SIR – Whatever individual bishops may decide with regard to the provision of clergy from overseas (and however such provision may fit in with the fostering of vocations to the priesthood), it is a historical fact that the Church in England and Wales has always depended upon clergy from other countries, and sometimes heavily so (News focus, May 27).
Perusal of lists of incumbents from medieval times in churches that were once Catholic will reveal any number of Anglo-Norman names. Moreover, apart from the crucial contribution made by the Irish clergy, especially in the period following the Restoration of the Hierarchy in 1850 until recent times, the 19th and 20th centuries witnessed a significant number of priests, both secular and regular, from the Low Countries, Italy and Spain. From France, beginning with the exiles in the wake of the Revolution of 1789, there have been many clergy who have settled in this country and ministered to its Catholics.
In my own diocese (Brentwood) alone I can think of nine parishes established by clergy from abroad: three French; three Belgian; and one each from Portugal, the United States and Spain. Moreover, in a further 13 parishes the first incumbent was an Irishman. Finally, we should never forget that Blessed John Henry Newman himself was received into the Catholic Church by an Italian Passionist.
Yours faithfully,
Fr Stewart Foster
By email
SIR – Having read Suzanne Greaves’s letter (May 27) reflecting on her week-long pilgrimage to the shrine at Lourdes in the company and care of many volunteers of the Knights of Malta, I felt compelled to acknowledge the great gift that is received through countless people who volunteer their time and energy to minister to the sick and infirm at Lourdes.
A few years ago, after a grape-sized lesion was found in my brainstem, I became partially paralysed and wheelchair bound, requiring full-time personal care. Though it was never said, the prospects of my survival were virtually zero. The offer of a place to travel with a neighbouring diocese was given.
Without the constant network of support of volunteers and medical professionals, such a pilgrimage, from airport to shrine and back, would have been impossible.
After 17 years of busy ministry, I discovered that my weakness as a sick pilgrim was paradoxically the greatest gift that I have received as a priest. It was there at Lourdes I discovered the mystery of the Church Universal as the mystical Body of Christ, ministering with many hands and faces. It was truly humbling to witness the presence of so many – be they a student from South Korea, a “tech giant” executive from California or a smiling publican from Glasgow – all speaking a common language of love with joy.
I am very grateful to my consultant neurologist, who keeps an attentive eye on my rehabilitation, and to the neurosurgeons who performed pioneering brain surgery several months after my return from Lourdes. But I will always be thankful, too, to the medical professionals and the countless people from all walks of life, of all ages and all places, who carried me to the shrine at Lourdes and with generosity and grace ministered to me in my weakness.
Yours faithfully,
Fr Niall Sheehan
By email
SIR – Rachel Kelly’s article (Interview, June 3), about Baroness Hollins and her work at the Vatican advising the Pope on the protection of children and vulnerable adults, prompts me to write to you about another aspect of caring for abuse victims (and the perpetrators) which is often ignored and is unknown to most people.
I am a diocesan exorcist, and easily 40 per cent of the people I try to help are abuse victims. I know someone else (a layman) who has been in the healing ministry full time for about 30 years who also sees many abuse victims. We, and others, exercise an important ministry of healing prayer and spiritual counselling, and some of those we see have had a more secular kind of counselling or even some psychiatric treatment, but are still in need of healing.
In my experience, some victims need deliverance from spiritual oppression or obsession. In some cases demons are involved (though this usually involves more than the actual abuse). As for the abusers, we hear nothing. I have twice written to bishops to warn them that there is another aspect to this whole sad situation which receives little attention, and I believe there will inevitably be cases that cannot be dealt with using the usual secular/medical tools.
At one conference I attended, the late Fr Rufus Pereira, a well-known authority on exorcism and deliverance, said: “If child abuse is not demonic, I don’t know what is.” I have read of two cases in Ireland where one priest abuser was actually possessed, and another was consciously cooperating with evil, and was in need of deliverance. I cannot speak for other exorcists, but I have never been asked to help an abuser.
As for victims, I see many and, thank God, they are often greatly helped through the ministries of inner healing and deliverance. Yes, we certainly have a long way to go in understanding both the complexities of these problems and how we may best help those who are suffering from very deep wounds of one kind or another.
Yours faithfully,
Fr John Abberton
St Anthony’s, Bradford, West Yorkshire
SIR – There have been two mentions of Wrexham diocese in recent articles. Our bishop has devised an excellent plan to consolidate the diocese and guarantee a Sunday Mass for all his flock. Historic churches are preserved and some awful 1960s chapels of ease are closed.
Our diocesan clergy are strengthened by excellent priests from Nigeria, Poland and India. Despite immigration from Eastern Europe, the diocese is still in numerical decline. However, this is true of other dioceses, and the fact remains that Catholic schools, while good in academic terms, are still not teaching the faith in an effective manner – a manner in which a child is given a coherent explanation of the faith based on the exclusive claims of the Catholic Church and the duty we have to the Holy Mother Church. Without a spiritual urgency and a zeal for the salvation of souls, we do not have the authentic faith.
Yours faithfully,
Robert Ian Williams
By email
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