The Domestic Church - Making the Stations of the Cross for our Domestic Liturgy

Last night we tried something new. Something we had never needed to do before or ever planned to do. We took it for granted that our Churches would always be open! Although we have always immensely valued the Domestic Church, we had never imagined that it was going to be (at least for a time) the exclusive centre of our Faith.

So here we are with a community of people, small and big, depending on us parents, to guide them through this desert, holding on to us, holding on to the Faith passed onto to us from our parents,  knowing that  “where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I  among them.” – Matthew 18:20

As it was Friday in Lent we would have attended the "Stations of the Cross' devotion in the Parish...Instead we put up our handmade stations around the house, beginning in the kitchen and ending in the little girls’ bedroom, and set off on a journey around our domestic Jerusalem. 

The younger children learnt the responses and Pierpaolo, - the Bishop of the Domestic Church-  led the liturgy and sang the verses from the Stabat Mater. 

Lucia held a candle in front of each station as we moved through the house. 

It was a beautiful moment of prayer and one we’ll do again on Good Friday.

How we made the Stations of the Cross:

I wanted something easy for the children to put together, something they needed little help to do but where the final result would be nice and tidy! So as we had been learning about Stained Glass window techniques I thought that kind of pattern could work.

I ordered some downloadable  patterns  and we started this project hoping for a good result as well as finally learning the order of the Stations.

We printed the pattern to fit an A4 Sheet and the children then traced the image with a black Sharpie onto (let's call it side B) of a piece of tracing paper.

We tested a great number of types of paint but decided that children's liquid Acrylics worked best. We also painted on side B

It took the girls a very long time to paint them all, and everyone - or most of us - had to, at some point, help with the painting as we had to finish them in time for our family liturgy (so make sure to give yourself 3 days to complete this project or a whole afternoon with no interruptions).

Once the the paint was dry, we turned the pictures over to the side you are meant to see (Side A) and I applied a very thin layer of gold leaf glue to the halos and swords and after a few seconds applied gold leaf to each picture (Gold paint would also work). I did the same with swords using Silver leaf instead. This really lifted the pictures and brought the colours to life. 

We cut the pictures following the circle of the pattern and glued them onto some brown card, I had laying around, where we had pre cut a smaller circle than the picture to allow light to come through the tracing paper from the back.

Elena, wrote the number of each station directly below the picture on the brown card with a Gold Sharpie. We then applied gold leaf on the Roman Numerals as well as the borders, once again, applying a very thin layer of glue, waiting for a few seconds and applying the leaf with the intent to have an 'antique look' of Gold coming off and missing in some parts.

The Family Liturgy was very moving and because it wasn't static and was done by candlelight the younger ones found it fascinating. 

We started from the kitchen, at the heart of our domestic life, and went around the downstairs rooms then up the stairs to calvary. We strategically finished the procession in the yourger children's bedroom, naturally accompanying them to bed. 

The girls were put in bed, the candle was blown out and we experienced a sort of bitter sweet joy, longing for something we never knew would be hidden from us for a time.

     

SPUC Youth Conference 2018

Ettore (age18 in June)

The day started like any other, it was a Friday and the weekend was coming. I just needed to get through a double period of chemistry and then I was free. But my weekend was going to be very different. I was going to engage in something truly meaningful!

My brother and I met up at home in London then left for the North. After a two hour journey and a taxi ride we arrived to the conference centre, late as Italians  normally are, but better late than never (we unfortunately missed Fiorella Nash’s talk on the fact that women are being told that their babies are hijackers or parasites, which I heard was very good) . We had a quick fish dinner and enjoyed the life themed quiz night, team names were very amusing, the pick of the bunch was ‘should have gone to SPUCsavers’. The prizes were also life themed, for example ‘Cadbury’s marvellous creations’ were the prize of choice as we are all a marvellous creations!

The next day the day started as any good day should, with Confession and Mass followed by another great thing, English breakfast! Then we had many different workshops, I went to the workshop on social media use for the spreading of the pro-life message, it was very useful and told us to avoid the week long flame wars on the comment sections of facebook and instead try and bring it into real life. 

Then we had a talk on the effects of assisted suicide laws given by Prof. David Paton, who warned of the great dangers of implementing an assisted suicide law.

Later we had a talk on the rights of conscience in European and international law, and why British medical staff should be protected. An important talk for those of us who were planning a career in medicine (of which there were many.) He explained the protections under the law which conscientious objectors had in an aspects of medicine, be it doctors, nurses or pharmacists to not perform abortions or sell abortifacient drugs and contraceptives. It was a relatively positive talk on how justice triumphs in this case, giving us the right to object and not face any consequences like being fired. Having filled our stomachs on a lunch of chilli con carne followed by cake we moved on to the next talk. This one was given by Prof. Patricia Casey on mental health and abortion. She's a psychologist who has dealt with many cases of women who have been affected by abortion both indirectly and directly. I particularly enjoyed this talk as she dissected studies done on whether or not abortion causes mental health. She commented on the fact that we do tend to exaggerate the consequences of abortion on women, of course some feel regret,  but many deal with it ‘well.’ In addition she spoke of the risk factors that increase the likelihood of women developing post abortion mental health issues, like being coerced, being a teen, history of previous mental health issues or religious beliefs. Although this may not seem very useful to the apologetics side of things, it does help us to speak the truth more fully. However she didn't leave without giving us ammunition, the studies also said that women who seek an abortion and did not receive one did not have an increase mental health issues. Basically discounting the fact that abortion is a cure for the so called dangers to the mental health of the mother. So the 96% of abortions done in the name of preventing damage to the mother's mental health are carried out for a reason that has no basis in science. But hey what do we know we're just crazy antiscience nuts, for some reason in this case several peer reviewed studies on the topic don't mean anything!

 Then SPUC Scotland gave a talk on the work Project Truth does by spreading the pro-life message and getting to the heart of the issue by having genuine conversations all around Scotland in a tour bus. This was followed by March for Life organisers who rightly said ‘people always ask us why Birmingham, and so this year we decided to do it in London instead, in the capital.’ he urged us to come and do something instead of being bystanders to a genocide. So I invite you all to come, the greater the number the better it will be. We cannot stand and do nothing, especially since we know the extent of the evil that is happening all around us.

Then there was a talk by Prof. Priscilla Coleman who gave a stream of statistics on the effects of abortion on mental and relational health, and good couples that undergo abortion have their emotional and sexual relationships fractured for good

Dinner was next and that was followed by ceilidh a fun night of dancing and socialising with like minded young people, (we even met people via Catholic mothers!) which is refreshing to someone like me who is usually the only one in the room with a different opinion, don't get me wrong I enjoy debating and putting my ideas to the test and an opinion echo chamber is not good, but from time to time it's nice not have to be on your guard.

After the ceilidh we stayed up talking into the early hours of the morning trying to solve the world's problems.

The day started with Sunday Mass and then breakfast. This was followed by a panel of speakers who answered questions about pro-life apologetics, they helped us to answer difficult questions like abortion in the case of rape and the backstreet abortion question. We need to change minds one conversation (or debate) at the time, and we need to give good answers to difficult questions.

Then there was the highlight of the conference (in my opinion) Aisling Hubert ‘counting the cost - a winnable battle. ’ It was a tough talk about the reality of the injustice that is going on all around us. And that we must be ready to lose our life for it. ‘If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it.’ (Matthew 10:39) and what is a more just cause than the defence of the innocent. Hubert told of taking some abortionists to court for performing sex selective abortions, but her case was dropped on two occasions because it was not considered to be in the ‘public interest’ and she was stuck with £47,000 legal fees at the age of 20. She was faced with a choice, to go to prison or attempt to pay the fees. After long consideration she did not want to put the burden of the fees on others so was willing to go to prison. A few weeks before she was due to pay a Christian charity came to the rescue and helped her to pay the legal fees, despite her acceptance of going to prison. We saw a harrowing video of actual abortions being performed at different stages of gestation, to show us the reality of what is going on. She compared the pro life movement to the American civil rights movement, and spoke of the horrors that they went through to defend human dignity, and told us this is what is awaiting us, but there is also a great reward: eternal life. So we should take up our cross and follow Christ.

We ended with that rallying cry, a call to arms with Christ as our model and general leading us to battle. ‘with God on our side who can be against us?‘

Mattia (age 16)

My experience at the SPUC youth conference was quite overwhelming. It made me wake up and realise the extent to which abortion is a crime against human rights.

The array of talks that there were from how to be pro life on social media to the psychological effects abortion can have on a woman kept you eager to listen as you were always listening to something different. This was all of course accompanied by good laughs, new friends and a lot of food.

The talk that I will remember the most was the last one where Aisling Hubert showed us a video of an abortion taking place. I was instantly disgusted and teary eyed. However it was necessary to help us understand the horrors that take place within an abortion clinic. Straightaway I realised that I wasn’t doing enough to help these poor innocent and defenceless babies. This really pushed me to think where to go and what do next to further my journey as a pro-life activist and to expose the atrocities that take place within an abortion clinic but are so carefully swept under the carpet by today’s media and our modern day society.

Pull Up a Pew #8 Meet Fr Mike Schmitz

A couple of months ago when yet another great YouTube video from Fr Schmitz was shared on the Catholic Mothers' wall I said to myself... 'He is the next on my list! I am going to interview him on behalf of my Mothers group!' 

Although I was sure he'd be too busy I tried. God granted for this to happen through the help of a great friend and thanks to Fr Mike's kindness.

As a mother of two growing boys I always wonder where God will lead them and what He will ask of them as men. I pray for them, as I do for all our children, that they may say Yes to God when he calls and that they may respond positively to whatever plan He has for them.

Our duty as parents is to lay the foundations of our children's Faith so that growing up they will clearly recognise the voice of the Lord and will leave their nets to follow Him to whatever He asks of them.

A phrase that Pope St Pius X said often comes to my mind: 'A vocation comes from the heart of God, but goes through the heart of the mother'.

Whenever we watch and listen to any of Fr Mike's YouTube videos with my children, my sons especially are full of admiration for him, as for me, all I can think of is how blessed his mother must be.

In the Interview below, Fr Mike Schmitz, answers some of the questions our Catholic Mothers from around the world asked him about his own vocation, the role that his family and in particular his mother played in his vocation and much more.

In our virtual conversation I was touched by Fr Mike's openness, humility and willingness to serve a stranger... I'm full of gratitude to Fr Schmitz for taking the time to give me this interview and share his insights on making a home that nurtures the next generation of priests!

March for Life UK 2018! SAVE THE DATE!

YES! This year we march in LONDON on the 5th MAY 2018!!!

Our family will join the march for the second time and we are so happy we won't need to travel as much to get there.

March for Life 2017 was held in Birmingham (which is quite a drive from London), the weather was really terrible, when the march started the rain came down heavy on us, but that did not discourage anyone. What a sight that was: people from all nations peacefully marching together side by side in defence of the unborn. A beautiful witness for us and for our children, who came home full of great questions.

The opposition tried to stop the march several times with some success... but we got through in the end  and as the rain came down even harder on us, we offered our little discomfort for those women and children who have suffered and still suffer the effects of abortion.

Last year's experience has left us full of admiration for the people actively involved in the fight, people in the front line always ready to take upon themselves insults and unfair attacks; mothers, fathers, religious, men, women and young adults courageously standing there to give a voice to those who can't speak for themselves.

We feel very honoured that on the 5th May, London will be hosting the march this year and both myself and the older children are hoping the get involved a little bit more. It is the city where we live after all, and like good hosts we feel the need to serve and help as much as we can to facilitate the success of such an important event.

Throughout the morning there will be workshops, live music, a pro life exhibition, opportunities to pray and to meet old and new friends before the March starts. (Click here for more info)

There will be the chance to listened to some great speakers too!

This year's 'March for Life' keynote speakers have lately been announced:


Clare McCullough one of the founders of the Good Counsel Network fighting in the front line of the Pro-life movement for over 20 years.

Noel '
'Noel is Irish born and has spend over 18 years in the NHS where he worked in both psychiatric intensive care and for over 4 years in obstetrics and gynecology surgical theaters assisting in surgical abortions. During his time in mental health he supported more people with post abortion syndrome than postnatal depression and when he made his journey from indifference to pro life he suffered horrendous bullying where he worked as for becoming pro life. His personal testimony is changing minds in the Republic of Ireland where the government are pushing to repeal the 8th amendment and make on demand abortion up to full term.'

https://www.facebook.com/MarchForLifeUK/photos/a.1544262895843793.1073741829.1464101100526640/2045703135699764/?type=3&theater

As with all big events there is an army of people involved behind the scenes to ensure the day will run smoothly. There are many ways in which each one of us can help in assuring the success of such an important day, here are 3 suggestions:



1. GET INVOLVED.



                              

'WE NEED YOUR HELP!
Could you organise a coach, mini bus or simply a group to come to this years March for Life? We can help you!
We can tailor posters that advertise your coach, we can give you our official posters and leaflets, there is a pulpit announcement that you can have along with an insert to a newsletter in your parish. We are here to help you. There is a coach page on our website and also a travel info page which has loads of useful information.
Please contact us if you are bringing a group 

http://www.marchforlife.co.uk/travel-info/

(https://www.facebook.com/MarchForLifeUK/photos/a.1464114467191970.1073741828.1464101100526640/2046226042314140/?type=3&theater)

2. COME TO THE MARCH, just come along, encourage as many people as you can to attend the march. Share the event among the people that you know. Don't hesitate... come! You will not regret it, come and join us. Let's stand together side by side to witness to the dignity of the unborn.

3. DONATE. Behind every grand event there are also a lot of expenses to face and as we all know not much happens if there isn't money available. People's generosity is always surprising and very moving. No matter how small your contribution is, it will make the difference, so don't be shy... DONATE NOW, organise coffee mornings, table sales... do what you can to support the cause, your reward will be greater in heaven where an unfortunately great number of children will be there to open the gate for us.

We are all really looking forward to this and we hope to see you there too! 

Things To Do (especially) in London over the Easter Break

Here's a guest-post from my niece, Marta is a London-based mother of three lovely and lively young children... and a real activity-nerd when it comes to holiday time...

School broke up for Easter this last Friday and seeing as my children are 6, 5 and 2, and constantly fighting, I realised early on in the school year that I have to keep them super busy in the holidays.  As a result, our school breaks are action-packed.  We plan activities for every day: playdates, crafts, baking, outings into central London… Chiara asked me to share a few of the things we’ll be doing over the Easter break.

Hot Cross Buns

In England, Hot Cross Buns are spiced sweet buns that mark the end of Lent and are usually eaten on Good Friday. They’re made with raisins or currants and are marked with a cross on the top which represents the Crucifixion; the spices represent the spices used to embalm Christ at his burial.  I don’t usually eat them as I’m not a huge fan of raisins in my pastries, but my son Jude discovered a love of baking this year, and my daughter has come home the last two weeks singing the ‘Hot Cross Buns’ nursery rhyme every day, so I have decided to make the most of this and make them during the Easter holidays this year.  We’ll be using this BBC recipe http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/hotcrossbuns_397 . Hot Cross Buns are best eaten cut in half, toasted and buttered.

In the last few years it has become popular to create variations of the traditional recipe, such as toffee, orange, apple-cinnamon and coffee.  Others use chocolate chips instead of raisins.  

Foam Crosses

We’re big fans of crafts at our house.  Foam crosses are so simple to make! Using art foam (or card, or any other medium, really!) we cut out a basic cross shape.  I then cut smaller foam pieces in different colours, and stick them to the cross background to create a mosaic effect.  In the past we’ve made them at the beginning of lent, and have stuck on a mosaic tile each time I’ve observed the children being helpful, loving, or sacrificing something they want for someone else, hoping to fill the crosses before the end of Lent.

Signs of Spring

Autumn is a sad time for my children – they’re heartbroken at the idea of the flowers and the trees ‘dying’.  Because of this, the first signs of spring are super exciting for them! We walk through the park on the way to school so they can see the blossom trees flowering and the new leaf buds on the trees.  During the Easter holidays we’ll be going to see other signs of spring and of new life.

Bluebells are the UK’s best-loved wild flowers, and they flower between mid-April and late May.  They completely transform our woodland in springtime, creating carpets of intense blue.  Half of the world’s bluebells are here in the UK, and the children and I will be going to Beckenham Place Park, South-east London, to see the spectacular display there

London’s city farms are currently welcoming their newest members and we’ll be going along to see the new lambs, ducklings and chicks too. Surrey Docks Farm is a family favourite, but Godstone Farm and Christmas Tree farm in Orpington are also recommended!

For anyone planning to go and see bluebells, remember that they are protected in the UK and picking them is highly discouraged.

The Passion

We have not been to The Passion of Jesus in Tragalgar Square before, but will definitely be going this year.  It’s a Passion play put on by the wonderful Wintershall players every year.  Over 20,000 people travel to Trafalgar Square in central London every Good Friday to watch the free 90-minute production.  They have two performances on the day – 12 noon and 3:15, and large screens are provided to maximise visibility, and there are BSL interpreters. Due to its being a realistic interpretation, they advise parental guidance. 

National Gallery

One of our favourite school holiday activities is to go to the National Gallery and take part in their holiday activities. They do a Messy Monday and Talking Tuesday both of which are amazing.  They’re aimed at under-8s and the lady who usually runs them, Jacqui Ansell, is wonderful.  The sessions focus on one painting from the museum and Jacqui usually starts by telling the story of the painting. There’s soft play, sensory play, crafts, painting, dressing up…

The drop-in sessions they run on Tuesday – Thursday are incredible.  I don’t mind admitting that most of my kids’ artwork ends up in the recycling bin after a couple of weeks, but every single thing we have made at the National Gallery sessions is still in the house, and most of it is still on display.  Upon arrival you’re given a pack containing sheets of paper, colouring pencils and an information sheet which is a map of the museum with a series of paintings to go and look at and instructions to copy a particular detail from each.  At the end of it we make something. In the past we’ve made a mobile, angel wings, a horse sculpture, silhouette puppets… and they’re usually big projects that the children are really proud of.  I highly recommend it. 

They usually also run apprentice workshops, run by a professional artist.  My sister has been to several of them and has enjoyed them all! 

The National Gallery website will let you know everything they’ve got going on https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/families  

Tall Ships Regatta

The ever-popular Tall Ships Regatta returns to London this April.  We are lucky enough to live a short 15-minute bicycle ride from Greenwich, and attend this event every time it takes place.

During the Tall Ships Festival a fleet of more than 30 ships spends the weekend in the Maritime Greenwich and Royal Arsenal Woolwich riverfronts.  The crews prepare for their 7,000 nautical mile race to Canada, and those of us on dry land have four days of festivities, including cruises aboard the ships, beautiful fireworks displays every night and maritime themed activities in both town centres.

Resurrection Garden

I recently discovered Resurrection Gardens on Pinterest.  It’s a wonderful way to talk about Christ every day during Holy Week.  Every part of it is used to talk about God and Jesus, going through the Creation story, the Flood, the Nativity, Palm Sunday, the Last Supper, the Crucifixion, and finally the Resurrection. This is another one we’ll be trying for the first time this year.  A quick Google search will bring up countless tutorials - there are so many different ways of doing them, depending on the time and materials at your disposal!

http://amysfreeideas.com/English/Step_by_step_instructions_for_how_to_make_an_Easter_Garden.html

Easter Egg Hunt

For as long as I can remember we have had an Easter Egg Hunt at my grandparents’ house at the beginning of Easter.  I have wonderful memories of searching high and low in the garden for the small foil-wrapped eggs, competing with my cousins to find as many as possible.  Now I hide the eggs rather than search for them but I love watching my children run around the same garden that I searched in with my younger siblings and cousins.  If the weather allows, the Egg Hunt is preceded by a big family barbecue, and is usually the first of the year as the weather finally starts to improve.

I hope some of our activities serve as inspiration for you and your families.  Happy Easter to all!