Stratford Caldecott R.I.P.

We are saddened to report that British Catholic writer Stratford Caldecott has passed away at the age of 60, after a long battle with pancreatic cancer. David Clayton reviewed his most recent book a few days ago; the very first post on NLM, August 1, 2005, reproduced an essay of his entitled “A New Liturgical Movement?”. Dr. Caldecott published several other books and innumerable essays on Catholic matters, including the liturgy, such this essay, The Book of Revelation as Liturgical Commentary, and this on the meaning of death less than two months ago. He held the G.K. Chesterton Research Fellowship at St. Benet’s Hall in Oxford University, and served as writer and editor on a variety of publications, including Communio, and his own journal, Second Spring, named after the famous sermon of the Blessed John Henry Newman.

He was a huge fan of the Avengers; a campaign launched by his daughter to arrange for a private screening of the most recent Captain America movie, which he was too ill to see in the theater, gained international attention when most of the actors in the Avengers series, following her suggestion, posted photographs of themselves on twitter and other social media holding signs saying “Captain America (Hulk/Loki etc.) for Strat.” (Loki was probably the most persuasive. The story is told here, inter alia.) All of us here at NLM offer our condolences to his family, and invite our readers to pray for his eternal rest.

Requiem aeternam dona ei, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat ei. Requiescat in pace. Amen.