A little prayer request

Assignment work has kept me from blogging this week but has not stopped me reading all those wonderful posts!

I have a little prayer request.

Please remember my sister Joanne and her beloved cat Lucy in your prayers. Lucy is 17 years old now and the other day collapsed in the 44C heat while attempting to do her 'business' in the garden. Melbourne, where my sister lives, is experiencing a terrible heat wave and animals are suffering terribly. Joanne's brother-in-law's dog fell down dead from heat induced heart failure at the age of 10 which was very distressing for the children. Lucy meanwhile is at the Vet and my sister has been told that Lucy has developed a heart condition as a result of the extreme heat. It is very much touch and go. I will readily admit that Lucy and I haven't always got along. She has always had a bit of temper and I have been known to row with her on occasions although whenever she sees me these days he comes up miaowing to me and lets me stroke her. She is not really a bad cat person and while I know that 17 is a great age and that at the time of life and a heart condition one cannot expect too much but I do pray that she can return home and be surrounded by those she loves.

Permit me to present:

the new Harpsichord.



I can't wait for the weekend when I will be able to have a nice session playing on it properly.

It is 17:21 (German time)

The apartment is relatively quiet except for the ticking of the numerous clocks, the tapping if this keyboard and the occasional sigh coming from AGA as we await arrival of the new 'baby'.

For 'baby' read 'new, 18th Century French style Harpsichord, painted in gold and royal blue'.  It is supposed to be delivered today after being shown at an exhibition of Earl Music in Vienna.

AGA is a Harpsichord aficionado and plays very well (although he will tell you otherwise).  For my part I too like to play but while I think I sound like Georg Friedrich Handel himself, inside my head, I know that out in the open it is a wee bit, shall we say, awful.  

Anyway I agreed to go shares in buying a new Harpsichord and trading in our old one(Flemish style).  AGA says that the new one will be like trading a fiddle in for a Stradivarius - we shall see.

Signor Bizzi is expected any time so I have just time to post this before all pandemonium breaks loose.  I shall post a photograph when it is all set up.

AGA meanwhile is trying not to look stressed and to while away the time is playing Bach pieces on the old one. 

Tradition!

Here is a picture of me. And my Mother. And my Grandmother. And my Great Grandmother. Four generations all linked - apart from the fact that we are all related - by the baptismal robe.

Made of hand embroidered silk in the late Victorian era, that set of robes had accompanied each of us to our Christian baptism.

robe as were my great uncle, great aunt, uncle, cousin, in fact anyone who had a familial link to our family matriarch Hilda, was baptised in that set of robes...

And today it is still in use used in the baptism of anyone with a familial link to our matriarch Hilda. My niece and nephew were both baptised in those robes.

Of course it doesn't get out too much but what an ecumenical robe it is! Starting out pure High Church Anglican, after my grandmother married my catholic grandfather it felt quite at home accompanying my mother, uncle, me and various others into various Catholic Churches around the traps.  And it has travelled around the World and back again!  Whenever and wherever a child in the 'family' is being made ready for baptism, that robe is sure to be there, faithfully carrying out its duty.

All part of tradition and while we don't know exactly how old it is (it is at least 123 years old) it remains a valued part of our family tradition - a link to our past and our Christian heritage - and I thought I would introduce it to you!

By the way, my great grandmother (Hilda) had not been out of her village for at least 77 years when this photo was taken.  She had never been to London, nor seen the sea and in her entire life had never left her county (Hertfordshire).  The trip to Surrey in a motor car was for her our equivalent to our first aeroplane trip overseas.

In Renaissance Heaven with Tomas Luis

While I was in London recently I bought a couple of CDs of the music of Tomas Luis de Victoria: a favourite composer of mine (and Tom from Vegas too). I can thoroughly recommend both recordings.

The first is entitled ‘Devotion to our Lady’ and is the first volume of a three volume set of the works of de Victoria. Harry Christophers' The 16 are the performers.  In writing of Tomas Luis (if I may make so bold as to refer to him by his Christian names) the great Harry Christophers puts it very nicely: 

‘Scholar, mystic, priest, singer, organist and composer – six persons all rolled into one and that is, quite simply, why Victoria is the most outstanding composer of the Renaissance.’

I couldn’t agree more and the music on this CD (which I am listening to as I type this) is perfection: Salve Regina, Missa Salve (Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Benedictus and Agnus Dei), Ave Maria stella a 4, Alma Redemptoris Mater a 8, Regina caeli laetare a 8, Ave Maria a 8, and finally Magnificat a 8. Fifty of minutes of heavenly music fit which is indeed for Our Lady. I intend to try and purchase volumes 2 (Mystery of the Cross) and 3 (The Call of the Beloved) if I can. There is another CD (Requiem) and I would like to get that too!

The second CD is called ‘An invented office of Vespers’. It is made up of a series of Vesper Psalms discovered in Italy in 1975. Scholars appear to have no doubt that they are by Victoria although without proper identification they do not appear in any official list of his works. The result is beautiful: Psalms 109 110 111 112 147 126 and 115 followed by an Ave Maria Stella and the Magnificat.

The only sticking point (if you can call it that) is the booklet. Josep Cabré, the baritone in the recording, has seen fit to write his views on the Composer and, in finest Manichean style, appears to judge de Victoria’s actions from a purely modern (and may I say) materialistic standpoint: 

‘…. when I observe the richness and luxury of his publications, his personal dedications to personalities of the first rank in the corridors of power (temporal or spiritual) and his obvious concern for eminently practical details in this respect, I find myself thinking not at all of the heterodoxy of mystics like St. Teresa of Avila or St. John of the Cross, but of someone with his feet firmly on the ground, respectful of power and of the hierarchy, and moreover perfectly aware of the advantages to be had from them.’

Such cynicism!

It is interesting to me to read that he doesn’t consider that St. Teresa of Avila had her feet firmly on the ground. If you read the Saint’s ‘Life’ you will see that she has them very much planted on the ground, even if her eyes are lifted ever heavenwards…

Just another example of ‘The World’ attempting to expunge any trace of love of God (and the recognition of the elevated position that Bishops and Popes hold in our world) from present day thought and contemplation.

Compare this with another quote from Harry Christophers on Tomas Luis:

‘He devoted his life to the Church, and his works reveal such heartfelt passion that there are times, in performance, when we are almost overwhelmed by their intensity.

Good News

Sorry but I have been rather busy with school and study.  And AGA has been hogging the internet connection.

Anyway I still have a major assignment to finish and I must concentrate on that but I wanted to let you know about the results of a series of prayer requests I made last year.

Alice and Laura are now at home with their parents.  Against all the odds they have survived, have put on weight, are now healthy and able to be held by their grandparents.  The family has thanked everyone for their prayers and so I am in turn thanking you!

I hope and pray that God will continue to bless these little ones.

Well, that's all for the moment.

Beauty in Winter

While I was walking home from school this evening I was struck by the afternoon Sun which cast long pale pink and orange shadows across the snow.  Coming to the more rural part of my walk I was confronted with a vista of such beauty that I, and everyone else in the vicinity was struck by it.  The Sun sat low in the sky, all orange-gold while a mist was slowly rolling in, low, from the river.  It was intensely cold but the children continued to sled down the slopes of the fields which now lie under so much crisp white snow.

having already seen a Robin standing in archetypal pose, on the snow, I was already feeling in the mood to be swept away by Winter's beauty.  And all (including our ability to appreciate such beauty) a gift from God.

And then suddenly I remembered my camera was in my pocket and so took some photos to share with you although they  are a poor substitute for the real thing and never seem to get enough light in to them!

Oh Lord my God! I thank you for your wonders!

Good Heavens

What on earth will they think of next?

My great-grandfather was an atheist.

He could not believe in Our Lord and Father.  He read, he discussed and he tried his best but he could not say that he believed; and this led to a great deal of persecution from among some of his family (including his parents) who were all members of the Congregationalist Church.  

It appears that the biggest obstacle to his recognition that God does indeed exist was the issue of suffering.  How could there be a God who allows suffering in the world?

He came from a family who were not afraid to say what they thought and be open to discussion on the topic.  They also practiced what they preached and indeed, his son followed in his footsteps.  He became a committed Pacifist and a Conscientious Objector during WWII.  He told the authorities he would do anything except fight.  Threats of jail would not deter him and so they appointed him to be an ambulance driver which was dangerous work indeed when you were stationed in London during the Blitz and yet even today he is known in the village as a 'Conchie' despite the fact that he died nearly forty years ago...

Anyway, to return to my original point: my great-grandfather was an atheist.  But he was not a bad man.  His belief was in doing good during one's life on earth so that one could die at peace.

He would ever have condoned this stupid waste of money which could have been better put towards assisting in alleviating the suffering of those in need. . .  It isn't even as though they are sure about their stance!

Bye the way it is still freezing here and now the school heating system has packed up...

Luckily all is snug and cosy in the royal apartment!

PS

The picture comes from the Telegraph article

Our turn!

Well the hols are over and it is back to school we go.

It was nice to have a break for Christmas and I enjoyed my time in London.  We did intend to fo to see the New Year in by the Thames but as there was an estimated 700,000 people present we decided to stay inside and watch it on the telly instead.  Much more civilised - plus it was rather cold anyway.

And speaking of cold now I am back in Germany and it is freezing!

It is also our turn for snow.

Not the huge amounts they had in America but a respectable 5 inches which has bought out all the sleds, snowmen, children, dogs, boots, and snowploughs.

And it is really is cold with a capital C.

Our top temp for tomorrow is -7 Celcius with a predicted -13 (or perhaps -20) over night.

That is way too cold for me!

This is the view from our apartment door

Here is St Suidbertus in the snow.  You can see our parish Christmas Tree complete with lights on to one side.  I took this at 5pm
This is the view from my place of work!  


And although this hasn't got anything to do with snow, here is the final view of my Christmas Cake - and I might humbly add that it is one of the best ones I have ever made!