Discovering Our Glorious Faith

Today we have a guest post by English journalist and retired headmaster Eric Hester who has reviewed some DVDs by Daphne McLeod.

DISCOVERING OUR GLORIOUS FAITH

By Daphne McLeod (four DVDs from EWTN)

Reviewed by Eric Hester

For those trying to teach the faith there is a dearth of good materials. Of course, there are the catechisms: The Catechism of the Catholic Church and the old Penny Catechism. Both of these are essential and awesome in their depths and simplicity. But there is a shortage of other materials. After all, when the faith was still taught properly in Catholic schools, it was not just a question of The Catechism: children heard sermons from their parish priest about the faith every Sunday; they had parish missions and retreats; and in the schools, the teachers of all subjects incorporated material about the faith into their lessons.

All this has gone. And so these DVDs from EWTN will be literally a Godsend and an answer to prayer to anyone trying to hand on the faith. The format is quite simple: they are DVDs made from Daphne MacLeod’s programs on EWTN. But if they are simple in format and in style, they are profound in their faith. I cannot recommend them too strongly.

First, as anyone would expect who knows Daphne McLeod – a stalwart teacher of the faith in England over the years – they are the real one hundred per cent authentic Catholicity. Not a word is ever ambiguous let alone confusing or misleading. Cardinal Manning said that for the good teacher, the faith should shine out of the eyes, and the Catholic faith shines out of Daphne’s eyes and is present in her voice. In the very first lesson, she explains that she is not going to give out her own views: she is going to proclaim and explain the teaching of the Catholic faith.

This she does, going through four big areas: Almighty God, His Nature and His attributes; The Blessed Trinity; Sanctifying Grace (the Sacrament of Baptism); and the Moral Law The Sacrament of Penance.

In fact, the sacraments are all covered thoroughly in general and as individual entities. So is prayer, Original Sin, Our Blessed Lady, the Blessed Sacrament, original sin and all that should be in a basic course on the faith.

One might think that the format - Daphne’s talking at the camera - might be dull but it never is. Daphne has a most attractive manner and voice. She comes across as a kindly aunt who has discovered the most amazing secret and cannot wait to let everyone know about it. Never is she condescending, but she makes frequent use of anecdotes and homely comparisons to make an explanation. There are good illustrations, but there are no gimmicks and all is most tastefully done with especially good use of great art. The viewer is expected to concentrate and is given help to do so. In total, there are some 13 half-hour talks, but they are subdivided into units of about quarter of an hour.

The DVDs would be especially useful for teachers: those in Catholic schools, those helping at the parish level, home schoolers, or simply parents who want to pass on the faith to their own children. They are not designed mainly for children, though even young children would benefit from watching some parts and older children – from fifteen years onwards – could simply watch the lot, preferably with an adult present to discuss and to explain.

I should encourage anyone interested to obtain the set: you will not be disappointed.

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More than Etiquette

Fr. Rutler on manners. Good manners are more than etiquette. To quote:

John Henry Cardinal Newman defined the gentleman, and perforce the lady, in cadences which have become almost as incomprehensible as the terms "gentleman" and "lady" themselves. "It is almost a definition of a gentleman to say he is one who never inflicts pain." And it is a very good thing to have a double standard: Eve is supposed to civilize Adam, and when a woman is vulgar she shows her man the exit from paradise. In speaking of pain inflicted, Newman speaks of moral care for the consciences of others. The gentleman puts others at ease and "makes light of favours while he does them, and seems to be receiving when he is conferring." He does not slander or gossip, treats his enemy as a potential friend, and is "merciful to the absurd."

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The Countess of Salisbury

Stephanie Mann, author and Tudor scholar, reviews The Countess of Salisbury, Hazel Pierce's biography of Blessed Margaret Plantagenet Pole.

This is an excellent biography: Hazel Pierce does not speculate, she does not dramatize, she does not invent emotion or try to read her subject's mind and heart. She just tells the story of this magnificent woman's fascinating life. Link to Plantagenet England, friend and confidant of Catherine of Aragon, godmother and governess to Princess Mary, mother of Reginald Pole, future Archbishop of Canterbury, Margaret Pole was the richest woman in England, with lands and houses in her own name. From being favored by Henry VIII she fell to being imprisoned in the Tower of London, losing all her holdings; one son executed, another son exiled, she was unjustly condemned and horribly executed. She was not even legally tried, and was given an hour's notice of her death. Winston Churchill summed up Henry VIII's reign with the sad commentary on the failure of the once great promise of the Renaissance prince, noting the executions of queens (Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard), chancellors (Thomas More and Thomas Cromwell), a holy bishop (Fisher) and numerous monks and abbots (Richard Houghton and the Carthusians; Richard Whiting and the monks at Glastonbury), and 'almost every member of the nobility in whom royal blood ran'--Margaret Pole was one of those nobles. Hazel Pierce ensures that she is known for more than being one of Henry VIII's victims.

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Christ in the Village

Arturo Vasquez on the treasures of Catholic folk art. Share

Camille (1937)

The re-occurring image of the good-hearted courtesan redeemed by true love, as shown in operas and films ranging from La Rondine to Camille to Breakfast at Tiffany's, belongs for the most part to the realm of fantasy. There are exceptions to every rule; we have the example of many holy penitents to know that dramatic change is possible. Often in the past, reformed ladies of notoriety, such as Madame du Barry, would spend time in a monastery, some even became nuns. Giving scandal was seen as no small matter; the damage done to both the individual and to others was such that temporary withdrawal from the world was definitely part of the healing process.

However, fallen women belong to a bygone era. Someone can only be "fallen" if there is a certain standard from which to fall. In our time, most standards of what once constituted decent behavior have been drastically altered. Situations that formerly belonged to the "half-world," the demi-monde, are now mainstream.

Yet there are things that remain constant. Promiscuity, then as now, has a hardening effect upon the psyche, as well as destructive, long-term consequences. Such a life leaves many scars. Prostitution in any form is degrading, even the very glamorous whoredom portrayed in Camille, the 1937 cinematic masterpiece starring Greta Garbo and Robert Taylor. Based upon the 1848 novel La dame aux camélias by Alexandre Dumas fils, the "Lady of the Camellias" had already been the subject of an opera by Verdi, as well as several films.

Dumas' heroine "Marguerite Gautier" was inspired by the tragic life of one Marie Duplessis, a courtesan with whom Dumas became briefly involved in the 1840's. Marie was forced into prostitution by her own father at the age of twelve; she died of tuberculosis at the age of twenty-three, practically destitute. For a few years, her lively wit and discreet charm made her one of the most sought after courtesans in Paris.

As shown in Camille, the glitter of the demi-monde is only the flip side of despair. "Marguerite" does not even believe that lasting love exists, so enveloped is she by the tawdriness of her situation. Her peers, the other "fallen women," are rivals, jealous and competitive, out for what they can get.

"Armand" loves Marguerite, but for him to marry her would be the ruin of his career and of his family. He wants to marry her anyway, but Marguerite leaves him for his own good. She returns to her life in the demi-monde, until illness overtakes her.

In Camille, the normalcy of family life is shown distinctly connected with the Church, as at the First Communion celebration and in the wedding scene. Later, it is after Marguerite receives the last rites that Armand speaks to her of the marriage vows that both have already made in their hearts. With those words in her ears, she dies. One can only hope that the actual "Lady of the Camellias" died in such peace. Share

Vocation

Heidi Saxton reflects on what it is to be genuinely called to the priesthood. Share

La Bohème

La Bohème by Giacomo Puccini takes place mostly in the winter, but the score is so bursting with vitality and effervescence that it speaks longingly of spring. On the surface, the opera appears to be romanticizing what is basically a rather tawdry story. Young people shacking up in studio apartments, while it may now be the norm, in 1896 was regarded as "bohemian," on the fringe of society. But because La Bohème is great art, its meaning and appeal can relate as much to the here and now as ever it did to the past.

The characters in La Bohème are gifted, impulsive, and poor. They live for the moment, for love and for art, with marriage and commitment as an afterthought, if thought of at all. Their lackadaisical lifestyle degenerates into bickering, as the men are unable to take care of the women they love. The women turn to the arms of wealthy lovers for sustenance, losing honor as well as true romance. Sacrifices are made, and prayers are offered, but too late to save the relationships, or the life of the heroine.

According to this website:

Puccini’s La Boheme is a story of young love set in the bohemian culture of 1830s Paris. The bittersweet tragedy centers around an optimistic group of friends surviving on limited means. Rodolfo, a poet, shares a garret with his artist friend. Mimi is a seamstress living in a neighboring apartment. Mimi and Rodolfo meet and fall instantly, madly, in love. But the diva is already desperately ill with tuberculosis and not long for the world.

The libretto, by Giuseppe Giacosa and Luigi Illica, is based on Henri Murger’s novel Scènes de la vie de Bohème and was the inspiration for the Broadway musical Rent.

Puccini injected the joie de vivre of his student days into the vibrant score, as well as his searing insight into the human passions which, when allowed to spiral out of control, produce nothing but unmitigated tragedy. As one article says:

As for Puccini, La Bohème portrayed many of his own personal experiences. When he was in his twenties and attending the conservatory in Milan, he was like the bohemians in his opera story - a starving young artist. Pietro Mascagni, who later composed Cavalleria Rusticana and L'amico Fritz, was Puccini’s roommate. They lived in a garret where they were forbidden to cook, pooled their pennies to buy necessities, and dodged their creditors. And like Colline in the fourth act of the opera, Puccini once pawned his coat for money - but not for such a noble cause – he was taking a young ballerina out on the town!

The rapture and hope of young love are captured in the famous duet O soave fanciulla and in the provocative "Musetta's Waltz," Quando me n’vò. The final scene is profoundly moving and one cannot help feeling sorry for the misguided but good-hearted characters, even while being annoyed at them for their irresponsible and loose behavior. Share

View from the Domestic Church

Donna-Marie Cooper O'Boyle invites everyone to visit her new blog!

Donna has also been offering coverage of the debate about methods of teaching Theology of the Body. Here is a statement from Fr. Jose Granados:

It is highly inadequate and open to serious misunderstanding to say that John Paul II took the sexual revolution a step further. For the principles that were at work in Puritanism, with its negative vision of the body, are the same ones at work in pornography and in the sexual revolution. In both cases the body is seen without reference to the dignity of the person and to the plan of God for man; it is deprived of its symbolism and its language. Puritanism attempts this by silencing the body and its urges; the sexual revolution (as expressed for example in Hugh Hefner) by exalting it as an absolute. In both cases (but especially in the latter) the body, and with it the human person, are despised, because they are cut off from their ultimate origin and destiny. Pornography is in no sense an attempt to recover the beauty of the body and sexuality, but a sign of despair regarding this beauty and the possibility of finding meaning in human love.

The recovery of the meaning of the body, with reference to love and to the mystery of man and God, is the novelty brought about by John Paul II’s Theology of the Body. The Pope’s proposal is not about sexuality, but about the truth of love as the foundation of the person’s dignity and the meaning of reality; and about the family as the place where the person finds himself and his way towards happiness.

Moreover, one of the results of the sexual revolution is precisely the pansexualism that surrounds our society. We cannot respond with a different kind of pansexualism, with a sort of “Catholic sexual revolution,” which in the end promotes a similar obsession with sex, even if “holy.”

Fr. Jose Granados
Assistant Professor of Patrology and Systematic Theology at the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family

Coauthor of "Called to Love: Approaching John Paul II's Theology of the Body"

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City of Life and Death (2009)

There is a new film on the horrors of the rape of Nanjing. War is truly disgusting. Share