Apr 4, 2012
As we ready ourselves for the celebration of Easter it’s probably a good time to pause, to reflect, and to ask ourselves how are we feeling at this time. What is going on in my heart? What are the things I am truly thankful for? Are there any blocks or struggles in my life that I need to let go of and surrender, so that I can enter these days of prayer unencumbered by useless baggage? What is God saying to me this year? What are the quiet words that he is speaking in the silence of my heart?
Diarmuid O’Murchu, a Missionary of the Sacred Heart, has spoken a great deal of the central message of Jesus’ vocation, especially as it is lived out in the reality of Easter. He talks not in terms of the Kingdom of God, but of the Companionship of Empowerment. To illustrate what he’s saying he points to Palm Sunday. On the one hand we have Jesus, coming from the east, representing in his way vulnerability, empowerment, non-violence and prophetic action. He is living out something entirely new and challenging to the way the people of his time saw their world. (more…)
Apr 2, 2012
This Holy Week and throughout Easter we look at the what it really means to be a follower of Christ. A lot has been written on the subject, but I think an article in today’s Irish Times really sums up what it takes to be a true disciple.
As a minor aside when I went looking for a photo to accompany the article one wasn’t available. If you Google ‘Fr. Brian Ryan’ eight photos come up and none of them are him. If you Google ‘Kardashians’ you get 402,000,000 results. Enough said.
Let’s hear it for the uncle Brians of this world
FRENCH NOTES:Â Being part of a sport where the successful are lauded as heroes by media, we can lose sight of the fact that the real ones live anonymously amongst us, writes MATT WILLIAMS (more…)
Mar 16, 2012
St Patrick, Apostle of Ireland
“Who am I, Lord, and what is my calling that you should co-operate with me with such divine power? Today, among the people, I praise and proclaim your name in all places, not only when things go well but also in times of stress. Whether I receive good or ill, I return thanks equally to God, who taught me always to trust him unreservedly.” Confessions of St Patrick.
When I went looking for some material on this post online today I was amazed at the amount of ‘Happy St. Patrick’s Day’ paraphernalia that I had to wade through. There are only so many dancing red headed leprechauns a man can put up with! But this isn’t a blog bemoaning commercialism. It’s about celebrating one man’s faith. It’s about looking at the example of his courage and his capacity for forgiveness. It’s about reminding us where we came from as Catholics and challenging us to live out this message in the future. (more…)
As we ready ourselves for the celebration of Easter it’s probably a good time to pause, to reflect, and to ask ourselves how are we feeling at this time. What is going on in my heart? What are the things I am truly thankful for? Are there any blocks or struggles in my life that I need to let go of and surrender, so that I can enter these days of prayer unencumbered by useless baggage? What is God saying to me this year? What are the quiet words that he is speaking in the silence of my heart?
Diarmuid O’Murchu, a Missionary of the Sacred Heart, has spoken a great deal of the central message of Jesus’ vocation, especially as it is lived out in the reality of Easter. He talks not in terms of the Kingdom of God, but of the Companionship of Empowerment. To illustrate what he’s saying he points to Palm Sunday. On the one hand we have Jesus, coming from the east, representing in his way vulnerability, empowerment, non-violence and prophetic action. He is living out something entirely new and challenging to the way the people of his time saw their world. (more…)
