Dear Gavin Ashenden, you are such an edifying and wholesome CATHOLIC soul, please 🙏 keep confessing your heartfelt gratitude for the real presence of JESUS in the HOLY EUCHARIST.
@@Soyebakhtar0105 Granted. The solution is to learn better the Teachings that Jesus gave us from the beginning. Are you Muslim? Doesn't the Quran say that Jesus was born of the Virgin and that He will come again to judge the earth? Jesus did not leave a Book. He taught chosen men to carry on His Teaching, and later those men, and their successors, wrote a Book. It is not corrupted -- we have the Bible in many languages from very early in Christian history, and they are all consistent in the basic Teaching. They have not changed. The Church today teaches the same things that the Church taught at the time Jesus walked the earth. And we have the miracles to prove it. If the words you have learned from the teachers of Islam stop you from reading the words of the Bible, then follow the miracles. This is what this video can teach you.
@@Soyebakhtar0105 When the Quran was written, and how much of it was from memorization, I do not know. Nor do I know why there are different versions. But about the Bible, you are mistaken -- led astray, no doubt, by the theories of the newer "Biblical Criticism" "experts." I do not know how deeply you have read the Christian Bible. For those readers who do not know much about it, I will try towrite simply. Please do not be offended if what I write is too basic for you. Please be patient with me! The Bible is a collection of books which were inspired by God. They were not "dictated", as the Quran is supposed to have been. So the times the books were written, and the situations that they originally addressed, become important in our modern understanding of what they are saying to us today. The Old Testament portion of the Bible was written over the course of more than a thousand years, as God spoke to His People and their understanding grew of what His message meant. You can see a difference in understanding from the very beginning of the written Bible, within the first 5 books which are ascribed to Moses. Moses wrote as the "Ten Commandments" at the beginning of the flight of the Israelites from Egypt. Please read from the book of Exodus, chapter 20, verses 2 through 17 (Exodus 20:2-17). Forty years later, Moses again wrote the Ten Commandments -- please read Deuteronomy 5:6-21. Note the differences and the likenesses. The Commands are the same, but worded a little differently, as the understanding of the people had deepened during the desert wanderings. God had quietly inspired that growth in understanding. The New Testament is another set of books, all written about Jesus and His ministry and the Church He founded. They, too, were inspired by God. But first, was the living Church, telling the world about the Living Jesus, Who came from the Father to be Incarnate of the Virgin Mary, Who was rejected by His own People so that all the Peoples of the World would become His Own. He was crucified, and shed His Blood to free us all from the bondage of sin, and He Rose from the Dead and is Living to this day! If you keep this in mind, then the fact that the books of the New Testament were written a decade or two or three or even four after the Death of Jesus does not really matter, because Jesus is still alive.
@@Soyebakhtar0105 the Bible is the same for Protestants and Catholics, except for the fact that 7 books and parts of 2 others are left out of some Protestant Bibles. Because we believe that the Holy Spirit inspired the Bible, and that the Holy Spirit enters into our hearts at baptism, we are assured that the Lord will bring our minds to understand what God wants to say to us, whether or not the words are all the same (this, we can read the Bible in our own language, and simple children can understand as well as the most highly intelligent and learned scholars. This is a difference in our holy books. I know that one of the teachings in Islam is that the Quran is letter perfect and the same all over the world, but that is not strictly true. According to Samuel Green in his article "The Different Arabic Versions of the Quran", based on Cyril Glasse (The Concise Encyclopedia of Islam) the written Arabic language at the time of the giving of the Quran did not have vowel sounds or some necessary diacritical marks to distinguish certain consonants. Some of the Companions who had memorized the Quran were killed. So seven Readers recited the Quran, and each Reader's version was recorded by two Transmitters, using an improved style of Arabic writing. Five of these versions are in use still,. Four are used in regions of the world, and one of them (from Egypt, I think) is now in general use around the world. I am learning!
If not already, read or watch the portrayal of the life and trial of saint Sir Thomas More. His life and death were repeated hundreds if not thousands of times in England, Scotland Wales and Ireland. Can we measure up to them? Greatest respect for English Catholics.
True if we Catholic believed and appreciated the miracle of the mass we would crawl to Holy Sacrifice of the Mass on our bellies and never tolerate the personal sacrilege of not valuing it sufficiently.
As a fervent Catholic I just feel sad for my loved ones who no longer practice their faith and am inspired to double down on my prayers and trust in Our Lord that He will bring them back through my Trust in His Goodness.
Henry VIII ripped the heart out if this country and it has never recovered. Which is why we are such a brutal and wounded country that does not care for itself or its people. Maybe rather than praying for the consecration of Russia we should be praying for the restoration of our nation. A nation that was a once a Holy place of pilgrimage.
🇬🇧 would’ve remained a Catholic country if it weren’t for Henry VIII. 🇺🇸 would’ve then been a Catholic country with a constitution as such, as the 🇫🇷 & 🇪🇸 colonies were Catholic. 😊
So much wrong here. England was a country where the Reformation found fertile soil,with or without Henry VIII. But you do realize, hopefully, that things that happened 500 years ago are beyond our understanding and ability to judge. Even the “Catholic countries” are not as Catholic as you think, based on Mass attendance, numbers or ordinands, closed churches, and clerical scandals. To say Britain and Anglicanism has troubles is no different from saying the same thing about the RC Church. Think of the situation of the RC Church in Ireland, France, and Germany now, to name a few. Their crises are beyond anything you can find in Anglicanism.
@@rogeryoung5180 -- These crises you are mentioning stem from the further Anglicanization of the RC church, ie., vapid N.O., Vatican 2 downgrades of all the churches, practical elimination of good catechesis, etc, etc.
Being Catholic is ever more difficult but, proportionally, more spiritually joyful as we face these times in the sure knowledge of the miracle at the heart of our Mass.
@@jameswall6270 why is it that wherever the Roman church is the strongest (think Central and South America), those countries are poor and have deep societal corruption? Why is it that wherever the Protestant/ Anglican churches are strongest (think the Western countries) there is the rule of law and much less corruption?
This was an incredibly inspiring confession and reflection, and I especially appreciated your eloquent explanation of the truth, beauty, and goodness of our Catholic faith despite the venality emanating from the Vatican since 2013 and why we stay the course, despite the suffering caused by poor Church leadership.
Thank you Dr Ashenden. I wish everyone would share your amazement before the miracle of the Eucharistic. I also pray that people would understand the consequences and implications of that amazement… as you do. 🙏
One of the things I admire about Dr. Ashenden is his willingness to tell you that he's changed his mind. Your lifelong process of discernment is a benefit to all of us.
I'm currently reading Holly Ordway's spiritual biography of Tolkien and it deals with his great love for the Blessed Sacrament. When I as a young and very confused young adult it was what continually drew me back to the Catholic Faith and kept me on the right path. I am reminded of the quote from Augustine Birrell a former Chief Secretary for Ireland, "It is the Mass that matters; it is the Mass that makes the difference, so hard to define, so subtle is it, yet so perceptible, between a Catholic country and a Protestant one, between Dublin and Edinburgh, between Havre and Cromer. Here, I believe, is one of the battlefields of the future".
Gavin, a paradigm shift may be required, clarity of mind is 1 thing but, strength of backbone is another....what was lacking yesterday, is now vital today!
I had no doubt in my Anglican life that what I held in my hands at the altar was the very body and blood of Christ. I recall the exhilarating discovery that everything "Catholic" was accessible as a teenage student within the Anglo Catholic tradition in the late 70's. Rome held nothing that we didn't have (except for communion with Peter but we would work to fix that!)The week after my "Priesting" my Godly training incumbent (now aged 90) asked me what I had been reading. I was rereading the response from Canterbury and York after apostolicae curae and had tried to remember all the points. He was annoyed and said "You don't need to keep lifting your garments to look at your belly when youv'e only just put on the shirt", but the document gave me confidence that I had nothing less than the real thing! 13 years later something abruptly changed. Unexpectedly and in moments. It all slipped through my fingers and left me. I could no longer stand in conscience and conduct the Anglican Eucharist. I was a charlatan, a liar, dishonest a false prophet a bad apple. If I had stayed, which I very much wanted to do I would have tumbled into a breakdown. Suddenly 30 years have past and I have been a (Married) Catholic priest for 28 years. DG. It feels like less than 10. Now I find myself very tired and exhausted. I realise something must change. I have great affection for my past life and all my Anglican friends but when I go into an Anglican Church of whatever "tradition" I am overwhelmed by a sense of the divine absence, the very opposite of "Real Presence" especially at the (Anglican) Eucharist. That is ungracious and unkind but for me it just doesn't work. It is real emptiness. I thank God for every moment of my Priestly life from the very beginning but most of all for the extraordinary concession that was given to me 28 years ago. "Cast your bread upon the waters -LITERALLY -" said my old confessor and SD who preceded me by a year across the Tyber and lived to be 102. I am very glad i did! "All things work together for good!" I just need to have a bit of a rest and perhaps write a book but the 24/7 task of catholic parish ministry prohibits that and there are limited resources for assistance.
One way to be charitable and truthful regarding Anglican churches, as a Catholic, is to think of them as shrines rather than churches. They don't have the real presence, but they are "holy" because many Christians have prayed there.
Love can be all positive and wonderful things, and God’s love is indeed unconditional. Love is also painful, and sanctifying and goes far beyond suffering, to joy. To experience it all, is to truly know God!
Dear brother Gavin, Thank you for this. I too have been mystified by your recent tone and urgency of late. I recently drafted/penned a comment that never got sent on another video - to call into question the dissonance I saw at your joy at Ayam Hirsi Ali’s coming to faith contrasted with the strong criticism and impatience for those (like me) not yet drawn to catholic faith. I appreciate the journey I have been on with you listening in on your thought processes, changes of heart, and the opening of your eyes to the riches of life in the Catholic Church. I am delighted for you. But also crave your patience with those of us who are put where we are by the grace of God in the place we are at the moment. I was baptised Anglican as a baby, mum re-married a Lutheran and I have married a Lutheran pastor myself. My simple faith has been nurtured and grown in this church. And I am very thankful for this. I occasionally go to catholic mass due to the heartbreak around my national church (LCA) seeking to walk further and further away from orthodoxy. It is utterly tragic. But why was I brought here to this church? And, related to your musings on the historical anglicans you have been blessed by, why did God bless JS Bach with such gifts of faith, reverence, creativity and exquisite beauty if not for the building up of his church? Yes, perhaps it is to draw us back to the one true church. This may be the case. Once again it is an interesting experience and a somewhat tricky path of exposing so much of your walk with all of us on RUclips. God bless you and keep you safe from attack. And when you are, the Lord grant you his peace and trust in the only one in whom we can boast. In christian love Meg
You ask, "But why was I brought here to this church?" By church do you mean the Lutheran Church? That should not be an impediment to converting to Catholicism. You can regard the Lutheran Church as a stepping stone. Otherwise, why would any person convert from their original tradition to another? See Matthew 28:19-20. This is the whole history of the Church from the beginning. 🙂
Meg one of the things that I didn’t say, is that I don’t think the journey - the speed of the journey -can be forced in anybody. It took me a very long time indeed. And I think that was partly because when I came across it was God’s time. I strongly think that each of us should look for God’s time and wait for the Holy Spirit.
Today is the day of Hedda of Wessex, Saint of the British Isles from the 6th century. Hope that the brits understand their heritage and come back to the catholic church. All the best, God bless.
Today is the day of Hedda of Wessex, Saint of the British Isles from the 6th century. Hope that the English understand their heritage and come back to the Orthodox Church. All the best, God bless.
@@marcokite must be nice copying without giving any context. The kingdom of Wessex was under the jurisdiction of Rome and the pope at this time and not under the patriarch of Konstantinopel. Currently the catholic church is in a crisis, maybe we are back on track with a good pope. The orthodox church just went through a schism, Konstantinopel and Moscow do not accept each other anymore because of politics. Hope the christians unite again.
Thank you Gavin. :) Hope you are well. John Henry Newman in his Apologia talks about what he calls his 'fierceness" when he was speaking, ironically, in diatribes against The Pope !!! :) :) And they made him Cardinal. :) And Peter Knott SJ says : 'Anger is a sign that we are alive' . The videos you make are so soothing Gavin .I really enjoy listening to your good words . Thank you.
Thank you Dr Gavin. It is beautiful to see the Holy Spirit work through you as he tempers the passionate part of your nature with a genuine love for all your fellow human beings. Prayers for you Catherine and Mark🙏 May St Thomas a beckett, St Thomas More, St John Fisher, St John Henry Newman and all the English Saints and Martyrs continue to support you with their prayers and inspiring presence 🙏
Thank you so much Gavin for opening your heart to us and sharing your such profound thoughts with us. I’m an Anglican in South Africa, worshipping sometimes at a very high church in the suburbs of Cape Town (I live outside of Cape Town), and I recognise much of what you say. Yes, I will pray for you as I also pray for my own way towards our Lord. Thanks again for your internet ministry, which I find to be helpful. God bless from, Arthur
There is a great hunger for our Catholic faith out there if only we could get our message across consistently so that people recognise it - thank God for Catholic Unscripted together and individually for working so hard to explain, educate, enthuse, mourn, guard jealously, teach, learn, and spill tea on their microphones...
@@catholicunscripted - There is a great hunger for the Holy Orthodox faith out there, if only we could get our message across consistently so that people recognise it - thank God for the Holy Orthodox Church for working so hard to explain, educate, enthuse, mourn, guard jealously and teach. The Orthodox saints are in a different category to the Roman Catholic good people of the past. It's not sour grapes but i'm overwhelmed by the beauty of Holy Orthodoxy. A great time to be Orthodox! So many really holy Orthodox bishops & priests out there in the world NOW! The One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church is the Holy Orthodox Church. Sadly the Roman Catholic Church went into schism from it around 1,000 years ago. But God is generous and has raised up some holy people who were and are Roman Catholics.
There is a great hunger for the Holy Orthodox faith out there, if only we could get our message across consistently so that people recognise it - thank God for the Holy Orthodox Church for working so hard to explain, educate, enthuse, mourn, guard jealously and teach. The Orthodox saints are in a different category to the Roman Catholic good people of the past. It's not sour grapes but i'm overwhelmed by the beauty of Holy Orthodoxy. A great time to be Orthodox! So many really holy Orthodox bishops & priests out there in the world NOW! The One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church is the Holy Orthodox Church. Sadly the Roman Catholic Church went into schism from it around 1,000 years ago. But God is generous and has raised up some holy people who were and are Roman Catholics.
God bless you Gavin for this heartfelt, humble and honest message which spoke directly to the pain the I have felt in my own heart since becoming a Catholic 3 years ago at the age of 59 after spending my life as an Anglican/Evangelical. I am profoundly grateful to the Holy Spirit for drawing me into the truth during COVID and I absolutely love my faith and the church but struggle with regrets about the wasted years and what could have been for my family etc. I realize that God’s timing is perfect and He has me here at this time and place for a purpose and I rest in that while I work to get over my weaknesses and tendency to look back over my shoulder with regret.
Thank you for your insights and honesty. As an ex Australian Anglican, (71 years old) now recent convert to the Catholic "deposit of faith" can you please help me see how the Novus Ordo church is not a similar "dangerous decoy"? Do you see the Novus Ordo Mass as truly a place that the real presence of Christ is re-presented? I am very, very unclear about this. Thank you for your time and work.
Thank you, Dr. Ashenden. You articulate so eloquently what it means to be and remain Catholic. Looking forward to meeting you at the upcoming Catholic Identity Conference.
I’m so pleased to hear your comments about what happens in cathedrals regarding concerts etc. I do not feel comfortable about the fact that they are now using these holy places for things like silent discos or performances that would be more suitable in a different place. They make the excuse that these places need financial support. But it reminds me of Jesus reaction to what was taking place in the temple. They justify what they are permitting but it’s not right. Undermining holy places is subtle and devious and a silent way of diminishing what was
When Luther said "Tolle Missam, tolle Ecclesiam ," he was absolutely right and you explain things as ever gently and clearly and people need to resist the apparent dumbing down we have suffered in the Church in the last 60 years. Cradle Catholics can easily fail to appreciate just what the Mass is and how important. Your insight as ever is very welcome. Thank you.
As a fairly new Catholic, having left the COE a couple of decades ago, I was absolutely gobsmacked the first time I felt the Real Presence in the Eucharist. Once I got over the shock of the reality of it (very hard to describe) I felt an enormous pity for those non-Catholics who don't get to experience it.
The late Mick Aston, leading archeologist of Time Team, once compared the destruction of the monasteries to the Beeching destruction of the railways. He was pointing out how in some places the railway lines were actually pulled up, how houses were built over former railway routes and stations. As he put it, they were making a statement that these railways were never coming back, and it was the same with the monasteries. And at this distance of time there does appear to be something spiteful or malicious about it. The ending of some railway lines destroyed the living of many people, such as market gardeners who depended on fast trains to get their produce to the markets in large towns while still fresh, and so on. No account was taken of this. There is also a whiff of corruption about it, just as with the 'dissolution' of the monasteries. It is said that the government of the day couldn't abide the strength of the railway workers' unions as it challenged their power, not unlike Henry VIII and his henchman Thomas Cromwell. The point Gavin makes about the current uses of what were once holy buildings (and the holiness is part of what created their beauty) is a good one. What I would say is that the abbey churches that were left as ruins, such as Glastonbury or Walsingham, seem to me to have retained their atmosphere. They are still holy places. Another example of the 'time warp' that characterises the Catholic Church. Thank you, Gavin, for that very profound talk.
Gavin, I agree with all this 100%, I was received into the church nearly 40 years ago. Sadly, it seems most people are almost unaware that the church even exists now; the world is so secular, and while Islam is respected, catholics are mocked. Even the Holy Father seems to be trying to dismantle our faith. Never mind, it'll all come right because the Lord promised!
Gosh, this reminds me of how much I love the story of doubting Thomas. There’s a pointer to true belief, not in material proof, but in conversion of the heart
I don’t know how I missed this video, but I’m glad I found it. I’ve been grappling with this issue with Anglicanism for a long time, but especially in the past year. I found myself becoming very angry and wondering how all my Anglican friends, who tend to be quite snooty when it comes to Roman Catholicism, could follow a tradition that came from such a horrible figure as Henry VIII. It’s a very simplistic way of putting it (be kind), but terrible things happened all over the UK and Ireland because of that tyrant. The Anglicans I know are very Woke and want to make reparations for anything that was done in the past, but they don’t seem to think amends need to be made to Catholics, to Irish, and to all the people of faith who worked on the great cathedrals. Give us back our cathedrals. Give the English back their faith. Give them back the Eucharist. I am very very sad about the split. I’m also sad that whenever I expressed frustration with the Church, someone always told me to just go to the Anglican or Episcopal church-they’re basically the same as Catholic. No, they’re not. (Very grateful for Gavin.)
Prince William appears to want to reduce the magnificence and splendor of the monarchy. He also appears to not show any interest in the church. He should be careful about how he goes about changing a thousand years of tradition.
Let's not forget that priests were hung for saying Mass in Ireland during the centuries of English conquest and colonisation (mass starvation, depopulation, deportation, crushing of the Irish language, material and spiritual impoverisent, plantation, the list goes on). In desperation, some people converted to Protestantism and became known as "soupers".
Don't make the mistake of thinking that English Catholic priests and laity of the penal times felt any less pain just because it was their own people who were persecuting them.
Thank you Gavin for your insight! I am very troubled by the recent events. I will pray for you and ask Our Lady to keep you slinging out holy help and guidance!
Thank you Dr. Ashenden. I am just a bit puzzled as to why this phenomenon of the host has never been something I have heard of before. You know, in Evangelisation or Apologetics. A naive observation of mine perhaps!? I am a cradle Catholic who left and became Evangelical and now returned for many, many reasons but the main reason being the need for the Holy Eucharist. I thank God I am home. Thank you.
From the sermon of Father John Henry Newman on July 13, 1852 during the first synod of the Westminster archdiocese, convened by Nicholas Cardinal Wiseman and held at St. Mary’s College in Oscott: "Three centuries ago, and the Catholic Church, that great creation of God's power, stood in this land in pride of place. It had the honours of near a thousand years upon it; it was enthroned on some twenty sees up and down the broad country; it was based in the will of a faithful people; it energized through ten thousand instruments of power and influence; and it was ennobled by a host of Saints and Martyrs. The churches, one by one, recounted and rejoiced in the line of glorified intercessors, who were the respective objects of their grateful homage. Canterbury alone numbered perhaps some sixteen, from St. Augustine to St. Dunstan and St. Elphege, from St. Anselm and St. Thomas down to St. Edmund. York had its St. Paulinus, St. John, St. Wilfrid, and St. William; London, its St. Erconwald; Durham, its St. Cuthbert; Winton, its St. Swithun. Then there were St. Aidan of Lindisfarne, and St. Hugh of Lincoln, and St. Chad of Lichfield, and St. Thomas of Hereford, and St. Oswald and St. Wulstan of Worcester, and St. Osmund of Salisbury, and St. Birinus of Dorchester, and St. Richard of Chichester. And then, too, its religious orders, its monastic establishments, its universities, its wide relations all over Europe, its high prerogatives in the temporal state, its wealth, its dependencies, its popular honours,-where was there in the whole of Christendom a more glorious hierarchy? Mixed up with the civil institutions, with kings and nobles, with the people, found in every village and in every town,-it seemed destined to stand, so long as England stood, and to outlast, it might be, England's greatness. BUT IT WAS THE HIGH DECREE OF HEAVEN, THAT THE MAJESTY OF THAT PRESENCE SHOULD BE BLOTTED OUT." [Newman Reader Org /works/occasions/sermon10.html]
From the same sermon: "The English Church was, and the English Church was not, and the English Church is once again. This is the portent, worthy of a cry. It is the coming in of a Second Spring."
1. You're welcome. Just copy the link in the brackets at the end and paste it into a new web browser. The Newman Reader Page containing the sermon should appear at the top of the listings for you to click on. 2. It was God's permissive will that an execrable schismatic monarch advanced a scheming clergyman who was both an apostate and literary genius. Their legacy incubated until an island nation became a Protestant world empire upon which the sun never set. The upside was that, in turn, by the 19th century and its granting of religious toleration, the British Empire inadvertantly became the means by which (A) continental Catholicism was spared its neutering by Napoleon Bonaparte, (B) the faith was spread worldwide in large part by impoverished Irish migrant laborers fleeing a starving Eire, and indigenous Catholic minorities, particularly in India, were given breathing space to thrive.
Love can be all positive and wonderful things, and God’s love is indeed unconditional, but love is also painful, and sanctifying, and goes far beyond suffering, to joy. Yes, you can experience the fullness of God and His love, even through martyrdom.
Hmmm. What about all those who tell the story of leaving the Roman tradition and finding new life in Christ in other parts of the Church (Protestant, Eastern)? They call it a conversion!
When some English (Roman) Catholics, c. 1967-75 CE, looked at what the 'reforms' of the New Order (of everything) in Catholic worship meant - in practice, not theory, in actual deeds not words alone - a similar sort of surge in feeling welled up .. if only from the opposite end of the perspective: what was then being removed by command from what had been received by divine grace and human effort. And the odd part is, even (or moreso) non-Catholics realised and understood and appealed against the loss, as though it were a kind of wanton destruction, vandalism, an act of cultural iconoclasm .. or as Pope St Paul VI himself called 'autodestruction'. Indeed, as heaven would have it, all graciously - though duly obstructed by man, a tiny little window appeared even amid the blossoming mushroom cloud of self-imposed self delusion .. for an Indult was sought and given, if only by the scratch of a famous signature. Such minor miracles, insignificant on the grand scale, easily dismissed or ignored, are what make Rome's Catholicism so much greater than the whole of all its parts. Mary's memory, Paul's napkin, Peter's death .. Pius V's Missal, Vatican Councils, and the Miracle of the Eucharist with its odd Eucharistic miracles, etc; and this not only yesterday or today, but for each tomorrow. Yet the greatest assistant to man's Adversary amid all these witnesses is .. as ever it was .. our own allotted clergy. Keep the Faith; tell the truth, shame the devil, and let the demons shriek. God bless. ;o)
Well I am very glad to hear that you are not disillusioned with Catholicism in these difficult times. We have to remember what Catholicism is about rather than what some of the authorities are currently doing.
Most Holy Trinity-Father, Son and Holy Spirit-I adore Thee profoundly. I offer Thee the most precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ, present in all the tabernacles of the world, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges, and indifferences whereby He is offended. And through the infinite merits of His Most Sacred Heart and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I beg of Thee the conversion of poor sinners. Amen 🙏 ✝️🕊
Dr Gavin as always wonderful words of wisdom. Have you studied the mystics much? Going back to the twelfth century we have St Hildegard of Bingen .visionary,prophet,healer, social reformer,scientist,dramatist and composer of wonderful sacred music. I played her music found on Utube to a Protestant Pastor friend of mine who ended up playing and loving it.He even bought a cd of her music . God works in his ways Dr Gavin 😊Not always what we want 😞We need to detach at times and let him do his Will.🙏 Another more recent Mystic is Luisa Piccarreta from Italy who died the same year as St Faustina in 1947. I just thought I would share those with you .They are so many wonderful Catholic mystics as I am sure you know . We are very Blessed to have in the Catholic Church.Do not be too hard on yourself. Blessings Gerri in Canada (Alcatraz)😊☘️🙏
This was a lovely explanation, Dr. Ashenden, thank you. It's so difficult to explain the effect the true presence in the eucharist has on the human soul to non-Catholics. Recently I had a discussion about it with friends (who I presume were raised in the Anglican tradition) and they told me that had had the same spiritual experience (as I have had with the eucharist) during a Hindu meditation retreat in India. I could only smile and say a silent prayer for them. It sounds condescending for me to even think that way, but I've been born again in Christ, and I know He is the way, the truth, and the life. I wish sharing the truth with others was an easier thing to do.
Quite frankly, meditation is a transforming spiritual experience that deeply imbues the meditator with profound loving kindness towards all. So. although I converted to Holy Mother Catholic Church about 3 years ago, I continue to meditate & experience God's love.
@@maryn8139 Oh I agree with you, I medidate as well. When I was younger I experimented in eastern meditation practices, so I know where my friends are coming from, but Christian meditation is a different thing. The path of finding Christ's grace is a different thing.
Dr Ashenden, I’m tearing up.. you perfectly express the thoughts and feelings that almost plague me daily. It’s so LONELY and PAINFUL being Catholic, and although American, of English descent… I have a hard time forgiving Henry for essentially destroying England, ripping the riches and beauty and eternal Truth and Presence of our Lord from the people he was called to protect and defend. The lasting damage extends far beyond the borders of Great Britain, and penetrates American soil, for sure. I guess i just have to keep thanking the Lord that He rescued me from Protestantism at age 50 and feeds me Himself in the mass now. Dr A, your talks really mean so, so much to me. Thank you for sharing all that you do.
Hi! I share similar sentiments with you & am also a convert. Recently, I was very fortunate to stumble upon some talks by Pastor Joel Osteen -- they really changed my mood most profoundly -- he is such a caring, positive & true believer. Check him out -- you don't have to be lonely & alone, etc. God bless you! ❤
Was it Henry VIII who destroyed England? Do you know that final break with Rome did not occur till 1570, twelve years into the reign of Elizabeth I? And look at Mary I, "Bloody Mary," who brought the Church of England back in communion with Rome before Elizabeth I. What many do not know is the devastation that the Church of England, Anglicans, suffered from the Puritans during the Commonwealth, Interregnum.
Good morning. For the record, Cranmer in his magnum opus, if it can be given that grand tile, the Prayer Book of 1552, was clearly towards the Zwinglian end of the spectrum in the words of administration in the Lord's Supper or Holy Communion. The juxtaposition of almost contradictory words came later after Cranmer was so brutally put out of the way because of his views on the sacrament. "Zwinglians", by the way, in case anyone asks, don't believe that the Eucharist is a "mere" memorial. They believe it's a MEMORIAL and that Christ is very much present through his Holy Spirit, but not present in the elements. I'll come back later and listen to the rest! Always worth hearing.
The 1552 BCP did not exist long. According to Bishop Frank E. Wilson, "It was never put forth with any Church authority behind it, and had not yet won its way to general acceptance when, in the following year, Edward VI died, leaving his crown by natural right to his sister, Mary Tutor." I would say that the 1549 was Cranmer's "magnum opus." Find anyone during Cranmer's time and in the Church of England that associated the Anglican liturgy with Zwingli. I suppose its your interpolation, to which you are entitled to make.
So beautifully said, Doctor! Thank you! The history of Anglicanism in the "Protestant Episcopal" Church into which I was born was just that... history. My church thanked the Presbyterian Church for ordaining Bishops who could then have a " number" (for Apostolic Succession, which isn't so.). I was Episcopal because my mother's family, in particular her father, were Anglican. Her father's family were raised Anglican in Jamaica. (Ruling class in that then-colony). They all spoke with accents, which was delightful I thought. They were committed Anglicans, so when arriving in NYC, they joined one of the snootiest Episcopal churches, very very high church. And sometimes they complained, *the Americans this" and "the Americans that My great grandmother died the year I was born, and she stayed with that famously nose-in-the-air church. May she rest in peace. Henry VIII and Crammer were hardly mentioned. We were the Church of the American Revolution, and we children were taught to be proud of God and country. I learned the horrific actions of Henry VIII in European History Class. A secular high school ànd then a secular college pulled bo punches. And I began to be ashamed to be part of a "Communion" that did all those terrible things. I stopped attending. But after I was married, I decided to return to church so my future children could be raised Christian.. And that is when I found that my once sensible Church had fallen into the abyss lof modernism. I found something in the transmigration in the Eucharist (wafer and wine) when I was Episcopal.Or maybe heaven gave me grace when I made heartfelt prayers during communion. I had been taught in RICA about the actual presence of Christ in the host and wine. I said *okay' and went with the flow. But communion knocked my socks off! I felt the sheer power and love like nothing I had ever known in any church! I was in all the way.. I stopped keeping track of the Episcopal Church early in my Catholic life. I was now in a church with beauty, meaning, gravitas and God. I am horrified at the radical social path the Episcopal Church. GAFCON hadn't yet started when I left. So I didn't have much of a choice. That is the path along which God led me. I deplore the Vatican 's consorting with Anglicans. And that is just one thing I dislike about the current regime in the Vatican. But I am every day blessed to be part of the Catholic Church and all its practices and lovely devotions. So my journey has been different. And YES, I looked into the scientific reports of the body and blood of Christ. I was flabbergasted!! A daily miracle! I am so thankful to the Holy Trinity and the Church. Praise be to God
@@royquick-s5n Thank you for the clarification. I appreciate your good words. I don't think you were historically inaccurate. You mentioned horrific facts that are now hard for me to read. That is because the Episcopal Church used to have a separation or buffer between itself and the England Anglican Church. We were taught barebones history from the Episcopal Church. Mostly, folks thought the church was the cat's meow. And there was lots of pride of being the church of many Founding Fathers of America. I didn't learn about the awful things in church. But in a semester of European history in high school and another semester early in college I learned the full story. It was part of my excuse for not only leaving that church when I was in college, but leaving all other churches too. I didn't ask anyone anything. I just gave up. By the end of my twenties I cried out to God because I had really gone astray. God did help me. So I went back to the Episcopal Church. That was the very end of the 1970's. So I saw the change as it happened. And even I knew that church was a Trainwreck waiting to happen! But I hung in for over a decade. Finally, I had had enough. To paraphrase Pres. Reagan, I didn't leave my church. My church left me. Becoming Catholic was such a a relief. Since by 1993 our RICA class was very thin on theology, I have been learning the Catholic faith as I attend church. Why didn't I leave because of the Inquisition? Early on, I felt the supernatural part of Catholicism. I couldn't leave for where would I go? And I learned that Protestant churches are all descended from Luther. So I couldn't go there. Orthodox, no! Later ón Messianic Christianity was tempting as it wasn't from Luther. But why leave the one true Church that Christ established? And I didn't want to celebrate ALL Jewish holidays! As to what you wrote relating various new factions of possible unity. I know there is a Catholic Anglican Rite Mass. Just for old times sake I'd like to see that. They accept the Pope and core Catholic teachings. But I have never been able to find one near me. And that's okay. But the rest probably were in infancy when I left in 1993. And I never looked back. I bumped into GAFCON on my RUclips feed last summer. I found Dr Gavin Ashenton interest (a former Church of England Bishop and Confessor to the late Queen who is now a Catholic layman). But I am not going to check out a GAFCON church just because I'm confused and unhappy about what is happening in the Vatican! I'm Catholic and I will die Catholic. (At 72 I do think that way). That the Pope is buddies with that Anglican Archbishop (head of the Anglican Communion). is dreadful. Our Lady of Good Success has some fascinating prophesies about what is happening in Rome. It is an extremely serious situation. And I'm not leaving. However I may become a Remnant Catholic. I'm trying to learn about the remnant-thing. Saint Sir Thomas Moore and Saint John Fisher had their Feast Day a week ago. Henry VIII was awful . Henry, Crammer and Luther were devilish. (I'm not fond of Queen Mary either.) That is the short story of my Church life! Lol! God bless you. ✝️🛐💟🙏🏻💟🛐✝️
@@royquick-s5n The word STARTED is interesting. It can mean the legal establishment of something. Likewise it can mean the inception of something . I have see Brits say the Church of England started under Queen Elizabeth I. We in the States cut to the chase. St Sir Thomas Moore and St. John Fisher were unalive by Henry VIII. And it was Henry VIII who broke with Rome, making himself the head of the Church of England. And this British monarchs have been the head of that state ever since. Charles III became king the moment his mother passed away. He was coronated about a year later. The Church of England started when Henry VIII broke with Rome . After that many who would not renounce their Catholic fate met terrible enda. They were martyred. Elizabeth I put the finishing touches on the legal paperwork. But that Church started under Henry. By the same token, we say the United States started on July 4th, 1776. It was legally established with our Constitution after 7 years of Civil W and a couple of years of a different legal document, the Articles of Confederation. We do have a day called Constitution Day, but I don't know when it is.! This country started with the Declaration of Independence. The Church of England started when King Henry VIII declared independence from Rome. It was Henry VIII who is responsible for the martyrdom of many Catholics who wouldn't leave Rome. It was an awful time. Absolute monarchy was evil in Henry's hands.
@@royquick-s5n Bully for you (as another President used to say. That is a whitewash. Henry VII beheaded his two good friends., St. John Fisher and St. Sir Thomas Moore. And there is a woman saint who was unalived at the stake. As were many other Catholics Don't make history sound pretty when it is abominable. Mary, Henry's daughter, just reversed the process of who burns whom. If things were so peachy keen under Henry VIII, why did Crammer make his famous statement to his friend "Play the man ..." Then he but his right arm into the fire before he was placed at the atak. He pronounced that he was sending his right arm to he;; because of all the death warrants he unjustly signed. Why all this if there was nothing really until Elizabeth I. Henry VIII was a psychopath. And no, I never claimed I was Anglican. The USA Episcopal Church was part of the Anglican Communion. But we had/they still have a head Bishop of the Episcopal Church. And that church makes its own rules. A woman priest was ordained the first woman bishop in the Episcopal Church decades before Canterbury even considered that kind of thing. When ai finally learned the (late) Queen was the head of the Anglican Church and this the head of what was then my church, I wanted to vomit. It is one of the reasons aI left that church. Americans don't mix church and state. Period. I never was straight out Anglican. So I didn't get get the whitewashing brainwashing. I thought we were like the Merjodistss. They broke from the Anglican Church and became totally independent No such luck. (BTW, I deeply respect the late Queen Elizabeth II. I just didn't want a foreign Queen or King being the head of a church I was part of.) So yes, I was USA Episcopal, which is part of the Anglican Communion. But I was NEVER Church of England Anglican. Thank God. You should take a college course here in Western European History. You would then see the whitewashing of Henry VIII, who lots of Brits think epitomizes Merry Ole England. That man held what amounted to pogroms on any who remained faithful Catholics... Faithful to Rome. Monks were unalived. It was ghastly. But believe what the heck you want. I am done with you. Don't post to me anymore. I am not interested in falsehoods. Godspeed.
@@royquick-s5n Okay, thank you for your last post. Yes I am very interested in Catholics Unscripted. They do give me new angles to things, yet they are completely Catholic. It's a fascinating broadcast . I especially like Dr Gavin Ashenton. He is 2 years younger than I. Sometimes his references go over the heads of the excellent Gen X'ers. But I get it. I don't think the Church of England was as crazy as the Episcopal Church. I learned in 1976 the Episcopal Church not only allowed, they actually recommend abortion for emergency situations. Define Emergency situations ... It is relative (proof modernism had reached the highest ranks of the Episcopal Church by 1976.) The situations ranged from the usual mother's life endangered/rape/incest to undefinable relative situations like it would cause a difficult negative change in the life of the mother. Now many Episcopal parishes are demonstrating outside school boards and the likebto allow children to have transgender operations. I was very sorry I googled for a news update on my former church. It is now an abomination. My hope for the Catholic Church is that God prevents a total modernist take over. But if that evil day does come, I am prepared to become a Remnant Catholic . Elijah thought he was the last true Jew in Ahab and Jezebel's Israel. But the LORD told him He had a thousand who had not bowed to Baal. That was a Remnant. I am prepared to become a Catholic Remnant as a final step. But I sure don't want to. May the LORD bless you and keep you. May He make His face to shine up on you. May He give you His peace 🕊️ Amen
Speaking of Henry VIII, today is a special Feast Day. Saint Sir Thomas Moore and Saint John Fisher, both beheaded by order of that King, have their Feast Day today. They were two men who lived Christ and His One Holy Apostolic Catholic Church.
@@maryn8139 I am so grateful for his scholarship! Each book has lead me to other books. I would love to thank him. He has opened up this English Catholic history for me that inspires me . The people he writes about don’t seem all that dead to me. I could talk extensively about Eamon Duffy’s books! One last observation: his affection for these people and his life’s work.
@@marycrawford1594 that was my introduction to Catholic England and Eamon Duffy. One book led to another. Eamon Duffy has such an affection for these people. Now, I do! I can’t thank him enough for his dedication to his life ‘s work.
Caveat lector! Don't read his History of the Popes. I read it on holiday in Serbia and found myself becoming Orthodox. Actually, I am being glib, but it was a certainly a trigger. That and his book on Mary I (Fires of Faith), I got so fed up with both sides in that one that I started looking beyond the tension.
Roman gets in the way of the Bible. Anglican does not get in the way of the Bible. My mother said, "Christianity is the religion of the Bible - well, that's the religion of the Church of England." The Protestant Reformation went in for "sola scriptura" rather than "scriptural foundation" and the saints of the Catholic Counter-Reformation Church went in for mysticism, particularly Eucharistic and Marian.
Roman absolutely does NOT "get in the way of the Bible" -- you are completely wrong, utterly deceived. Please do some urgently needed on your part research.
@@maureenelsden1927 You are aware some people take that inspiration in a mechanistic way. You may or may not agree these words of Wilson: "Books are made by men. God did not make the Bible--men wrote it. Therefore, when we say that the Bible is an inspired book, we do not mean to suggest that it is the result of divine dictation and, for that reason, exempt form the possibility of human blunders. We mean that men who did the writing were actively seeking God's will, inscribing accounts of God's dealing with human life, and that the spiritual reliability of these accounts was tested over long periods of time by the people for whom they were written. Only in a secondary way can the Bible itself be called a revelation of God. It is the record of His revelation which culminated in the Person of Jesus Christ." 🤔
A friend of mine attends an Anglican parish in West Croydon. The parish priest offers the Novus Ordo Mass, believes in transubstantiation and in our Blessed Mother. I have attended the church with my friend and in fact several misguided Catholics attend the parish and receive an unconsecrated host. Where does this sit within your criticism of Anglicanism?
The Roman Catholic laity was denied the cup from the 13th century until the second Vatican. One of the reasons Protestant reformer Jan Hus was burned at the stake was because he offered the cup to the laity.
@@geoffreystephen6840 So why burn Jan Hus at the stake if there is no difference? Why did Jesus offer the cup and bread separately? Why allow the cup after Vatican 2? Why allow Catholic laity either the body or the blood since the Catholic church teaches that the disciples were members of the priesthood?
Dear Dr Ashenden - There are the Eucharistic miracles and then there is the Shroud of course. Same blood type I understand. We needn't go into the various Marian phenomena right now.
A true Anglican ascribes to that great theologian Richard Hooker. In addition to scripture and the tradition of the early church, reason is also used to figure out what is of God. I am so happy that you have found mystery to be part of your spirituality....perhaps what separates us is this place of mystery, and how that mystery is celebrated and discerned. After all, it does not 'reason' that mystery can be measured. Bravo for discovering this in your in life's journey! For me, I will remain as an Anglican, using the Greatest Commandment of Jesus to also use our MIND (and the great discoveries of science, including biology, and geology) in discerning God's creation in the universe. It is still a great mystery on how this 14 billion year old universe (and its billions of galaxies) were created! Perhaps the greatest mystery for me, is how anyone can say that they know ANYTHING of God - and how this all came into being.
This Protestant has appreciated much of your cultural commentary, but even if your religion of miracles and wonders and beauty is right, you still have figure out how to be (and stay) in fellowship with believers of so many traditions who have simply taken hold of God's promise as they've heard it proclaimed, who like Abraham seek a city with foundations, and who will find that you're requiring for unity and fulness of the faith things that are not at all clear in Scripture, and therefore perhaps acting in a sectarian way yourself.
@@royquick-s5n Yes, as required for salvation likely not. But for unity and fulness of the faith I think they function much like tongues-speaking among some Pentecostals/Charismatics.
The recent bankruptcy of the 1690 23:05 Boyne-celebrating Rangers football club surely heartens Glasgow Catholics that the Holy Ghost has struck down the quintessential enemy of Catholic Celtic football club. Not to mention Celtic's even more recent winning of the two principal Scottish cups.
Why are there female deacons in the NT but not in the RC? Why did the RC church do nothing about slavery? How can the leader of the RC church sack bishops for repeating orthodoxy ? Asking for a friend.
Women deacons simply disappeared for over 1,900 years. It seems the Feminist Movement has raised interest in them again. It is my understanding that the Quakers and the Mennonites were among the first Christian bodies to believe slavery to be immoral, before the large, historical churches. Obviously their belief spread. Pope is administrative position, as are cardinal, patriarch, and archbishop. No one is ordained a pope, although popes are ordained bishops, i.e. Bishops of Rome. A pope may sin, e.g. sack bishops for repeating orthodoxy.
I find all your videos interesting and informative; and this is no exception. I was fascinated that you mentioned that on a few occasions in modern times (1994), events or accidents have lead to them being able to establish the blood group of the Eucharist. Have they ever had this phenomenon occur with the Eucharist from a Novus Ordo mass. If the answer is yes; then it would suggest that Jesus Christ has given the Novus Ordo his blessing. I realise that these blood Group tests were taken from Masses during the Novus Ordo period, but that doesn’t discount that the Eucharist was the result of a TLM
The One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church is the Holy Orthodox Church. Sadly the Roman Catholic Church went into schism from it around 1,000 years ago. But God is generous and has raised up some holy people who were Roman Catholics.
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Dear Gavin Ashenden, you are such an edifying and wholesome CATHOLIC soul, please 🙏 keep confessing your heartfelt gratitude for the real presence of JESUS in the HOLY EUCHARIST.
@@Soyebakhtar0105 you didn't listen to this video, did you?
@@Soyebakhtar0105 Okay, then. Try listening.
@@Soyebakhtar0105 Granted.
The solution is to learn better the Teachings that Jesus gave us from the beginning. Are you Muslim? Doesn't the Quran say that Jesus was born of the Virgin and that He will come again to judge the earth?
Jesus did not leave a Book. He taught chosen men to carry on His Teaching, and later those men, and their successors, wrote a Book. It is not corrupted -- we have the Bible in many languages from very early in Christian history, and they are all consistent in the basic Teaching. They have not changed.
The Church today teaches the same things that the Church taught at the time Jesus walked the earth.
And we have the miracles to prove it.
If the words you have learned from the teachers of Islam stop you from reading the words of the Bible, then follow the miracles.
This is what this video can teach you.
@@Soyebakhtar0105 When the Quran was written, and how much of it was from memorization, I do not know. Nor do I know why there are different versions.
But about the Bible, you are mistaken -- led astray, no doubt, by the theories of the newer "Biblical Criticism" "experts."
I do not know how deeply you have read the Christian Bible. For those readers who do not know much about it, I will try towrite simply. Please do not be offended if what I write is too basic for you. Please be patient with me!
The Bible is a collection of books which were inspired by God. They were not "dictated", as the Quran is supposed to have been. So the times the books were written, and the situations that they originally addressed, become important in our modern understanding of what they are saying to us today.
The Old Testament portion of the Bible was written over the course of more than a thousand years, as God spoke to His People and their understanding grew of what His message meant.
You can see a difference in understanding from the very beginning of the written Bible, within the first 5 books which are ascribed to Moses.
Moses wrote as the "Ten Commandments" at the beginning of the flight of the Israelites from Egypt. Please read from the book of Exodus, chapter 20, verses 2 through 17 (Exodus 20:2-17). Forty years later, Moses again wrote the Ten Commandments -- please read Deuteronomy 5:6-21. Note the differences and the likenesses. The Commands are the same, but worded a little differently, as the understanding of the people had deepened during the desert wanderings. God had quietly inspired that growth in understanding.
The New Testament is another set of books, all written about Jesus and His ministry and the Church He founded. They, too, were inspired by God. But first, was the living Church, telling the world about the Living Jesus, Who came from the Father to be Incarnate of the Virgin Mary, Who was rejected by His own People so that all the Peoples of the World would become His Own. He was crucified, and shed His Blood to free us all from the bondage of sin, and He Rose from the Dead and is Living to this day!
If you keep this in mind, then the fact that the books of the New Testament were written a decade or two or three or even four after the Death of Jesus does not really matter, because Jesus is still alive.
@@Soyebakhtar0105 the Bible is the same for Protestants and Catholics, except for the fact that 7 books and parts of 2 others are left out of some Protestant Bibles.
Because we believe that the Holy Spirit inspired the Bible, and that the Holy Spirit enters into our hearts at baptism, we are assured that the Lord will bring our minds to understand what God wants to say to us, whether or not the words are all the same (this, we can read the Bible in our own language, and simple children can understand as well as the most highly intelligent and learned scholars. This is a difference in our holy books.
I know that one of the teachings in Islam is that the Quran is letter perfect and the same all over the world, but that is not strictly true.
According to Samuel Green in his article "The Different Arabic Versions of the Quran", based on Cyril Glasse (The Concise Encyclopedia of Islam) the written Arabic language at the time of the giving of the Quran did not have vowel sounds or some necessary diacritical marks to distinguish certain consonants. Some of the Companions who had memorized the Quran were killed. So seven Readers recited the Quran, and each Reader's version was recorded by two Transmitters, using an improved style of Arabic writing. Five of these versions are in use still,. Four are used in regions of the world, and one of them (from Egypt, I think) is now in general use around the world.
I am learning!
Thank you so very much, Dr Ashenden. May God bless you always in your Catholic faith.
Shared with great tenderness and love...May God continue to bless you in your important mission!
As a cradle Catholic, I find your observations on this topic profoundly meaningful! Thank you!
If not already, read or watch the portrayal of the life and trial of saint Sir Thomas More.
His life and death were repeated hundreds if not thousands of times in England, Scotland Wales and Ireland.
Can we measure up to them?
Greatest respect for English Catholics.
Gavin, if in my last years I receive the grace to be half as charitable and loving as you are, I will consider it a big win.
True if we Catholic believed and appreciated the miracle of the mass we would crawl to Holy Sacrifice of the Mass on our bellies and never tolerate the personal sacrilege of not valuing it sufficiently.
Dear Dr Ashenden, you are a jewel in the treasury of the Church. Bless you.
As a fervent Catholic I just feel sad for my loved ones who no longer practice their faith and am inspired to double down on my prayers and trust in Our Lord that He will bring them back through my Trust in His Goodness.
You are a grace-filled man! Thank you for all your wonderful discources. God bless you.
Henry VIII ripped the heart out if this country and it has never recovered. Which is why we are such a brutal and wounded country that does not care for itself or its people. Maybe rather than praying for the consecration of Russia we should be praying for the restoration of our nation. A nation that was a once a Holy place of pilgrimage.
Excellent point & so true.
A holy and blessed land once upon a time.
🇬🇧 would’ve remained a Catholic country if it weren’t for Henry VIII. 🇺🇸 would’ve then been a Catholic country with a constitution as such, as the 🇫🇷 & 🇪🇸 colonies were Catholic. 😊
So much wrong here. England was a country where the Reformation found fertile soil,with or without Henry VIII. But you do realize, hopefully, that things that happened 500 years ago are beyond our understanding and ability to judge. Even the “Catholic countries” are not as Catholic as you think, based on Mass attendance, numbers or ordinands, closed churches, and clerical scandals. To say Britain and Anglicanism has troubles is no different from saying the same thing about the RC Church. Think of the situation of the RC Church in Ireland, France, and Germany now, to name a few. Their crises are beyond anything you can find in Anglicanism.
@@rogeryoung5180 -- These crises you are mentioning stem from the further Anglicanization of the RC church, ie., vapid N.O., Vatican 2 downgrades of all the churches, practical elimination of good catechesis, etc, etc.
Excellent as always Gavin. Thank you.
Myles, Edmonton, Canada
Being Catholic is ever more difficult but, proportionally, more spiritually joyful as we face these times in the sure knowledge of the miracle at the heart of our Mass.
Anglicanism has some great people and has and continues to do great works of mercy, but ultimately it's a shadow. Pray for the conversion of England.
It's not a conversion that's needed, it's a complete return to God - most do not have him in their lives, hence our current deep troubles
@@stevehall9333 when Russia converts so will the Anglicans - protestants.... Lord have mercy on us all🙏🙏🙏
Well put -- a shadow -- dark, insubstantial & fleeting.
My problem is your anger against the pope, not Anglicanism
@@jameswall6270 why is it that wherever the Roman church is the strongest (think Central and South America), those countries are poor and have deep societal corruption? Why is it that wherever the Protestant/ Anglican churches are strongest (think the Western countries) there is the rule of law and much less corruption?
This was an incredibly inspiring confession and reflection, and I especially appreciated your eloquent explanation of the truth, beauty, and goodness of our Catholic faith despite the venality emanating from the Vatican since 2013 and why we stay the course, despite the suffering caused by poor Church leadership.
Thank you Dr Ashenden. I wish everyone would share your amazement before the miracle of the Eucharistic. I also pray that people would understand the consequences and implications of that amazement… as you do. 🙏
One of the things I admire about Dr. Ashenden is his willingness to tell you that he's changed his mind. Your lifelong process of discernment is a benefit to all of us.
I'm currently reading Holly Ordway's spiritual biography of Tolkien and it deals with his great love for the Blessed Sacrament. When I as a young and very confused young adult it was what continually drew me back to the Catholic Faith and kept me on the right path. I am reminded of the quote from Augustine Birrell a former Chief Secretary for Ireland, "It is the Mass that matters; it is the Mass that makes the difference, so hard to define, so subtle is it, yet so perceptible, between a Catholic country and a Protestant one, between Dublin and Edinburgh, between Havre and Cromer. Here, I believe, is one of the battlefields of the future".
Your comment is so beautiful that it takes my breath away! May God richly bless the Catholics in Ireland and in Great Britain.
@@AnneOfNYS I'm Irish, Amen to that.
@@outoforbit00 Amen and Amen! You have an outstanding heritage 💚🍀💚
I enjoyed that book very much. Yes, the Eucharist is at the heart of everything. That's why there can be no true ecumenism without it.
Surely Christ should be at the heart of everything and not the ‘works’ of the Mass.
Gavin, a paradigm shift may be required, clarity of mind is 1 thing but, strength of backbone is another....what was lacking yesterday, is now vital today!
I had no doubt in my Anglican life that what I held in my hands at the altar was the very body and blood of Christ. I recall the exhilarating discovery that everything "Catholic" was accessible as a teenage student within the Anglo Catholic tradition in the late 70's. Rome held nothing that we didn't have (except for communion with Peter but we would work to fix that!)The week after my "Priesting" my Godly training incumbent (now aged 90) asked me what I had been reading. I was rereading the response from Canterbury and York after apostolicae curae and had tried to remember all the points. He was annoyed and said "You don't need to keep lifting your garments to look at your belly when youv'e only just put on the shirt", but the document gave me confidence that I had nothing less than the real thing! 13 years later something abruptly changed. Unexpectedly and in moments. It all slipped through my fingers and left me. I could no longer stand in conscience and conduct the Anglican Eucharist. I was a charlatan, a liar, dishonest a false prophet a bad apple. If I had stayed, which I very much wanted to do I would have tumbled into a breakdown. Suddenly 30 years have past and I have been a (Married) Catholic priest for 28 years. DG. It feels like less than 10. Now I find myself very tired and exhausted. I realise something must change. I have great affection for my past life and all my Anglican friends but when I go into an Anglican Church of whatever "tradition" I am overwhelmed by a sense of the divine absence, the very opposite of "Real Presence" especially at the (Anglican) Eucharist. That is ungracious and unkind but for me it just doesn't work. It is real emptiness. I thank God for every moment of my Priestly life from the very beginning but most of all for the extraordinary concession that was given to me 28 years ago. "Cast your bread upon the waters -LITERALLY -" said my old confessor and SD who preceded me by a year across the Tyber and lived to be 102. I am very glad i did! "All things work together for good!" I just need to have a bit of a rest and perhaps write a book but the 24/7 task of catholic parish ministry prohibits that and there are limited resources for assistance.
It would be an interesting book. I do wonder what life is like as a married Catholic priest.
One way to be charitable and truthful regarding Anglican churches, as a Catholic, is to think of them as shrines rather than churches. They don't have the real presence, but they are "holy" because many Christians have prayed there.
Such a beautiful post. God bless you for your journey. I pray you get a breather, that rest you need. ✝️
I’m very deeply moved by this. It was exactly this sense of absence that acted to propel me too.
thanks and God bless you
If it is difficult for us to be Catholic. Imagine the pain of living in China and trying to practice the faith.
Love can be all positive and wonderful things, and God’s love is indeed unconditional. Love is also painful, and sanctifying and goes far beyond suffering, to joy. To experience it all, is to truly know God!
Almost like being a Catholic in Glasgow.
Dear brother Gavin,
Thank you for this. I too have been mystified by your recent tone and urgency of late.
I recently drafted/penned a comment that never got sent on another video - to call into question the dissonance I saw at your joy at Ayam Hirsi Ali’s coming to faith contrasted with the strong criticism and impatience for those (like me) not yet drawn to catholic faith.
I appreciate the journey I have been on with you listening in on your thought processes, changes of heart, and the opening of your eyes to the riches of life in the Catholic Church.
I am delighted for you.
But also crave your patience with those of us who are put where we are by the grace of God in the place we are at the moment.
I was baptised Anglican as a baby, mum re-married a Lutheran and I have married a Lutheran pastor myself. My simple faith has been nurtured and grown in this church. And I am very thankful for this.
I occasionally go to catholic mass due to the heartbreak around my national church (LCA) seeking to walk further and further away from orthodoxy. It is utterly tragic.
But why was I brought here to this church?
And, related to your musings on the historical anglicans you have been blessed by, why did God bless JS Bach with such gifts of faith, reverence, creativity and exquisite beauty if not for the building up of his church? Yes, perhaps it is to draw us back to the one true church.
This may be the case.
Once again it is an interesting experience and a somewhat tricky path of exposing so much of your walk with all of us on RUclips. God bless you and keep you safe from attack.
And when you are, the Lord grant you his peace and trust in the only one in whom we can boast.
In christian love
Meg
You ask, "But why was I brought here to this church?" By church do you mean the Lutheran Church? That should not be an impediment to converting to Catholicism. You can regard the Lutheran Church as a stepping stone. Otherwise, why would any person convert from their original tradition to another? See Matthew 28:19-20. This is the whole history of the Church from the beginning. 🙂
Meg one of the things that I didn’t say, is that I don’t think the journey - the speed of the journey -can be forced in anybody. It took me a very long time indeed.
And I think that was partly because when I came across it was God’s time. I strongly think that each of us should look for God’s time and wait for the Holy Spirit.
@@DrGAshenden thank you, Gavin.
Today is the day of Hedda of Wessex, Saint of the British Isles from the 6th century. Hope that the brits understand their heritage and come back to the catholic church. All the best, God bless.
Today is the day of Hedda of Wessex, Saint of the British Isles from the 6th century. Hope that the English understand their heritage and come back to the Orthodox Church. All the best, God bless.
@@marcokite must be nice copying without giving any context. The kingdom of Wessex was under the jurisdiction of Rome and the pope at this time and not under the patriarch of Konstantinopel. Currently the catholic church is in a crisis, maybe we are back on track with a good pope. The orthodox church just went through a schism, Konstantinopel and Moscow do not accept each other anymore because of politics. Hope the christians unite again.
Thank you Gavin for your beautiful and honest testimony. Keep up the good work.
Thank you for mentioning the Eucharistic miracles. 👍
They're awesome and kinda frightening at the same time. ❤
Thank you Gavin. :) Hope you are well. John Henry Newman in his Apologia talks about what he calls his 'fierceness" when he was speaking, ironically, in diatribes against The Pope !!! :) :) And they made him Cardinal. :) And Peter Knott SJ says : 'Anger is a sign that we are alive' . The videos you make are so soothing Gavin .I really enjoy listening to your good words . Thank you.
Beautiful testimony
Welcome Dr Ashenden! God bless you
Thank you Dr Gavin. It is beautiful to see the Holy Spirit work through you as he tempers the passionate part of your nature with a genuine love for all your fellow human beings. Prayers for you Catherine and Mark🙏 May St Thomas a beckett, St Thomas More, St John Fisher, St John Henry Newman and all the English Saints and Martyrs continue to support you with their prayers and inspiring presence 🙏
Thank you, Dr. Gavin Ashenden.
Thank you so much Gavin for opening your heart to us and sharing your such profound thoughts with us. I’m an Anglican in South Africa, worshipping sometimes at a very high church in the suburbs of Cape Town (I live outside of Cape Town), and I recognise much of what you say. Yes, I will pray for you as I also pray for my own way towards our Lord. Thanks again for your internet ministry, which I find to be helpful. God bless from, Arthur
Fantastic thank you
There is a great hunger for our Catholic faith out there if only we could get our message across consistently so that people recognise it - thank God for Catholic Unscripted together and individually for working so hard to explain, educate, enthuse, mourn, guard jealously, teach, learn, and spill tea on their microphones...
😂 Perfectly put
@@catholicunscripted - There is a great hunger for the Holy Orthodox faith out there, if only we could get our message across consistently so that people recognise it - thank God for the Holy Orthodox Church for working so hard to explain, educate, enthuse, mourn, guard jealously and teach. The Orthodox saints are in a different category to the Roman Catholic good people of the past. It's not sour grapes but i'm overwhelmed by the beauty of Holy Orthodoxy.
A great time to be Orthodox! So many really holy Orthodox bishops & priests out there in the world NOW!
The One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church is the Holy Orthodox Church. Sadly the Roman Catholic Church went into schism from it around 1,000 years ago. But God is generous and has raised up some holy people who were and are Roman Catholics.
There is a great hunger for the Holy Orthodox faith out there, if only we could get our message across consistently so that people recognise it - thank God for the Holy Orthodox Church for working so hard to explain, educate, enthuse, mourn, guard jealously and teach. The Orthodox saints are in a different category to the Roman Catholic good people of the past. It's not sour grapes but i'm overwhelmed by the beauty of Holy Orthodoxy.
A great time to be Orthodox! So many really holy Orthodox bishops & priests out there in the world NOW!
The One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church is the Holy Orthodox Church. Sadly the Roman Catholic Church went into schism from it around 1,000 years ago. But God is generous and has raised up some holy people who were and are Roman Catholics.
Bless you Gavin and thank you for your candour. 😊
I think you're Great Dr Ashenden', Thank You🙏🕊️
God Bless you Gavin Ashenden
God bless you Gavin for this heartfelt, humble and honest message which spoke directly to the pain the I have felt in my own heart since becoming a Catholic 3 years ago at the age of 59 after spending my life as an Anglican/Evangelical.
I am profoundly grateful to the Holy Spirit for drawing me into the truth during COVID and I absolutely love my faith and the church but struggle with regrets about the wasted years and what could have been for my family etc.
I realize that God’s timing is perfect and He has me here at this time and place for a purpose and I rest in that while I work to get over my weaknesses and tendency to look back over my shoulder with regret.
Don't worry about it I returned to my Catholic Faith at 65 I am now 66. God Almighty works in mysterious ways. God Bless you.
Thank you for your insights and honesty. As an ex Australian Anglican, (71 years old) now recent convert to the Catholic "deposit of faith" can you please help me see how the Novus Ordo church is not a similar "dangerous decoy"? Do you see the Novus Ordo Mass as truly a place that the real presence of Christ is re-presented? I am very, very unclear about this. Thank you for your time and work.
I feel the same way about the N.O. -- a very Protestant decoy.
You said it!! Well done❤❤❤❤
Thank you, Dr. Ashenden. You articulate so eloquently what it means to be and remain Catholic. Looking forward to meeting you at the upcoming Catholic Identity Conference.
As always, Gavin helps me to understand things that I have felt but haven't been able to explain very well. Too bad he's not the pope.
Gavin for Pope❤
I’m so pleased to hear your comments about what happens in cathedrals regarding concerts etc. I do not feel comfortable about the fact that they are now using these holy places for things like silent discos or performances that would be more suitable in a different place. They make the excuse that these places need financial support. But it reminds me of Jesus reaction to what was taking place in the temple. They justify what they are permitting but it’s not right. Undermining holy places is subtle and devious and a silent way of diminishing what was
being blessed with ears that hear lovely video Gavern God bless
When Luther said "Tolle Missam, tolle Ecclesiam ," he was absolutely right and you explain things as ever gently and clearly and people need to resist the apparent dumbing down we have suffered in the Church in the last 60 years. Cradle Catholics can easily fail to appreciate just what the Mass is and how important. Your insight as ever is very welcome. Thank you.
As a fairly new Catholic, having left the COE a couple of decades ago, I was absolutely gobsmacked the first time I felt the Real Presence in the Eucharist. Once I got over the shock of the reality of it (very hard to describe) I felt an enormous pity for those non-Catholics who don't get to experience it.
We really understand your love for the Catholic church.
Thanks
Thank you for these very interesting insights into the problem of anglicanism for non-ex-anglicans!
great to have Gavin back home. May he be brought to the heights of the Mystery .
God bless you Dr Gavin
The late Mick Aston, leading archeologist of Time Team, once compared the destruction of the monasteries to the Beeching destruction of the railways. He was pointing out how in some places the railway lines were actually pulled up, how houses were built over former railway routes and stations. As he put it, they were making a statement that these railways were never coming back, and it was the same with the monasteries. And at this distance of time there does appear to be something spiteful or malicious about it. The ending of some railway lines destroyed the living of many people, such as market gardeners who depended on fast trains to get their produce to the markets in large towns while still fresh, and so on. No account was taken of this. There is also a whiff of corruption about it, just as with the 'dissolution' of the monasteries. It is said that the government of the day couldn't abide the strength of the railway workers' unions as it challenged their power, not unlike Henry VIII and his henchman Thomas Cromwell.
The point Gavin makes about the current uses of what were once holy buildings (and the holiness is part of what created their beauty) is a good one. What I would say is that the abbey churches that were left as ruins, such as Glastonbury or Walsingham, seem to me to have retained their atmosphere. They are still holy places. Another example of the 'time warp' that characterises the Catholic Church.
Thank you, Gavin, for that very profound talk.
I enjoy listening to your commentary. Inspiring.
Gavin, I agree with all this 100%, I was received into the church nearly 40 years ago. Sadly, it seems most people are almost unaware that the church even exists now; the world is so secular, and while Islam is respected, catholics are mocked. Even the Holy Father seems to be trying to dismantle our faith. Never mind, it'll all come right because the Lord promised!
My convert grandmother used to say that the English didn't lose the Faith, but rather, it was taken from them, by force.
See Blessed Carlo Acutis' display on Eucharistic Miracles he did in his early teens. Wonderful!
Right now, I find the Traditional Anglican Church to be more Catholic than the modernist catholic church.
The modernist Catholic Church makes on cringe!
If this is anger, I think we need to see more of it!
(Btw, excellent term, “destructive decoy”. Hash-tag that someone.)
We stay for the Sacraments! Always the sacraments! May we always be able to avail of them 🙏
Gosh, this reminds me of how much I love the story of doubting Thomas. There’s a pointer to true belief, not in material proof, but in conversion of the heart
I pray the Holy Rosary that all lapsed Catholics in Ireland came back to the one true faith and for the conversion of England. God bless you Gavin.
I don’t know how I missed this video, but I’m glad I found it. I’ve been grappling with this issue with Anglicanism for a long time, but especially in the past year. I found myself becoming very angry and wondering how all my Anglican friends, who tend to be quite snooty when it comes to Roman Catholicism, could follow a tradition that came from such a horrible figure as Henry VIII. It’s a very simplistic way of putting it (be kind), but terrible things happened all over the UK and Ireland because of that tyrant. The Anglicans I know are very Woke and want to make reparations for anything that was done in the past, but they don’t seem to think amends need to be made to Catholics, to Irish, and to all the people of faith who worked on the great cathedrals. Give us back our cathedrals. Give the English back their faith. Give them back the Eucharist. I am very very sad about the split. I’m also sad that whenever I expressed frustration with the Church, someone always told me to just go to the Anglican or Episcopal church-they’re basically the same as Catholic. No, they’re not. (Very grateful for Gavin.)
Prince William appears to want to reduce the magnificence and splendor of the monarchy. He also appears to not show any interest in the church. He should be careful about how he goes about changing a thousand years of tradition.
“Kind hearts are more than coronets, and simple Faith than Norman blood.”
@@Mark3ABE The so-called Windsors have very little Norman blood - mainly Lady Margaret Beaufort, mother of Henry VII.
@@maureenelsden1927 - Incorrect, they are more importantly, descended from Beaufort's daughter-in-law, Elizabeth of York, daughter of Edward IV.
@@marcokite I am correct: Edward IV was a cuckoo whose father was not Richard of York but an archer.
Let's not forget that priests were hung for saying Mass in Ireland during the centuries of English conquest and colonisation (mass starvation, depopulation, deportation, crushing of the Irish language, material and spiritual impoverisent, plantation, the list goes on).
In desperation, some people converted to Protestantism and became known as "soupers".
Don't make the mistake of thinking that English Catholic priests and laity of the penal times felt any less pain just because it was their own people who were persecuting them.
Thank you, Dr. Gavin, and may God bless you. ✝️🙏☘️
Inspirational!
Access to TLM is a postcode lottery in UK.
“They will know my disciples by the love they have for one another.” Jesus
Thank you Gavin for your insight! I am very troubled by the recent events. I will pray for you and ask Our Lady to keep you slinging out holy help and guidance!
Thank you Dr. Ashenden. I am just a bit puzzled as to why this phenomenon of the host has never been something I have heard of before. You know, in Evangelisation or Apologetics. A naive observation of mine perhaps!? I am a cradle Catholic who left and became Evangelical and now returned for many, many reasons but the main reason being the need for the Holy Eucharist. I thank God I am home. Thank you.
I loved listening to this discourse.
I am so grateful that I am a Catholic, so appreciative of the Holy Eucharist.
From the sermon of Father John Henry Newman on July 13, 1852 during the first synod of the Westminster archdiocese, convened by Nicholas Cardinal Wiseman and held at St. Mary’s College in Oscott:
"Three centuries ago, and the Catholic Church, that great creation of God's power, stood in this land in pride of place. It had the honours of near a thousand years upon it; it was enthroned on some twenty sees up and down the broad country; it was based in the will of a faithful people; it energized through ten thousand instruments of power and influence; and it was ennobled by a host of Saints and Martyrs. The churches, one by one, recounted and rejoiced in the line of glorified intercessors, who were the respective objects of their grateful homage. Canterbury alone numbered perhaps some sixteen, from St. Augustine to St. Dunstan and St. Elphege, from St. Anselm and St. Thomas down to St. Edmund. York had its St. Paulinus, St. John, St. Wilfrid, and St. William; London, its St. Erconwald; Durham, its St. Cuthbert; Winton, its St. Swithun. Then there were St. Aidan of Lindisfarne, and St. Hugh of Lincoln, and St. Chad of Lichfield, and St. Thomas of Hereford, and St. Oswald and St. Wulstan of Worcester, and St. Osmund of Salisbury, and St. Birinus of Dorchester, and St. Richard of Chichester. And then, too, its religious orders, its monastic establishments, its universities, its wide relations all over Europe, its high prerogatives in the temporal state, its wealth, its dependencies, its popular honours,-where was there in the whole of Christendom a more glorious hierarchy? Mixed up with the civil institutions, with kings and nobles, with the people, found in every village and in every town,-it seemed destined to stand, so long as England stood, and to outlast, it might be, England's greatness. BUT IT WAS THE HIGH DECREE OF HEAVEN, THAT THE MAJESTY OF THAT PRESENCE SHOULD BE BLOTTED OUT."
[Newman Reader Org /works/occasions/sermon10.html]
From the same sermon: "The English Church was, and the English Church was not, and the English Church is once again. This is the portent, worthy of a cry. It is the coming in of a Second Spring."
Wow! What a great quote. Thank you so much.
This is very powerful. Thank you. I’ll find the original.
1. You're welcome. Just copy the link in the brackets at the end and paste it into a new web browser. The Newman Reader Page containing the sermon should appear at the top of the listings for you to click on.
2. It was God's permissive will that an execrable schismatic monarch advanced a scheming clergyman who was both an apostate and literary genius. Their legacy incubated until an island nation became a Protestant world empire upon which the sun never set. The upside was that, in turn, by the 19th century and its granting of religious toleration, the British Empire inadvertantly became the means by which (A) continental Catholicism was spared its neutering by Napoleon Bonaparte, (B) the faith was spread worldwide in large part by impoverished Irish migrant laborers fleeing a starving Eire, and indigenous Catholic minorities, particularly in India, were given breathing space to thrive.
You're welcome and may you live many thousands of days.
Love can be all positive and wonderful things, and God’s love is indeed unconditional, but love is also painful, and sanctifying, and goes far beyond suffering, to joy. Yes, you can experience the fullness of God and His love, even through martyrdom.
Hmmm. What about all those who tell the story of leaving the Roman tradition and finding new life in Christ in other parts of the Church (Protestant, Eastern)? They call it a conversion!
When some English (Roman) Catholics, c. 1967-75 CE, looked at what the 'reforms' of the New Order (of everything) in Catholic worship meant - in practice, not theory, in actual deeds not words alone - a similar sort of surge in feeling welled up .. if only from the opposite end of the perspective: what was then being removed by command from what had been received by divine grace and human effort. And the odd part is, even (or moreso) non-Catholics realised and understood and appealed against the loss, as though it were a kind of wanton destruction, vandalism, an act of cultural iconoclasm .. or as Pope St Paul VI himself called 'autodestruction'. Indeed, as heaven would have it, all graciously - though duly obstructed by man, a tiny little window appeared even amid the blossoming mushroom cloud of self-imposed self delusion .. for an Indult was sought and given, if only by the scratch of a famous signature.
Such minor miracles, insignificant on the grand scale, easily dismissed or ignored, are what make Rome's Catholicism so much greater than the whole of all its parts. Mary's memory, Paul's napkin, Peter's death .. Pius V's Missal, Vatican Councils, and the Miracle of the Eucharist with its odd Eucharistic miracles, etc; and this not only yesterday or today, but for each tomorrow.
Yet the greatest assistant to man's Adversary amid all these witnesses is .. as ever it was .. our own allotted clergy.
Keep the Faith; tell the truth, shame the devil, and let the demons shriek.
God bless. ;o)
Well I am very glad to hear that you are not disillusioned with Catholicism in these difficult times. We have to remember what Catholicism is about rather than what some of the authorities are currently doing.
Most Holy Trinity-Father, Son and Holy Spirit-I adore Thee profoundly. I offer Thee the most precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ, present in all the tabernacles of the world, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges, and indifferences whereby He is offended. And through the infinite merits of His Most Sacred Heart and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I beg of Thee the conversion of poor sinners.
Amen 🙏 ✝️🕊
"Gap between aspirations and reality of performance" is well spoken.
Dr Gavin as always wonderful words of wisdom.
Have you studied the mystics much?
Going back to the twelfth century we have St Hildegard of Bingen .visionary,prophet,healer,
social reformer,scientist,dramatist and composer of wonderful sacred music.
I played her music found on Utube to a Protestant Pastor friend of mine who ended up playing and loving it.He even bought a cd of her music .
God works in his ways Dr Gavin 😊Not always what we want 😞We need to detach at times and let him do his Will.🙏
Another more recent Mystic is Luisa Piccarreta from Italy who died the same year as St Faustina in 1947.
I just thought I would share those with you .They are so many wonderful Catholic mystics as I am sure you know .
We are very Blessed to have in the Catholic Church.Do not be too hard on yourself.
Blessings
Gerri in Canada (Alcatraz)😊☘️🙏
For those not familiar with Eucharistic miracles that science can’t explain, investigate them with the same AB blood type & living heart tissue
And how are those miracles changing your life to be a better follower of Christ?
Beloved Gavin God Loves you dearly
This was a lovely explanation, Dr. Ashenden, thank you. It's so difficult to explain the effect the true presence in the eucharist has on the human soul to non-Catholics. Recently I had a discussion about it with friends (who I presume were raised in the Anglican tradition) and they told me that had had the same spiritual experience (as I have had with the eucharist) during a Hindu meditation retreat in India. I could only smile and say a silent prayer for them. It sounds condescending for me to even think that way, but I've been born again in Christ, and I know He is the way, the truth, and the life. I wish sharing the truth with others was an easier thing to do.
Quite frankly, meditation is a transforming spiritual experience that deeply imbues the meditator with profound loving kindness towards all. So. although I converted to Holy Mother Catholic Church about 3 years ago, I continue to meditate & experience God's love.
@@maryn8139 Oh I agree with you, I medidate as well. When I was younger I experimented in eastern meditation practices, so I know where my friends are coming from, but Christian meditation is a different thing. The path of finding Christ's grace is a different thing.
Dr Ashenden, I’m tearing up.. you perfectly express the thoughts and feelings that almost plague me daily. It’s so LONELY and PAINFUL being Catholic, and although American, of English descent… I have a hard time forgiving Henry for essentially destroying England, ripping the riches and beauty and eternal Truth and Presence of our Lord from the people he was called to protect and defend. The lasting damage extends far beyond the borders of Great Britain, and penetrates American soil, for sure.
I guess i just have to keep thanking the Lord that He rescued me from Protestantism at age 50 and feeds me Himself in the mass now.
Dr A, your talks really mean so, so much to me. Thank you for sharing all that you do.
Bless you, and thank you most deeply for taking the trouble to write.
Hi! I share similar sentiments with you & am also a convert. Recently, I was very fortunate to stumble upon some talks by Pastor Joel Osteen -- they really changed my mood most profoundly -- he is such a caring, positive & true believer. Check him out -- you don't have to be lonely & alone, etc. God bless you! ❤
Was it Henry VIII who destroyed England? Do you know that final break with Rome did not occur till 1570, twelve years into the reign of Elizabeth I? And look at Mary I, "Bloody Mary," who brought the Church of England back in communion with Rome before Elizabeth I. What many do not know is the devastation that the Church of England, Anglicans, suffered from the Puritans during the Commonwealth, Interregnum.
Good morning. For the record, Cranmer in his magnum opus, if it can be given that grand tile, the Prayer Book of 1552, was clearly towards the Zwinglian end of the spectrum in the words of administration in the Lord's Supper or Holy Communion. The juxtaposition of almost contradictory words came later after Cranmer was so brutally put out of the way because of his views on the sacrament. "Zwinglians", by the way, in case anyone asks, don't believe that the Eucharist is a "mere" memorial. They believe it's a MEMORIAL and that Christ is very much present through his Holy Spirit, but not present in the elements. I'll come back later and listen to the rest! Always worth hearing.
The 1552 was a concession to some reformers - hence the Eucharist took on a more memorialst notion.
The 1552 BCP did not exist long. According to Bishop Frank E. Wilson, "It was never put forth with any Church authority behind it, and had not yet won its way to general acceptance when, in the following year, Edward VI died, leaving his crown by natural right to his sister, Mary Tutor." I would say that the 1549 was Cranmer's "magnum opus." Find anyone during Cranmer's time and in the Church of England that associated the Anglican liturgy with Zwingli. I suppose its your interpolation, to which you are entitled to make.
So beautifully said, Doctor! Thank you!
The history of Anglicanism in the "Protestant Episcopal" Church into which I was born was just that... history. My church thanked the Presbyterian Church for ordaining Bishops who could then have a " number" (for Apostolic Succession, which isn't so.).
I was Episcopal because my mother's family, in particular her father, were Anglican. Her father's family were raised Anglican in Jamaica. (Ruling class in that then-colony). They all spoke with accents, which was delightful I thought.
They were committed Anglicans, so when arriving in NYC, they joined one of the snootiest Episcopal churches, very very high church. And sometimes they complained, *the Americans this" and "the Americans that My great grandmother died the year I was born, and she stayed with that famously nose-in-the-air church. May she rest in peace.
Henry VIII and Crammer were hardly mentioned. We were the Church of the American Revolution, and we children were taught to be proud of God and country.
I learned the horrific actions of Henry VIII in European History Class. A secular high school ànd then a secular college pulled bo punches. And I began to be ashamed to be part of a "Communion" that did all those terrible things. I stopped attending.
But after I was married, I decided to return to church so my future children could be raised Christian.. And that is when I found that my once sensible Church had fallen into the abyss lof modernism.
I found something in the transmigration in the Eucharist (wafer and wine) when I was Episcopal.Or maybe heaven gave me grace when I made heartfelt prayers during communion.
I had been taught in RICA about the actual presence of Christ in the host and wine. I said *okay' and went with the flow. But communion knocked my socks off! I felt the sheer power and love like nothing I had ever known in any church!
I was in all the way..
I stopped keeping track of the Episcopal Church early in my Catholic life. I was now in a church with beauty, meaning, gravitas and God.
I am horrified at the radical social path the Episcopal Church. GAFCON hadn't yet started when I left. So I didn't have much of a choice. That is the path along which God led me.
I deplore the Vatican 's consorting with Anglicans. And that is just one thing I dislike about the current regime in the Vatican.
But I am every day blessed to be part of the Catholic Church and all its practices and lovely devotions.
So my journey has been different.
And YES, I looked into the scientific reports of the body and blood of Christ. I was flabbergasted!! A daily miracle! I am so thankful to the Holy Trinity and the Church. Praise be to God
@@royquick-s5n OMG! Go away! Just go away! You are so wrong about me in so many ways. I'm not going to tackle correcting you. Now get lost!
@@royquick-s5n Thank you for the clarification. I appreciate your good words. I don't think you were historically inaccurate. You mentioned horrific facts that are now hard for me to read. That is because the Episcopal Church used to have a separation or buffer between itself and the England Anglican Church. We were taught barebones history from the Episcopal Church. Mostly, folks thought the church was the cat's meow. And there was lots of pride of being the church of many Founding Fathers of America.
I didn't learn about the awful things in church. But in a semester of European history in high school and another semester early in college I learned the full story. It was part of my excuse for not only leaving that church when I was in college, but leaving all other churches too. I didn't ask anyone anything. I just gave up.
By the end of my twenties I cried out to God because I had really gone astray. God did help me. So I went back to the Episcopal Church. That was the very end of the 1970's. So I saw the change as it happened. And even I
knew that church was a Trainwreck waiting to happen! But I hung in for over a decade. Finally, I had had enough. To paraphrase Pres. Reagan, I didn't leave my church. My church left me.
Becoming Catholic was such a a relief. Since by 1993 our RICA class was very thin on theology, I have been learning the Catholic faith as I attend church. Why didn't I leave because of the Inquisition? Early on, I felt the supernatural part of Catholicism. I couldn't leave for where would I go? And I learned that Protestant churches are all descended from Luther. So I couldn't go there. Orthodox, no! Later ón Messianic Christianity was tempting as it wasn't from Luther. But why leave the one true Church that Christ established? And I didn't want to celebrate ALL Jewish holidays!
As to what you wrote relating various new factions of possible unity. I know there is a Catholic Anglican Rite Mass. Just for old times sake I'd like to see that. They accept the Pope and core Catholic teachings.
But I have never been able to find one near me. And that's okay.
But the rest probably were in infancy when I left in 1993. And I never looked back. I bumped into GAFCON on my RUclips feed last summer. I found Dr Gavin Ashenton interest (a former Church of England Bishop and Confessor to the late Queen who is now a Catholic layman). But I am not going to check out a GAFCON church just because I'm confused and unhappy about what is happening in the Vatican! I'm Catholic and I will die Catholic. (At 72 I do think that way).
That the Pope is buddies with that Anglican Archbishop (head of the Anglican Communion). is dreadful. Our Lady of Good Success has some fascinating prophesies about what is happening in Rome. It is an extremely serious situation. And I'm not leaving. However I may become a Remnant Catholic. I'm trying to learn about the remnant-thing.
Saint Sir Thomas Moore and Saint John Fisher had their Feast Day a week ago. Henry VIII was awful . Henry, Crammer and Luther were devilish. (I'm not fond of Queen Mary either.)
That is the short story of my Church life! Lol! God bless you.
✝️🛐💟🙏🏻💟🛐✝️
@@royquick-s5n The word STARTED is interesting. It can mean the legal establishment of something. Likewise it can mean the inception of something . I have see Brits say the Church of England started under Queen Elizabeth I. We in the States cut to the chase. St Sir Thomas Moore and St. John Fisher were unalive by Henry VIII. And it was Henry VIII who broke with Rome, making himself the head of the Church of England. And this British monarchs have been the head of that state ever since. Charles III became king the moment his mother passed away. He was coronated about a year later.
The Church of England started when Henry VIII broke with Rome . After that many who would not renounce their Catholic fate met terrible enda. They were martyred. Elizabeth I put the finishing touches on the legal paperwork. But that Church started under Henry.
By the same token, we say the United States started on July 4th, 1776. It was legally established with our Constitution after 7 years of Civil W and a couple of years of a different legal document, the Articles of Confederation. We do have a day called Constitution Day, but I don't know when it is.! This country started with the Declaration of Independence. The Church of England started when King Henry VIII declared independence from Rome. It was Henry VIII who is responsible for the martyrdom of many Catholics who wouldn't leave Rome. It was an awful time. Absolute monarchy was evil in Henry's hands.
@@royquick-s5n Bully for you (as another President used to say.
That is a whitewash. Henry VII beheaded his two good friends., St. John Fisher and St. Sir Thomas Moore. And there is a woman saint who was unalived at the stake. As were many other Catholics Don't make history sound pretty when it is abominable. Mary, Henry's daughter, just reversed the process of who burns whom.
If things were so peachy keen under Henry VIII, why did Crammer make his famous statement to his friend "Play the man ..." Then he but his right arm into the fire before he was placed at the atak. He pronounced that he was sending his right arm to he;; because of all the death warrants he unjustly signed. Why all this if there was nothing really until Elizabeth I.
Henry VIII was a psychopath.
And no, I never claimed I was Anglican. The USA Episcopal Church was part of the Anglican Communion. But we had/they still have a head Bishop of the Episcopal Church. And that church makes its own rules. A woman priest was ordained the first woman bishop in the Episcopal Church decades before Canterbury even considered that kind of thing.
When ai finally learned the (late) Queen was the head of the Anglican Church and this the head of what was then my church, I wanted to vomit. It is one of the reasons aI left that church. Americans don't mix church and state. Period.
I never was straight out Anglican. So I didn't get get the whitewashing brainwashing. I thought we were like the Merjodistss. They broke from the Anglican Church and became totally independent No such luck.
(BTW, I deeply respect the late Queen Elizabeth II. I just didn't want a foreign Queen or King being the head of a church I was part of.)
So yes, I was USA Episcopal, which is part of the Anglican Communion. But I was NEVER Church of England Anglican. Thank God.
You should take a college course here in Western European History. You would then see the whitewashing of Henry VIII, who lots of Brits think epitomizes Merry Ole England. That man held what amounted to pogroms on any who remained faithful Catholics... Faithful to Rome. Monks were unalived. It was ghastly.
But believe what the heck you want. I am done with you. Don't post to me anymore. I am not interested in falsehoods.
Godspeed.
@@royquick-s5n Okay, thank you for your last post. Yes I am very interested in Catholics Unscripted. They do give me new angles to things, yet they are completely Catholic. It's a fascinating broadcast .
I especially like Dr Gavin Ashenton. He is 2 years younger than I. Sometimes his references go over the heads of the excellent Gen X'ers. But I get it. I don't think the Church of England was as crazy as the Episcopal Church. I learned in 1976 the Episcopal Church not only allowed, they actually recommend abortion for emergency situations. Define Emergency situations ... It is relative (proof modernism had reached the highest ranks of the Episcopal Church by 1976.) The situations ranged from the usual mother's life endangered/rape/incest to undefinable relative situations like it would cause a difficult negative change in the life of the mother. Now many Episcopal parishes are demonstrating outside school boards and the likebto allow children to have transgender operations. I was very sorry I googled for a news update on my former church. It is now an abomination.
My hope for the Catholic Church is that God prevents a total modernist take over. But if that evil day does come, I am prepared to become a Remnant Catholic . Elijah thought he was the last true Jew in Ahab and Jezebel's Israel. But the LORD told him He had a thousand who had not bowed to Baal. That was a Remnant. I am prepared to become a Catholic Remnant as a final step. But I sure don't want to.
May the LORD bless you and keep you. May He make His face to shine up on you. May He give you His peace 🕊️ Amen
Speaking of Henry VIII, today is a special Feast Day.
Saint Sir Thomas Moore and Saint John Fisher, both beheaded by order of that King, have their Feast Day today.
They were two men who lived Christ and His One Holy Apostolic Catholic Church.
Eamon Duffy has been my educator on Catholic England. I highly recommend his books. I have read 7 so far.
The Stripping of the Altars was a revolutionary book.
Thank you for recommending Eamon Duffy!❤
@@maryn8139 I am so grateful for his scholarship! Each book has lead me to other books. I would love to thank him. He has opened up this English Catholic history for me that inspires me . The people he writes about don’t seem all that dead to me. I could talk extensively about Eamon Duffy’s books! One last observation: his affection for these people and his life’s work.
@@marycrawford1594 that was my introduction to Catholic England and Eamon Duffy. One book led to another. Eamon Duffy has such an affection for these people. Now, I do! I can’t thank him enough for his dedication to his life ‘s work.
Caveat lector! Don't read his History of the Popes. I read it on holiday in Serbia and found myself becoming Orthodox. Actually, I am being glib, but it was a certainly a trigger. That and his book on Mary I (Fires of Faith), I got so fed up with both sides in that one that I started looking beyond the tension.
Roman gets in the way of the Bible. Anglican does not get in the way of the Bible. My mother said, "Christianity is the religion of the Bible - well, that's the religion of the Church of England." The Protestant Reformation went in for "sola scriptura" rather than "scriptural foundation" and the saints of the Catholic Counter-Reformation Church went in for mysticism, particularly Eucharistic and Marian.
Roman absolutely does NOT "get in the way of the Bible" -- you are completely wrong, utterly deceived. Please do some urgently needed on your part research.
@@royquick-s5n -- LOVE it! Thank you, Roy! 🌹❤️
@@royquick-s5n The Holy Spirit is said to have inspired the Bible. The Church is very human.
@@maureenelsden1927 You are aware some people take that inspiration in a mechanistic way. You may or may not agree these words of Wilson: "Books are made by men. God did not make the Bible--men wrote it. Therefore, when we say that the Bible is an inspired book, we do not mean to suggest that it is the result of divine dictation and, for that reason, exempt form the possibility of human blunders. We mean that men who did the writing were actively seeking God's will, inscribing accounts of God's dealing with human life, and that the spiritual reliability of these accounts was tested over long periods of time by the people for whom they were written. Only in a secondary way can the Bible itself be called a revelation of God. It is the record of His revelation which culminated in the Person of Jesus Christ." 🤔
A friend of mine attends an Anglican parish in West Croydon. The parish priest offers the Novus Ordo Mass, believes in transubstantiation and in our Blessed Mother. I have attended the church with my friend and in fact several misguided Catholics attend the parish and receive an unconsecrated host. Where does this sit within your criticism of Anglicanism?
Too much confusion. There was none when we had the traditional latin Mass.
Thank you!
The Roman Catholic laity was denied the cup from the 13th century until the second Vatican. One of the reasons Protestant reformer Jan Hus was burned at the stake was because he offered the cup to the laity.
It is unnecessary to receive communion 'under both kinds', since Our Lord is present in entirety in either.
Read the Holy Scriptures. What does John 6 say? What does 1 Cor. 11 refer to? Please, please, read the Bible for yourself!
@@geoffreystephen6840 So why burn Jan Hus at the stake if there is no difference? Why did Jesus offer the cup and bread separately? Why allow the cup after Vatican 2? Why allow Catholic laity either the body or the blood since the Catholic church teaches that the disciples were members of the priesthood?
Dear Dr Ashenden - There are the Eucharistic miracles and then there is the Shroud of course. Same blood type I understand. We needn't go into the various Marian phenomena right now.
We all empathize with martin luther when dealing with the vatican in this era
A true Anglican ascribes to that great theologian Richard Hooker. In addition to scripture and the tradition of the early church, reason is also used to figure out what is of God. I am so happy that you have found mystery to be part of your spirituality....perhaps what separates us is this place of mystery, and how that mystery is celebrated and discerned. After all, it does not 'reason' that mystery can be measured. Bravo for discovering this in your in life's journey! For me, I will remain as an Anglican, using the Greatest Commandment of Jesus to also use our MIND (and the great discoveries of science, including biology, and geology) in discerning God's creation in the universe. It is still a great mystery on how this 14 billion year old universe (and its billions of galaxies) were created! Perhaps the greatest mystery for me, is how anyone can say that they know ANYTHING of God - and how this all came into being.
@@royquick-s5n Exactly !!
This Protestant has appreciated much of your cultural commentary, but even if your religion of miracles and wonders and beauty is right, you still have figure out how to be (and stay) in fellowship with believers of so many traditions who have simply taken hold of God's promise as they've heard it proclaimed, who like Abraham seek a city with foundations, and who will find that you're requiring for unity and fulness of the faith things that are not at all clear in Scripture, and therefore perhaps acting in a sectarian way yourself.
Amen. Anglican here.
@@royquick-s5n Yes, as required for salvation likely not. But for unity and fulness of the faith I think they function much like tongues-speaking among some Pentecostals/Charismatics.
The recent bankruptcy of the 1690 23:05 Boyne-celebrating Rangers football club surely heartens Glasgow Catholics that the Holy Ghost has struck down the quintessential enemy of Catholic Celtic football club. Not to mention Celtic's even more recent winning of the two principal Scottish cups.
Why are there female deacons in the NT but not in the RC?
Why did the RC church do nothing about slavery?
How can the leader of the RC church sack bishops for repeating orthodoxy ?
Asking for a friend.
Thank you.
Hard hearts again and again💔
Women deacons simply disappeared for over 1,900 years. It seems the Feminist Movement has raised interest in them again. It is my understanding that the Quakers and the Mennonites were among the first Christian bodies to believe slavery to be immoral, before the large, historical churches. Obviously their belief spread. Pope is administrative position, as are cardinal, patriarch, and archbishop. No one is ordained a pope, although popes are ordained bishops, i.e. Bishops of Rome. A pope may sin, e.g. sack bishops for repeating orthodoxy.
Hear hear!
I find all your videos interesting and informative; and this is no exception.
I was fascinated that you mentioned that on a few occasions in modern times (1994), events or accidents have lead to them being able to establish the blood group of the Eucharist. Have they ever had this phenomenon occur with the Eucharist from a Novus Ordo mass. If the answer is yes; then it would suggest that Jesus Christ has given the Novus Ordo his blessing.
I realise that these blood Group tests were taken from Masses during the Novus Ordo period, but that doesn’t discount that the Eucharist was the result of a TLM
Thank you. +
The One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church is the Holy Orthodox Church. Sadly the Roman Catholic Church went into schism from it around 1,000 years ago. But God is generous and has raised up some holy people who were Roman Catholics.
You are wrong in 1054 they split from the Roman church
You’re a lovely person Gavin & your intentions are good and clearly originate from a deep love of God. Keep doing what you’re doing😉