Catholic Paterfamilias blog - 28.11.2011
(link)
The Free the B3: Justice for Fr. Dermot Fenlon blog has picked up on this YouTube clip about the launch of a book about a cat.
The video clip that I link to above is nauseating in itself. Placing it in the context of the wrongful and unjust exclaustration of Fr Dermot Fenlon from the Birmingham Oratory and his being homeless as he approaches his 70th birthday really is enough to make one vomit.
But, I'm missing the Nuchurch agenda - three pesky Oratorians who said things about Church teaching that were rocking the bad ship Nuchurch got booted. I would love to have sat in on the meeting that decided "So what if one of them is homeless and soon to be 70 - no one will remember that if we can get a book out about a cat..."
Oh, but we will remember and I think that history will show the Birmingham Oratory to be seriously diminished in the eyes of many in consequence.
Showing posts with label Catholic Pater Familias. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Catholic Pater Familias. Show all posts
Tuesday, 29 November 2011
Tuesday, 20 September 2011
He's once, twice, three times an Oratorian?
Catholic Paterfamilias blog (link) 20.9.2011
Recent news that Pushkin the cat has "written" a book would seem to pretty much sound the death knell for the Birmingham Oratory as a place of serious scholarship. What Cardinal Newman would have made of it I would not pretend to guess.
The further announcement today that Fr Gareth Jones is returning to the Birmingham Oratory as assistant to the new Provost is really just the icing on the cake. What's he hoping for? Third time lucky?
And yes, the title is a passing nod to a song title but I don't have the time or energy to parody the entire lyrics of that song to reflect the absurdity and brutal cruelty of what has happened over the past 16 months to Fr Dermot Fenlon.
Perhaps Peter Jennings will be having a special first day cover commemorative stamp set released by some far flung postal service to commemorate Fr Jones' return to the Oratorian fold? If that happens, I do hope we get another press release from Peter with a picture of Archbishop Vincent Nichols holding said first day cover. After all, the good Archbishop must be pleased by this turn of events.
Recent news that Pushkin the cat has "written" a book would seem to pretty much sound the death knell for the Birmingham Oratory as a place of serious scholarship. What Cardinal Newman would have made of it I would not pretend to guess.
The further announcement today that Fr Gareth Jones is returning to the Birmingham Oratory as assistant to the new Provost is really just the icing on the cake. What's he hoping for? Third time lucky?
And yes, the title is a passing nod to a song title but I don't have the time or energy to parody the entire lyrics of that song to reflect the absurdity and brutal cruelty of what has happened over the past 16 months to Fr Dermot Fenlon.
Perhaps Peter Jennings will be having a special first day cover commemorative stamp set released by some far flung postal service to commemorate Fr Jones' return to the Oratorian fold? If that happens, I do hope we get another press release from Peter with a picture of Archbishop Vincent Nichols holding said first day cover. After all, the good Archbishop must be pleased by this turn of events.
Tuesday, 23 August 2011
A little bit more of the jigsaw - or should I say stamp collection?
Catholic Paterfamilias - 21.8.2011
http://catholicpaterfamilias.blogspot.com/2011/08/little-bit-more-of-jigsaw-or-should-i.html
Over on James Preece's blog things seem to have got a bit warm with Peter Jennings getting very excited about some photos.
A few interesting facts about Mr Jennings:
No public event of any note seems to take place without Peter getting a set of commemorative stamps issued somewhere in the world with endorsement from some bishop or another;
He likes to make his feelings about people very clear;
He's one of Vincent Nichols' boys; and
He was Press Secretary for the Newman Cause.
So, there we have it: an occasionally potty mouthed philatelist press secretary with a predilection for serving prelates.
Now I wonder what Peter knew about what was happening at the Birmingham Oratory when the troubles there began all those months ago and I wonder who he told?
http://catholicpaterfamilias.blogspot.com/2011/08/little-bit-more-of-jigsaw-or-should-i.html
Over on James Preece's blog things seem to have got a bit warm with Peter Jennings getting very excited about some photos.
A few interesting facts about Mr Jennings:
No public event of any note seems to take place without Peter getting a set of commemorative stamps issued somewhere in the world with endorsement from some bishop or another;
He likes to make his feelings about people very clear;
He's one of Vincent Nichols' boys; and
He was Press Secretary for the Newman Cause.
So, there we have it: an occasionally potty mouthed philatelist press secretary with a predilection for serving prelates.
Now I wonder what Peter knew about what was happening at the Birmingham Oratory when the troubles there began all those months ago and I wonder who he told?
Monday, 16 May 2011
Where are they now? Part 3 - Fr Gareth Jones
Catholic Paterfamilias blog - 15.5.2011
http://catholicpaterfamilias.blogspot.com/2011/05/where-are-they-now-part-3-fr-gareth.html
Apologies for the delay in getting the third part of the trilogy up. The Blogger problems on Thursday and Friday caused mayhem (and I have a life outside of blogging).
You might remember Fr Gareth Jones from the Birmingham Oratory saga as the canonist used by Fathers Selden and Harrison.
Ruth Dudley Edwards, in one of her Standpoint articles, described Father Gareth Jones as a "bizarre choice as canonical adviser" and stated that "As a cleric, Jones rarely stays long anywhere: in the Birmingham Oratory, he was twice a novice under Fenlon and was twice asked to leave because he did not fit in."
Anyway, Fr Jones got the chaplaincy at Cardiff University a few months before The Birmingham Oratory Three got their marching orders.
As some will recollect, the reason for the vacancy at Cardiff coming up for Fr Jones to step into was that his predecessor in the position made some comments regarded as thought crimes in Nuchurch circles. What the predecessor said was:
“Let me tell you of course before you go too far, most of the offences are being committed by homosexuals.” He continued in this vein, saying, “stick to the facts: the vast majority of the abuse cases in this country – certainly in America – were not taken against what I would call children, but 95% of the time, taken against teenage boys. Now what does that tell you? Now that is a fact."
The quote above was taken from an old online edition of the the Cardiff University student newspaper on Thursday of last week. However, it would seem that their website has been updated since I copied it and the original article from which the quote was taken is no longer available online.
The predecessor even had the temerity to say the above in front of a live TV audience. Now I have to confess that I have not read the Ryan report and cannot comment on it. However, the predecessor was the communications officer for the Archdiocese or Cardiff and I have no reason to doubt the accuracy of what he said.
Having the temerity to say publicly what he had said, the predecessor obviously had to go (can't have the good ship Nuchurch being rocked by anyone talking about facts and the like - heck they might next go completely off piste and talk about Humanae Vitae or something equally damaging to the Nuchurch brand).
So we have the predecessor out and Fr Jones in at Cardiff. Then a few months later we have Fr Jones in Birmingham and out go Fr Dermot Fenlon, Fr Philip Cleevely and Br Lewis Berry (remember that's after Fr Jones had been in and out and in and out of the Birmingham Oratory trying his vocation).
If anyone is struggling to keep up with all of this in and out stuff, just think of it as being a bit like the clerical equivalent of a Key Stone Cops movie - but without the laughs.
My guess is that Fr Jones won't stay long as a university chaplain. He's on the way up the slippery pole of clerical promotion and has a patron in high places. Wales has proven to be fertile grounds for promotion before for others - so why not again?
Oh yes, in case anyone has forgotten, Fr Jones was one of those who made Fr Dermot Fenlon homeless by removing him from his home. Wouldn't it be interesting to know exactly what Fr Jones' patron knew about the reasons for the removal of the Birmingham Oratory Three from their home?
http://catholicpaterfamilias.blogspot.com/2011/05/where-are-they-now-part-3-fr-gareth.html
Apologies for the delay in getting the third part of the trilogy up. The Blogger problems on Thursday and Friday caused mayhem (and I have a life outside of blogging).
You might remember Fr Gareth Jones from the Birmingham Oratory saga as the canonist used by Fathers Selden and Harrison.
Ruth Dudley Edwards, in one of her Standpoint articles, described Father Gareth Jones as a "bizarre choice as canonical adviser" and stated that "As a cleric, Jones rarely stays long anywhere: in the Birmingham Oratory, he was twice a novice under Fenlon and was twice asked to leave because he did not fit in."
Anyway, Fr Jones got the chaplaincy at Cardiff University a few months before The Birmingham Oratory Three got their marching orders.
As some will recollect, the reason for the vacancy at Cardiff coming up for Fr Jones to step into was that his predecessor in the position made some comments regarded as thought crimes in Nuchurch circles. What the predecessor said was:
“Let me tell you of course before you go too far, most of the offences are being committed by homosexuals.” He continued in this vein, saying, “stick to the facts: the vast majority of the abuse cases in this country – certainly in America – were not taken against what I would call children, but 95% of the time, taken against teenage boys. Now what does that tell you? Now that is a fact."
The quote above was taken from an old online edition of the the Cardiff University student newspaper on Thursday of last week. However, it would seem that their website has been updated since I copied it and the original article from which the quote was taken is no longer available online.
The predecessor even had the temerity to say the above in front of a live TV audience. Now I have to confess that I have not read the Ryan report and cannot comment on it. However, the predecessor was the communications officer for the Archdiocese or Cardiff and I have no reason to doubt the accuracy of what he said.
Having the temerity to say publicly what he had said, the predecessor obviously had to go (can't have the good ship Nuchurch being rocked by anyone talking about facts and the like - heck they might next go completely off piste and talk about Humanae Vitae or something equally damaging to the Nuchurch brand).
So we have the predecessor out and Fr Jones in at Cardiff. Then a few months later we have Fr Jones in Birmingham and out go Fr Dermot Fenlon, Fr Philip Cleevely and Br Lewis Berry (remember that's after Fr Jones had been in and out and in and out of the Birmingham Oratory trying his vocation).
If anyone is struggling to keep up with all of this in and out stuff, just think of it as being a bit like the clerical equivalent of a Key Stone Cops movie - but without the laughs.
My guess is that Fr Jones won't stay long as a university chaplain. He's on the way up the slippery pole of clerical promotion and has a patron in high places. Wales has proven to be fertile grounds for promotion before for others - so why not again?
Oh yes, in case anyone has forgotten, Fr Jones was one of those who made Fr Dermot Fenlon homeless by removing him from his home. Wouldn't it be interesting to know exactly what Fr Jones' patron knew about the reasons for the removal of the Birmingham Oratory Three from their home?
Wednesday, 11 May 2011
Where are they now? Part 2 - Fr Ignatius Harrison
Catholic Paterfamilias blog - 11.5.2011
http://catholicpaterfamilias.blogspot.com/2011/05/where-are-they-now-part-2-fr-ignatius.html
As with Monday's post, I can't actually say where he is right this minute as he has not let me know (and, to be fair, I did not ask him).
Interestingly, the Fr Ignatius Harrison I refer to is the same Fr Ignatius Harrison who in 1998 wrote an obituary for a fellow Oratorian priest who was HIV+ and was alleged to have sexually assaulted boys of school age. As to the ins and outs of that case and what may or may not have been known by those involved, I refer you directly to the Telegraph and Daily Mail articles on it.
Jump forward from 1998 to this time last year and where is Fr Ignatius Harrison? Well, 13 May 2010 was the date when Fr Dermot Fenlon, Fr Philip Cleevely and Br Lewis Berry were given their marching orders from the Birmingham Oratory by Fr Harrison and Co.
So why were the Birmingham Oratory Three given their marching orders? Well, let's look at the Times report on the issue of 21 May 2010 and what an Oratory Spokesman was quoted as saying:
... the disputes centred around Newman’s beatification but at the heart of it were allegations relating to Father Chavasse. “It seemed better for him to stand down so that the matter could be looked into properly,” he said.
“Around 2½ years ago, in the autumn of 2007, Father Chavasse began to form an intense but physically chaste friendship with a young man, then aged 20, which the Fathers of Birmingham Oratory regarded as imprudent.”
In light of the Times article, it would seem that the three who regarded the friendship as imprudent got the boot. They have not returned to the Birmingham Oratory (other than possibly to collect their possessions). However, Fr Chavasse is back in situ at the Birmingham Oratory (or at least until today this link showed him back in situ). Notwithstanding what the last link might say, Fr Dermot Fenlon and his confrères are not.
It's worth noting that the same Oratory spokesman who fed the information to the Times referred to above also subsequently:
"confirmed unequivocally that the (Birmingham Oratory) Three are entirely guiltless of any wrong-doing whatsoever, including, specifically, sexual misdemeanours or homophobia."
So, to conclude none of this makes any sense at all. Three men who regarded something that was imprudent as being imprudent and are "entirely guiltless of any wrong-doing whatsoever" got the boot - that's an intriguing form of justice.
Dare one suggest without accusation of paranoia that what happened at the Birmingham Oratory last year is just part of a wider agenda? I suppose I could always ask Fr Harrison.....
http://catholicpaterfamilias.blogspot.com/2011/05/where-are-they-now-part-2-fr-ignatius.html
As with Monday's post, I can't actually say where he is right this minute as he has not let me know (and, to be fair, I did not ask him).
Interestingly, the Fr Ignatius Harrison I refer to is the same Fr Ignatius Harrison who in 1998 wrote an obituary for a fellow Oratorian priest who was HIV+ and was alleged to have sexually assaulted boys of school age. As to the ins and outs of that case and what may or may not have been known by those involved, I refer you directly to the Telegraph and Daily Mail articles on it.
Jump forward from 1998 to this time last year and where is Fr Ignatius Harrison? Well, 13 May 2010 was the date when Fr Dermot Fenlon, Fr Philip Cleevely and Br Lewis Berry were given their marching orders from the Birmingham Oratory by Fr Harrison and Co.
So why were the Birmingham Oratory Three given their marching orders? Well, let's look at the Times report on the issue of 21 May 2010 and what an Oratory Spokesman was quoted as saying:
... the disputes centred around Newman’s beatification but at the heart of it were allegations relating to Father Chavasse. “It seemed better for him to stand down so that the matter could be looked into properly,” he said.
“Around 2½ years ago, in the autumn of 2007, Father Chavasse began to form an intense but physically chaste friendship with a young man, then aged 20, which the Fathers of Birmingham Oratory regarded as imprudent.”
In light of the Times article, it would seem that the three who regarded the friendship as imprudent got the boot. They have not returned to the Birmingham Oratory (other than possibly to collect their possessions). However, Fr Chavasse is back in situ at the Birmingham Oratory (or at least until today this link showed him back in situ). Notwithstanding what the last link might say, Fr Dermot Fenlon and his confrères are not.
It's worth noting that the same Oratory spokesman who fed the information to the Times referred to above also subsequently:
"confirmed unequivocally that the (Birmingham Oratory) Three are entirely guiltless of any wrong-doing whatsoever, including, specifically, sexual misdemeanours or homophobia."
So, to conclude none of this makes any sense at all. Three men who regarded something that was imprudent as being imprudent and are "entirely guiltless of any wrong-doing whatsoever" got the boot - that's an intriguing form of justice.
Dare one suggest without accusation of paranoia that what happened at the Birmingham Oratory last year is just part of a wider agenda? I suppose I could always ask Fr Harrison.....
Monday, 9 May 2011
Where are they now? Part 1 - Fr Felix Selden
http://www.catholicpaterfamilias.blogspot.com/ - 9.5.2011
To be honest, I have no idea where he is just now but he might be indulging one of the shared interests that he has in common with certain other catholic luminaries. I tried stamp collecting when I was about 7 but gave it up as a dead loss - maybe I should have stuck with it.
What I am more intrigued by is where he was this time last year and the discussions between him, Fr Ignatius Harrison and Fr Gareth Jones and others involved in the evisceration of the Birmingham Oratory. The Birmingham Oratory was vocally defending the rights of the family and parents as the primary educators of their children.
To be honest, I have no idea where he is just now but he might be indulging one of the shared interests that he has in common with certain other catholic luminaries. I tried stamp collecting when I was about 7 but gave it up as a dead loss - maybe I should have stuck with it.
What I am more intrigued by is where he was this time last year and the discussions between him, Fr Ignatius Harrison and Fr Gareth Jones and others involved in the evisceration of the Birmingham Oratory. The Birmingham Oratory was vocally defending the rights of the family and parents as the primary educators of their children.
Wednesday, 4 May 2011
355 days of unjust exile for Fr Dermot Fenlon
http://www.catholicpaterfamilias.blogspot.com/ - 3.5.2011
The Free the B3: Justice for Fr. Dermot Fenlon blog shows the counter at 355 days today. Not much longer and we'll hit the anniversary of Fr Dermot's unjust expulsion from his home.
Fathers Selden, Harrison and Jones really should be ashamed of themselves but I doubt whether they are.
The Free the B3: Justice for Fr. Dermot Fenlon blog shows the counter at 355 days today. Not much longer and we'll hit the anniversary of Fr Dermot's unjust expulsion from his home.
Fathers Selden, Harrison and Jones really should be ashamed of themselves but I doubt whether they are.
Wednesday, 6 April 2011
Ain't nobody here but us chickens...
Catholic Paterfamilias blog - 5.4.2011
http://catholicpaterfamilias.blogspot.com/2011/04/aint-nobody-here-but-us-chickens.html
Dedicated to those members of the Oratorian community who have failed to rectify the outrage perpetrated against Fr Dermot Fenlon (and with my apologies to the late and great Louis Jordan).
http://catholicpaterfamilias.blogspot.com/2011/04/aint-nobody-here-but-us-chickens.html
Dedicated to those members of the Oratorian community who have failed to rectify the outrage perpetrated against Fr Dermot Fenlon (and with my apologies to the late and great Louis Jordan).
Wednesday, 9 March 2011
The Birmingham Oratory - what a difference a year makes
Catholic Pater Familias blog - 9.3.2011
Take a look at the links below:
Birmingham Oratory newsletter 6 March 2011
Birmingham Oratory newsletter 12 March 2010
Pretty much a year apart but on 12 March 2010 we had:
"only the Catholic Church also teaches, clearly and consistently, the wrongness of contraception, homosexuality and abortion. What is at stake is her right, in her own schools, to continue to do so, free from State censorship and control."
On 6 March 2011 we get:
"This is because they would refuse to endorse a homosexual lifestyle for children entrusted to their care. They would not stop loving these children. They could not stop them doing what they wanted once they were of age. They simply would not say, as Christians: “This is something we can approve.” Many parents are in the same position on all kinds of issues."
Whilst I appreciate the subject being dealt with in each newsletter is different, there seems to be something of a change of tone. In one we have a clear and concise statement of the Church's position and in the other a degree of vagueness.
I'm not certain where the "all kinds of issues" comes into it unless one is trying to equate religious views on homosexuality with parental views on body piercings and tattoos.
Oh yes, I forgot, Fr Dermot Fenlon, Fr Philip Cleevely and Br Lewis Berry were removed from the Birmingham Oratory a couple of months after the March 2010 newlsetter.
Take a look at the links below:
Birmingham Oratory newsletter 6 March 2011
Birmingham Oratory newsletter 12 March 2010
Pretty much a year apart but on 12 March 2010 we had:
"only the Catholic Church also teaches, clearly and consistently, the wrongness of contraception, homosexuality and abortion. What is at stake is her right, in her own schools, to continue to do so, free from State censorship and control."
On 6 March 2011 we get:
"This is because they would refuse to endorse a homosexual lifestyle for children entrusted to their care. They would not stop loving these children. They could not stop them doing what they wanted once they were of age. They simply would not say, as Christians: “This is something we can approve.” Many parents are in the same position on all kinds of issues."
Whilst I appreciate the subject being dealt with in each newsletter is different, there seems to be something of a change of tone. In one we have a clear and concise statement of the Church's position and in the other a degree of vagueness.
I'm not certain where the "all kinds of issues" comes into it unless one is trying to equate religious views on homosexuality with parental views on body piercings and tattoos.
Oh yes, I forgot, Fr Dermot Fenlon, Fr Philip Cleevely and Br Lewis Berry were removed from the Birmingham Oratory a couple of months after the March 2010 newlsetter.
Selective Hearing
Catholic & Loving It! blog - 9.3.2011
http://www.lovingit.co.uk/
Let me get this right...
Fr Dermot Fenlon is banished from his home at the Birmingham Oratory with absolutely no notice at all mere months before the Papal Visit while Jack Valero tells the world that there's nothing to worry about and it's all perfectly normal for members of a religious community to dissapear mere months before one of the most important events in that communities history even though they've done nothing wrong.
The "visitor" shifts people out and moves a new provost in and the stream of pro-life, pro-family press releases stops. The community has been taken over and silenced.
Austen Ivereigh has nothing to say.
Lesley Anne Night, secretary generral of Caritas International doesn't get to renew her contract and suddenly he's talking about a "Vatican coup".
Update: Today marks 300 days of unjust exile for Fr Fenlon.
http://www.lovingit.co.uk/
Let me get this right...
Fr Dermot Fenlon is banished from his home at the Birmingham Oratory with absolutely no notice at all mere months before the Papal Visit while Jack Valero tells the world that there's nothing to worry about and it's all perfectly normal for members of a religious community to dissapear mere months before one of the most important events in that communities history even though they've done nothing wrong.
The "visitor" shifts people out and moves a new provost in and the stream of pro-life, pro-family press releases stops. The community has been taken over and silenced.
Austen Ivereigh has nothing to say.
Lesley Anne Night, secretary generral of Caritas International doesn't get to renew her contract and suddenly he's talking about a "Vatican coup".
Update: Today marks 300 days of unjust exile for Fr Fenlon.
300 days of exile for Fr Dermot Fenlon
This Ash Wednesday marks Fr Dermot Fenlon's 300th day of unjust and enforced exile from his home.
My prayers are with him and also for those who unjustly removed him from his home.
Thursday, 10 February 2011
Question for Archbishop Bernard Longley
from Catholic Pater Familias blog - 9.2.2011
http://catholicpaterfamilias.blogspot.com/2011/02/question-for-archbishop-bernard-longley.html
Why has Father Dermot Fenlon not been returned home?
I only ask because from reading James Preece's blog there seem to be a good number of your flock wanting the return of their much loved and innocent priest.
Not your problem but Fr Felix Selden's? Erm, nope - your flock.............your problem........
http://catholicpaterfamilias.blogspot.com/2011/02/question-for-archbishop-bernard-longley.html
Why has Father Dermot Fenlon not been returned home?
I only ask because from reading James Preece's blog there seem to be a good number of your flock wanting the return of their much loved and innocent priest.
Not your problem but Fr Felix Selden's? Erm, nope - your flock.............your problem........
Friday, 4 February 2011
Charity begins at home?
from Catholic Pater Familias blog - 31.1.2011
http://catholicpaterfamilias.blogspot.com/2011/01/charity-begins-at-home.html
As Fr Dermot Fenlon enters his 263 day of exile from his home at the Birmingham Oratory, when can we expect to hear Archbishop Bernard Longley of Birmingham, who is known for his opposition to homelessness, champion Fr Fenlon's cause?
And what of Fr Felix Selden, Fr Ignatius Harrison and Fr Gareth Jones? Do they know what homelessness and exile are like?
For background on Fr Fenlon's plight, the required reading is:
http://freethebirminghamoratorythree.blogspot.com/
http://www.lovingit.co.uk/
The one thing that is clear in this tale of misery is that Fr Fenlon has done nothing wrong (see James Preece's many postings on the subject).
http://catholicpaterfamilias.blogspot.com/2011/01/charity-begins-at-home.html
As Fr Dermot Fenlon enters his 263 day of exile from his home at the Birmingham Oratory, when can we expect to hear Archbishop Bernard Longley of Birmingham, who is known for his opposition to homelessness, champion Fr Fenlon's cause?
And what of Fr Felix Selden, Fr Ignatius Harrison and Fr Gareth Jones? Do they know what homelessness and exile are like?
For background on Fr Fenlon's plight, the required reading is:
http://freethebirminghamoratorythree.blogspot.com/
http://www.lovingit.co.uk/
The one thing that is clear in this tale of misery is that Fr Fenlon has done nothing wrong (see James Preece's many postings on the subject).
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