Wednesday 20 July 2011

Helping in the Horn of Africa



"Cor Unum"
is the Holy Father's Charity.



Horn of Africa

Yesterday the Pontifical Council Cor Unum warned that
hundreds of thousands of people in the Horn of Africa
are at risk of dying due to a lack of basic necessities
caused by drought and violence.

This council, which oversees the Church's charity work,
noted Benedict XVI's appeal on Sunday.

"Around 10 million people are suffering, and hundreds of thousands of refugees risk dying because of a lack of basic necessities. Somalia and northern Kenya are the worst struck areas."

The drought is the worst the area has seen for 60 years.
The last official famine was in 1984-85,
when about 1 million people in Ethiopia and Sudan died.

South Somalia is controlled by Islamic fundamentalists
who until last week had banned aid agencies from the area.

The Pope appealing for the Horn of Africa last Sunday.

The Holy Father already sent a €50,000 ($70,000) donation
through Cor Unum
to the apostolic administrator of the Somali capital, Mogadishu.
The Apostolic Administrator Bishop Giorgio Bertin
is directly involved in bringing assistance to the people affected.



The Holy Father speaks.


We invite you to send donations to the Holy Father's Charity -
The Pontifical Council Cor Unum:
How to do it:
The bank details below are from the Cor Unum website:


Bank transfers in Euro (€) from outside Italy:

Pontifical Council "Cor Unum"
Account Number: 603035
Bank: Banco Posta, Poste Italiane S.p.A.
Bank Address: Viale Europa, 175; I-00144 Rome, Italy
BIC-SWIFT Code for Poste Italiane S.p.A: BPPIITRRXXX

(Please provide your name and address,
as well as where you wish the funds to be sent,
so that your gift can be properly acknowledged.)


Bank transfers in other currencies from outside Italy:

(US Dollar USD, Australian Dollar AUD,
Canadian Dollar CAD, British Pound GBP,
Swiss Franc CHF, Japanese Yen JPY):


Pontifical Council "Cor Unum"
Account Number: 603035
Bank: Banco Posta, Poste Italiane S.p.A.
Bank Address: Viale Europa, 175; I-00144 Rome, Italy
BIC-SWIFT Code for Banca Popolare di Sondrio: POSOIT22XXX

(Please provide your name and address,
as well as where you wish the funds to be sent,
so that your gift can be properly acknowledged.)

Donations in any currency can also be made to:

Pontifical Council "Cor Unum"
Account Number: 101010
Bank: Banca di Roma
IBAN Code: IT93 J 03002 05008 000000 101010
SWIFT Code: BROMITR1204

(Please provide your name and address,
as well as where you wish the funds to be sent,
so that your gift can be properly acknowledged.)

In the UK
donations large and small to relieve the famine
through the Holy Father's charity "Cor Unun"
may be sent to the Apostolic Nuncio
at the following address:

Most Reverend Archbishop Antonio Mennini
Apostolic Nunciature
54 Parkside
Wimbledon
London, SW19 5NE

(reposted from Transalpine Redemptorists at Home)

Monday 18 July 2011

Evangelium 2011

by Dr Joseph Shaw

It is still possible to book places at the Evangelium Conference taking place at the Oratory School near Reading, 5th – 7th August 2011, for young adults (18-35).

Here is a list of the participants:
  • Rt Rev. Mark Davies - Bishop of Shrewsbury
  • Steve Ray - World famous Catholic evangelist and former Baptist
  • Dr Caroline Farey - Head of the Maryvale Institute Catechetical Team
  • Fr Jerome Bertram - Oratorian and writer
  • Sr Roseann Ready - Founder of the Sisters for the Gospel of Life
  • Dr Andrew Nash - Expert on Bl. John Henry Newman
  • Dr Joseph Shaw - Philosopher at Oxford University
  • Fr Ed Tomlinson - Priest of the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham
  • Joanna Bogle - Broadcaster, writer, author of Feasts and Seasons
  • Jaime Bogle - President of the Catholic Union
  • Fiorella Nash - Catholic novelist
  • Edmund Adamus - Director of Pastoral Affairs for Westminster Archdiocese
  • Fr Thomas Crean OP - author of A Catholic Replies to Professor Dawkins
  • Fr Marcus Holden - Co-founder of St Anthony Communications; co-author of Evangelium
  • Fr Andrew Pinsent - Oxford University Theology Faculty, former particle physicist at CERN
The Reading Oratory School was founded under the supervision of John Henry, later Cardinal Newman, in 1859, and is today one of the top independent boys' schools in the United Kingdom.

Price: £95 (full board)

Further information


Yes, I will be there, and on past form so will the Extraordinary Form of the Mass. It promises to be a very interesting event.

Gregorian Chant for Beginners in Orkney

Mr Ben Whitworth of the Orkney Schola will be teaching an evening class, 'Gregorian Chant for Beginners', starting on Wednesday 28 September, and running until Wednesday 23 November (with a break on 9 November) in Orkney. The course will be held at the King Street Halls, Kirkwall, under the auspices of the Council's Community Learning Programme.

Full details will be available soon, but please mark your diary now! More information will be found on the Schola's blog at orkneychant.blogspot.com.