From Conservatism to Catholicism

All this 'going to church' in the week has really been good in terms of 'getting me out the house'. The weather is good and because its around the same time and human's being creatures of habit, I'm noticing the Turkish barbers are always on their Lambert and Butlers, the butchers always on their brooms and there's more than a few big men clipped to creatures they firmly believe is a dog. I suppose they'll have noticed me in the same way although they'd never guess I was going to church. That I am sure.  Quite why I kept going in the week is something which, on reflection, I felt I ought. The church itself as a building has started to bring me so much peace. And like I say, it gets me out.  The effect of Sunday when the roof seemed to disappear has been turned over and over in my mind and then it did eventually dawn on me, its not that we were going up. Rather, God was coming down, to us all. I felt that and further realisation that such a revelation...

 So I was pretty comfortable going to the new church. To be fair, I didn't have to much other than show up and that's been going well. Unremarkable really, at least it was, until today.. In I went slightly earlier than usual and wandered nearer to the front. As I say, its sometimes difficult to hear and even in my schooldays I liked to face the front. Its worth noting here that somehow that church never has a chill about it.  I don't do the holy water on entry or the bowing of the knee and I do need to practice that but after today, I do get it.  Anyway, there I was, sitting by the pillar thinking about nothing in particular and up started the service and again I wasn't really thinking anything, going through the motions if you will.  As you'd expect, time went by and it was bells and bread and wafer starting any second.  Now, communion is a bit of a sad point really for me because I was baptised a Methodist having already been christened by the Church of Englan...

What can I say other than highly recommended. Its got me into habits (not literally) and to me now, mass and everything, the structured prayer and the regular reading of scripture, its just normal. It doesn't seem new. But as I keep saying I was a Christian anyway. This isn't about discovering God, its about entering the Catholic and Ignatian way and applying their terms of worship. It works. The online retreat works. One day I will do one in person but I am so happy with how this has gone and as I say, it just feels right. It's good to take time for yourself and get as much silence as you can. Sociable as one is, at heart I'm a loner and happy alone. If you can get that, you'll find God will soon be beside you in all you do. He has been with me since a very very young age. Admittedly it took me a while to work out just who it was watching and looking over me but it was certainly God in my difficult times as a child. I knew I wasn't alone. I use prayer as ...

This is definately helping and its so nice to know there is something to go at. I'm lucky the way work is/isn't at the minute that I can get to church. The way I've been doing it is just rock up in my usual clothes, shorts in this weather, it's absolutely fine. I don't know any of the people there and nor am I really interested, what is interesting however, is how busy the church is. Not busy as in hustle and bustle, but how calming and genuine the mood is there.                                                       "I'd start every day with it if I could"   A couple of things that I've settled into as if I've been doing it all my life and its a quick win on the three times a day praying recommendation. Firstly I get a reading to my phone every morning at 7am. That gets me straight into scripture and its most often than not the same reading i...

You do wonder, how effective can an online retreat actually be? Well let me tell you - very. I had a meeting everyday for a week and for me, it tied in with a work transition, my daughter being away and the other girls at work. I’ve been introduced to the Pray as you go app which I would highly recommend. Its relaxing - and slowing down is key in all this. Take a retreat as a sort of reset. Its ok to sleep in the day, which I did from about 13.30 til about 15.50 Doing an online retreat does give you a sort of excuse to switch off, focus on prayer and also on yourself. Be that reading, writing, I also went to morning Mass. So this all worked well to get into a new routine. Before all this, I did pray but it did tend to have a freewheeling Bob Dylan feel to it and I felt isolated as a Christian. Prayer without a church isn't the same, if you can combine the two, so much the better. The online retreat has given me direction in prayer I went for Isaiah 49 an...

No not that sort of affair. I was at a previous church and have since met two of the congregation who have confided in me that they aren't especially happy there.  "You only have to scratch the surface"  I had been attending the Methodist Church at the top of my street for around six years also taking my friend, my daughter and a doctor who stayed with us for a couple of years. I held my Nan's 'funeral' there - there was no coffin due to an inquest and I simply couldn't wait more than two weeks to pay my respects. We basically had a party - no alcohol at the church obviously but we had a lovely grey cake, pineapples on the table, projected videos and in the end the only thing I drew the line at was a raffle. That being such a winning formula and having such a good turnout I held my daughters tenth birthday party there and it was essentially a carbon copy.  I did get baptised into the Methodist Church and really went to town with the white dress and bare fe...

 This blog has the title From Conservatism to Catholicism, which is how I see this situation. I've never written about my time in the party so I thought I'd combine the two. Names won't be named because its the guilty that need more protection than the innocent. Only joking, they've all been good to me. All the boys I've ever met. It's the young men that are the real bastards. But I've never seen one yet in my social circles and long may that continue.  So we start a new journey which I’m going to share with you here.  In many ways this situation is the opposite of what’s happening in the world today. Perhaps you yourself have noticed that religion seems to have been replaced by politics.  This situation is looking like the reverse.  Cutting a long story short (Although you wouldn't think it) I've met and come to know a lot of powerful and influential people. Have met with the prime minister many of the people in cabinet and been through the doors of...

​Firstly, I'm not completely on my own. Somebody has "got me through the door". I first enquired because I intended to take my Ukrainian guest there and did so. Prior to that, the heady heights of the Catholic Church were miles out of reach for the likes of me.  Our first visit a few weeks ago didn’t please me greatly. Mostly because of my own perceptions, which is  generally the cause of disappointment. And disappointed I was. Having initially hoped to brush up on my Latin, in candlelight of course.  I suppose I thought the priests would all be hooded black and red with gold bands and swinging round  frankincense within engraven golden spheres in time with the church bells. I thought the congregation would all be chanting and rocking and that the choir well I don’t know what I thought about the choir but I can tell you it was dreadful. Which is a shame because church music can be so wonderfully uplifting.   So as I say my first impressions weren’t great.  ...