I have been reminded that Arthur Roche once served as factotum to the distinguished former Bishop of Leeds, Gordon Wheeler, of whom I intend to publish an appreciation upon the occasion of his Year's Mind in a few days' time.
I was, indeed, aware of that fact. But, as every military man knows, it is almost always a mistake to turn a passable sergeant into not a very good officer.
5 comments:
Well, was he a "factotum" or a personal secretary to the bishop? Clerics here in Germany are usually the second. And in this case I would rather not compare that to a sargent but to an ADC aide de camp junior officer. I have seen more than one of these junior officers rise to general or admiral rank. Seems A.R. knew what was good for his career. He most certainly knows now.
Colonel Leatham of the Welsh Guards rejected Evelyn Waugh as a WW2 officer candidate on the grounds that he was "a sh*t and wore suede shoes." Waugh later served creditably enough as an officer in several other units. It is a great pity Archbishop Roche ever rose past a seminarian's status. But if he wasn't in his post, someone else would be happy enough to be a hit man for Pope Francis.
Bishop Wheeler once told me that the first question he asked people who approached him, regarding entering the Seminary, was the following: do you prayer the Rosary on a daily basis? If the person, in question , said no then he wasn't interested.
Too true! There would have been any number of alternative functionaries to conduct the funeral of Sir James Savile, OBE, KCSG....
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leeds-15647363.amp
"Bishop Wheeler once told me that the first question he asked people who approached him, regarding entering the Seminary, was the following: do you prayer the Rosary on a daily basis? If the person, in question , said no then he wasn't interested."
Today paying the rosary daily would probably disqualify you from many seminaries. Obviously too rigid.
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