The Pope's in America this week. In fact he inspired me to have another go at setting up a blog. I am watching an absolutely awful liturgy at the Mass in Washington. But then, what do I know ? I`m not a trained liturgist. All I know is, the Psalm sounded like something from Mary Poppins, with a brass section oom pah-pahing away in the background, and don`t ask me to exlain what was going on at the Offertory. Somthing Mexican. And everything sounds as though it had "SING AT TOP SPEED" rubber stamped across it. It is not dignified, but if HH came to the UK this week, I doubt we could do much better. What is clear to me, though, is that this Pope knows his flock. At his election three years ago, many were sounding the death-knell and saying the Church was going to be in for a hard time. All I have heard is a man in his eighties speaking about Love ( first encyclical), Hope ( second) and the importance of coming to know Jesus in person. He has not done what the gloom-mongers predicted and I love that. I write this, my first post, as he is delivering his homily at the Washington Mass on his US tour. Three years on, we can say: Pope Benedict is a force for Renewal in the Church.