Source: RCDOW News

On 18^th July 2023, the Court of Appeal reduced the sentence of Carla Foster to 14 months suspended, following her earlier imprisonment for illegally obtaining abortion tablets to end her pregnancy during lockdown. Commenting on the ruling, Bishop John Sherrington, Lead Bishop for Life Issues for the Bishops’ Conference, said:

‘I reiterate the consistent teaching of the Church that both the mother and the unborn child should be afforded the protection of the law and that abortion is always a tragedy for all concerned.

‘It is important that the law which  protects the life of the unborn child is upheld. In this case I welcome the court’s decision to show mercy and compassion so that Carla Foster is reunited with her children and her family life can continue.

‘I raise again the concern that telemedicine (pills by post), which allows the home termination of pregnancies of up to 10 weeks, is dangerous for the health of women.’ 

Source: Independent Catholic News

The following tribute was delivered by the sons of Mike Clarke, Matthew and Andrew, at his funeral at Edmonton Parish in North London on 10 July 2023.

Dad was aware of the pain of the world, and the nonsenses that can cause it, and he met it with a mischievous spirit, always ready to prick pomposity with a joke, undermine any forced formality with a winking playfulness, and by quietly working all his life to make the world around him a better place.

And he never stopped trying, right up until the end, doing work in the hospital; simply and quietly ‘getting on with it’ – applying the skills he had to make things run a little bit better.

Let us give you an idea of what he did.

Michael Thomas Clarke was born on 21 January 1943, in West Ruislip. Mike’s parents were both from the south of Ireland. His Dad, Tom, built planes for the war effort, and his Mum, Nora, was a housekeeper for the rich folk of west London and a good cook to boot.

They moved to Chalk Farm, where he spent most of his younger years. The Rosary Primary School on Haverstock Hill, St Dominic’s in Hampstead, and then Cardinal Vaughan School in Kensington.

He was frighteningly bright and a model student by most accounts, but a little distracted and lazy by his own. He, of course, ultimately excelled, and left school with a clutch of A levels

But his true focus was having a good time with friends: music, and theatre, and football and having a drink. He met some of his life long friends at the St Dominic’s youth group.

He was a teacher for a time, teaching Biology although he had very little grounding in Biology himself, and did it, so he said, by keeping one chapter in the textbook ahead of the students. He also had a stint selling Menswear at Moss Bros.

Then, in the early 60s, he got a job at Lloyds Bank who, seeing he had a Maths A Level, moved him to a newly formed department: ‘computing and programming’, and so he started his main career at the very forefront of the computer revolution that has so transformed our modern world. Combining his gifts for numbers, for detail, and for organisation, it was perfect for him.

But outside of his work, he never gave up his love of singing, and live performance.

He joined the Lloyds Bank Amateur Dramatic and Operatic Society and became a leading man. There he played Nathan Detroit in ‘Guys and Dolls’, Oscar Madison in ‘The Odd Couple’, appeared in ‘Cabaret’, ‘Half A Sixpence’ and many more, all performed in the West End.

With The Friends of St Edmunds, he put on musicals and music hall reviews in the church hall – he would usually be the host, and the glue that held it all together. He joined the Choir at St Edmunds, and everyone in the church would know what the tune was when he was singing as he led the entire congregation with his powerful bass. In the words of Maire, our organist: “He had a calming influence on all of us. He offered many sensible suggestions especially when we approached anything challenging and was supportive in every way. He was loved by all of us and is deeply missed.”

Later on, after retirement, he joined the Concord Players. Dad was still performing either singing or leading dramatic roles well in to his 70s. In 2017 he starred in ‘The Hebrew Lesson’ by Wolf Mankowitz with the Incognito Group.

Outside of that he was an avid golfer, and sometimes a good one. And, at the Bush Hill Park Golf Club he of course became the resident host of many entertainment nights. He implemented a Handicap System which, though it contradicted the governing rules of The Royal and Ancient Golf Club, made the mixed ability group fairer.

And outside of all that, as a part of this parish and community, he became a school governor and eventually, after we had both left, chair of governors of St Edmunds Primary School.

He was the chair of the finance committee for this parish of St Edmunds. He was also the Chair of Church Street Residents’ association.

And, following Mum and her work with the National Justice & Peace Network, he joined and became their national treasurer. In the words of Anne Peacey, vice-chair of the NJPN:

“In my mind I have a clear picture of Mike during our many meetings at CAFOD, reclining at the back of the gathering, until called upon to present his financial reports. His approach was direct, along the lines of ‘this is what we spent, this is what we have left. Any questions?’

We knew with certainty that Mike had all the information at his fingertips and that NJPN was in very safe financial hands. Using his natural talent for numbers, for detail, and organisation, he put the work in to make his communities run better, to work properly, so they could carry on putting good back into the world.”

And outside of all that he got married and had a family. In the early 60s he met one Lauretta Lanigan (Lauri) at a weekend for the Priory Choir at Spode House. They would go to Spode sometimes twice a year, and socialise at The Hampstead Catholic Club at weekends. They were married in 1968 – a marriage lasting 55 years. In 1972 they moved to Edmonton. The house always full of laughter and people chatting. During these nights he taught us how to appreciate a good whiskey, the importance of sharing a bottle of wine with friends, and, most importantly, of making guests feel like our house was theirs. And he would tell long rambling jokes (complete with accents) and effortlessly occupy the centre of the party.

One of the last things Dad said to us, as he lay in the hospital bed – with my mum, my brother, and me alongside – was ‘I’m terribly sorry about this chaps’. He was sad that he was causing pain, even as he suffered himself. Right until the end, he was still working in order to care about others. In his own way he was looking out for those around him, quietly working to make the lives of the people around him better.

Michael Clarke died in the early morning of 25th June 2023.

His funeral was on 10 July 2023 at St Edmund’s RC Church, Edmonton.

The presider was Fr Emmanuel Ogunnaike MSP

Concelebrants were Fr Gerry Onyejuluwa MSP, Fr Noel Ugoagwu MSP, and Fr Dominic Robinson SJ (representing Westminster J&P Commission)

Representatives of the National Justice and Peace Network and Pax Christi were in the congregation.

Pope Francis has nominated Bishop Nicholas Hudson, as a member of the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops that will convene from 4th to 29th October in Rome. Bishop Nicholas led a team of four in-person delegates at the Synod’s European Continental Assembly meeting in Prague in February 2023.

“I feel very honoured to have been nominated by the Holy Father to be a member of the October Synod; and to have been asked to play a part in the contribution of England and Wales to this vital work of the Universal Church,” said Bishop Nicholas.

“I trust that all of us who take part in this Synod will experience something of the same ‘transformative power of listening’ which characterised the European Continental Assembly. I hope we will know in Rome the deep sense gained in Prague of standing alongside one another with our gaze fixed on Christ – sometimes even a sense of His walking among us, contemplating with us the mystery of the Church.”

He joins Archbishop John Wilson and Bishop Marcus Stock as episcopal members of the Synod from England and Wales. Fr Jan Nowotnik is a non-bishop member with voting rights.

Dominican friar Fr Timothy Radcliffe OP will lead a synod retreat for participants and has been nominated a Spiritual Assistant.

Professor Anna Rowlands and Dr Austen Ivereigh will serve as experts/facilitators.

Bishop Nicholas is auxiliary bishop in the Diocese of Westminster with responsibility for Justice and Peace.

Links

Synod Working Document: Instrumentum Laboris

Catholic Bishops Conference of England and Wales: Synod Webpages

Vatican: Synod Website

Tony Sheen, CAFOD representative on the Westminster Justice & Peace Commission, is retiring next month. Reflecting on his time with CAFOD and Justice & Peace, Tony writes:

As some of you may already know, I am planning on retiring this August. It’s been a privilege for me to work for CAFOD alongside so many inspiring volunteers, colleagues and partners overseas for almost 18 Years. It has also been an honour to serve on the Westminster Justice and Peace commission during this time alongside some great inspiring people of faith.

I must say I was overjoyed to move from volunteer to member of staff at CAFOD in January 2006 at the height of the Make Poverty History Campaign. Whilst the campaign didn’t make poverty history, it did achieve billions of pounds of debt relief which resulted in funds being available for a number of developing countries to reallocate for free Primary School education.   This is a great example of how Justice and Peace Campaigners can make a real difference. I have had so many wonderful experiences with CAFOD and Justice and Peace over the past 17 plus years which have become an integral part of who I am. Hosting and taking CAFOD partners around the Diocese and hearing their stories of struggle over adversity and hope reminded us how important CAFOD is to the life of the Church. Some of you will remember being moved and inspired talks from Nete, from Brazil, Fr John from Korogotia, Fidel and Erasmo from El Salvador and Sr Clara from Zambia. 

I myself had the privilege visiting communities that CAFOD work alongside in Brazil visiting the Favelas of San Paolo with no sanitation or land rights, the heart-breaking disparity between rich and poor, the fight for justice by inspiring partners, the occupations of abandoned buildings and hope while their struggle continues.

I was also privileged to witness our work in the Amazon in the state of Roraima and experience the hospitality of the Macuxi indigenous Indians and learn about their struggle and fight against ongoing human rights abuses. Images of Mass and offertory both in the Favelas where the poor brought food for the hungry to the altar and the gifts of God’s creation at the offertory in the Amazon.

Over the years, we have raised the profile and importance of Fairtrade in the Diocese of Westminster, with over half of the Parishes committing to serve and promote Fairtrade goods regularly. Justice & Peace celebrated us becoming a Fairtrade Diocese in 2020.  However, we must continue to encourage all Parishes to serve Fairtrade coffee, tea, sugar, chocolate Easter eggs, wine etc.  We also have to care for our earth and care for our sisters and brothers in poverty. One fine way of doing this is the many parishes of have undertaken the journey towards the Live Simply Award. If you are unaware of the award, please start by looking at the web page here: https://cafod.org.uk/campaign/livesimply-award

We are currently campaigning against and unfair food system and lobbying the World Bank to allow farmers in developing countries to use free traditional seeds to grow food rather than be pressured to use expensive hybrid seeds to grow soya to feed cows instead. These Hybrid seeds only produce one year’s yield and are highly dependent on pesticides. I hope you will be able to support the CAFOD campaign in your Parish. Find out more here. https://cafod.org.uk/campaign/fix-the-food-system

I retire on 17^th August and will return to being a parish volunteer for CAFOD and Justice & Peace. I look forward to the arrival of our first grandchild, God-willing, this September.

I hope some of you will join me for a farewell bring and share party with volunteers at Oakwood on Thursday 27^th July at 5pm.

Our Work for Justice and Peace is going and as they say in Brazil, “A luta continua!” – the struggle continues! I leave you with a prayer often attributed to Oscar Romero from the CAFOD vision mission and values leaflet:

It helps, now and then, to step back and take the long view.

The Kingdom is not only beyond our efforts; it is even beyond our vision.

We accomplish in our lifetime only a fraction of the magnificent enterprise that is God’s work.

Nothing we do is complete, which is another way of saying that the kingdom always lies beyond us.

No statement says all that could be said.  No prayer fully expresses our faith.  No confession brings perfection.  No pastoral visit brings wholeness.  No program accomplishes the church’s mission.  No set of goals and objectives includes everything.

This is what we are about.

We plant the seeds that one day will grow.  We water the seeds already planted, knowing that they hold future promise.  We lay foundations that will need further development.  We provide yeast that produces effects far beyond our capabilities.

We cannot do everything and there is a sense of liberation in realizing that.  This enables us to do something and to do it well.  It may be incomplete, but it is a beginning, a step along the way, an opportunity for the Lord’s grace to enter and do the rest.  We may never see the end results, but that is the difference between the master builder and the worker.

We are workers, not master builders, ministers, not messiahs.

We are prophets of a future not our own.

Fr Dominic and Colette write: We are indebted to Tony for his long service on the Westminster Justice and Peace Commission and extraordinary commitment to promoting and integrating the work of CAFOD within the life of the Diocese. As well as helping thousands of Westminster parishioners engage with the struggle against poverty and hunger worldwide, Tony has led the way on concerns such as Fairtrade, environmental justice and bringing whole communities together via the Live Simply Award. He remains J & P Contact for Enfield so we hope to continue benefitting from his wisdom, boundless enthusiasm and experience for many more years to come! Happy retirement, Tony.