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Anglican leaders not so jolly on pope’s visit to England

07 Feb 2010 - Preaching the News for Sunday

The prophet Isaiah is ready to be sent to the people, we hear in this Sunday’s first reading. Pope Benedict XVI confirmed Monday he is planning to visit England later this year, a trip that follows his recent move to welcome into the Roman Catholic Church groups of disaffected Anglicans. Benedict confirmed his plans in a speech to visiting British bishops, saying he hoped the trip would “strengthen and confirm” the faith of Catholics across the country. The pope urged the bishops to help disaffected Anglicans who want to convert to Catholicism. “I am convinced that, if given a warm and openhearted welcome, such groups will be a blessing for the entire church,” he said. The Vatican announced last October it was making it easier for Anglicans to become Catholic, essentially creating independent dioceses for converts who could still maintain certain Anglican traditions, including having married priests. The unprecedented invitation surprised Anglicans and Catholics alike--particularly in Britain, seat of Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, the spiritual leader of the worldwide Anglican Communion. Neither Williams nor Britain’s Catholic bishops were consulted by the Vatican, and they were only advised of the new rules shortly before they became public. Williams pointedly raised his concerns about the way in which the announcement was made when he met with the pope last November. “Clearly many Anglicans, myself included, felt that it put us in an awkward position,” Williams told Vatican Radio at the time. Benedict’s trip is expected to focus on Cardinal John Henry Newman, the most famous Anglican convert, who has been cleared for beatification, the first major step toward possible sainthood. The 19th-century British theologian is a hero to many Anglicans and Catholics alike, making him a possible figure of bridge-building. Source: An article by Nicole Winfield for Associated Press

benedict xvi anglicans rowan williams england john henry newman

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Widespread unrest unsettles Britain

14 Aug 2011 - Preaching the News for Sunday

The welcoming of outsiders figures prominently in next Sunday’s lectionary readings, but ethnic and social tensions have taken center stage in Britain after rioting that began in the diverse, working-class Tottenham neighborhood in north London spread to other parts of the country. British Prime Minister David Cameron will face pressure to soften his austerity plans, toughen up policing, and do more to help inner-city communities after days of riots and looting laid bare deep social tensions amid a depressed British economy. With the public seething over the looting of anything from sweets to televisions, Cameron has so far dismissed the rioters as nothing more than opportunistic criminals and denied the unrest was linked to the effects of deep spending cuts. But community leaders say social inequities, reductions to public services, and high youth unemployment are also probably to blame for some of the worst violence Britain has seen in decades. There’s never been a good time to be an outsider, says Alice Camille in her Prepare The Word scripture commentary on this Sunday’s gospel, and that seemed to be the case for an Afro-Caribbean man in north London whose death from a gunshot wound after an incident involving armed police set off the current trouble. In Birmingham police launched a murder inquiry after three Muslim men died after being run over by a car during the mayhem there. A friend of the men told BBC radio they had been part of a group of British Asians protecting their area from looters after attending Ramadan prayers at a mosque. The Muslim Council of Britain condemned the violence and called on its community to remain calm and support the authorities. It also urged them to help clean up the streets. Many small shops and businesses in England are run by Muslims of south Asian heritage. The violence has appalled many Britons who have been transfixed by televised images of rioters attacking individuals and raiding family-owned stores as well as targeting international businesses. Sources: Articles by Matt Falloon, Stefano Ambrogi, and Angus MacSwan for Reuters

england riots david cameron unrest muslim council of britain tottenham rioting london

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Mediterranean food is good for what ails you

03 Mar 2013 - Preaching the News for Sunday

"The Lord is kind and merciful," the psalmist assures us this Sunday, and “heals all your ills.” When it comes to healing diet-related ills, two new studies suggest that cutting sugar intake and increasing the use of olive oil and nuts may be good for what ails you.A study published in the Feb. 27 issue of the journal PLoS One, published by the Public Library of Science, strongly linked increased consumption of sugar with increased rates of diabetes by examining the data on sugar availability and the rates of diabetes in 175 countries over the past decade. After accounting for many other factors, the researchers found that increased sugar in a population’s food supply was linked to higher diabetes rates independent of rates of obesity. In other words, according to this study, obesity doesn’t cause diabetes: Sugar does.The study demonstrated this link with the same level of confidence that linked cigarettes and lung cancer in the 1960s. According to Rob Lustig, one of the study’s authors and a pediatric endocrinologist at the University of California, San Francisco, “You could not enact a real-world study that would be more conclusive than this one.”At the same time, a Mediterranean diet rich in olive oil and nuts beats a low-fat diet hands down in preventing strokes and heart attacks in healthy older people at high risk for cardiovascular disease, according to research released Monday.Spanish researchers found that the consumption of extra-virgin olive oil and nuts “were probably responsible for most of the observed benefits” attained by those in the two study groups on a Mediterranean diet. The findings, released by the New England Journal of Medicine, also add to mounting evidence contradicting a long-held tenet of dieting to improve health: That all calories are equal. Most of the calories in a Mediterranean diet come from fatty fish, fruits, vegetables, and fatty acids and almost none from red meat.The superiority of the Mediterranean diet was substantial: Those who followed one were 30 percent less likely than others to suffer a heart attack, stroke, or death attributed to cardiovascular disease during the study. And Mediterranean dieters were almost 40 percent less likely than low-fat dieters to have a stroke during the follow-up period, which lasted nearly five years.Homily hint: Obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular ailments are at nearly epidemic proportions in the U.S. population. Perhaps your faith community could partner with a nearby healthcare institution to provide information on these conditions. Offer the ounce of prevention that could help loved ones avoid the pound of cure. Sources: Articles by Mark Bittman for the New YorkTimes and Melissa Healy for the Los Angeles Times

health calories new england journal of medicine nuts olive oil university of california san francisco rob lustig diabetes sugar public library of science mediterranean food diet stroke heart attack cardiovascular disease

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Confession out of recession

08 Sep 2013 - Preaching the News for Sunday

When Jesus speaks of the need to renounce possessions in this Sunday’s gospel, he also is calling us to freedom from everything—material or otherwise—that binds or possesses us.For centuries Catholics have turned to the Sacrament of Confession as a way to unburden themselves and find that freedom. Now an informal survey of Roman Catholic clergy based in cathedrals across England and Wales found that two thirds had noticed an upturn in numbers taking part in the sacrament, something many of them attributed to a papal “bounce.”The priests surveyed said there is a greater willingness these days than in the past for people to unburden themselves and talk through their issues, a reality which also has given the centuries-old practice a new relevance, including for those who might be put off by public worship.The Rt. Rev. Kieran Conry, Bishop of Arundel and Brighton, said a more informal approach to Confession than in the past had also helped draw younger people—including increasing numbers who even attend with a smart phone in one hand, making use of a range of special Confession apps to guide them through the process.Homily hint: There is a reason Confession has been around as long as it has. When a practice touches a core human need, it endures. All of us wish to be reconciled—with ourselves, our loved ones, and our God. Encourage parishioners to give Confession another look. Source: An article by John Bingham for The Telegraph (UK)

reconciliation confession england kieran conry wales

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