Once, in a sermon on the Fourth Sunday after Pentecost in Bradford, sometime in the 30s, I mused little on the "listening Church": ...the holy people of God seem to be all in the same boat—certainly all are one body. The support they give to … Continue reading The Listening Church
Chesterton’s Model
It is well known that Mr Chesterton modelled his famous literary creation Mgr O'Connor on me, though even O'Connor seems to get it round the wrong way. Keep that in mind with this quote from "Mgr O'Connor's" Gilbert Keith Chesterton: Only a Memory (1936). G.K. … Continue reading Chesterton’s Model
Arts and Crafts
Ever since the advent of factories and mass production sensitive souls have been alert to the soullessness of things mass-made by machine. On one level there have been clear advantages, and some of life’s essentials became more accessible to the poorer levels of society, and … Continue reading Arts and Crafts
Church Music
It is not well known that I once expressed myself on matters liturgical under my nom de plume, Mgr O'Connor. Well, not even under that nom to be honest, as I published the tract anonymously and circulated it privately. This was not so much from … Continue reading Church Music
All Souls
A very fine way to prepare for our own deaths is to pray for those already dead. The tender obligations to family and friends and brethren do not cease on their death; in fact, for a Catholic imbued with a lively faith they lose not … Continue reading All Souls
False Prophets
The false prophets began to swarm as soon as the apostles began to preach.— A Month of Sundays: The Foolishness of Father Brown Despite the wonderful, unfashionably saintly, Mr Chesterton extolling my virtues as an amateur sleuth, I was more often to be seen tending … Continue reading False Prophets
