My Dear Brethren,

The highlight of this new year has undoubtedly been the Solemn Blessing of the Corpus Christi Church at Tynong by our Superior-General, Bishop Fellay, on Saturday 10th March which was combined with the tenth anniversary of St. Thomas Aquinas College.

This was indeed a very memorable day and we are so grateful to the bishop for being present at this great event especially as he had just completed an exhausting ten-day visit to New Zealand, Fiji and New Caledonia before returning to Europe the following day! He was accompanied by his second assistant, Father Alain Nély, who was visiting Australia for the first time. The ceremony began at 10am with the blessing of the church. This was a beautiful action whereby the bishop dedicated the church to the worship of God by sprinkling its walls, both inside and out, with holy water and marking out a Sign of the Cross from wall to wall across the floor while the Litany of the Saints and various psalms were sung. Then followed Pontifical High Mass in the grand and spacious sanctuary of the church. It was a splendid and uplifting experience indeed! (more…)

My Dear Brethren,

The most significant event of the last few months in the history of Traditional Catholicism in Australia was surely the death of Father Patrick Fox on 24th July aged 91 years. He had been a priest for nearly 68 years in which time he had never celebrated Mass other than according to the Traditional Latin rite.

From the very beginning he rejected the spurious “reforms” of the Second Vatican Council and particularly the revolution which took place in the liturgy. Thus he was a source of inspiration for Traditional Catholics in Australia, especially in the years of confusion and uncertainty following immediately after the Council and the promulgation of the new Mass.  Throughout the intervening years up to the present, he was always a great supporter of Archbishop Lefebvre and our Society.  He was a unique character, mentally alert and physically active right up to the end of his life, unfailingly present at all of the major liturgical functions at Sydney and Goulburn.  He is sadly missed and will always have a place in our gratitude and affection.  (more…)