The Eucharist.

Most mornings I try and prepare myself for the celebration of the Eucharist. If I am on the early Mass then I find this much easier, the church is quieter and there is a sense of peace around the place. Quietness seems to feed my desire to pray. When I am on the later Mass I try to maintain some silence but this is not always possible. I have in my breviary some texts that I read when I have rushed into the sacristy to get ready for Mass. This one is from The Genesee Diary by Henry Nouwen.

"The Lord is at the centre of all things and yt in such a quiet, unobtrusive, elusive way. He lives with us, even physically, but not in the same physical way that other elements are present to us. This transcendent physical presence is what characterises the Eucharist. It is already the other world present in this one. In the celebration of the Eucharist we are given an enclave in our world of space and time. god in Christ is really here, and yet his phsical presence is not characterised by the same limitations of sapce and time that we know.

The Eucharist can only be seen by those who already love the Lord and believe in his active, loving presence to us. But is that not true of every good relationship that we have? Friendship is like that, human love is like that. the bonds that unite us are invisible bonds. They become visible only indirectly, only by waht we do as a result of them. But the bonds themselves are invisible. The presece of friends to one another is very real; this presence is palpably physical, sustaining us in difficult or joyful moments, and yet invisible."

I am off home later to meet up with my family and meet my new step-niece for the first time!

Be well and happy :-)

Live Simply

Cafod's campaign for the year is to encourage us all to live simply. a prayer accompanies the campaign

The prayer (© Linda Jones/CAFOD) :

Compassionate and loving God, you created the world forus all to share, a world of beauty and plenty. Create in us a desire tolive simply, so that our lives may reflect your generosity.

Creator God, you gave us responsibility for the earth, a world of riches and delight. Create in us a desire to livesustainably, so that those who follow after us may enjoy the fruits of your creation.

God of peace and justice, you give us the capacity tochange, to bring about a world that mirrors your wisdom. Create in us a desire to act in solidarity, so that the pillars of injustice crumble and those now crushed are set free. Amen.

With every blessing :-)

Mary, Mother of Jesus

Every Saturday the Church remembers the role of Mary in the life of Jesus and in the work of redemption. We remember that a human being became the gateway of the incarnation. We see that human beings are capable of immense self giving and love. In Mary we see discipleship lived and writ large. God’s choice of Mary begins with his presence in her life. The Lord is with her. God’s choice of Mary makes her ‘full of grace’. If grace is God’s gift, then Mary was full of God’s gifts. There is no point in asking what Mary did to deserve such gift; she didn’t do anything to deserve them - for it is gift. Gifts and favours depend on the generosity of the giver, not the worthiness of the receiver.

The Gospel's do not tell us so much what Mary does, but they proclaim what God has done through Mary. God freely chose Mary to be the Mother of his son. God’s choice of Mary is the result of God’s freedom to choose from among all women the one who would be the mother of Jesus. When God chooses Mary, his choice makes her worthy, just as his love made her full of grace. The difference between us and Mary is not that she was chosen and we are not; rather, it is that she responded wholeheartedly to what God asked of her whilst we often remain hesitant and half hearted about responding to what God asks of us. The truth is that God has chosen all of us. God desires that we, you and I, be full of grace.

Like Mary, we face God’s choice of us; like her, we are challenged to say ‘Yes’. If we could see ourselves as God’s choice rather than a mobile mistake, we might be keener to say yes! God has chosen every single one of us; God has a role for each of us. God waits for our choice to put our freedom at his service.

The image of Mary that I share with you here is the oldest one in the Carmelite tradition. It is under the title 'La Bruna.' Legend says that it was brought to Europe from Mount Carmel by the earliest Carmelite refugees from the land, once made holy by the footsteps of Jesus, and divided by the ignorance of humanity. The image was brought to Naples and is enshrined in the Carmelite Church there. it is said to be 800 years old

Flower of Carmel,

Tall vine blossom laden,

Splendour of heaven,

Child bearing yet maiden.

None equals thee.

Mother so tender,

Whom no man didst know,

On Carmels children,

Thy favours bestow.

Star of the Sea

Religious life

Found a very good quote about religious life from a director of novices

"Do not think I am sitting here to pass the time away

telling you that religious life is poetry.

It is the roughest kind of prose."

Justina Reilly, IHM (b. 1848)

Conversion of Saint Paul

Today is the feast of the conversion of Paul of Tarsus. It is the only feast of the Church that celebrates a conversion and one that has many levels to it. I was struck by the blindness that Paul endures immediately after his encounter with the Christ on the road to Damascus. The blindness seems to be a narration on Paul's life so far. Blinded by prejudice, blinded by fear, blinded by self importance, he is now totally reliant on others to help him complete his journey to Damascus. once in Damascus he is at the mercy of the Christian community and it is they who complete the journey to baptism with him.

Christian faith is far from personal, it has a vivid and real dimension of comunity to it. The Church helps complete our faith and gives it a context in which we live faith. A wise Carmelite, John Welch once said, 'if you are a hermit whose feet are you washing?' If we seek an unrooted solitude and isolation we miss out on so many opportunities for faith to be celebrated and awakened.

Best Prayer I Have Heard In A Long Time...

Thanks to Alan for this one.

Heavenly Father, help us remember that the idiot who cut us off in traffic last night is a single mother who worked nine hours that day and is rushing home to cook dinner, help with homework, do the laundry and spend a few precious moments with her children.

Help us to remember that the pierced, tattooed, disinterested young man who can't make change correctly is a worried 19-year-old student, balancing his apprehension over final exams with his fear of not getting his student loans for next year.

Remind us, Lord, that the scary looking man, begging for money in the same spot every day (who really ought to get a job!) is a slave to addictions that we can only imagine in our worst nightmares .

Help us to remember that the old couple walking annoyingly slow through the store aisles and blocking our shopping progress are savouring this moment, knowing that, based on the biopsy report she got back last week, this will be the last year that they go shopping together .

Heavenly Father, remind us each day that, of all the gifts you give us, the greatest gift is love. It is not enough to share that love with those we hold dear. Open our hearts not to just those who are close to us, but to all humanity. Let us be slow to judge and quick to forgive, show patience, empathy and love.

Meetings

Last night I attended a meeting of the parish finance group. An unusual way to spend your birthday but that is life. The meeting made me think of this lurking somewhere in the murky depths of my computer

Oh No! 40!

The day has finally arrived. The Big one - 40! I anticipated the feast with a gathering of family and friends on Friday evening in the parish hall. Fine food, drink and companionship. A time for counting blessings.

speaking of blessings, this is a good one, especially for those marking the passing of time or milestones.

A Blessing for the New Year

May God bless you with discomfort...at easy answers, hard hearts,
half-truths ,and superficial relationships. .
May God bless you so that you may live from deep within your heart where God's Spirit dwells.
May God bless you with anger...at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people.
May God bless you so that you may work for justice, freedom, and peace.
May God bless you with tears...to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection, starvation and war.
May God bless you so that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and turn their pain into joy.
And may God bless you with enough foolishness to believe that you can make a difference in this world, in your neighbourhood, so that you will courageously try what you don't think you can do, but, in Jesus Christ you'll have all the strength necessary.
May God bless you to fearlessly speak out about injustice, unjust laws, corrupt politicians, unjust and cruel treatment of prisoners, and senseless wars, genocides, starvations, and poverty that is so pervasive.
May God bless you that you remember we are all called to continue God's redemptive work of love and healing in God's place, in and through God's name, in God's Spirit, continually creating and breathing new life and grace into everything and everyone we touch.

"Troubadour: A Missionary Magazine," published by the Franciscan Society, Liverpool, UK Spring 2005.

God Bless :-)

Ipod shuffle

I'm sorting out some music for my 40th birthday party this evening. Thought I would play with some of the settings on my ipod. Select 'shuffle' on your ipod and share the first ten tracks that come up. No cheating!

I hold your hand in mine ~ Tom Lehrer
April After All ~ Anne Sofie Van Otter
Farewell ~ Rod Stewart
Begin the Beguine ~ Sheryl Crow
Don't Bang the Drum ~ The Waterboy's
Take me as I am ~ Wycliffe Jean
Driving ~ Rverything but the Girl
Without a Word ~ Headway
Garments of Praise ~ Robin Mark
Together all the Way ~ The Levellers

Thirteenth disciple

I was preparing a small reflection for Mass this morning and I remembered these words of Joan Chichester OSB entitled 'The Thirteenth disciple'

Jesus called his apostles and they weren’t ready.
Jesus called Peter, but Peter was unfaithful,Peter was weak,Peter had a bad temper,Peter lacked courage,Peter wasn’t ready.
Jesus called James and John, but James and John were ambitious.James and John followed Jesus for the wrong reason.James and John followed Jesus for their own glory,James and John lacked purity of motivation,James and John weren’t ready.
Jesus called Philip, but Philip was blind.Philip couldn’t see a spiritual reality if he tripped over it,Philip lacked intelligence and insight,Philip wasn’t ready.
Jesus called Judas, but Judas was untrustworthy.Judas was more interested in money than the kingdom,Judas was a loner who slunk off at night,Judas lacked integrity,Judas wasn’t ready.
Jesus called Matthew, but Matthew was a crook.Matthew was money hungry,Matthew had hurt people,Matthew lacked an honest past,Matthew wasn’t ready.
Jesus called Thomas, but Thomas lacked faith.Thomas was a doubter,Thomas wasn’t around enough,Thomas lacked trust in the invisible,Thomas wasn’t ready.
Jesus called Andrew, but Andrew was a cynic.Andrew could not take Jesus’ words seriously,Andrew still had the eyes of the world,Andrew lacked maturity,Andrew wasn’t ready.
Jesus called Simon the Zealot, but Simon was a militant.Simon had a belligerent streak,Simon was a social justice type,Simon lacked nuance,Simon wasn’t ready.
Jesus called Luke, but Luke wasn’t tough enough.Luke was too gentle,Luke couldn’t face the hard confrontation the gospel asks,Luke lacked the courage for prophecy,Luke wasn’t ready.
Jesus called Mark, but Mark was a stoic.Mark was a neurotic,Mark made an ideology out of suffering,Mark lacked joy and optimism,Mark wasn’t ready.
Jesus called Bartholomew and James the Lesser, but Bartholomew and James the Lesser lacked talent.Bartholomew and James had little to contribute,Bartholomew and James were shy introverts,Bartholomew and James the Lesser lacked charisma,Bartholomew and James the Lesser weren’t ready.
And today, Jesus calls us.And we, we lackcourage, purity of motivation, intelligence,and insight, integrity, an honest past,trust in the invisible, maturity, nuance,courage for prophecy, joy and optimism,charisma.
We, we aren’t ready, but the thing is…Jesus doesn’t call the readyJesus calls the willing.(The Thirteenth Apostle by Joan Chittester Winds of Change 1986)