Light a Candle for Me

**Light a Candle for Me** is a 1995 interview of Derrick Taylor about the major events in his life, his experience of interior locution and his conversion to Roman Catholicism. It was conducted on 22nd February 1995 and the interviewer was a friend of both Irene Mary and Derrick Taylor's named Judith Sheen. The interview is also referred to as the **Sceptre Bulletin interview** by Derrick Taylor's grandson Cometan during his exegesis of the interview.

## Extract of the interview

*“Journeys in Faith”*

*“Light a Candle for Me”*

*“[Our thanks go to J.S. a Sceptre Bulletin subscriber, who carried out the following interview, and to Derek Taylor, who agreed to tell the story of his conversion in the interview, on 22.2.95.]”*

*“JS: When did you first think of coming into the Catholic Faith?”*

*“When I was only seven years old I knew that there were some things about the Faith which I instinctively “knew”.”*

*“For example, I was a Protestant and sang in the choir — something which I loved.”*

*“And I was really fascinated by the Creed, especially the words: Holy, Catholic, Apostolic Church.”*

*“JS: That was nearly 60 years ago. Things must have been different then, generally in society and particularly in life in Bamber Bridge?”*

*“You can say that again! As lads we used to call Catholic boys awful names.”*

*“However, I did have a friend who must have been a Catholic — there was a picture of the Sacred Heart in his house –– it was in the corner of the room, I remember.”*

*“That was the first time I saw a votive lamp — there was always one burning near that representation of the Sacred Heart.”*

*“JS: What effect did that first holy picture have on you, do you think?”*

*“Strangely, although I was very, very young, it filled me with an uncanny peace of mind. I loved going to that house.”*

*“Somehow, you know, I always had it at the back of my mind to become a Catholic –– I continually experienced a sense of restlessness inside.”*

*“I did in fact ask that friend’s mother to light a candle before that picture of the Sacred Heart for me, and she did.”*

*“JS: In spite of that, it was some time, wasn’t it, before you did get nearer to becoming a Catholic?”*

*“It was a long time. I used to go to the Leyland Motors Sports and Social Club and it was there that I met Irene, my future wife.”*

*“She told me from the start that she was a Catholic (in those days it was usual for the non-Catholic party to be converted before marrying a Catholic).”*

*“I told [her] that I realised this because I had seen a picture of what I later learned was a picture of St Therese the Little Flower, in their entrance hall at home.”*

*“JS: What about the reactions of your family –– because they were not particularly happy about Catholicism, were they?”*

*“Well, that’s right, and first of all I told my father that I wanted to be converted.”*

*“His wise reaction was to ask me if I was only wanting that in order to “get the girl” (Irene).”*

*““Because,” he said, “if you convert and later on fall away, you will only hurt her and me.””*

*“JS: What happened next?”*

*“Irene took me to a good and holy Benedictine priest at St Mary’s, Brownedge, Bamber Bridge. Fr McNally was his name.”*

*“JS: I believe your first meeting was full of apprehension for you.”*

*“You can just imagine –– we had been brought up with such weird ideas of Catholics and what they did that I was terrified.”*

*“The only picture I had in my mind was one of priests I had seen walking around reading the Breviary.”*

*“As we got to the door, I asked Irene if I was supposed to kneel down when he opened the door, or something.”*

*“She could have laughed at me but, very patiently, she explained that we were just going in for a chat about things and to take it like any other visit to the family.”*

*“JS: And was Fr McNally such an ogre after all?”*

*“Naturally enough, far from it! He was a man with a huge heart and large frame to go with it.”*

*“He asked me why I was afraid and I told him that I thought he would make me kneel down there and then and tell him all my sins.”*

*“He introduced me to the beloved “penny” catechism and for three and a half years I received instruction from that wonderful priest who has since gone to receive his eternal reward.”*

*“JS: And finally you were received into the Church?”*

*“Yes.”*

*“JS: Were your family and relatives present?”*

*“No. After my reception I told my father, and one of those amazing things happened!”*

*“He said, “Now I will tell you a secret. My brother also is a Catholic and he and his wife have a son whom they baptised a Catholic, and this son, your cousin, is a Catholic priest. And this was only one story, which has a follow-up which I will you about later on.”*

*“Our Lord tried me sorely on occasions, though, I can tell you!”*

*“For instance, just before Irene and I were to be married, our two sets of parents agreed that they should meet over a dinner, which they did.”*

*“Everyone was apparently very happy with the intended match and the evening was a joyous occasion.”*

*“When it came to be time for going home, Irene’s father offered my parents a lift home, which they accepted.”*

*“A slight misjudgement, and my father was killed on the way home in the car driven by my fiancée’s father.”*

*“You can imagine the shock and tragedy that could have ruined our relationship!”*

*“After some little time of happy marriage, Irene presented me with the first of our twelve children –– a wonderful boy, who only managed to survive some hours and who then went to Heaven, an innocent, baptised child of God.”*

*“This was a real disaster to me and so of course I went to see Fr McNally, who always saw me, supernaturally, through my personal and family, material and spiritual crises.”*

*“He helped me once again to see God’s loving hand in everything.”*

*““You told me that your dearest wish would be to have son a priest, and now you have one!””*

*“JS: You have always had a great deal of devotion to the Sacred Heart, haven’t you?”*

*“The Sacred Heart has worked miracles in my life and the life of my family, so of course I have devotion to Our Lord under that description.”*

*“You know, when the changes came about in the Liturgy and some people went further than they should have, in disobedience to the Pope, I found it very difficult to maintain my patience and serenity.”*

*“Indeed, for some time I believed the Church was being destroyed and she no longer appeared like the Church I loved with all my heart and soul.”*

*“I was sort of blind for some years.”*

*“One day, I had occasion to go to St Wilfred’s Church in Preston, because one of our children was in a procession in honour of Our Lady.”*

*“There is a large statue there of the Sacred Heart, and I found myself in front of it asking God yet again what on earth was happening in the Church and what I could do about it.”*

*“To this day I believe I had a “locution” from Our Lord in response to my really fervent and sincere request to know what to do.”*

*“I felt suddenly the worry lifted and Our Lord telling me: “Keep up with your Mass. Everything is all right.””*

*“And so I returned once again to normal practice and praying for those misguided people who try to alter the doctrines and moral teaching of the Church to fit in with their own frustrations.”*

*“As always, I sought out Fr McNally and asked him why he had taught me all this “rubbish” about having to go to Confession and the rest!”*

*“He told me not to look to the right or to the left but to carry on living my faith as always, and always to be faithful to what the Pope is saying, which will never, in matters of faith and morals, be anything other than what I had learned in the beloved catechism.”*

*“JS: You have often met opposition even publicly for having such a large and united family.”*

*“Those things have never bothered me.”*

*“It is a privilege to be asked by Our Lord to take care of eleven souls and own and Irene’s, and I cannot relinquish that responsibility for fear of looking stupid in public.”*

*“I shall be called to account by Our Lord for these souls.”*

*“There is one famous story when I was hauled up before the local magistrates hereabouts because I had gone to the local school to take away my children from the sex education classes.”*

*“Sex education is for the home, and this is where it should be taught.”*

*“I received a severe reprimand from the Bench on that occasion.”*

*“However, that was not before I explained to the judges on the bench my feelings about my own responsibilities to my wife and to my children, above all before God.”*

*“The next day, the then Mayor of the town, who had sat on the Bench that time, passed me in his mayoral car in the street. Suddenly I was called over by his driver who said that the Mayor would like me to drive some way with him.”*

*“I climbed into the car and he did in fact tell me that he had been very impressed by what I had said to the judges. I can tell you all this because anyone had anything to do with this story is dead now.”*

*“JS: What was the ending of the cousin-priest story?”*

*“Oh, yes! Not long ago I went to visit a lady called Mrs S. in Penwortham and there was a priest there. As we talked, it emerged that his name is Taylor and that he has been investigating the many Taylors on his family tree as he had lost touch with the family. I always wanted a priest in the family! We’ll see!”*