Weekly Record

8 November 2009

Our faithfulness in maintaining the tradition of Remembrance Sunday has a twofold importance. There is the memory of the horror of two world wars in the last century and recognition of the loss of life and sacrifices that were made by members of the armed forces and public services. There is also the recognition that each year has its own story of conflicts, peace-keeping efforts and loss of life. We need to pray for those who are caught up in these conflicts, for our servicemen and women and for all who work for peace and dialogue in areas of conflict. That is why it is essential that ‘We Remember Them’. As well as our own moments of prayer in our various Masses today there will be a service of Remembrance for the Merchant Navy which will be held here at 3pm.

‘The Priests’ recording at our Cathedral is back on again this Tuesday evening. We had a meeting on site last week with the producer and technicians who have been contracted by Sony to film and record the concert for American TV and a DVD which will go on sale. The rigmarole of what producers would like and what we allow is a formula that we have been through here many times but the interesting thing for me was being able to speak to the agent of the three priests. She had been in the music business and handled celebrities for many years but nothing had prepared her for the shock and challenge of managing three priests! I was very amused at the stories she had to tell and of discovering what they would and wouldn’t be prepared to do and just how much more difficult it was to co-ordinate their availability and organise their time than anyone else she had experience of. She has had to adjust to situations and messages such as -  ‘I can’t do a photoshoot in Italy because I have a funeral that day’ etc….

With the onset of Winter the banners on the Cathedral Piazza have been taken down before the wind and weather damage them any further. This makes the whole area look rather empty and devoid of colour. At present we are in talks with the Planning Department and Raphael Seitz ( German glass artist) to seek approval for the siting of two glass columns at the Mount Pleasant end of the Piazza, similar to the existing two pairs of columns on the Precinct level. This will complete the series of glass gateways around the campus announcing the Cathedral in abstract coloured glass and will also provide a significant art feature looking out over Mount Pleasant and Hope Street. Following this we will be applying for possible grant support and seeking willing sponsors to raise the funds to pay for them. The work to create an extra handrail on the Cathedral steps should begin this week.

Next weekend we welcome the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, His Beatitude, Archbishop Fwad Twal. He will preside at 11am Mass with Archbishop Kelly and be present at the Confirmation Mass at 3pm. One of the purposes of his visit is to establish a network of Friends and Supporters of the Holy Land. Archbishop Patrick has made us well aware of the plight of the small numbers of Christians in the Holy Land and the challenges that their church faces at this time. The Patriarch will launch this at the afternoon mass with the Knights and Dames of the Holy Sepulchre present as well as representatives from many of our parishes. Quite how all this integrates with the Service of Confirmation remains to be seen.

Canon Anthony O’Brien
Dean of the Cathedral