Under the symbol of a wedding feast, the Mass in all its parts declares that all men, Jews and Gentiles, are called to share in the peace of God here, and in the fullness of God hereafter. First of all, comes the truth that God alone "is the salvation of the people" from their self-begotten misery. Secondly, comes our response to this call by "inclining our ears to His words" (Introit), which are "to be kept most diligently" (Communion).
 
The banquet hall is the Church militant here, triumphant hereafter. Of those first invited, such as the Jews, some refuse the invitation on mere pretexts, while others maltreat and even slay God's messengers. Finally, comes the call to the Gentiles in home and foreign missions. But to receive Jesus worthily at the altar rail of time or eternity, a wedding garment is necessary (Gospel). St. Paul describes this garment in the Epistle as a putting on of Christ through lively faith and putting off the spirit of anti- Christ both in our soul and in dealings with our neighbour.
 
On Sunday, falls the feast of St. Jerome Presb. C. D. of the IV Century whose body lies at St. Mary Major in Rome and who translated the Bible and produced the Vulgate Edition, the official scripture of the Holy Church. We don’t commemorate him in the Mass using the 1962 Missal but nonetheless we ought to pray to thank the Saint for giving the Church the authoritative edition of the Holy Scriptures.

The Rt Rev Mark Davies, the Bishop in the neighbouring see of Shrewsbury has assigned St Winefride's Church at Monkmoor, just outside Shrewsbury, over to the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest (ICKSP) Deo gratias!

Bishop Davies originally invited the ICKSP to his diocese in 2011. In 2012, the impressive church of Ss Peter & Paul and St Philomena in New Brighton was brought back into use from a state of closure.

Since then, the ICKSP have been invited into the Diocese of Lancaster where they have estabilished a good foothold in the City of Preston with two churches (St Walburge's and St Thomas of Canterbury and the English Martyrs) as well a house of their female branch, the Sisters Adorers of the Royal Heart of Jesus. Additionally, an educational academy is being estabilished in Preston.

Canon Scott Smith is the priest assigned to the new mission in Shrewsbury. I've met him several times and I am sure he will settle well in the picturesque county town of Shropshire. Prior to this assignment, Canon Smith had been Assistant to the Prior at St Francis de Sales Oratory, St Louis in Missouri.

What is of significance is that Bishop Davies has invited the ICKSP to become embedded within the Shrewsbury Cathedral clergy team, which of course will include the celebration of daily Mass in the Vetus Ordo (Monday to Saturday) and the hearing of confessions. On Sunday, Mass will be celebrated at St Winefride's, which is where Canon will reside with a seminarian. There is a long estabilished Latin Mass community at St Winefride's and the Latin Mass Society have supported this Mass for many years thanks to Mr. William Quirk.

10 years ago you would be excused for pinching yourself. Today, we see that fervant prayer and forward thinking Bishops such as Bishop Davies can acheive growth in the church by looking back to look forward!

In the Gospel for XVIII Sunday after Pentecost, we are presented with the man sick of the palsy lying in a bed. This man symbolically represents every sinner.

It is interesting to note that "Jesus, seeing their faith . . ." heals the man of his sins. It was not the faith of the man who was sick but it was the faith of those who brought the man to Jesus. We see how necessary it is for us to enlist the help of our fellow men when we are in need of God's help. This man received this special grace of God because of the faith of his friends even though he himself appears to have very little faith.

When Christ tells the man that his sins are forgiven we hear nothing of him thanking God for the wonderful gift that he had received. He appears to be just as worldly minded as the scribes who doubted Jesus.

The man's sins were forgiven him because of the faith of those who brought him before Jesus; his body is healed because of the lack of faith of those who witnessed this miracle.

The first miracle _ the forgiveness of sins _ is obviously the greater miracle, but it is doubted or lightly esteemed in the eyes of men. The second miracle _ the healing of the man's body _ is obviously the lesser miracle but is the one most noted by men. "And the multitude, seeing it, feared, and glorified God that gave such power to men."

We must note that God heals the soul first. As such we see that many of our physical disorders are brought about by the unseen spiritual disorders within us. In order to cure the body it is first necessary to cure the soul. As long as we remain in sin we are sick and there is no amount of pharmaceuticals that can cure us. The cure to many of our physical ailments must begin with the cure of our souls. To try and ignore the illness of the soul will only lead to further complications in the body and a worsening of the situation of the soul.

The bed that the man was lying on symbolizes the man's sins. He was brought in lying in his bed of sin. The bed is a place of rest, comfort and joy. As long as man looks for his happiness in worldly things his bed becomes heavier and heavier with the weight of his sins. And this bed weighted down with the man's sins becomes a burden to him. This bed that he thought was to be the source of his worldly pleasures now has become his cross. The man was commanded to get up and take up the bed and go into his house. Even though he is now free from his sins and is healed both in body and soul he must still carry the burden of these sins that he has accumulated.

St. Gregory tells us: "In Sacred Scripture, bed or pallet, and also couch sometimes stand for pleasures of the body, sometimes for the refreshment of good works, sometimes for rest in the ordinary sense. For what is meant in the Gospel when the Lord says to a certain man who was healed: Arise, take up thy bed and go into thy house but that by the bed pleasure of body is signified? And he is commanded to bear as a healthy man, that on which he had lain as a sick one; for every own who still delights in sin, lies sick in the pleasure of his flesh. But now healed he bears that upon which he had lain sick, because raised from his sins by divine assistance, he must afterwards bear with the assaults of that flesh in whose desires he had before found rest."

The crimes of the sinner continue to torment and tempt him even long after he has repented of them. Though this is a fair and just punishment for our sins it is one that is often not correctly understood. We must bear this burden as a just punishment for our sins and to further humble us. We must fully understand that we are not free from our sins by our own efforts but, only because of God's mercy towards us. We must constantly be reminded of our own weakness to prevent us from becoming proud. We must be reminded of our past to prevent us from proudly and vainly placing ourselves above anyone else.

When we see what we have been and the crimes that we have committed against both God and man, we are much less likely to despise our fellow men, no matter how terrible they may appear. "There but for the grace of God go I." This was the sentiment of St. Francis who once declared that he was more guilty than the criminal going to his execution. His idea is simple enough, If that man had received all the graces that I have received he would probably have put them to better use than I have done. And if I had been in that man's position I would probably have sinned worse than he.

Let us learn from this sick man, to obtain the intercessory prayers of our friends so that God may heal us both in soul and body. Let us go to the priest that God has given His power to and have our sins forgiven first so that our bodies may then recover their health also. And let us patiently and humbly accept the consequences and punishment that is due to us for our sins. If we cheerfully do penance for our sins on earth we may confidently hope for an eternal rest in heaven.

The Pharisee calls Christ “Master”; this is a deceptive lie. Only the son may call his father, “father”; and only student may call his teacher, “teacher”; so it follows that only the disciple may call his master, “master”. The Pharisee is not a disciple of Christ. He does not follow Christ nor is he seeking instruction from Christ. He therefore has not right to address Christ as “Master”. It is true that Christ is God and is therefore the Lord and Master of all, but those who refuse Him the love and obedience due to Him break off this relationship. The heretic, schismatic, pagan, and Jew have no true relationship with Christ and therefore have no relationship to God. He is their Creator but because of their rebellion against Him they are no longer sons of God but rather sons of the devils who now inspire and guide them in this life so that they will reach eternity and enter into Hell with them.

Religion to these people is nothing more than deceitful hypocrisy. It is a tool which they use to mislead others or even to manipulate and control others. This is why we see that Christ calls these people, “children of the devil” and a “brood of vipers.” (Matt 12, 34) It is in this hypocritical disposition that the Pharisee calls Jesus “Master”, in attempting by flattery to put Him off His guard, so as to trap Him. It is foolishness as Jesus is God and can see very clearly this man’s heart and intentions. The question of which is the greatest commandment was a disputed one, so this question is posed to put Jesus in the midst of the dispute where however He answers it will be offensive to someone. Jesus answers the man with a simple and direct answer showing clearly that the love of God is the greatest commandment and then the love of neighbor. After this Jesus silences these men by asking them a question. In their rebellion, against the grace of God, these men cannot see that Jesus is both God and Man. Therefore, they cannot explain how Christ is the Son of David and at the same time is David’s Lord. In posing this question Jesus silences these evil plotting hypocrite Pharisees.

These Pharisees live on today in all those who attack the Church which is the Mystical Body of Christ. The teachings of Christ’s Church (The Catholic Church) are the teachings of God; all those who reject the Church reject God. “He who hears you, hears Me and he who hears Me hears Him who sent Me.” (Luke 10, 16) It is clear then that all those outside of the Church who call upon Jesus do so falsely; they are not the children of God but rather the children of the devil because they reject Jesus in His Church and follow the inspiration of devils just as the Pharisees of old did.
These call upon Jesus as “Lord, Master, and God” but it is a lie because in their hearts they have rejected Him. It may be true that they search the scriptures, but they do so not to find God and love and serve Him, but rather to entrap Him (in His Mystical Body the Church) and so find a means or reason to reject and destroy Him. We must therefore always be on our guard when speaking of religious matters with those outside the Church; whether consciously or unconsciously these people are out to attack and destroy the Church and therefore Christ – God. No matter how well meaning or even how-pious they may appear; they are still children of Satan and not of God. It is Satan appearing as an angel of light that inspires and guides them. Just as the Pharisees could not believe that Jesus is the Christ and is therefore both God and Man, so those outside the Church cannot believe one or more teachings of Christ in His Church.

We are not Jesus so we cannot see this evil disposition in people’s wills and the devils are very clever in helping them disguise it, so we must ever be vigilant and cautious, in our discussions with them. Let us always remember our Morning Offering where we beg God’s help and guidance for the day, as well as the help and guidance of the angels and saints. Before we engage in a conversation with anyone outside the Church on matters of faith, let us first pray that they may be freed from the influence of these evil spirits that are guiding them, and ask God’s help in guiding us to lead them back to Him. We must always keep in mind that appearances are most often deceptive and be on our guard always to protect our standing as children of God who can truthfully call Jesus: “Master”.

In the Gospel for the XVI Sunday after Pentecost, Our Lord teaches us the lesson of humility, to seek the lower place, if we are to come to Him.

Sadly, most of us seek to be experts in all subjects and fail to be charitable and humble. Knowing our weaknesses, in the Introit and Collect we pray for “mercy” and His “grace” respectively which thought is continued into the Offertory as we entreat God for help against those who “seek after my soul to take it away” who, as it were, help point me in the direction away from the Cross and to the pleasures of this world.

Strengthened at the anticipation of the Holy Eucharist, we ask for worthiness to receive the graces of the Holy Sacrifices (Secret) having been fortified by the Epistle which tells us of Christ’s Love which transcends any love describable.

Martyr, St. Gorgonius, suffered martyrdom during the persecution of Diocletian and is buried on the Via Labicana in Rome. Although not commemorated in the Mass using the 1962 rubrics, we should pray to the martyr for courage to face the modern world and please Our Lord.