves to be most impressive. So, before we finish up, what is on the agenda for you this week?
inq. cow: It will be a busy week. This afternoon, Horace the Impressionist Horse opens his first exhibition in Cuddly Bottom. Tomorrow, there is the official opening of Augustine Squirrel's recreation of the ancient city of Petra while on Thursday there will be a demonstration in our own village against the parish council's plans to build a gravel track between the library and village hall. You can tell that life moves slowly in these parts!
dúnadan: Indeed! Well, I hope victory follows. Gerrie, thank you for your company and I shall see you in five days time!
inq. cow: Incase any readers have joined us late, let me reiterate that I was just with friends!

read more interviews with the inquisitive cow here

more on the Durotriges and other British tribes
on leaves
the Battle of the River Fei

On Student Unions

The sole purpose of university Student Unions is to keep the price of beer cheap. That is all they exist for. Any prospective student President who tells you that he wants to fight for the rights of Students against the university or Government has clearly been too successful at keeping beer prices down because he can only be drunk, or a drunk. The university doesn't care about the SU President. It is not going to be deflected by a smelly, dirty jeans wearing pseudo trot who wears T-Shirts with images of Che Guevara: the infamous Bolivian 'freedom fighter' who was in reality a murderer. Neither is it going to be impressed when the President compramises changes (mid term, no earlier) out of his Che T-Shirt into the bloody red one with the hammer and sickle. Given that the hammer and sickle was the badge of the country that killed more people than the Nazis, it always amazes me as to why it is regarded as being acceptable to wear while the swastika isn't. What this points us to is the stupid hypocricy of student presidents.

In light of the above, it was with no surprise that I read in The Times on line yesterday of student unions at Edinburgh, Heriot Watt, Birmingham and Exeter university which have started their own petty persecution of the Christian Unions at those universities on the grounds that the CUs do not share their support for blood thirsty, failed tyrannical regimes. More specifically, the article states that the CUs have been thrown out of their SU because 'they refuse to allow non-Christians to address their meetings or sit on ruling committees.'. The CUs have been 'accused of excluding non-Christians, promoting homophobia and even discriminating against those of transgender sexuality.'

Well! Outside of a meeting of your Student Union Executive, have you ever heard anything so precious, ignorant and plain stupid? Of course you have - in the subsidised student bar when alcohol has made the same prejudices flow out all the more freely.

And that is half of what this matter is all about: prejudice. These Student Unions cannot understand why not everyone doesn't share its unthinking, uncritical, beer induced acceptance of everything. And like a blundering beast, when it finds a body doesn't share its beliefs, in it lumbers to expel the deviant member. Christian Unions are being judged by the same criteria that the History or Biology Society, but it cannot be. Christianity is not a philosophy, it is a way of living. That is why some CUs may choose not to allow non-Christians to address their meetings or sit on committees. By-the-by, I might add that when I was at university, the Catholic Society (CatSoc), did in fact have non Christian speakers.

To continue, The Times article states that CUs have been accused of 'excluding non Christians'. Christianity, it will be remembered, seeks to spread the good news. A very good way of doing that, of course, is to exclude non Christians from meetings. However, if there is one sort of folk worse than pagans, it is nominal Christians. Pagans will criticise the faith from without. Fine. Nominal Christians criticise it from within and think that because they go to church every Christmas and Easter that this gives their opinion an extra authority. Rubbish. What they are is collaborators with the world. If anyone should be excluded, it should be them. When I started university I was pretty much a nominal Christian. I was only at the CU to meet people. I did so and they were very friendly indeed. The deepening of my faith into a real and significant one did not come til later.

The charge of promoting homophobia is as ever laughable. Or would be if it wasn't rapidly becoming a Black Legend of Christianity. In fact, it is the Student Unions which are homophobic because they refuse to help active homosexuals to escape their life of sin. By this measure, it is clear that the Student Unions at Edinburgh et al are hateful bodies on a far broader scale. As they refuse to help homosexuals, so they refuse to help heterosexuals (heterophobic), drinkers (alcophobic) and - in general - anyone who would actually like to graduate with more than vomit stains on their shirts. Instead, they encourage licentiousness, alcoholism, deafness, malnourishment and goodness knows what else. If Student Unions were countries they would be a failed state and ripe for invasion by America. Perhaps I should call President Bush now.

The other half of what this matter is about is power. Given the tyrannical nature of Student Unions, this will not come as a surprise. The SUs have it and they want more of it. They gain it by 'being' inclusive. Of course, inclusive is the last thing that they are. The first thing is monolithic: if you want your society to exist within the SU body, you must think like it does. No ifs, no buts, you will follow the party line. Does this sound familiar? I mentioned the SU Executive earlier, but I could have been talking about the Politburo. In the last accusation above, The Times said that CUs were accused of discriminating against transgender groups. The real arch-foe of transgender groups, however, is the SU. Transgender people do not know it, however, because the bear has not turned round and bitten them yet. Come the day when the views and mores of society changes, however, it will, and then - though maybe to their surprise - they will find friends within the CU. The CU may not approve of transgender sexuality or this that and the other, but it will love the person. I wonder when the last time that a Student Union - especially at Edinburgh, Heriot - Watt, Birmingham and Exeter mentioned love when accepting a society as a part of the SU. I bet it didn't. The minutes would only have recorded that the said society agreed to abide by the terms and conditions of its rules. As long as this lack of love continues within Student Unions, Christians can, unfortunately, expect further petty persecution. Well, at least Truth is on our side. Rather that than beer and Che Guevara.

The Jester and the Soldier

Harlequins 20 Worcester Warriors 6

The Harlequin renaissance continues to flourish! History will probably record this as no more than a 'should have' win since Worcester came to the Stoop chained to last place in the Premiership and without a win to their name so far this season. However, just as the recently deceased economist Milton Freedman said 'there is no such thing as a free lunch', there is no such thing as an easy game in the premiership. If they seem easy, that is not because the opposition let it be so, but because the winners worked to make it so. So it was last night.

Unfortunately, I could not go to this game, being at the cinema to see Casino Royale, so I have no way of knowing if Harlequins performance was akin to Daniel Craig's - ruthless and intense, or Sean Connery's - cruel but compelling. Hopefully it wasn't Roger Moore's - funny but bad.

The BBC On Line report on the game is brief. However, it does us the favour of mentioning that Andy Gomarsall was man of the match. As I have mentioned previously, despite only joining the club this season, Gomarsall has already proved to be an inspirational player. Here is what one poster over at Come All Within said of his performance last night,

I am seriously impressed by the way he went to every forward player and congratulated, picked them up and encouraged them whenever they deserved it/required it. On top of that he seems to be the conductor of the Quins fans' singing!

I cannot say how exciting it is for a fan to hear that kind of thing. It tells you that although the club may have its ups and downs, the spirit is there and will keep it going, and, more importantly, keep it improving. Ironically, Andy Gormarsall came to Harlequins several months after being sacked by Worcester. Things were clearly not well between player and club, but if Worcester are to stand a fighting chance of remaining in the Premiership next season, a Gomarsall type figure is going to have to emerge from the ranks of the First XV.

In today's games, Leicester Tigers (5th) entertain London Irish (10th). I shall be hoping for a home win to keep the Irish behind Quins in the table. There will be a West Country derby as Bath (11th) take on Bristol (2nd). This time, I shall be hoping for an away win! Incidentally, to make up for missing this home game, I shall be travelling to the beautiful city of Bath next month to see the Mighty Quins play Bath there in the European Challenge Cup. I hope to bring back some nice photos and a win. Back to today, Saracens (6th) visit Northampton Saints (8th). I suppose I should hope for a draw as these clubs are either side of Harlequins, but as draws are not usual in rugby, I should go for a Northampton win. It would mean Harlequins dropping a place, but the two clubs above us being closer than Saracens would be if they win.

Finally, just a quick mention of an excellent win for Newcastle Falcons against Sale last night. Last week, the Falcons could do no right against Dean Richards' men, this week, it was Sale who left their skill at home. Harlequins travel to Manchester to play them next Friday so let's hope they do the same again!

Bring 'Em Home

The other day I bought a copy of the new version of Bruce Springsteen's We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions album. This album is a firm favourite of mine, being a mixture of folk, protest, spirituals and others. The new version of the Seeger Sessions includes a few extra songs, including a protest song called Bring 'Em Home which is rapidly becoming a favourite of mine. Also worthy of notice are How Can I Keep From Singing and How Can A Poor Man Stand Such times And Live which are also protest songs from the abolition era and the Great Depression respectively. I have to say that none of these songs yet mach my favourites from the first version of the Seeger Sessions, namely, Mrs McGrath, Jacob's Ladder, We Shall Overcome and Froggie Went a Courtin', but in time they will.

Bruce Springsteen in protest mode is probably not to everyone's tastes in these warring times, but I don't think it is disrespectful to the Armed Forces to ask for them to be brought home - to safety - rather than fight politicians' wars. The Seeger Sessions is both gentle and stern and florid and austere: a wide variety of music that deserves to be heard. Go listen to it!

Casino Royale

This evening, some friends and I went to see the latest James Bond film Casino Royale. We had a great time. Casino Royale reinvents 007. Gone is R, the gadgets and futuristic settings. Gone is the cartoon violence and Bond mots. In is bloody violence (literally) and an altogether more ruthless and probably sociopathic James Bond. It doesn't sound much, but the film really was great. This must be due, in no small measure, to Daniel Craig's ability to make a charmless character charming. Contra those who thought he could never be Bond, Craig has remade him completely and I think will go from strength to strength in future films. Casino Royale has more in common with the Bourne Identity and Supremacy than it does earlier 007 pictures but never loses sight of its past (a past which, ironically, does not exist in the film as it takes place at the start of Bond's career). There are still, for example, the glamorous women and locations and spectacular fight sequences. And although James Bond no longer goes in for the old witticisms (he doesn't even want a Martini shaken, not stirred) there is still a hint of earlier films in his gestures at key moments. If you see the film, look out for that smile when the bomber realises where his bomb has been placed!

James Bond probably cannot be justified on any moral grounds so it is act of genius that continues to make us care for him. I suppose it is the fact that although he is fairly amoral, he is still trying to save the good guys from the bad ones. And, he continues to do it very well. Uniquely for a Bond film, Casino Royale ends in medias res, so I cannot wait to see the sequel.

A Good Night Out

Last night, I spent an extremely satisfactory with the assistant parish priest of my parish and fellow blogger, Fr Nicholas Scofield of the Roman Miscellany. The conversation was helped along (though it didn't need any help) with two glasses of beer and later on some shots of an extremely nice Italian liquor which, alas, I forget the name of. I got to peruse Father Nicholas's book shelves (very satisfactory) and his collection of relics (divine, so's to speak). We listened to the voice of Sig. Moreschi, the last castrato and the voice of an elderly Pope Leo XIII singing, both recorded at the turn of the twentieth century. All-in-all, it was a delightful evening - thank you Fr. Nicholas!

A Glimmer of Light for England Rugby

It is not often I talk about the England Rugby Union team. In fact, I don't think I have mentioned them before. However, as no sane man can ignore the ongoing crisis that the national team is currently going through, it would not do to remain quiet.

First of all, what I would not like to say is that I think Andy Robinson should be sacked. I shall leave that to everyone else (i.e. the press). This does not mean that I think he should stay, but I really do not want to become an extended member of the Fleet Street Anti-Robinson Club. If the Old Farts and Rob Andrew (AKA: Squeeky, Medium Aged Fart) at the RFU are determined to support him, then I am determined to do so as well.

Apart from not wanting to be associated with the press, the other reason why I have no desire to speak out in favour of Robinson's dismissal is that to remove him will only cause more uncertainty within the team - and that is just what we do not need with just ten months until the next Rugby World Cup. And I am, more than ever, convinced of the rightness of my point-of-view by the amazing peace that has broken out today between the RFU and Premier Rugby, the umbrella group that fights for the interests of the Premier League rugby teams. The full story is at BBC On-Line here, but in short, whereas before the Autumn internationals Premier Rugby said that England could have its players for three of the four tests, in light of the two losses to the Kiwis and Argies (sorry, that is vulgar, I mean the Pumas), they have now set that agreement aside so that Andy Robinson can pick his strongest possible squad for both games against South Africa instead of having to compramise in one of the games and risk losing again.

If you do not follow rugby, you will have no idea of what a surprise it was to read of Premier Rugby's act of kindness. Simply put, PR and the RFU hate each other. They never get on. A Roundhead would sooner do a favour for a Royalist, or a Secessionist agree to give his gun to a Unionist or Richard Dawkins agree to stop being so boring. It just wouldn't happen. And yet, this time, it has. Why? Out of kindness to Andy Robinson? I do not think so. Since Rugby Union went professional in the late 80s, rugby teams have been run as businesses. Tough nosed businessmen are at the top in many of the best teams and they aren't in the game to act in pity. No, they are there for the money, and it is no surprise that England's seven game beaten run has seen a downturn in profits for the RFU. And if it is suffering, you can bet that Premier Rugby either is or soon will be. If I am correct, it is terrible that money is the motivation for PR's support, however, I am pleased and a little relieved that England will be able to put out its best possible team over the next two Saturdays. Well done to Premier Rugby. Let's hope this peace in our time can be extended to the other areas where it and the RFU have disagreements. That would be great cause for cheer.

On Cricket

The Recusant Cricket Club has been in fine form lately, and just as well with the Ashes coming up. One post which I read for the first time today and which I found particularly enjoyable was the Captain's account of his tour of the Vatican City State and Rome. It is well worth a read.

I like cricket but I must confess that my support is very nominal - I 'support' Durham, but only because it was the last team that Ian Botham played for. The other two were somerset and Worcestershire and while he was with them, so was I. As regular readers of this blog will know, my heart lies with Rugby Union. However, like most of the country I will be listening to the Ashes (due to lack of Murdoch Sport facilities) on the radio. Unlike most of the country, I say we will win 0 - 3. The other two games will probably be rained off. For Trezza, St. Goerge and England!

Back to the RCC. While reading the Captain's account of his and the Hon. Treasurer's Italian tour, I was reminded of the fact that I recently scanned the following photograph into my computer for my parish church's website. It depicts a former parish priest and his seminary cricket team. Unfortunately, although I wrote down the date of the photograph, I have gone and mislaid it. In consequence, I don't even know which man is the PP. If I can find the errant paper I will publish further details.

In the meantime, thank you to the members of the RCC for a great blog.

Addendum

In the film Shadowlands, a character was asked why we read, his answer was that we read to know we aren't alone. This may or may not be true, but I think I can add another reason to why we read - other blogs: to see the points that we miss out in our own posts. This happened to me last night as I read Dr Paulinus' post on Elton John over at In Hoc Signo Vinces (dated 14.11.06. Apologies, I cannot seem to link directly to his post). You will remember that on Sunday I reported how Sir Elton had blotted his intellectual copybook by suggesting that all religion/Christianity should be banned on the grounds that it is hateful. In the whole post I never mentioned the one thing that was needful in rebutting Elton John's claim, namely, this passage from the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which Paulinus quotes,

2358 The number of men and women who have deep-seated homosexual tendencies is not negligible. This inclination, which is objectively disordered, constitutes for most of them a trial. They must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided. These persons are called to fulfill God's will in their lives and, if they are Christians, to unite to the sacrifice of the Lord's Cross the difficulties they may encounter from their condition.
Catechism of the Catholic Church

So thank you to Paulinus for the reminder.

Fifteen Seconds of Fame

or Another Reason Why I love 18 Doughty Street

This evening, I was watching Vox Politics on the 18 Doughty Street internet TV station when in the last moments of the programme one of the two the co-presenters, Zoe Philips, mentioned a (newspaper?) article which suggested that Pope Benedict XVI has called for a rethink on celibacy. She was all for the abandoning of celibacy, saying it would bring the Church into the modern world.

Even though I haven't, of course, read the article which Ms Philips referred to, I would still bet my last dollar (easy to do since I live in the UK) that he said no such thing, as she thinks. However, Ms Philips' comment reminded me of her previous foray into religion a few weeks ago when she said that the Church was abandoning Limbo in order to appeal to the modern world. Of course, the Church was doing no such thing, so I wrote a quick message to Vox Politics via MSN to say so. In my message, I pointed out that the Church had not abandoned Limbo as it had not believed in it in the first place - Limbo was simply a 'theological proposition' which the Church had decided was not true. Anyway, imagine my delighted surprise when with just seconds to go, Ms Philips' co-host, Iain Dale, read out my MSN message. Well done to me!

Further to the above, I did send a second message addressing the issue of celibacy, but it was, alas, sent too late. However, I would be interested to read confirmation of whether what I said was correct or not. In my MSN message, I said that the early Church did not have a law of celibacy for priests - this came in in the late Dark Ages. Therefore, if the Church did get rid of it, it would not be modernising as going back to one of its roots. Is this correct?

Enjoying my fifeteen seconds of fame is, of course, a shallow activity. So, let me give this post a little more gravitas by concluding with one final point - further to my previous mention of 18DS - this is another reason why I like it so much: not only do the presenters know what they are talking about but it is so easy to get in touch with them: text, e-mail, MSN... that is proper interraction.

Back With Tessa

Cardinals receive their red hats, new union members get cloth caps. Today, having joined the lovely Tessa, I attended our branch's end-of-year AGM. There were twelve of us in all, all round a lovely oak table, in a rather cramped room in the west end of London.

The meeting was quite straight forward: a run through of the previous meeting's minutes, 'election' of branch offices for the next year (election is in inverted commas because although people were proposed, seconded and thirded for particular posts, no one who was suggested for an office was opposed so no real election was required), before a discussion of general union issues. That was interesting. And given the chaotic state on the part of my employer regarding some matters it is a wonder that the organisation manages to function at all!

As for me, at this meeting, I was confirmed not only as the health-and-safety representative for my office BUT - get this - as this branch's TSSA's Faith Group Champion within the parent company. This may mean that I will have to stand up for liberal Catholics, but will shall see. At any rate, it requires attendance at Employer Faith Group meeting so that should be interesting...

In regards both the H&S position and Faith Group 'Champion' (yes, it is an absolutely ugly term but you should see some of the jargon that my employer uses) I can happily say I have little to no idea what my roles will entail on a practical level. I have got involved as a result of my pesky Catholic social conscience which was not helped by that very pesky Rerum Novarum as written by Pope Leo XIII.

The Wisdom of Sir Elton John

Elton John is a singer of popular music who, like George Michael, once upon a time, sang some quite good songs. Unfortunately, both suffer from a rather grievous ailment. Although when they sing, they make sense, when they speak, only nonsense comes out.

Mr. John, whose surname means toilet in American English, has given an interview to The Observer where he has railed against the role of religion, specifically, Christianity. Let's look at what he has said.

I think religion has always tried to turn hatred towards gay people. Religion promotes the hatred and spite against gays. But there are so many Christian people I know who are gay and love their religion ...

Sir John equates religion with Christianity. If only it was, but I must admit that there are other religions out there. In fact, I know of several. It is a pity that John doesn't. Of course, Elton John's mistake is really and only an example of sloppy speech. Just like his generalisation that Christianity hates gays is an example of sloppy thinking. If we were to go into specifics, it is true that you would not have to go far to find Christians who hate gay people. Similarly, you would not have to go far to find gays who hate Christians. That's the way the world is. It is the way it has always has been. Deal with it. But how? The intellectual giant that is not Sir Elton John says that religion does so by promoting 'hatred and spite against gays'. Oh, really! I apologise to Elton, not for religion but because I cruelly accused him of sloppy speech. Clearly, Elton John is a master of language. He must be, or otherwise his understanding of what is 'religion' is completely wrong. My understanding of religion is that, on the whole, it promotes virtue. Are there any religions out there of which it can be said, they promote wickedness? Of course, Sir Elton probably knows the chapters and verses of the Old Testament and Koran that say gay people should be stoned to death, etc. But, to paraphrase St. James, you show me the hatred and I will show you the love. Neither Scripture nor Religion can be represented as being this and only this or that and only that. The story of all religions is more complex than that. And on the whole, I think they believe in love.

Sir Elton's interviewer realises the truth of what I have just said, for he replies to Sir John (whose surname, as I have mentioned, means toilet in American English) thus,

My Mom's a Christian and she loves me; that whole side of my family is Christian and I have no problem with it. I just feel we need to stop worrying about pro-gay movements and start worrying about fundamentalist movements. It's not just about how gay people are treated - it's about how people are treated in general.

Spot on. Religion in and of itself is not the problem. Fundamentalists of the corrupting kind within religion are. This includes Fundamentalist Christians, Fundamentalist Muslims, Fundamentalist Hindus and, on the grounds that they are liable to bore you to death with irrelevant trivia about the films of George Lucas, Fundamentalist Jedi adherents. I might also add that we should worry about Fundamentalist Secularists. Show me your persecution of gay people during the age of faith and I will show you persecution of gays during the age of Communism and Nazism.

Further on in the interview, Sir Elton has an excellent moment of lucidity where he comments,

... we can't keep thinking of Muslim people as being [ostracised] because of the fundamentalism that occurs in Islam. Muslim people have to do something about speaking up about it. We can't judge a book by its cover.

Yes, this applies to anyone who knows of Fundamentalists in their midst. And it is true that no group should be judged by the actions of a few. Unfortunately, Sir Elton's lucidity ends all too quickly. For having said that Muslims should not be ostracised, he explains how he would deal with the problem of Fundamentalism.

From my point of view I would ban religion completely, even though there are some wonderful things about it. I love the idea of the teachings of Jesus Christ and the beautiful stories about it, which I loved in Sunday school and I collected all the little stickers and put them in my book. But the reality is that organised religion doesn't seem to work. It turns people into hateful lemmings and it's not really compassionate.

Sir Elton John can write in rhymes but is clearly incapable of rational thought on the matter of religion. Either that, or he has not bothered to look into the history of religion very well. Perhaps he has and his teacher was Peter Tatchell on a drunk night during a Gay Pride March. Leaving aside another example of sloppy speech - the way in which religion suddenly becomes organised religion - I can only wonder if Sir Elton has been told who founded the first hospitals, the first schools and universities, in whose society philosophers and scientists flourished. I wonder if he has been told who is a major health care provider in the world today. Or who has stood up to the worldly powers in their evil designs. Amazingly, it is the religion(s) which turns people into 'hateful lemmings'. Yeah, right. Elton, for the love of gay rights, stick to making music. At the least, let Bernie Taupin write your speeches. Your ignorance is embarrassing. Unfortunately, the interview is not yet over. The man whose surname has toilet connotations says,

The world is near escalating to World War Three and where are the leaders of each religion? Why aren't they having a conclave; why aren't they coming together? I said this after 9/11 and people thought I was nuts: instead of more violence why isn't there a [meeting of religious leaders]. It's all got to be dialogue - that's the only way. Get everybody from each religion together and say 'Listen, this can't go on. Why do we have all this hatred?'

Actually, given the trouble in the world, Sir Elton's question is not an unreasonable one. Where are the religious leaders? Well, as for Christian leaders, they are speaking but is the world listening? Unfortunately, the secular press does not always report their utterances as well as it might. A quick visit to the Vatican website, however, yields this address of the Pope,

Men and women of today, humanity come of age yet often still so frail in mind and will, let the Child of Bethlehem take you by the hand! Do not fear; put your trust in him! The life-giving power of his light is an incentive for building a new world order based on just ethical and economic relationships. May his love guide every people on earth and strengthen their common consciousness of being a "family" called to foster relationships of trust and mutual support. A united humanity will be able to confront the many troubling problems of the present time: from the menace of terrorism to the humiliating poverty in which millions of human beings live, from the proliferation of weapons to the pandemics and the environmental destruction which threatens the future of our planet.
Pope Benedict XVI: Urbi et Orbi 2005

I do not know the mind of Sir Elton John, but I think he would agree with the sentiment of the Holy Father's address. Moving on, Sir Elton says that when after the attacks of 9th September 2001, he suggested that a meeting of religious leaders should take place, people thought he was nuts. I am pleased to say, Sir Elton, that the Catholic Church was ahead of you on this one - as Pope John Paul II's day of prayer for world peace with leaders of the world's religions in 1986 shows. That's 1986, twenty years before Sir Elton made his suggestion. And, of course, John Paul met religious leaders again in January 2002, following the '9/11' attacks. Clearly, not everyone thought Sir Elton was mad. Sir Elton says that dialogue is the way forward. He is right. And here in England, religious leaders do talk to each other. They stand with each other too - as they did after the bomb attacks on the London bus and underground in July 2005.

Sir Elton goes on to say that religious leaders must show the way forward. If they don't, he adds, musicians will end up doing so. I am all for musicians standing up for what they believe in. I admire Bono for doing so. If only Sir Elton had done so more positively, with more of a care for the actual truth rather than the half witted statements that he has sullied The Observer with.

Full article here
see also addendum

More on the Inquisitive Cow

I have begun a new project over at the index to stories on Cally's Kitchen: an inquisitive cow cast list. The interviews have been going on for almost six months now (no, I don't know how, either) and quite a few animals have turned up or been mentioned during the exclusive interview. If you would like to keep up with them, visit the list now. Nota Bene: it is not yet finished, so check back for more information. I hope to have it finished by Christmas.

Stumbling in on a celebration

This morning I visited Westminster Cathedral. As I approached it I saw a number of people enter through the main doors, which are usually closed. Hullo, I thought to myself, what's going on here? Is something happening? Something certainly was happening, for as I entered through the same doors, I found the Cathedral packed to the rafters with people. Alongside the layfolk, there were also quite a few nuns; not Women's Institute Nuns who do more than dress neatly and comb their hair in the styleo lay women, but properly dressed nuns in habits and under wimple. It turned out that I had come to the Cathedral on the occasion of a Mass to celebrate the 175th Anniversary of the foundation of the Sisters of Mercy religious order, founded by Sr Catherine McAuley.

As I walked up the aisle on the Lady Chapel side of the church I passed people who had appropriated plastic chairs so that they could sit down alongside the pews, albeit with very restricted viewing behind pillars. At the top of the aisle, I witnessed the entrance of the celebrating bishops and Cardinal Cormac Murphy O'Conner. He was accompanied by various ecclesial dignitaries, present through their connections to the Sisters of Mercy. Among them was Cardinal Keith O'Brien. I should have recognised him from his various appearances in the newspapers, but as I felt awkward being so close to the fathers (inches) I periodically averted my gaze from them and did not hold their eyes for long, so perhaps I did not give myself much of a chance to take Cardinal O'Brien in.

Speaking of appearances, Cardinal Cormac looked quite old. I have read that he was ill not long ago, so perhaps that is the reason. Against that, I did only see him face-to-face fleetingly and when I heard him begin the Mass a few moments later, his voice sounded its usual strong self.

Unlike at the Youth 2000 meeting last Wednesday I had no cold issues. I could not, however, suppress one or two coughs. Despite this, I thought I had done enough not to disturb those around me. One lady, however, was more observant. She suggested that I take olive oil for it. Unfortunately, I don't know if she was suggesting that I drink it in some small measure or what. If anyone knows of cough remedies involving olive oil, let me know.

At the beginning of the Mass, an introduction was given (by a sister of the Order?) into the life of Venerable Catherine McAuley. The speaker mentioned that the Mass would be said 'through the medium of song, readings... and movement. I could not help but think of the love that certain traditionalist Catholics have for liturgical dance! Alas, my business at the Cathedral finished and I left without seeing any such nonsense take place.

Before leaving, I took a couple of quick photographs on my mobile phone from the back of the church:

The Inquisitive Cow on the Antonine Itinerary, the Oort Cloud and Love

dúnadan: It's a cold November evening here in Dorset and I am trudging across a muddy field looking for the inquisitive cooow!!!

>sound of the dúnadan falling to the bottom of a pit and landing with a bump!<

dúnadan: Cow! What are you doing down here? Are you waiting for the heffalump?
inq. cow: Hello dúnadan, of course not - the heffalump is a literary creation. We are conducting an archeological dig.
dúnadan: 'We'?
learned owl: >Twoo!<
dúnadan: Oh. Hello, Owl. Reader, imagine yourself at the bottom of a hole with a cow and an owl and alot of fireflies providing the lighting. That is the situation here. The poor fireflies must be very tired having to produce all this light.
learned owl: We are paying them double time!
inq. cow: Earlier this week, the Learned Owl was flying over the field in search of prey when he noticed that there was a rectangular shaped shadow on the grass. We think this could mean that there is the ruin of a Roman villa underneath Farmer Bill's field.
dúnadan: A Roman villa! That would be exciting.
inq. cow: Dorset is known for its Roman ruins. In Dorchester, there is the Roman wall, the town house mosaic and the Maumbury Rings. Did you know that the Romans called Dorchester 'Durnovaria'. It was first mentioned in the Antonine Itinerary which is The Road Routes of Antoninus Augustus which dates to the second century AD.
dúnadan: Was it the original Baedecker?
inq. cow: Karl Baedecker - now there is a man whose attention to detail is inspiring. Moo! I believe that if I ever go on holiday, I should be very happy to take a copy of his book with me, whatever Mrs. Lavish says. But back to your question, no, it was not. The book was exactly as the title suggests: a list of roads. Ah, Tecumseh, what have you found there!
dúnadan: Well, I'll be: Teceumseh Squirrel. What are you doing here?
tecumseh squirrel: Don't ask! Just Do Not Ask! Grrrr!
inq. cow: Tecumseh was relieved of his command after thwarting Bertie Pig's escape bid during his blockade of Farmer Phil's farm. Bertie's escapes are so liked by the local population that they find it rather annoying if anyone gets in the way, or rather, manages to stop him. Tecumseh, don't bare your teeth at the dúnadan like that. You are squirrel and not a lion. Remember, if your father had had his way, he would have sent you down a mine.
tecumseh squirrel: >inaudable aggressive muttering<
inq. cow: That is not just a piece of floor! Brush away the dirt. I think that is a mosaic!
dúnadan: As I mentioned at the start, it is cold night, chilly even, but the sky is clear. And look - a shooting star!
inq. cow: Hmmm. It appears to have a tail. That might be a comet! Oh, look, can you see the third birds in the moon?
dúnadan: They have very large wingspans.
inq. cow: Those are the tercel triplets. Comet chasing is one of their hobbies - when they aren't acting, of course. Isn't that comet beautiful.
dúnadan: I think it must be very lonely - all that zipping around through space by itself.
inq. cow: But it must see so many interesting things.
dúnadan: Can you tell us anything about the origin of comets, Gerrie? I have always thought that they are little pieces of exploded planets.
inq. cow: The current thinking does not quite agree with you. Scientists say that the solar system was formed as a result of the collapse of a cloud of dust and gas. After its formation, the Sun's gravitational pull then flattened the remaining matter - that which had not formed the planets - so that it became a flat and swirling disc. When the particles of that disc joined together, asteroids and comets were formed.
learned owl: Tell him about the Oort Cloud!
inq. cow: I was just coming to that. Scientists believe that at the edge of the solar system - in the Kuiper Belt - there is a great cloud, the Oort Cloud, that is constantly releasing comets. This explains why five billion years after the creation of the universe, they can still be seen.
dúnadan: You have lost me there.
inq. cow: Well, ask yourself this: do comets live for ever?
learned owl: The answer is no. Schoemaker-Levy 9 crashed into Jupiter.
dúnadan: Thank you, Owl.
inq. cow: Yes. So, if the universe is five billion years old, surely all the comets formed at the beginning of the solar system would have been destroyed by now.
tecumseh squirrel: Just like my hopes of woodland domination thanks to animal sentimentality!
dúnadan: Hush, Teccy. Alright, Gerrie, that is probably true.
inq. cow: So, if there are still some around - and scientists think that there are alot around - they must be coming from somewhere. That somewhere is the Oort Cloud, the cloud that was formed out of the flattened disc. It is no longer flat as it is beyond the Sun's gravitational pull. Not totally, I suppose, or it would just dissipate.
dúnadan: I see... Well, let's move on. This week, you instituted a new practise at milking time and you have pursauded one of the farm hands to read a book while milking you.
inq. cow: That is correct. Ruddy faced Helen has been very obliging.
dúnadan: And the book that she has been reading in, I must say, her very dulcet west country accent, is the biography of Bartolomé de Las Casas.

de Las Casas: a saintly man

dúnadan: He is not some one I know much about.
inq. cow: In my studies of religion in the modern world, it is my opinion that he is not someone whom Secularism would be very interested in speaking much about. Bartolomé de Las Casas was a sixteenth century priest who witnessed the brutal treatment of the indiginous people of the red indians in America by the Spanish Conquistadors. de Las Casas was outraged by what he saw and wrote Brevísima relación de la destrucción de las Indias which gave an account of what he saw. In De thesauris in Peru he defended the rights of native Peruvians not to be enslaved. A great man.
dúnadan: An inspiration to animals?
inq. cow: Hmmm. I wonder what would happen if he was...
dúnadan: Now, there is a thought.
inq. cow: Before we finish, dúnadan, I have a question for you. How does one know when one is in love?
dúnadan: In love? That is quite a question. Why'd you ask?
inq. cow: Because I am inquisitive!
dúnadan: Alright, alright! Well, how does one know... I think you know if you are in love when the sight of your beloved raises your heart, perhaps when the touch of them stirs you inside. I think one knows one is in love when one would be prepared to do great things for the beloved. I am sure that there are lots of other ways to know as well.
inq. cow: Scientifically speaking, 'love' is a chemical reaction.
dúnadan: And a collection of nuts and bolts are a Ferrari engine!
inq. cow: I agree! Well, as you know, I think about a great many things and this week, that was just one of them.
dúnadan: I see. So, what does the week ahead hold for you today?
inq. cow: Tomorrow is Remembrance Day, so we shall gather outside the village church while Church Cat leads us in prayer for all the humans and animals who died in the wars. Next week, I shall be continuing in my attempts to get music played to us in our barns: Farmer Bill was not impressed by Mr. Green's example. He keeps muttering about the expense of having the cleverest cow in Dorset in his herd! I think he should be grateful!
dúnadan: Ha ha! Well, I hope it all goes well for you. Until next week, Gerrie - moo!
inq. cow: And goodbye to you too, dúnadan.

Read more interviews with the inquisitive cow here

Pictures of Roman Dorchester
The Antonine Itinerary
The Oort Cloud

Falcons shot down

Newcastle Falcons 3 Harlequins 14

Rugby at the coal face. Tonight, Harlequins won their fourth consecutive game (ray!), and they won it grittily. On the one hand, this was an indication of how far the team have to go before they become a great one. Great sides like Wasps or Leicester would have absolutely buried the Falcons with all the mistakes that they were making. On the other, after going 3 - 0 down to a penalty in the first minutes of the game, Harlequins dominated the match.

So what happened? Well, the Radio Newcastle commentator had no doubts about the answer, saying that Quins strangled the life out of the game - by playing tightly, stopping Newcastle from getting any kind of momentum going. Is this acceptable? Well, we would all like Harlequins to live up to its historic reputation for being a team that played free flowing rugby, but this is not a team of Adrian Stoops and we can't expect it to play like him. Instead, given the run of defeats that the team suffered this season, the fact that it was an away game, and in the night rain, I would say that the result was very acceptable. True, it wasn't pretty and the team must improve in the future but it was a win and that is what counts for now: everything else can be sorted out on the training pitch.

As for Newcastle, the Falcons have got some thinking to do: they lost at home to a team lower than them in the league. Fans left their seats before the half time whistle to head off to the bar and, alot more seriously, booed the team off the pitch at the end of the game. And they will have to do their thinking quickly: Next Friday night, Harlequins are at home to Worcester who are rooted to the bottom spot while Newcastle face a very tricky, no difficult, away game to Sale.

On on the Quins!

That Moment of Glory

Alright, you probably noticed it but were too kind to say so, but yesterday's picture of Jonny Wilkinson was not of him kicking the goal that won England the Rugby World Cup in 2003. As can plainly be observed, there is a kicking tee on the ground, proving that Jonny was taking a penalty rather than kicking a drop goal.

Having realised this, and not wanting to deprive anyone, least of all myself, the chance to see the Famous Goal, I took out my copy of the RWC final and took a screen capture of the big moment.

Here is Jonny Wilkinson firing the ball off

And here is the ball having glided through the uprights. Ahh. Better than sex (some might say)

Jonny Wilkinson Injured (non) Shocker

So the Democratic Party appears to have taken both houses of Congress in America and Donald Rumsfeld has fallen on his sword. BBC On-Line says that George Bush's Iraq policy is in 'disarray' while in Britain the police enquiry into the so called 'cash-for-honours' scandal homes in on members of the cabinet drawing it closer to No. 10 Downing Street.

In important news, however, Jonny Wilkinson has succumbed to yet another injury with Newcastle Falcons reporting that he injured a kidney during the Falcons' game against Bristol last Friday. Only yesterday I said to a friend in the office that, after his successful return (JW scored 11 points with his magic boot), I should like him to be injured for the Harlequins game tomorrow night but fit for England in World Cup 2007. Well, it appears I have half of my wish.

I have to admit, however, while as a Quins fan I am rather relieved that Wilkinson is not playing tomorrow, I now rather wish that he was. What does it mean to be in the Premiership if not the chance to play against the best players around? And poor old Jonny, ever since that glorious night in the Telstra Stadium down under, it has been one injury after another after another. To cheer me up, here is a photograph of that great moment (courtesy of ABC Australia)

Youth 2000 Rules

the light shines in the darkness, which will not overcome it

A few days ago, I mentioned the confrontation that took place in Glastonbury between a Catholic and pseudo pagan named Beryl Adkins (probably) during the most recent Youth 2000 retreat there at the end of October. I hadn't been to a Youth 2000 prayer meeting for several months now, but wanting to show my support of Y2K I went along to its Maiden Lane prayer group tonight. For cartographers, Maiden Lane is just off the Strand in west London. The church where Y2K meet is called Corpus Christi and is beautiful. If you are in the area, pop in and have a look at what a Catholic church should look like.

Unfortunately for me, my November cough has developed into a cold and it made tonight's visit a most uncomfortable one. Should I have known better than to go? Possibly, but the cold did come on much worse this evening than during the day. For instance, while we were kneeling and praying the Rosary, my breathing constantly 'jumped' up and down as I tried not to cough. I used up my tissues for my runny nose and at one point had a mini coughing fit. If I had known it would be this bad, I would certainly have stayed at home, but I do wonder what it was about this evening that made the cold so bad and why did it stop as soon as I left the church? Perhaps I had put myself under unconscious pressure to not cough or sniff and that just inclined my body to do the opposite.

He loves you and there is nothing you can do about it!

Sniffing aside, It was nice to revisit Youth 2000. After so long away I feel a little disconnected from it, but you can't go wrong praying the Rosary in community, singing good hymns and praying together.

The Chair Speaks Out on the American Election

This meeting is called to order

"How could the Chair let the American mid-term elections go by without comment? The answer is, of course, that he couldn't, and so this post. Now, at the time of writing it will be twelve forty on the American east coast and eighty forty on the west, so there is still plenty of time for American readers to be influenced by what the Chair has to say. This is good. So, who - if he were a voter in America - would the Chair vote for today? Well, in order to prove his credibility with the young folk, the Chair is currently listening to Dirty Little Secret by Bon Jovi. You will guess, then, that he is a Republican. Ha ha.

"Ahem. Moving swiftly on, the Democratic Party - which amusingly has a donkey for its party symbol - is being predicted to make big gains in today's election. But last minute polls have suggested that the Republican Party (symbol: an elephant [whether Indian or African is unknown]) has made up ground so that the gains may not be as big as first hoped for by the Democrats. Despite this, it still looks like President Bush could be in for a tricky couple of years if one or two of the houses of Congress turns against him. Mind you, the Chair recently noticed a book which - judging by its cover - appeared to suggest that Dick Cheney was the real man in charge of the White House. Perhaps 'Dubya' might let Mr. Cheney loose on Democrats if they do take over the House of Representatives and Senate.

"The American election is a big event, but is it really deserving of all the press attention that it has been getting? The Chair is not so sure. In fact, he doubts whether even the blanket coverage of the Presidential election is really necessary. After all, the election of Bill Clinton to the presidency seemed to make very little or no difference at all to the way America behaved in the world, so why should the election of whoever holds these lesser offices?

"A quick question: Will Arnold Schwarzenegger ever be elected President? The Chair wonders. Surely the rule barring foreign born citizens of the USA is an outdated one now? Arnie is one of 36 or so Governors who are up for re-election. According to the BBC World Service he is a dead cert to get back in.

"Of course, the really important election as far as the Chair is concerned is that which will be taking place in France, whenever. The reason why it doesn't matter if Congress or the Presidency in America is Democrat or Republican dominated is because both parties are right-of-centre. In France, however, both the Left and Right wing challenge for power. As a public service, the Chair would like to remind you of the Left Wing candidates. Particularly, of course, the lovely Mlle Ségolène Royal.

Now, who are those other two people? They may be the other Socialist candidates, but if they are, the Chair urges all French readers of his column to ignore them and vote for Mlle Royal. The world would surely be a better place if she was on television more often.

"So, American citizens, happy voting! The Chair submits a motion to wish all the winners good luck and extends his commiserations to the losers. It will pass because, as you know, the Chair always has the casting vote!"

Blogging Around

I wish I had made up the title for this post, but I didn't; if memory serves, I think I stole it from the Happy Catholic. And that is because I would like to say a very quick word about some new links there. Kitcheners / Regular visitors to Cally's Kitchen might have noticed how the sidebar occasionally grows in size and to my discredit I don't usually mention the new additions in a post, so let me do so now.

Added today have been the Dawn Patrol. This is the blog of Dawn Eden. She is American and from New York, which - according to my stereotypical understanding of America - means that she is probably loud, brash and very assertive and probably able to reduce me to pulp with a hard stare. Joy Gresham was like that, so it stands to reason that Dawn Eden will be the same. I found out about Dawn Eden's website via the Hermaneutic of Continuity, so thanks to Fr Tim Finigan for that.

Also added today is the Undercroft. This is a very new blog, written by Moretben, who was kind enough to leave a comment in the 5th November com-section. Moretben is a traditional Catholic which really only means orthodox - more than be said for those liberal wide boys.

I can't remember if I mentioned Lacrimarum Valle before. If not, I am now. This blog is written by Matt Doyle a medical stuent who is also married and about to be a father. Phew. I wouldn't mind whatever he's got.

Credo has been on the sidebar for a while but I mention it here because he has written an excellent post about a party where everyone dressed up as a saint - except for one fellow who came as a banana. You read that right. St. Banana. There is a story in there somewhere...

Another recent addition is Mulier Fortis who can spell and is a theological thunderbolt straight from the heart of Mother Church. One thing she probably doesn't do is mix her metaphors as badly as me, which is, of course, to her credit.

All of the above are, of course, Catholic blogs, so I must say a quick word for 18 Doughty Street, the on line politics channel. In the space of a few short weeks it has made me interested in politics in a way that I have not been since my teens, so much so that I actually look forward to watching it every Monday to Thursday. It is true, by the way, that I have even forsaken listening to good music to watch the shows that I missed, which are now in the archive. What is so good about 18DS that I would want to do this? I think it is the casual professionalism of the presenters (partic. Iain Dale). Just like good teachers, they wear their learning lightly: unlike so many old media political journalists who are either wrapped up in glossy presentation or so professional as to be quite sterile.

So, there's a few links. If you take the time to click on them I hope you won't be disappointed.

In other news, Richard Dawkins remains the world's most boring man.

Berry the family cat

Tonight was J-Day for the real Berrydict as SisterEvs and I took him to the vet for his vaccinations. We are very fortunate in that the vet is literally over the road from the family home. We were also very lucky this evening in that AussieVet administered the Jab in a matter of seconds. What she took a few minutes over, however, was the removal of some of Berry's matted fur.

A big well done has to go to Evs who held Berry firm as AussieVet got going with her magic wand, AKA a thick metal comb, removing little clumps of fur. Poor Berry, he must have thought he would be coming home bald - AussieVet did admit that she can get carried away when grooming cats. I don't blame her, either; matted fur is horrible and should be got rid of and if Berry is too lazy to do it, then he can't blame us for trying. I must say that quietly, however, for as I speak, having recovered from his vet ordeal the cat is now sleeping on a box right beside me.

C. S. Lewis: Childhood

On Saturday I reported that the third volume of C. S. Lewis's Collected Letters was due to be published today. Well, if it has been, copies have not been distributed to my local Borders and Waterstones, so while I wait anxiously for them to turn up (or maybe I will just be financially responsible and order it from Amazon), it occurs to me that there may be visitors to the Kitchen who might not know that much about Lewis. As I have read any number of books by and about Lewis, let's put that knowledge to good use.

Childhood

Clive Staples Lewis was born in Belfast on 29th November 1898. He was the younger of the brothers, his elder brother Warren having been born on 16th June 1895. If you have seen the film Shadowlands, the dramatisation of Lewis' love affair with Joy Gresham, you might recall that Lewis was commonly called Jack by his friends. The origin of this nickname lie with Lewis himself. One day in 1904, not long after the death of Jacksie the family dog, Lewis walked up to his mother and announced to her that from thereon he would answer only to the name Jacksie. Later on, Jacksie became Jacks which in time became Jack, a name which Lewis kept for the rest of his life.

From 1905, the Lewis family lived in an expansive house called Little Lea. It had long corridors and many rooms - ideal for imaginative children. Jack and Warren, who was more commonly called Warnie, were two such children. Their taste for adventure soon found expression in print as they started writing stories. These tales combined Warnie's love of maps and Jack's love of talking animals. Chivalric exploits across Animal-land and India followed. In time, Animal-land and India became one and the state of Boxen was formed. If you would like to read more of Lewis' juvenalia, you can do so by purchasing a copy of Boxen The Imaginary World of the Young C. S. Lewis as edited by Walter Hooper. It is a fairly short read, in truth likely to be of interest only to Lewis fans - it is, after all, 'just' the work of a child, but is fascinating nonetheless because the man who wrote The King's Ring, History of Mouse-Land from Stone-Age to Bublish I and The Chess Monograph later wrote The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, Prince Caspian and The Last Battle.

Jack Lewis' childhood ended on 1908 when his mother died. Lewis wrote about this awful event in his spiritual autobiography Surprised by Joy. Lewis describes how he woke up with toothache and cried for his mother. But she did not come. Jack heard voices outside his bedroom and the sound of people walking back and forth from his parent's bedroom: Flora Lewis was dying of cancer. That night, she would be dead. Lewis loved his mother dearly. So did his father, Albert. The family was devestated by Lewis' death but their love was so intense that rather than drawn father and son together, as the weeks, months and years passed, it pulled them apart. But more on that next time.

As you can see, this is indeed a very potted biography of Lewis. I am relying on my memory as much as possible but trusting to the internet and the bookshelf for the odd date and fact. If I have got any wrong, feel free to let me know in the comments section!

C. S. Lewis: A Potted Biography

5th November

Today is the 5th November which, in England, means Bonfire Night. One could make a sarcastic aside about the English proving how generous they are by celebrating the state murder of a man executed only 401 years ago; however, with the exception of the half wit yokels down in Lewes, Essex, I think it would be fair to say that nowadays people remember, remember the fifth of November not for the gunpowder, treason and plot which once made the date so memorable but simply because it provides a good evening's entertainment in front of a bonfire and with some fireworks.

For my part, I pray for the souls of the conspirators: Thomas Bates, Robert Catesby, Sir Everard Digby, Guy Fawkes, Robert Keyes, Thomas Percy, Ambrose Rokewood, Francis Tresham, Thomas and Robert Winter, John and Christopher Wright. They were desperate men who had been made so by the callousness of the Elizabethan and Jacobean regimes. They made a wrong choice and suffered dearly for it. May they know the peace that was denied them in life.

At the same time, it would not do to focus solely on the oppressed but the oppressors as well: Elizabeth I, James I (or VI to the Scottish), Francis Walsingham, Henry and Robert Cecil being chief among them. May they also know God's peace. And if I can pray for them, maybe I shall for those Lewesians who still think it is a worthwhile thing to take part in anti-Catholic processions. For their conversion.

Collected Letters 1950 - 1963 - C. S. Lewis

For some ten years or so I have been an irregular contributor to the forums of the Into The Wardrobe website. As the name suggests, Into the Wardrobe is dedicated to the works of C. S. Lewis, although, if you look at the various forums on offer, you will see that one is by no means restricted to commenting on Lewis' works.

A few months back, after regularly posting on the site for about 2 or 3 years, I decided that it was time for a break. The other day, however, I popped by for a visit and found some very glad news: that the third volume of C. S. Lewis' Collected Letters was due for immanent release. In fact, it is due to be published here in Britain on 6th November. I can't wait! The Letters have been edited by Lewis' literary executor Walter Hooper and in all likelihood represent the last of his duties to his master. After all, to the best of my knowledge there are no MSS waiting to be published after this. Perhaps it is just as well. Hooper was a young man when C. S. Lewis died in 1963 so he will be getting on a bit now.

But back to Lewis. This third volume covers the last 14 years of his life - 1950 to 1963. Hopefully, therefore, there will be insights into the writing of the Narnia series. What else will be there? Well, the late fifties is when Lewis married Joy Gresham so perhaps there will be mention of their doomed love affair. And I wonder if there will be any mention of Tolkien, too. I hope so, though I fear not, for by this time their friendship had cooled down. So, roll on Monday and the beginning of the end of a literary career that began in 1931 with the publishing of an allegory called The Pilgrim's Regress.

Neo Paganism and Idiot Catholics

The Roman Miscellanist reports on bad news from Glastonbury - following trouble between a number of Catholics who had travelled to the town as part of a Youth 2000 retreat and neo -pagans, Youth 2000 has announced it will not hold a retreat there next year. For the full story, click here. A great shame. Y2000 is a great organisation that does much good work for Christian souls and it has been badly let down by a few idiots.

Idiocy. This is not a concept unknown to neo-paganism. Neo-paganism is, after all, an extremely silly thing. Who in their right mind would choose to join a pseudo religion that was only founded by some charlatan or another less than a hundred years ago? To show that I am ecumenical, I shan't just direct this question to neo-pagans, but ask it of scientologists as well. The only time you will find a bigger load of rubbish than scientology is if you visit a landfil site. And at least the landfil site is the waste of what was once useful. Scientologist has given us nothing useful. Tom Cruise would have been a Hollywood star had he declared himself to be a believer in the divinity of cabbages. So would John Travolta. And it would have meant that he would not have made Battlefield Earth.

But enough of scientology, let's go back to neo-paganism and specifically the article that the Roman Miscellany quotes. It comes from The Times, a wishy-washy newspaper that has long since forgotten its nickname of the Thunderer, but which still manages to file a true report from time to time. Specifically, I should like to quote a 'witch' named Yemaya Pinder but whose real name may or may not be Beryl Adkins. Ms Adk--- sorry, Ms Pinder betrays a shocking but utterly predictable lack of historical insight in The Times. Of the Catholic idiots, she says, “It was as if we had returned to the dark ages. They told me they wanted to cleanse Glastonbury of paganism. They said they had lighters and were going to come back and burn us down. When the police asked them to apologise, they refused.”

Well now, if we were going back to the so called 'Dark Ages', I think that the witch of Glastonbury would not have lived to tell her sorry tale: May be because the wicked Christians would have killed her, but just as likely because she would have been killed while trying to kill them. That is what happened back then. Pagans were not sweet smelling, earth loving, goddess adoring people. They were as blood thirsty, vengeful and foul as the worst Christian ever was. Perhaps even more. Ms. Pindar needs to read less of Starbird Sungazer as published by the Moon Beam Press and more of the Nibelungenlied and Eddas and about the Heroic Code.

The article also records the wisdom of 'Dreow Bennett, the Archdruid of Glastonbury'. His High Druidness says, “To call the behaviour of some of [Youth 2000's] members medieval would be an understatement. I witnessed a pagan being called a ‘bloody witch’ and being told, ‘You will burn in hell’. “Apparently this man was not a diligent follower of the teachings of Christ. It was my understanding that Christ taught compassion and tolerance rather than hatred and ignorance.” I congratulate the Archdruid on his grasp of Scripture. However, it has clearly been obtained at the cost of his knowledge of language. To him, 'medieval' is a synonym for violent and hateful. Now, granted being called a 'bloody witch' and being told that one will burn in hell is not very pleasant, but how 'medieval' is this behaviour really? What would Mr Bennett say if he was stuck in an iron maiden or hung, drawn and quartered? He would probably run out of words. So, some good will have come from his death then.

The above utterances are as absurd as those of Richard Dawkins, the world's most boring man. They discredit neo-paganism. By the way, what is meant by that title, anyway? They aren't really neo-pagans. No one truly knows what the original ones were like or what they were about. One thing is for sure, though, they were probably less foolish than their modern 'successors' though no less wrong. They did, after all, convert to the One, True Faith. I look forward to these so called witches and wizards proving their common sense by doing like wise.

Quins stop the Saints from marching on

Harlequins 34 Northampton 19

Hurray! Today, the Harlequins won their third game in a row and their first game of the 2006 - 7 Guinness Premiership season. As last week, they won and won good. Northampton made a better fist of it than Montpellier, but from the start were dominated by the home side. I have heard that alot of their first choice players are injured, but even so, the result was a good one. After all, with players of the quality of Andrew Mehrtens, Stuart Abbott and David Strettle injured, the Quins were not without a few missing men of their own.

Northampton prepare to take a line out

Among the notable moments were Quins' Tani Fuga committing the most obvious and horrible looking high tackle - or trying to but missing the player - and not getting caught by the referee. Just as well as he would surely have been yellow carded if he had been. Unfortunately, the stretchering off of a Northampton player right at the end of the game also sticks in the memory. I hope he turns out okay. Everything else about the game, from a Harlequins perspective, was perfect: the passing, defending, attacking. Perfect. The Quins put in a masterful performance that proved what I said previously - inside this losing team there is a winning one just waiting to burst out. Today it burst and how!

If the truth be told, Harlequins played with sixteen men today: there was a record crowd of 11,300 today (The Stoop has a capacity of just over 12,000) and they cheered their team on without barely a rest! It was great to see and hear.

At the heard of the action today was Andy Gomarsall. He deservedly won the Man-of-the-Match award [18/11/06 Correction: Adrian Jarvis won the MotM award]. Gomarsall only joined the team a few weeks ago after being sacked by Worcester Warriors last May - one year into a three year contract. Since then, he has been a revelation for Harlequins. Case in point: A game or two ago I watched from a few rows behind him as he clapped his hands and shouted the team on with so much so that his enthusiasm forced the fourth official to ask him to step back from the touchline. Gomarsall was injured that week, but he wasn't going to let that fact stop him from giving the team his fullest support. Today, when Gomarsall was substituted late on, he clapped the crowd. They responded in like fashion. Through his commitment, Andy Gomarsall is quickly becoming a favourite son of the Stoop. Worcester's loss has definitely been our gain.

Finally, I must mention Steve Thompson. He is the Saints' Hooker and was a member of the England World Cup winning team in 2003. It is always exciting to see a famous player, particularly one of his pedigree. He was substituted after being injured today, but I hope he recovers and gets back into the England team for the next World Cup.

To round things off, here is the second most beautiful sight of the day (after the score): the moon rising in the east.

Next week, Harlequins travel up to Newcastle for a Friday night game. The Falcons are only a place above Quins in the Premiership but have made a number of new signings of late in order to strengthen their team and also have the irrepressible Jonny Wilkinson back in the First XV again. It will be a tough game but with three wins in a row and their first at home now under their belt, Harlequins ought to fear no one. Not even the man who won the World Cup for England.

The Inquisitive Cow on scintillation, dancing cheek-to-cheek and pampered cows

dúnadan: It is Friday night and the inquisitive cow and I are moon bathing on top of a hill in central Dorset. Good evening, cow!

inq. cow: Good evening, dúnadan. This hill affords a wonderful view of our surroundings. We can see Farmer Bill's house in the west and the Wood and, to the south, the villages of Hobbles Regis and Cuddly Bottom further south.
dúnadan: Are those flashes of light in Farmer Field's Phil--- sorry, Farmer Phil's field, fireworks or Tecumseh Squirrel's army?
inq. cow: I am afraid it is the latter. But his war could be over soon. No sooner had Bertie Pig returned last week than he enlisted in the Philsquirrel army. And since Tuesday they have been surrounded.
dúnadan: Ah. And as we know Bertie likes to escape.
inq. cow: Indeed.
dúnadan: It seems that the final chapter of Tecumseh Squirrel's war has already been written. So let's turn our attention upwards: ad astra. To the stars. Cow, why do they flicker?
inq. cow: Did you not attend Learned Owl's series of talks on astronomy last spring? If you had, you would have learnt that the twinkling of stars is a product of astronomical scintillation. A most fascinating subject.
dúnadan: Can you expand on that?
inq. cow: Of course! You see, between us and space there is air and that air is moving...
dúnadan: So astronomical scintillation is caused by the wind?
inq. cow: In a manner of speaking. Scintillation is actually caused by the different air temperatures that occur as a result of the movement of the wind. This matter is a very interesting one and there are some who do not agree that the twinkle of a star is caused by scintillation at all. At his father's talk, Learning Owlet said he thought that the flicker was caused by the 'broken' arrival of the image of the star as received by our eye. I am not wholly sure what he meant by that but I do intend to investigate it further.
dúnadan: To go off at a slight tangent, I once read that our images of space are mediated by scientists' love of nineteenth century American landscape art. Let's surf the internet on my lap top... and here we go:

Photograph taken by the Hubble telescope of the Carina Nebula

Sylvester Phelps Hodgdon - extremes of the day

dúnadan: Hmm. I should have taken advise from our friend Horace the Impressionist Horse as I am not sure I have chosen the best examples there, but what I am getting at is the way in which scientists touch up their photographs with rich, powerful colours, just as American artists such as Hodgdon did.
inq. cow: Indeed. I went through my whole calfhood thinking that space really did look like NASA pictured it. It was a shame when I realised that it was not so. I believe to see fully what you are saying, one should look at the epic paintings of places in the American west. I am surprised that the internet has not been more helpful here.
dúnadan: Oh well, Mr. Hodgdon wets the appetite. Let's move on... but before we do, I think I can here music!
inq. cow: So can I, in my field! I do believe it is the Friday Night Jazz band. There is Percy Pig on drums, Church Cat playing the double bass, Farmer Bill on trumpet and Monika Nightingale singing...
dúnadan: And correct me if I am mistaken, but isn't that mummy and daddy cow dancing under the moonlight!
inq. cow: Goodness me, you are correct!
dúnadan: How romantic. And how funny - they are playing the Irving Berlin classic: Cheek to Cheek.

Heaven, I'm in Heaven
And my heart beats so that I can hardly speak
And I seem to find the happiness I seek
When we're out together dancing cheek to cheek

Heaven, I'm in Heaven
And the cares that hang around me through the week
Seem to vanish like a gambler's lucky streak
When we're out together dancing cheek to cheek

Oh! I love to climb a mountain and to reach the highest peak
But it doesn't thrill me half as much as dancing cheek to cheek
Oh! I love to go out fishing in a river or a creek
But I don't enjoy it half as much as dancing cheek to cheek

Dance with me
I want my arm about you
The charm about you
Will carry me through to

Heaven, I'm in Heaven
And my heart beats so that I can hardly speak
And I seem to find the happiness I seek
When we're out together dancing cheek to cheek

inq. cow: But of course. It is a full moon tonight and this is what they do. My mummy and daddy met on a full moon, you see, in a barn where this song was being played.
dúnadan: Whose version do they prefer?
inq. cow: Mummy is for Ella Fitzgerald. She thinks she can moo in three octaves just like Ella Fitzgerald could sing! But daddy goes for Fred Astaire. He thinks he can dance like him.
dúnadan: I hope you don't mind me saying that I think he has a little way to go before he can say that...
inq. cow: Well, he is a cow.
dúnadan: This is true. Time is moving on so we must too. I am also getting a little c-cold. We haven't talked about the West Country Farmhouse Cheesemakers for at least a week or two so let's return to them. Last year, they reported that Mr. Lloyd Green of Greens of Glastonbury keeps his Fresian cows - relatives of yours - wrapped up in coats and scarves through winter, hangs stockings for them at Christmas and even plays classical music to them and carols over Christmas! Cow, this is amazing. Do you think Mr. Green's cows have evolved spiritually more quickly than you?
inq. cow: Hmm. I knew nothing about this. It is an exciting possibility! I wonder which composer's music he plays. Mozart? Beethoven? Not Mahler, I hope.
dúnadan: We do not often talk about the quality of your milk. Do you think it would be improved by Mr. Green's innovations?
inq. cow: Not half as much as by my library and internet access already do!
dúnadan: Of course! Well, you are an inquisitive cow. Well, it is a very pleasant story nonetheless. So, cow, we should draw our conversation to an end here. Thank you for your time. I think I am going to head off to the invitingly named Cuddly Bottom where I shall find Nob's Pub and buy myself a pint of Hairy Hind Ale. Cheerio!
inq. cow: Goodbye dúnadan. Dorsetshire names really are too much sometimes. What shall I do? Well, I think I shall stay here a while and contemplate the deeper matters for life. Mozart's Jupiter symphony or Beethoven's Eroica. Hmmmmm.

Read more interviews with the inquisitive cow here

The Chair Speaks out against BBC bias and on P.W. Botha

This meeting is called to order

"Greetings blog readers, this is the Chair speaking. Yes, you heard that right: I am not only a chair but the Chair. Once upon a time I was a mute chair that was good for nothing except being sat on - now, thanks to the PC Police, I can speak. Hurrah!

"First on the Agenda is the biased BBC. This is a subject that is beloved of the Left when the Right is in power and of the Right when the Left - or what passes for it these days - is. In times past, the Chair has considered this equal loathing of the Left and Right for poor old Auntie as proof that she is really just following her own course. Not any more. First to expose the illusion was Iain Dale on 22nd October when he quoted from a report in the Daily Mail. You can read his post here. Of course, the fact that Dale was quoting the newspaper which the Chair has also heard called 'The Daily Fascist' may lead one to say 'but they would say that, wouldn't they'. This is true. But let us digress for a moment and play a game of word association. If I say the word 'regime', what is the first thought that comes to mind? Is it a positive or negative one? The chances are it will be the latter. Tyrannical governments tend to be regimes - that is why we hear politicians talk about 'regime change'. Now, let us come back to the point. On BBC On-Line there is a report of the Glasgow Rangers vs. Maccabi Haifa Champions League game which was played at Ibrox, the home of the former team, two nights ago (1.11.06). The report is quite innocuous, except for when it mentions a pitch invasion by an anti-Israeli protester. It says,

The match was held up for several minutes by a one-man protest against the Israeli regime.

Now, I invite you to tell me, how many democratically elected regimes do you know get referred to as a 'regime'? If you can think of any, any at all, from anywhere in the world, I shall withdrew my accusation, but otherwise, I say with a great deal of annoyance that I think in this small passage, the BBC is guilty of showing what it really thinks of Israel. One of a very few democratic countries in the whole Middle-east.

"This week saw the death of the leader of P. W. Botha, President of South Africa between 1984 and 1989. The reaction of his former arch-enemy, Nelson Mandela at first astonished the Chair. He said, "while to many Mr Botha will remain a symbol of apartheid, we also remember him for the steps he took to pave the way towards the eventual peacefully negotiated settlement in our country."Steps? What steps? Well, according to The Times this week, it appears that while he was cracking down on anti-apartheid campaigners in South Africa, Mr. Botha was authorising secret meetings in Britain between the South African Government and members of the African National Congress. There is a moral in this story. The Chair considers that it is that even men who seem so evidently odious on the outside are capable of good after all. Mr. Botha Requiescat in pace. Further to this, it is possible for men who would seem to have every reason to hate are able to transcend that hatred. Well done, Mr. Mandela.

"So, there we have it. This meeting is ended. Stay well, and remember, even in nasty old Israel, the Chair still has the casting vote!"

If you cut me, do I not bleed (red)?

Good Lord, how am I going to live this down?

You Are 12% Capitalist, 88% Socialist

You see a lot of injustice in the world, and you'd like to see it fixed. As far as you're concerned, all the wrong people have the power. You're strongly in favor of the redistribution of wealth - and more protection for the average person.

Are You a Socialist or Capitalist?

A tip of the cloth cap to Mars Hill, I think.

Peter Pan in Scarlet - McCaughrean after Barrie

From quiet homes and first beginning,
Out to the undiscovered ends,
There's nothing worth the wear of winning,
But laughter and the love of friends.

The above quotation from the excellent Hillaire Belloc takes us into the official sequel of J. M. Barrie's Peter Pan in Scarlet. Peter Pan in Scarlet has been written by an author called Geraldine McCaughrean at the best of the Rights holders, Great Ormond Street Hospital, and tells the story of how Wendy and the Lost Boys return to Neverland to find out why dreams are leaking out of there into the 'real' world. What they find is a land in decline and Peter wearing autumnal colours instead of his usual green. What has attracted me to this book, apart from the fact that it is Peter Pan and I enjoyed reading the original, was the idea of Neverland's decline: it seems to echo what the Third Age of Middle-earth and the passing of the elves. Well, as soon as I have finished the book, I shall let you know if the resemblance to Middle-earth began or ended there.

J. M. Barrie was born in a Scottish village called Kirriemuir which I was lucky enough to be able to visit during the nineties while at University. His house was a wee, wee thing with ceilings far too low (I am quite tall) and rooms much too small. When we visited the house, the living room had been converted into the ticket and merchandise office. I am afraid I don't remember much about the rest of the house - even though there was not much of it. One thing I do remember, however, is that in the garden was a crocodile. Well, a flowery one. The owners of the house (The National Trust?) had made it out of wiring with plants growing around it. Actually, when I visited the house, the crocodile was still in its early stages with the wiring all visible but nine or ten years later it is sure to be finished by now. If you are ever on the road in Tayside, visit Kirriemuir. There is a nice house and, I should add, pleasing coffee shop where we ate scones.

HNP Exercise Club: Twelve Good Minutes

Last weekend, if you will excuse the pun, I took another step forward in my jogging: I upped my jogging time from ten minutes to twelve. On Saturday, I completed the run, but only after running through a stitch and sore shoulder (Deep breaths! Deep breaths!). On Sunday, I did likewise. Fortunately, as seems to happen when I up the length of the run, although the stitch and sore shoulder returned, it was to a much lesser degree.

This morning, I almost never went out at all as I have my yearly November cough. I judged it not to be significant enough to keep me indoors however, so for better or worse out I went at six am. The run went wonderfully - 1/12 x 3 (one minute walk followed by a twelve minute run, repeated three times) without any stitch or sore shoulder. I did almost trip over on a slightly downward sloping road, but that was due to the bumpy pavement as opposed to me. I think it may be wise to make sure the cough goes before I head out again, but I cannot say how much I enjoyed this run. At the weekend, the stitch meant that I had to jog with small steps. This morning, however, I was able to run in a much more natural fashion. Nice!