The Bishops' Conference of Scotland

The Office of Readings today
From the dialogue On Divine Providence by Saint Catherine of Siena, virgin and doctor

How good and how delightful is your spirit, Lord, in all people!

The eternal Father, indescribably kind and tender, turned his eye to this soul and spoke to her thus:
‘O dearest daughter, I have determined to show my mercy and loving kindness to the world, and I choose to provide for mankind all that is good. But man, ignorant, turns into a death-giving thing what I gave in order to give him life. Not only ignorant, but cruel: cruel to himself. But still I go on providing. For this reason I want you to know: whatever I give to you I do it out of my great providence.
‘So it was that when, by my providence, I created you, I looked into myself and fell in love with the beauty of the creature I had made – for it had pleased me, in my providence, to create you in my own image and likeness.
‘Moreover, I gave you memory, to be able to remember the good things I had done for you and to be able to share in my own power, the power of the eternal Father.
‘Moreover, I gave you intellect, so that, seeing the wisdom of my Son, you could recognise and understand my own will; for I am the giver of all graces and I give them with a burning fatherly love.
‘Moreover, I gave you the desire to love, sharing in the tenderness of the Holy Spirit, so that you might love the things that your intellect had understood and seen.
‘But my kind providence did all this solely that you might be able to understand me and enjoy me, rejoicing in my vision for all eternity. And as I have told you elsewhere, the disobedience of your first parent Adam closed heaven to you – and from that disobedience came all evil through the whole world.
‘To relieve you of the death that his own disobedience had brought, I tenderly and providently gave you my only-begotten Son to heal you and bring satisfaction for your needs. I gave you the task of being supremely obedient, to free the human race of the poison that your first parent’s disobedience had spread throughout the world. Falling in love, as it were, with his task, and truly obedient, he hurried to a shameful death on the most holy Cross. By his most holy death he gave you life: not human life this time, but with the strength of his divinity.’

https://aleteia.org/2018/11/01/should-catholics-celebrate-halloween/


This holiday has Catholic roots, but not all Catholics are comfortable with its modern form. Here's our take. This holiday has Catholic roots, but not all Catholics are comfortable with its modern form. Here's our take.

November begins on Saturday and the Church invites us to pray especially for all the faithful departed — our loved ones and all souls in purgatory — that they may be purified and welcomed into the fullness of God’s presence.

▪ FRIDAY: St Patrick's Church, Edinburgh has organised a Candlelight Procession at 8:30pm with the Statue of Our Lady of Fatima, followed by a Holy Hour of Reparation, a prayerful alternative to the usual Halloween festivities.

▪ SUNDAY: ALL SAINTS
On both Sat and Sun, you can venerate relics of saints in the National Shrine of St Andrew at St Mary's Catholic Cathedral, Edinburgh. The Cathedral is open Saturday 8:30am-7:30pm and Sunday 8:30am-8:30pm.

▪ MONDAY: ALL SOULS
Archbishop Cushley will offer Holy Mass for the repose of all the faithful departed at 10:00am in Mount Vernon Cemetery Chapel, 49 Mount Vernon Rd, Edinburgh, EH16 6JG.

Pope Leo has signed his second papal document since his election, an apostolic letter titled “Drawing New Maps of Hope,” commemorating the 60th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council’s Gravissimum Educationis, the Declaration on Catholic Education. The letter acknowledges that we live in a complex, fragmented, and digitalized educational environment, and highlights the urgent need to renew the Church's commitment to promoting and providing a Christian, integral education. The Holy Father also designated St. John Henry Newman as the official co-patron saint of education, together with St. Thomas Aquinas. As millions of children still lack access to basic education, and as educational crises are caused by war, migration, inequality, and poverty, this work is more essential than ever:
https://youtu.be/rGuCvLFyOpw

Today we had the great joy of celebrating the 100th birthday of our dear Mother Mary of the Resurrection. His Grace Archbishop Leo Cushley celebrated Mass in our chapel, and stayed and talked with us afterwards, which we enjoyed very much. In the afternoon, we gave Mother some gifts, chief of which was an apostolic blessing from His Holiness Pope Leo. Tomorrow we will put more photos and information on our website, as there hasn't been time today. It has been quite busy, but Mother seems to have thrived on it! We thank God for her spirit of prayer, her fidelity to her vocation, and her unfailing cheerfulness.