FROM THE EDITOR
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EDITOR Maria Madise EDITORIAL BOARD Liam Gibson John Smeaton DESIGN & PRODUCTION EDITOR Selina Fang EDITORIAL OFFICE VOICE OF THE FAMILY Unit B, 3 Whitacre Mews, Stannary Street, SE11 4AB, London, United Kingdom Tel: +44 (0)20 7820 3126 Email: editor@voiceofthefamily.com www.voiceofthefamily.com/calxmariae PUBLICATION IS SPONSORED BY:
DISCLAIMER: Great care is taken to credit photos and seek permission before publishing. If you have a query regarding copyright, please contact the Editor. No part of this magazine may be reproduced without written permission. Donations for the continuation of this magazine in print will be gratefully received by Voice of the Family at the address above or online via:
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Calx Mariae is published by Voice of the Family, formed in support of Catholic teaching on the family. The following truths are particularly at the heart of Voice of the Family’s work: 9 Marriage, the exclusive, life-long union of one man and one woman, is the foundation of a stable and flourishing society and is the greatest protector of children, born and unborn. 9 The procreative and unitive ends of the conjugal act cannot licitly be separated; the rejection of this truth lies at the root of modern attacks on life and the family. 9 Parents are the primary educators of their children and the protection of this right is essential for building a new “culture of life”.
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Calx Mariae seeks to contribute to the rebuilding of Christian civilisation by providing features and analysis in the areas of life, family and culture. Our aim in producing this magazine is to strengthen our readers in the faith and in their witness to the truth about human life and the family.
OF T H E FA M I LY 2 0 21
have sometimes imagined having a conversation with a great grandmother, telling her about our time of peace and prosperity, while we work hard to save babies from being killed before they are born. Whilst the external threats of war, famine, religious persecution so well known to her are gone, what we are facing today is the internal devastation of man who has manifestly separated himself from God. How often have we heard during this coronavirus crisis people expressing a desire to go back to “normal”? Yet, is it not the case that reality before the pandemic was not at all normal? It is not normal that 60 million children a year are being killed in the womb. It is not normal that two men or two women can be “married”. It is not normal that little girls are being taught at school that they can become boys and vice versa. When we desire to “go back to normal”, we must be mindful that the way to normality lies far beyond the lifting of Covid restrictions. Furthermore, the restrictions that deprive us of our comforts and liberties, as well as of life’s essentials in many cases, could in itself be a call back to normality. Sacrifices that we have not chosen, which are frustrating and perhaps do not even correspond to our idea of a sacrifice, are not outside the scope of Divine Providence to open the eyes and purify the minds of people who need to turn back to God. If we do that, this crisis can certainly be a great blessing. If not, this time is indeed wasted and a stronger intervention needed. This issue of Calx Mariae is dedicated to the pro-life movement. For people of faith, life is not the most important value but it is the first because without life all other rights or privileges are meaningless. John Smeaton, the CEO of the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children, reflecting on his 47 years of service, said at the Rome March for Life: “The pro-life movement is part of a much wider and deeper historic crusade for the restoration of Christian civilisation. Let’s not forget that we fight for ‘going back to the real normal’; we are united in the fight to end abortion completely and in the restoration of a civilisation where human life is valued without exception. It really is not normal to kill children in the womb. May this time that is marked by a sense of isolation, distance, and separation, also be a time to unite with ever greater force and to be united in the truth of Christ.” (see p. 45) The inherent links between the doctrinal and liturgical reforms coinciding with the moral revolution which the pro-life movement mobilised to resist are analysed by Dr Joseph Shaw. (see p. 49) What was once Catholic Ireland suffered the longest ban on public Masses during the past year. Liam Gibson considers the restrictions inflicted on Catholics in Ireland in the light of historic persecutions. (See p. 10) But is it a coincidence that a people who invoke the name of the Holy Trinity in their constitution and, at the same time, were the first to authorise same-sex “marriage” and abortion by a popular vote, suffered such a withdrawal of God from their midst? The Covid crisis offers a multitude of distractions for Catholics and non-believers alike from fear of the virus to crusades against government measures. Yet, we must take care not to lose sight of what we are fighting for. We fight for every life, born and unborn, to be protected so it can flourish in the knowledge, love and service of God and be with Him forever in heaven. We are not only pro-life but pro-eternal life. Nothing happens outside of the designs of Divine Providence. To acknowledge this is not a call to be passive, on the contrary, this is a reality in which we must act for His glory and interests, even if – and perhaps especially when – it means some denial of our own will.
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