Members of the Association from time to time contribute a small piece about themselves and their interests: these are the current offerings!

Catherine Fowler: Associate.

At eight o’clock every morning Catherine Fowler sings Lauds in her music room overlooking her garden in Linlithgow. She was inspired to revive her interest in Gregorian chant, after a visit to the Skete. For three days she joined Sister Petra Clare at Lauds and decided to brush up her Gregorian chant again. It occurred to them that if you can have ‘distant’ prayer and ‘distant’ healing, you could also have ‘distance chanting'.

Now Catherine unites her voice with Sister Petra Clare’s as they sing in unison, though far apart.
Catherine teaches piano full-time. She finds peace and solace in the meditative qualities of Gregorian chant. She is keen to stress that it requires no great musical skill or knowledge to benefit from singing Gregorian chant. No one need feel excluded, and anyone can join in!

Rev. Dom Dyfrig Harris OSB: Honorary Associate.

Father Dyfrig is a Welshman from Cwmbrain, 17 miles from Cardiff whose family had links with the parish at Belmont Abbey, Hereford, so it was a natural move for him to enter there. As a child his interest was caught by priests who made altar serving a gateway to explore liturgy and catechises. In the noviciate his interest in liturgy was fostered and a fellow novice -now Abbot Paul Stonham - who had done a degree in Thessaloniki, fired his interest in eastern practises.

Throughout the 35 years of his monastic life, he has made a point of finding out about both eastern and western approaches to scripture and liturgy. This study led him to icons -a fascinating, mystical and liturgical art, in which he found a pictorial presentation of how he had learnt to serve mass as a child - doctrine, scripture, catechesis and exegesis rolled into one! As a monk, he has contact with many Russian and Greek priests. Just after Orientale Lumen was published, Bishop Brewer, staying overnight, was sitting in a corner of the church, quietly reading his breviary, when he overheard Fr. Dyfrig singing Matins - according to the eastern rite! He pointed out the pastoral need for dual rite priests and encouraged him to apply for a bi-ritual faculty. The previous Abbot, who had been brought up in the Coptic church, gave him permission to apply and - to his astonishment - his request was granted by the Ukrainian apostolic exarch in London, Bishop Michael Kushmiack.

This has altered his life radically - he believes now that eastern and western tradition complement, rather than oppose, each other -the east ‘mystically glorifying’ while the Latin rite emphasises ‘noble simplicity'. He believes it is important that they both retain their unique distinction. He says “the church needs to breathe with two lungs to be whole, so do I as an individual: it isn’t confusing - it is an incredible balance." Fr. Dyfrig is assistant priest at the Ukrainian church in Gloucester and sits on the English Benedictine Congregation Liturgical Commission.

Father Michael Savage, Diocesan Priest(Glasgow Archdiocese): Honorary Associate

Fr Michael Savage, is on loan from the Archdiocese of Glasgow to Aberdeen Diocese, and is parish priest at St. Vincent’s, Tain, about two hours drive from Marydale and Sancti Angeli Skete. Tain was an important centre of medieval pilgrimage. St Duthac (10th/11thcentury) was a local saint who trained in Ireland and returned to Scotland.

Those of you who attend the Highland Icon Summer School will be familiar with him - since he followed the icon course three years ago, he has been a regular visitor at the Skete, sometimes spending his day off painting there. Previous to that he studied drawing in Italy, and has since written a very fine crucifixion for St. Joseph’s, Invergordon. He is currently carving a dove of the Holy Spirit for the shrine at the Schoenstatt centre at Campsie Glen near Lennoxtown.

He was previously parish priest at St Pius X, Drumchapel, Glasgow, for six years. He looks after St John Ogilvie, Alness, which also includes St. Vincent’s, Tain, and St. Joseph’s, Invergordon. The Schoenstatt movement to which Father Michael is also a priest member is made up of six secfulart institutes who work worldwide in communities with families, youth and other priests. Father Michael comes from a family which has a track record of catholic vocations - his brother is a monk of Pluscarden Abbey and his sister is a nun of Stanbrook Abbey!

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