The May Northern Cross has not yet arrived in these parts. I saw the copies of the May edition at St Robert`s, Morpeth last Thursday but when our parishioner went to St Dominic`s, Newcastle to pick up our consignment on Saturday there was nothing there. So in the meantime I had said I thought there were a few things worthy of comment so here is a comment. Without getting into the big controversy over whether the diocesan Youth Village is worth the money (and I see that correspondence is now closed although I thought Mr Rainbow`s letter in the April edition was very well argued) I just thought I`d pick up on the short letter from Gerry Loughran of Jesmond who says regarding the new translation of the Ordinary Form of the Mass:
I promise that I will approach it with all goodwill but I have to say this: if the word CONSUBSTANTIAL is there, I`m off to the mosque.
Well the bad news for Mr Loughran as I`m sure he has by now discovered is that the word consubstantial is indeed part of the new translation. However here is more bad news. If he goes to the mosque he may find he has a few more problems than trying to wrestle with consubstantial. I wonder how his Arabic is? When I was at St Andrews university in our second year we had to take one first year course and I opted for Arabic language. It was absolutely fascinating and I`d wished I`d taken it in my first year so I could have continued with it in third and fourth year. We were mainly taught by the memorable Dr Jackson, except on Fridays when the professor would come and test us on our verb tables. Sadly all I can remember of it now is the alphabet. However I also remember being told that we had to learn Arabic because if we didn`t we would have a difficult time in heaven as that was the only language spoken there. I still have my text books so if Mr Loughran is determined that he can`t cope with consubstantial I am willing to lend them to him so he can enjoy full and active participation on his Fridays at the mosque.
I promise that I will approach it with all goodwill but I have to say this: if the word CONSUBSTANTIAL is there, I`m off to the mosque.
Well the bad news for Mr Loughran as I`m sure he has by now discovered is that the word consubstantial is indeed part of the new translation. However here is more bad news. If he goes to the mosque he may find he has a few more problems than trying to wrestle with consubstantial. I wonder how his Arabic is? When I was at St Andrews university in our second year we had to take one first year course and I opted for Arabic language. It was absolutely fascinating and I`d wished I`d taken it in my first year so I could have continued with it in third and fourth year. We were mainly taught by the memorable Dr Jackson, except on Fridays when the professor would come and test us on our verb tables. Sadly all I can remember of it now is the alphabet. However I also remember being told that we had to learn Arabic because if we didn`t we would have a difficult time in heaven as that was the only language spoken there. I still have my text books so if Mr Loughran is determined that he can`t cope with consubstantial I am willing to lend them to him so he can enjoy full and active participation on his Fridays at the mosque.
21 comments:
I suppose if he an Arian he may find Islamic theology more acceptable...
i like it! And thank you for your kind remarks re my letter to the Northern Cross.
By the way, some Catholics seem to believe that Latin is the only language spoken in Heaven
Latin the only language in heaven? Of course it is. You do realise, don't you, that whenever Mass is celebrated in the vernacular, the poor angels have to sit there thumbing through their bi-lingual Missals trying to work out where we've got to. ;-)
Everyone knows that Gaelic was the language spoken in the Garden of Eden so, I'd imagine, it must be the language of Heaven.
Many years ago I was told a story that the teller insisted was true. Cardinal Gordon Gray of Scotland had a dog that used to come and sit just inside his master's private chapel when he said his Masses at home. He was a very faithful dog in the matter of Mass attendance. On the day that Cardinal Gray started to say the new Mass the dog, as usual, took up his place just inside the door. As soon as His Eminence started to speak the words of the Mass in English the dog got up and walked out. Obviously Latin was acceptable but the vernacular was not. This is somewhat surprising because one would think that doggerel would be more acceptable. I couldn't find out which breed of dog it was but perhaps it was a German Shepherd. I know that our current German Shepherd has a preference for Latin.
Ben and Crux Fidelis are both incorrect. English is the most widely spoken language in the world and spoken by more people than any other so it must follow that it is the language of Heaven. Almost certainly with a Northumbrian accent.
Leo: Perhaps His Eminence's mutt preferred dog Latin? For that is how my old Classics teacher referred to Church Latin.
Crux Fidelis leaves us bemused...
He maintains that Gaelic was the language spoken in the Garden of Eden, but doesn't specify whether that was before or after the Fall, and whether it was the language used by the Serpent to tempt poor, weak Adam. He should tell us.
As far as our friend Mr Loughran is concerned, if he is serious in going to the Mosque, then we should all be grateful. We might then be allowed to enjoy the EF in peace, away from his constsnt sniping.
In addition, has he really understood what is involved? He will need to be programmed in a Madrassar somewhere in the tribal areas of Afghanistan, no more bacon sandwiches, and he will only be rewarded with 700 virgins in the next world if he is killed by the forces of the Crusaders.
Actually Richard, Twice as many people speak Mandarin Chinese as speak English... but don't let facts get in the way of your intended apostasy.
I am not quite sure what IP192.168.1.254 (whoever he may be) means by what he describes as my 'intended apostasy'. In another media it could well be regarded as libelous unless it was shown to have been said with a humorous intent. At present I do not get that impression.
@1569Rising
Try the last paragraph of page 8 here http://books.google.ie/books?id=nPpp6ED8c3EC&pg=PA8&lpg=PA8&dq=fenius+gaelic&source=bl&ots=pEkpCMGZzx&sig=3I_kwamA_T2X1Y9ANlqHF5Y6osU&hl=en&ei=YnrATfWEA826hAfcurnFBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=10&ved=0CFkQ6AEwCQ#v=onepage&q=fenius%20gaelic&f=false and read on a bit into page 9.
If you do a search for Sábhal Mór Ostaig afterward, you can begin your Gaelic studies, assuming you WANT to go to Heaven! ;)
An tAth. Seán Ó Buaidhe
1569 Rising: Don't you know anything of Scripture? There was one universal tongue until the Almighty confounded the Tower of Babel - and that was Gaelic.
English is the language of Anglo-Saxon barbarians. Whose crazy idea was it to use it to worship God anyway?
Is that Irish or Scottish Gaelic?
Bet my 'deep' thoughts have been missed during recent holidays & computer down.
I hope that if Arabic is the language of heaven then the imams are less noisy (or turn down the volume) in their calls to prayer.
We've been in Islamic countries during our cruise & the calls to prayer quite turned my G&T sour
Dr Shaw, you have hit the nail on the head!
I know the Irish have claimed that Gaelic was the language of Eden and is the language of heaven, but the Armenians disagree. After all, Noah's Ark landed on the mountains of Ararat/Armenia, so clearly the Armenian language must have come from Noah's family prior to the confusion of tongues at Babel. :-D
The Ark of Noah didn't land in Dublin because it was and is so expensive there. Nowt to do with the language of Heaven. Simple economics. (Moderator: can I say 'bloody expensive'?)
Sceptical Believer..
You are wrong. Noah actually landed on the Black Mountain in Belfast, on the Twelfth of July, needing repairs to the Ark. But Harlnd & Wolf were closed down for Orangemen's Day, and in any case, he had heard about the Titanic, so he decided not to trust his vessel to that Yard.
"You are wrong. Noah actually landed on the Black Mountain in Belfast, on the Twelfth of July, needing repairs to the Ark. But Harlnd & Wolf were closed down for Orangemen's Day, and in any case, he had heard about the Titanic, so he decided not to trust his vessel to that Yard."
I would have thought that since Mr Noah designed and built the Ark, he would have been able to do repairs and refits himself...!
FrankE,
You forget. Mr Noah arrived in Belfast before the changes in Trades Union Law instigated by the Blessed Margaret T. At the time, Harland and Wolf was a closed shop, and no ship repairing work could be carried out anywhere except at H&W, which was controlled by the National Union of Orange Shipwrights, Caulkers, Anchorsmiths, Copper-Bottom Washers and Taigbashers".
So there, Frank!
All right, it could be I have utterly missed the point of the joke, just supposing you truly feel you can joke about the way the Holy Mass of all time was slashed to pieces by Bugnini and his Protestant cohorts, to the loss of faith of so many Catholics. But I can certainly understand the frustrations which make Mr Gerry Loughran of Jesmond express himself, very powerfully, when he says ”I promise that I will approach it with all goodwill but I have to say this: if the word CONSUBSTANTIAL is there, I’m off to the mosque.”
Come on Father, of course he won’t go, but, if I am wrong, I seriously doubt he will go and kiss the Koran which they revere there.
Sorry if my thoughts upset you, but maybe it is time we stopped and took stock of the shocking history of what has happened in our Holy Romann Catholic Church ?
JM
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