Dear Friends, This week we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit (as depicted in the Acts of the Apostles, Chapter 2). What an extraordinary event! It is an opportunity each year to think about how seriously we take the movement of the Spirit in the world, our community and our lives. In this week’s…
Dear Friends, Our Gospel this week (found in John, Chapter 14) brings both reassurance as well as an issue to ponder. In my sermon this week I will be addressing the theme of Discernment. How do we know God’s presence is with us? I will look at the Ignatian methodology and the Examen prayer. The…
This week’s gospel (found in John Chapter 13) calls us to consider the issues of Jesus’ glorification, his departure and his commandment that we should love one another. In typical counter-cultural fashion, Jesus’ teaching and ministry were not focused on power and aggrandisement. His authority was a direct reflection of his relationship with the Father….
In this week’s gospel (found in John, Chapter 10) Jesus talks about himself as the Shepherd and identifies those who listen to him as his sheep. My sermon this week boils down to one question: are you listening for his voice? This question implicates a lot of sub-issues. How is your prayer life? Are you…
Dear Friends, I feel greatly inspired with the power of the Holy Spirit this week. A day of Diocesan training and a Parish Council meeting have left me buoyed. Preparing this week’s sermon has also been a source of comfort. Our Sunday gospel (found in John 21) provides an inspiring example of the Resurrected Lord…
This first week of Easter has been coloured for me by the death of Pope Francis. The Pope took his name from Francis of Assisi who likewise was an extraordinary character. Many years of teaching children about the latter had me researching the intricacies of his life story. I feel sure you know the stories…
Dear Friends, Holy Week has finally arrived, and my sense of anticipation is palpable. Our choir rehearsals have brought me much joy because they bring the opportunity to focus deeply on words and images in hymns. These resonate. No doubt you have an idea of how singing is a whole-body experience. The repetitive nature of…
Here we are at the sixth Sunday of Lent and we know the gospel so well (taken from Luke chapter 23) that we could probably recite parts of it. The ultimate question for each of us is where we stand in relation to that crowd that gathered at Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem. Are we…
This week we have another gospel that we know so well (from John, chapter 12). The story of Mary anointing Jesus’ feet with costly oil and drying them with her hair. It is a story of an intimate action that takes place in public. At a dinner, no less. This action of washing prefigures Jesus’…