Praxiteles

Rhabanus!

Any idea of where one moght find a copy (perhaps electronic) of Caluse de Vert’s Explication des Ceremonies de L’Eglise?

Was this a Vosko job?

There is a higly contentious account of the attemped wreckage of St Colman’s Cathedral, Cobh, Co. Cork in a book recently published by Veritas. It is called Hand to Plough and claims to be memoir of the life of Denis O’Callaghan, the Vicar General of the dioces of Cloyne. [Curiously, the cover featurees the author in a boat with no sight of a plough}. Accurate recollection distinguishes a memoir from mere ramblings or, worse still, rantings. In this, the book is sorely lacking. For example O’C claims that 40,000 persons signed a petition against the reordering. The FOSCC claimed that 24,000 signed. O,C claims that the Midleton Oral Hearing was personally presided over by the Chief Planning Officer. In fact it was conducted by an official of An Bord Pleqnala called Tom Rabbit. O’C claims that opposition to the reordering emerged in the wake of the Oral Heraing. In fact it was already vey well manifested and orgaised long before any Oral Hearing. O’C claims that he cannot understand the rationale of An Bord Pleanala and its decision to deny planning permission for the destruction of the sanctuary of Cobh Cathedral. He never mentions that every major heritage body in the country opposed the plan prepared by Professor O’Neill: An Taisce, The Georgian Society, The Department of the Envoronment, the Cork County Conservation Officer, the Pugin Society and of course the FOSCC. It takes some pretty thik skin not to have even a slight inkling that something maight be wrong with all these bodies opposing the scheme. While the book has quite a lot of crap about lay participation in the Church, O’C never once mentions asking anyone in Cobh or Cloyne diocese about plans or even mentioning the word “consultation”. Information sessions are mentioned but O’C forgets to mention that these took place AFTER the famous planning application was made and when no meaingful contribution could be made to a proper but non existent consultation process. O’C pretends that only the best professional advice was sought by the developers involved oin this project and conveniently omits mentioning that some of the best conservation and legal experts in Ireland were employed by the FOSCC and international experts were imported from Britain and Rome to give evidence on liturgical matters. O’C is heavily peddling the business of oiturgical gathering around the altar and physical proximity to the congregation. He may have to adjust his opinions in this respect after the publication of Summorum Pontificum – much as his 1966 artice in Woman’s Way on contraception was substantially improved upon in other section os the book. Then there are the three occasions on which we are told that Bishop Magee is very disappointed with the outcome of the whole debacle – as well he should since he was well warned as to the consequences of failure for him. Surely, is it not the business of a Vocar General to tell a bishop what he needs to her rather than what he thinks he would like to hear? Working that way, he will ensure that his bishop does not land in the huge embarrassment the bishop of Cloyne now suffers. One could go on about this book and about its account of the Cobh reordering. In short, it is a crappy book written by someone who wishes to reassures us that hge is really a very ordinary guy without realizing that none of us ever had reason to regard him as anything other!!!

I came across this recent publication from Ignatius Oress in San Francisco. It formulates clearily some of the principles I ahve been harping on about for the past two years

http://www.ignatius.com/ViewProduct.aspx?SID=1&Product_ID=3064&SKU=NPFG-P&ReturnURL=search.aspx%3f%3fSID%3d1%26SearchCriteria%3dno+place+for+god:

@Rhabanus wrote:

Some histrionic Italian bishop is going on and on about the motu proprio Summorum pontificum. A full report appears on Inside the Vatican Magazine newsflash@insidethevatican.com made available below.

Sounds as though an acorn just landed on Chicken Little’s head and now he’s proclaiming the end of the world: “The sky is falling!!” Now watch him circulate around the barnyard stirring up panic among Henny Penny, Ducky Lucky, Turkey Lurkey, and all the rest. I think it’s high time that Foxy Loxy had dinner: Squab Lorraine.

Just get a load of these juicy tidbits:

“This day is for me a day of grief. I have a lump in my
throat and I do not manage to hold back my tears. But, I will obey the
Holy Father, because I am a bishop and because I care for him. However,
I cannot hide my sadness for the putting aside of one of the most
important reforms of the Second Vatican Council.” In fact, Monsignor
Luca Brandolini, Bishop of Sora-Aquino-Pontecorvo and member of the
Liturgical Committee of the Cei (Italian Episcopal Conference), hardly
holds back his tears when he is asked for a comment on the
reintroduction of the Tridentine Latin Mass: “Please, do not ask me
anything, I do not wish to speak [about it], for I am living the
saddest
day of my life as a priest, as a bishop, and as a man.”

Q: Monsignor Brandolini, why [are you] so upset?

A: “It is a day of grief, not only for me, but for many who lived and
worked in the Second Vatican Council. Today, a reform for which so many
labored, at the cost of great sacrifices, animated solely by the wish
to
renew the Church, has been canceled.”

Q: The optional return to the Tridentine Rite represents thus a danger
for the Church?

A: “We hope not. It remains to be seen in the future, but today an
important reform of the Council was undermined.”

Q: Why are you so touched by the decision taken by Pope Ratzinger?

A: “The episcopal ring which I carry on my finger belonged to
archbishop Annibale Bugnini, the father of the Conciliar liturgical
reform. I was, at the time of the Council, a disciple of his and a
close
co-worker. I was close to him when he worked in that reform and I
always
recall with how much passion he worked for liturgical renewal. Now, his
work has been canceled.”

Q: You will not accept the “motu proprio” of Benedict XVI, then?

A: “I will obey, because I care for the Holy Father. I have for him the
same sentiment that a son has for his father. And then, as a bishop, I
am bound to obedience. Yet, in my heart, I suffer deeply. I feel as if
wounded in my heart, and I cannot help saying it. Nonetheless, if
anyone
in my diocese will ask me to follow the Tridentine rite, I will not be
able to say no. But I do not believe this will happen, because ever
since I have been the bishop of Sora-Aquino-Pontecorvo, there has never
been anyone who has expressed a similar desire. I am certain that it
will always be like this in the future.”

*** NEW SUBSCRIBERS ONLY! Subscribe to Inside the Vatican Magazine for
Only $34.95! Buy Now and Save
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This is Brandolini, the Bishop of Sora. It is all explained by the fact that he was Annibale Bugnini’s secretary. Readers of the thread will be familiar with this name since he fetures on our notable iconocalsts page. I do not thing it matters too much. Brandolini is now 72 and will soon be sailing into the great oblivion before too long.

I am inclined to think that the statues in Sts Peter and Paul’s require something more sophisticated. There are still craftsmen working in the Tyrol who do this sort of stuff and fixing a pair of hands shouod be no bother to them.

Another excellent resource for research on Irish church decoration in the 19 and 20th century is the Capuchin Annual, especially its advertisment sections and many interesting articles on artists and ecclesiastical commissions.

@ake wrote:

Any chance of a scan of that article?

Unfortunately, have not access to it at present.

@Gregory wrote:

I’ve been following this discussion with interest for some months. I recently came across a poor quality image of Armagh Cathedral’s sanctuary in 1977 – hopefully I’ve attached it correctly!

Thank s for that Gregory. Interesting to see a more recent view of Armsgh brfore the deluge.

I posted some pictures of the Pro Cathedral in Dublin taken c. 1900 showing the stencil work there. I would suggest that a similar scheme probably existed in Thurles. Certainly, the approach here is better than the bland acres of pink pastels nopw so common in churches in nIrelsnd but at the same time I think that the stenciling work is too plain and far too reduced for the proportions of a building such as Thurles.