For the past six years there have been Catholics praying on a London pavement every Sunday to try to stop other Catholics attending mass. The "gay masses" at the Church of Our Lady of the Assumption and St Gregory, Soho, became a global symbol of the church's struggles over homosexuality. Within the church was a congregation that went on gay pride marches: outside it were campaigners for gay shame.

For years this had no effect, but last autumn the incoming head of the CDF, the Vatican's doctrinal police, announced that he intended to tackle the Soho masses. Once the lidless eye of the CDF was turned against them the masses were doomed. The English hierarchy, which had protected them from their inception, has now withdrawn their protection.