Although its story is just a "pious legend," it was a symbol of something greater than we are and a potent sign of continuity, something which past religious and political upheavals could not completely eradicate. Let's hope the tree regenerates, or that someone has a seedling. It's not the first time in its history an attempt has been made to destroy it.
It is particularly symptomatic of the present state of society that the thorn tree should be a target for attack (whether by mindless or drunken idiots, or by those with a more conscious purpose), whereas the town itself is still, despite the recession, littered with shops pandering to the DIY spirituality of crystal waving and other things far less palatable or innocuous, and the ruins of one of the oldest Christian holy places in Britain continue to speak eloquently of the determination of the rulers of a previous age to turn their backs on the living witness of faith.
A Freebie
The Ordinariate Portal has information here about the availability of a free copy (donations towards P&P) of the Catholic League's latest Messenger - "Anglicans and Catholics in Communion," a collection of writings on the Ordinariate and related subjects. It's an invaluable publication for anyone interested in the Ordinariate project.
A joke?
Click here if you want to see a blue chasuble with a male chicken on it. Bad, bad, bad!
A joke?
Click here if you want to see a blue chasuble with a male chicken on it. Bad, bad, bad!
And now for some Advent hope
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