Category: Deacon Tony reflects

A first glance at today’s readings gives an indication of people being called and following; people who stuck to their call without hesitation or resistance. And, if we read these texts in isolation, we could be left feeling a bit disheartened. However, if we look a little bit closer at the story of all those involved in today’s readings and Gospel then we can see that they, like us, had their flaws and their moments of doubt.

In the first reading Jonah follows God’s call and goes to warn the people of Nineveh, they ‘renounced their evil ways’, had a change of heart and behaviour, ‘and God relented’. Well done Jonah, but what is Jonah more famous for? He was swallowed by a whale and spent three days in the belly of the beast until he was regurgitated. How did he find himself in the belly of the whale? He was running away from God. He thought that what God was asking of him was too much and he tried to avoid it.

In our second reading we have St Paul, the greatest of preachers, encouraging his readers and listeners to sort their lives out, put their affairs in order. He is secure in what he is teaching, he has no doubts. But, as we all know, Paul originally persecuted Christians, he was present at the execution of St Stephen; the first martyr; he approved of the stoning of Stephen. That all changed on the road to Damascus, when Jesus appeared to him and changed not only Paul’s life, but the course of history; as Paul was called to take the Good News out to the Gentiles, calling all people to be descendants of Abraham, not just the Jewish people.

In the Gospel, St Mark, makes it sound so straightforward, Jesus walks along a beach and calls 4 fishermen to follow him and become fishers of men. They all appeared to have obeyed instantly, but we know that at crucial times, even these most esteemed saints, abandoned Jesus; denying him as the Christ; leaving him to fend for himself.

There are times when even if we do not run away from God, our actions can appear as if we do not believe in God or trust in Him fully. For me, I can sometimes grudge the time I need to spend fulfilling my calling as a Christian. In the past it would be when I returned to work after Christmas or Easter and heard about all the time people had to spend time with their family or catch up with jobs, their holiday time seemed to be filled with relaxation or getting things done, whereas these times for me were spent going to church.

On reflection, I now realise that these were times I got to spend with my church family, enriching my life. There will always be jobs to be done at home, but all of my church family will not always be with me. I have some wonderful memories of the times I spent with some people who have now gone to the Lord or who have moved to other parishes. If I had given in to those grudges or temptations, I would not have those memories to treasure.

This Sunday has been designated as the Sunday for the Word of God.¹ Pope Francis, writes about this day “Devoting a specific Sunday of the liturgical year to the word of God can enable the Church to experience anew how the risen Lord opens up for us the treasury of his word and enables us to proclaim its unfathomable riches before the world.” As I said earlier, if we had taken the readings from today in isolation, we could be under the illusion that everyone called followed completely all of the time and never wavered. Even the saints struggled with their calling. But Jesus; the Word of God, made man; has come to encourage us to love, to forgive and to serve.

This is a day to look into our hearts and ask how well do we know the Word of God?

At Christmas, my daughter gave me a gift of a Bible in one Year, this prompts me to look at the Bible every day, and if I manage to stick to it, I will have read the whole Bible by the end of the year. There are various ways of doing this, there is the Bible in a Year podcast with Fr Mike Schmitz,² or there is the Bible in One Year with Nicky Gumble from the Alpha Course, this can either be done through an App on the computer or by buying a bible which is laid out according to the reading plan for each day.³ There are also other resources available through the Catholic Bishops of England and Wales at their website.⁴ This includes a seven week course aimed at helping Catholics to get to know the Bible better and is sponsored by the Bible Society, the whole course can be downloaded at their website.

Back in September 2019; when Pope Francis declared that the 3^rd Sunday of Ordinary Time would become the Sunday for the Word of God each year; he said, “the great challenge before us in life: to listen to Sacred Scripture and then to practice mercy”, he continued, “God’s Word, has the power to open our eyes and to enable us to renounce a stifling and barren individualism and instead to embark on a new path of sharing and solidarity.” May this Sunday be for us, a new beginning, where we commit to learning more about Jesus, form a more intimate relationship with Jesus and take Jesus out into the world by what we do and say. 

Further Reading

The Catechism of the Catholic Church

Third Sunday in Ordinary Time

CCC 51-64: God’s plan of Revelation
CCC 1427-1433: inner, ongoing conversion
CCC 1886-1889: conversion and society

Sunday of the Word of God – Catholic Bishops’ Conference (cbcew.org.uk)

Please keep in your prayers this week

• Those who are sick, those recovering from surgery, those who are dying, the recently deceased and those who mourn.
• All those struggling to feed their families at this time.
• Those working to help others who are struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.
• Those discerning a vocation and those considering coming into the Catholic Church.
• The innocent people caught up in wars and conflicts around the world, but especially those in Palestine, Israel, Ukraine and Russia.
• Those on pilgrimage or those planning a pilgrimage at this time.
• For the 11 families due to complete their Baptism preparation session On Sunday at St Bede’s.
• All those who proclaim the Word of God, especially those who do so in places where Christians are persecuted.

1 Sunday of the Word of God – Catholic Bishops’ Conference (cbcew.org.uk)

2 The Bible in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz) on Apple Podcasts

3 The Bible with Nicky and Pippa Gumbel (alpha.org)

4 Sunday of the Word of God – Catholic Bishops’ Conference (cbcew.org.uk)

The first words spoken by Jesus in St John’s Gospel are “What do you want?” This simple question is one which we are called to answer. It is a question we have probably been asked by lots of people, lots of times. But when it is Jesus asking we really need to think carefully about how we reply. Our answer doesn’t only need to be in what we say, or write down, but in what our answer inspires us to do.

At the time, John’s disciples; including, as we heard Andrew; just wanted to know where Jesus lived? They wanted to get to know more about this Jesus, who John the Baptist had called the lamb of God. Jesus had a simple reply, “Come and see”. This reply is for all of us too. Jesus calls us all forward to come and see. Jesus is calling us into an intimate relationship with him. He already knows us, he knows everything about us, but he wants us to know everything about him, too.

Jesus knows that when we come and see then we will like what we see and become followers. Being a follower of Jesus is not all doom and gloom. Being a follower of Jesus is life giving, it is the only place where true joy can be found. Of course, it is not without its challenges; as we know, Christians continue to be persecuted in the present day; this said, all other joys are temporary, being one with Jesus and following him completely brings complete joy, a joy that never ends.

Back in 2009, Pam [my wife] and I were asked to take on a leadership role with Marriage Encounter; we received a phone call whilst we were in the car with our son. We knew that our son was not always happy about the time we spent on Marriage Encounter work, and we also knew that he needed us as he was still a teenager at that time. To our surprise, he immediately said we should say yes, Following this up with “your community are calling you.”

But we knew we had to discern. The previous leaders had given us a scripture reading to look at for while we were discerning, that reading was about trusting and being prepared to step out of the boat. We decided we would also look at the readings of the day to help us discern. When we saw the psalm, it was the same psalm used today. “Here I am Lord, I come to do your will.” For those that don’t know Marriage Encounter is an organisation, started within the Catholic Church with the aim of promoting and enriching the Sacraments of Marriage and Holy Orders, we were already presenting weekends and fulfilling regional leadership roles, but were now being asked to take on the National role, a role which came with much responsibility and lots of time commitments. Initially we didn’t think we had either the time or capacity to do the role. Having read the readings, the psalm spoke to both us. “Here I am Lord, I come to do your will.”

Having discerned to accept the role, most of our hurdles, while they didn’t disappear, became easier to overcome. We put plans in place for looking after our teenage children for the times we would be away. Pressures from work seemed to become less and we both found our employers and work colleagues were extremely co-operative with the role. This is when we heard that ‘God does not call the equipped, He equips the called.’

In the Gospel reading we hear towards the end about the calling of Peter. We know that Peter would eventually be given the keys of the Kingdom. Does anyone think that Peter was able to carry that burden when he first met Jesus? No way would he have been ready, and I would guess that when Jesus said to Peter that he would have the authority on earth to lead God’s people, that Peter did not think that he was either worthy or capable at that time. We are enabled or equipped to do God’s work through the presence and influence of the Holy Spirit. When we try to do things under our own power it is far more difficult. But when we ask God in prayer to help us, He sends his Spirit, His advocate to help us. Jesus did not desert us when he Ascended into Heaven, He sent his Holy Spirit to be with us, we are never alone. We need to trust in God, trust that his Holy Spirit; who we received in Baptism and again in Confirmation; is with us and he gives us the gifts and charisms to do His work.

Today has been designated by the Holy Father as a day to pray for peace. In his message for today, Pope Francis is examining the influence of modern technology on peace in the world, in particular he is looking at artificial intelligence. The link in the St Bede’s Newsletter is well worth a read. We may read that and find it very interesting and think that is for governments and big business to concern themselves with, and Pope Francis does aim some of his message at them. However, we all live in the same world, and just as we can all contribute to destructive things we can also contribute to things which make the world better.

If we can find a way of having peace in our own hearts then that can help us to have peace in our household, we can then take that peace; which for us comes from Christ; out into the world. We all know someone who needs peace in their life, as we pray for peace during our Mass or in our own personal prayers later, bring their face into your mind, concentrate on that image and pray that God brings peace into their life. If you don’t know anyone personally who could really appreciate that prayer at this moment then maybe God is calling you to go bigger, pray for peace in a certain town, or city or country.

Remember, God created this world, and he created us. He asked mankind to look after this world, and His Son asked us to love God and our neighbour. Praying for other people is an act of mercy, it is a way for us to show our love, it is a way for us to show we care.

Further Reading

The Catechism of the Catholic Church

Second Sunday in Ordinary Time

CCC 462, 516, 2568, 2824: the Father’s will fulfilled in Christ
CCC 543-546: to welcome the Kingdom, welcome the Word of God
CCC 873-874: Christ the source of Christian vocation
CCC 364, 1004: the dignity of the body
CCC 1656, 2226: helping children discover their vocation

Please keep in your prayers this week

• Those who are sick, those recovering from surgery, those who are dying, the recently deceased and those who mourn.
• All those struggling to feed their families at this time.
• Those working to help others who are struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.
• Those discerning a vocation and those considering coming into the Catholic Church.
• The innocent people caught up in wars and conflicts around the world, but especially those in Palestine, Israel, Ukraine and Russia.
• Those on pilgrimage or those planning a pilgrimage at this time.
• For the families due to attend their 1st Baptism preparation session On Sunday at St Bede’s.
• For those individuals and countries who do not experience peace; may they come to know God in their hearts.

The wise men are truly an example for us. These men were not content to sit around and wait for the birth of the King of the Jews, they read the signs of the day and decided to seek out the newborn king. Wise men indeed. Their intent was to pay homage to Jesus, to bow down before him and worship this much promised Messiah. Herod’s intent was far from noble, he said he wished to pay homage, however, his intention was to stay in power and to quash any talk of anyone else becoming King of the Jews.

These wise men represent all of the Gentiles; all those born outside of the Jewish race. In reading the signs of the day, they became signs themselves; a sign that God was sending his Son to the whole human race and not just the Chosen Jewish Race and also that our Faith is a not a passive faith it is a faith where we are called to follow the light and walk towards Jesus and when we have found Jesus we are to follow him wherever He takes us.

This is in line with the reading we have from the prophet Isaiah today. The prophet mentions light coming to Jerusalem; all nations coming to the light. All assembling and coming to you, can be compared to the census; sons from far away [Joseph] and daughters being tenderly carried [Mary is traditionally portrayed as riding on a donkey towards Bethlehem]. Isaiah talks about the wealth of the nations coming to you, camels carrying people from Midian, Ephah and Sheba and bringing gold and incense and singing the praise of the Lord. Our Gospel from Matthew, reports all of these as having happened.

These wise men travelled great distances at personal cost and risk to find the child Jesus. What have we done to find Jesus; how do we pay Him homage?

We hear in the Responsorial psalm today that “all nations shall fall prostrate before you, O Lord.” These wise men, who came to pay the Lord homage fell onto their knees and “did him homage”, as we come to Mass, coming together as the Body of Christ, we kneel and worship Our Saviour, we share from His banquet table, call His Father Our Father and as we leave the church building we are told to “go and announce the Gospel of the Lord” or to “glorify God by our lives.” Just like the wise men we have to get up and go, only our task is not to seek the child Jesus, but to seek those who do not know about Jesus. We are to take Jesus out of the church building and shine his light onto a world that is broken and so in need of Jesus.

I am in a very privileged position, as an ordained minister; I get to go out and meet people, I am representing the Church in a formal manner in some very informal locations. In my short time in ministry, I have met so many people that I would never have encountered before. I recently spent some time with a Catholic lady in hospital, who is close to the end of her life. This lady’s faith energised me. This lady still displayed a great sense of humour, and the strength of her witness was powerful. I told her how her faith gave me lots of encouragement, and if it had that effect on me, it must surely have made a similar impression on her daughter and two granddaughters who were with me in that room. This was a lady who; without using any form of a book; was announcing the Gospel of the Lord.

The birth of Jesus, and the arrival of the wise men from the east are a gift to every single person who has been born since the time of Jesus. This was God saying, I’m no longer calling just one race as the Chosen People, I now choose everyone. God is saying I want every man, woman and child, who God has created in his image and likeness; to become his adopted children.

Finally, I would like to repeat the words of Pope Benedict XVI; who died just over a year ago; when he spoke about today’s Solemnity:

Men and women of every generation need on their pilgrim journey to be directed: what star can we therefore follow? After coming to rest ‘over the place where the child was’, the purpose of the start was ended, but its spiritual light is always present in the Word of the Gospel, which is still able today to guide every person to Jesus. This same Word, which is none other than the reflection of Christ, true man and true God, is authoritatively echoed by the Church for every well-disposed heart. The Church too, therefore, carries out the mission of the star for humanity. But something of the sort can be said of each Christian, called to illuminate the path of the brethren by word and example of life.¹

Further Reading

The Catechism of the Catholic Church

Solemnity of the Epiphany

CCC 528, 724: the Epiphany
CCC 280, 529, 748, 1165, 2466, 2715: Christ the light of the nations
CCC 60, 442, 674, 755, 767, 774-776, 781, 831: the Church, sacrament of human unity

Christmas appeal – Don’t let their light go out | Friends of the Holy Land

Please keep in your prayers this week

• Those who are sick, those recovering from surgery, those who are dying, the recently deceased and those who mourn.
• All those struggling to feed their families at this time.
• Those working to help others who are struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.
• Those discerning a vocation and those considering coming into the Catholic Church.
• The innocent people caught up in wars and conflicts around the world, but especially those in Palestine, Israel, Ukraine and Russia.
• Those on pilgrimage or those planning a pilgrimage at this time.

1 Pope Benedict XVI, CTS New daily Missal, People’s Edition, [Catholic Truth Society, London, 2012] 115.

In the Missal I use at home, there is a short commentary by St Pope John Paul II on today’s feast, I like it and thought I would share it with you today. St John Paul said

If we aspire to a deeper understanding of Jesus’ life and mission, we must draw close to the mystery of the Holy Family of Nazareth to observe and listen. Today’s liturgy offers us a providential opportunity to do so. For every believer, and especially for Christian families, the humble dwelling place in Nazareth is an authentic school of the Gospel. Here we admire, put into practice, the divine plan to make the family an intimate community of life and love; here we learn that every Christian family is called to be a small ‘domestic church’ that must shine with the Gospel virtues. Recollection and prayer, mutual understanding and respect, personal discipline and community ascetism and a spirit of sacrifice, work and solidarity are typical features that make the family of Nazareth a model for every home.¹

This image of the Holy Family is something, as Christians we all aspire to. In our homes and churches at this time of year we have the Nativity scene, the baby Jesus at the centre with his devoted parents usually on either side, staring in wonder at this miraculous child. These images, while idyllic, do not depict the type of family Jesus grew up in, but are there as a reminder to us, that Jesus; the Son of God; grew up in a family. Every family is different, and we never truly know a family unless we are part of that family. Sadly not every family stays together, and for some people the image of the Holy Family and the expression of us being called to be a small ‘domestic church’, is so far away from their reality that they struggle to imagine what that could possibly mean.

Where God’s love is present and everyone pulls together, regardless of what that family looks like, it can be a small domestic church. This is where everyone in that family puts the needs of others before their own needs. The family I grew up in was far from perfect. We were never a wealthy family in terms of finances, but my parents made sacrifices to do their best for us. Does that mean we always got everything we wanted? Definitely not. But we got most of the things we needed, we always had a roof over our head, we always had food and we always felt loved; even if the word love, was not used very often until later years.

We look at our Christmas Crib and see this family, from 2000 years ago in Bethlehem, and we recall some of the feast days we have celebrated in the past week related to the Christmas story and we compare them to Bethlehem today. The crib at Bethlehem has been different this year², here we see a baby lying in the rubble, symbolising the children who are having to be dug out of buildings destroyed by war. For some families in Ukraine and Gaza this is their reality.

Earlier this week we had the Feast of the Holy Innocents, where we commemorate the deaths of hundreds of children; killed by a jealous king who was afraid that he might lose his throne or that his son may not inherit his throne. As we end 2023, this is the reality for some families, for them it is not something from history books, it is their reality now. When terrorists attacked occupying families in Israel, they claimed it was to highlight injustices committed by Israelis against the Palestinians. What they have brought down on their own people, through the vengeance of a very angry leader is a modern-day slaughter of the innocents.

One of the first casualties of war is the truth, and with so many sources being difficult to verify in this world today, it is difficult to understand what is actually happening in war torn areas. However, what is not in doubt is that entire cities are being destroyed in the hunt for the terrorists, with the innocent people caught up in the events since the terrorists attacks seen as collateral damage, used as human shields by some, as hostages by others, forced from their homes, imprisoned, killed or forced to become refugees. Just like the Holy Family 2000 years ago.

Today we hear how Simeon, rejoiced to set eyes on the infant Messiah, Oh how the whole world needs to stop and recognise Jesus as Saviour now. We hear how Mary and Joseph wondered at the things being said and how Mary was forewarned that her soul would be pierced, that she would know suffering and that through this others will come to her when they are suffering.

We look at our crib and share the Christmas story with our family, we aspire to be like them, we encourage our children to be like the baby Jesus and the young Jesus we know from our Scriptures. As we look at the crib, please remember the families in the Holy Land and if you can make a donation. As requested by Bishop Philip, all the donations for our crib this year are going to Friends of the Holy Land³. If you are able to support this, please help as the people living there are desperate and in need of our help.

Finally, the modern world gives us opportunities, which our grandparents could only dream of. We are able to stay in touch with family members wherever they live elsewhere in the world, for a fraction of the cost of what it cost years ago. I would like to encourage us all to make this new year, a year when we stay in touch [perhaps better] with our families, a year when we are kinder to the people we meet and a year in which our prayer life remembers those in our families who have gone before us and are hopefully now with the Lord praying for us.

Further Reading

The Catechism of the Catholic Church

The Holy Family

CCC 531-534: the Holy Family
CCC 1655-1658, 2204-2206: the Christian family, a domestic Church
CCC 2214-2233: duties of family members
CCC 529, 583, 695: the Presentation in the Temple
CCC 144-146, 165, 489, 2572, 2676: Abraham and Sarah as models of faith

Christmas appeal – Don’t let their light go out | Friends of the Holy Land

Please keep in your prayers this week

• Those who are sick, those recovering from surgery, those who are dying, the recently deceased and those who mourn.
• All those struggling to feed their families at this time.
• Those working to help others who are struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.
• Those discerning a vocation and those considering coming into the Catholic Church.
• The innocent people caught up in wars and conflicts around the world, but especially those in Palestine, Israel, Ukraine and Russia.
• All families, especially those who are estranged at this time.
• Those families who are struggling, those for whom family life is not happy.

1 St Pope John Paul II, The CTS Daily Missal, People’s Edition, [Catholic Truth Society, London,2012]93.

2 Photo taken from Clonard Monastery (@ClonardMBelfast) / X (twitter.com)

3 Christmas appeal – Don’t let their light go out | Friends of the Holy Land

At first glance, the readings for the Christmas night mass appear to speak for themselves. We are all familiar with these readings, especially if coming to this Mass during the night has become a Christmas custom within your household. The reading from Isaiah, speaks about people who have been living in darkness seeing a great light, and our churches, normally in darkness at this time of the night are lit up, instead of being empty they are filled with people. At this Mass there is an air of expectation as before this Mass we are in Advent and as we take part in this Mass we announce the birth of the Saviour, Our Immanuel; Christ is with us!

Tonight, we proclaim Gloria and join the hosts of angels in praising Hosanna in the Highest.

For today a child is born for us and he is Christ the Lord. We, his people are called to tell everyone of every nation the Good News, the news we first hear at our Baptism, that Jesus Christ is born, He is our Saviour and Lord, let the whole world rejoice, for He has come to rule the earth.

St Paul in his letter to Titus remind us to live good and religious lives here in this present world, while we are waiting in hope for the second coming of Christ. We are asked to follow Christ’s example by loving God and our neighbour, follow God’s word in what we say and what we do; ultimately ‘giving up everything that does not lead to God’.

In the Gospel used for this Mass tonight, we are reminded of the first census, where all were asked to go to their hometown and register their family. We are so accustomed to this story that we accept that everyone went along dutifully to put their mark in a register, so that the Romans would know how many people they ruled over [and could tax]. However, if we think about this, the occupied people must have had great suspicions over the true intentions of these occupiers. Were they really asking people to travel great distances just to count them? Or did they have more sinister motives? I would guess that Joseph and all the other heads of household set out for their hometown with a bit of trepidation, Joseph also had the concern of his wife being heavily pregnant.

Our God is a God of surprises. When the Jewish people expected a powerful king, the messiah arrived as a helpless newborn baby. While royalty and religious leaders assumed their own nearness to God, God chose a woman, a manger, a family in hiding. The first people to hear about the birth of Jesus were not kings, nor the wealthy, nor people of great status. Just like when God was choosing the first king of Israel, He chose shepherds. This is a sign for us that Jesus did not come just for the well-educated, or for the wealthy or the elite; Jesus came for everyone, and we can all share in the wonder of His birth and in the Salvation which His life, death and resurrection promises for us.

Whether you are here at Church every week, or you are only here because you are expected to be here with your family at Christmas, or whether you have walked in tonight because you see the lights on, whatever the reason you find yourself here, know that you are welcome here, there is a place for you here and that God loves you and has sent His Son for you. This helpless baby is the Son of our Creator, he is the Word made flesh, the Light of Lights and the Lamb of God. He is my personal Saviour and he is your personal Saviour. There is no other Way to The Father except through him. He is the Good Shepherd, who will keep searching until he has gathered all of his lost sheep. He seeks those who are weary, he will give us rest. He is love, and quite simply he asks us to love, nothing more, nothing less. He asks us to love until it hurts and when it hurts, he asks us to love again.

I am going to finish with the words of Pope Benedict XVI,

God’s sign is simplicity. God’s sign is the baby. God’s sign is that he makes himself small for us. This is how he reigns. He does not come with power and outward splendour. He comes as a baby – defenceless and in need of our help. He does not want to overwhelm us with his strength. He takes away our fear of his greatness. He asks for our love: so he makes himself a child. He wants nothing from us than our love, through which we spontaneously learn to enter into his feelings, his thoughts and his will – we learn to live with him and to practice with him that humility of renunciation that belongs to the very essence of love. God made himself small, so that we could understand him, welcome him and love him.¹

I wish you and yours a very happy and holy Christmas.

Further Reading

The Catechism of the Catholic Church

The Solemnity of Christmas

CCC 456-460, 466: “Why did the Word become flesh?”
CCC 461-463, 470-478: the Incarnation
CCC 437, 525-526: the Christmas mystery
CCC 439, 496, 559, 2616: Jesus is the Son of David
CCC 65, 102: God has said everything in his Word
CCC 333: the incarnate Christ worshipped by the angels
CCC 1159-1162, 2131, 2502: the Incarnation and images of Christ

Please keep in your prayers this week

• Those who are sick, those recovering from surgery, those who are dying, the recently deceased and those who mourn.
• All those struggling to feed their families at this time.
• Those working to help others who are struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.
• Those discerning a vocation and those considering coming into the Catholic Church.
• The innocent people caught up in wars and conflicts around the world, but especially those in Palestine, Israel, Ukraine and Russia.
• Those who are working at Christmas to keep other people safe, whether they are drivers, nurses, doctors, carers, emergency responders or military, the unseen heroes who keep our lights on and our water and gas supplies flowing, the food delivery people providing a lifeline to the housebound. Those working in prisons.
• Those volunteering to help others at this time.
• Those who are alone this Christmas.
• Those imprisoned and their families who will not be together this Christmas.

Deacon Tony Darroch 23^rd December 2023.

1 Pope Benedict XVI, The CTS New Daily Missal, People’s Edition, [Catholic Truth Society, London, 2012]80.

Last week, before Mass Fr John and I were remembering Nativity plays from schools. I told him about one I had read about years earlier, where a young man was devastated not to have been given the part of Joseph, he thought he had been promised in the play, and instead given the part of an Innkeeper. He had no lines, instead all he had to do was shake his head and slam a door closed when Joseph asked if there was a room. The big night came along, the school was full of parents and other children and his moment arrived, Joseph asked if he had a room, and the Innkeeper replied, “Come in! We have plenty of rooms”.

In today’s Scriptures we hear God make a promise and fulfil that same promise centuries later. If we remember when David was called by God to be king of Israel, he wasn’t thought to be worthy enough by his family to be present when the prophet Samuel was sent to Jesse to choose one of his sons to be king. David was left out in the fields as the youngest son. But God chose him to be king of His Chosen People. Likewise, Mary was a lowly virgin from a town hardly on the map, when the angel Gabriel was sent to her to ask her to be the Mother of God; and eventually Queen of Heaven. This is a reminder to us that God does not call the able, He enables the called.

Nothing is impossible to God, He created everything around us, He created us and as we know, He created us in his own image and likeness. As we have heard frequently in recent months, God’s way is not man’s way. So, when God was choosing a King, he did not do it in a way that men would typically do it. History has shown us that mankind traditionally choose mighty warriors or manipulative families or sometimes a combination of both to rule over the people. This was not God’s way. Instead, God chose the youngest child, a shepherd boy to be king; and then told him that his family would rule forever. When that promise was fulfilled, the king who would rule forever was not born in a palace, or to a ruling family, but to a lowly maiden, betrothed to a man from the house of David.

“Imagine the pregnant pause before Mary’s ‘yes’. So much tilling of the soil: her Immaculate Conception, her childhood formation as a Jewish girl, her pondering and discerning. All of this preparation hung in the balance, waiting for her consent.

Do we honour consent with the same reverence as our Creator?” ¹

Christmas Day is right around the corner; most of our preparations for the big day are almost complete. We may have family visiting or we may be going to visit. Gifts are wrapped, children are getting really excited, sometimes this can mean being with people we don’t see very often and there may well be reasons behind that.

Have we prepared for that?

What are we going do to, to ensure we can all have a peaceful Christmas?

Not forgetting have we prepared spiritually for Christmas?

How is our relationship with Jesus today?

Like most other years my preparations during Advent have meant an absence of social media for me. I step back from these things in order to spend more time in prayer or in reading. The truth this year is, that apart from adding the Office of the Day to my normal Morning Prayer, I haven’t replaced my time on social media with meaningful relaxation, but with trivial things. I need to get better at organising my time and how I spend my “down time” in particular. Especially if I want to practice what I preach.

Tomorrow, when we wake up, we will celebrate the birth of Our Saviour, we must also remember how He saves us, and that was by His unflinching obedience to Our Father. He lowered Himself from His Heavenly home, to become like us; so that He can raise us to become like Him and we can be with Him forever. Yes, we remember The Nativity of Our Lord, but we need to be prepared for when He comes again to judge us and separate the goats from the sheep.

Further Reading

The Catechism of the Catholic Church

Fourth Sunday of Advent

CCC 484-494: the Annunciation
CCC 439, 496, 559, 2616: Jesus is the Son of David
CCC 143-149, 494, 2087: the “obedience of faith”

Please keep in your prayers this week

• Those who are sick, those recovering from surgery, those who are dying, the recently deceased and those who mourn.
• All those struggling to feed their families at this time.
• Those working to help others who are struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.
• Those discerning a vocation and those considering coming into the Catholic Church.
• The innocent people caught up in wars and conflicts around the world, but especially those in Palestine, Israel, Ukraine and Russia.
• Those who are working at Christmas to keep other people safe, whether they are drivers, nurses, doctors, carers, emergency responders or military, the unseen heroes who keep our lights on and our water and gas supplies flowing, the food delivery people providing a lifeline to the housebound. Those working in prisons.
• Those volunteering to help others at this time.
• Those who are alone this Christmas.
• Those imprisoned and their families who will not be together this Christmas.

1 2024 Sourcebook, [Liturgy Training Publications, Chicago, Illinois, 2023]26

As I sit to write these words, I have sunshine outside and I can here the trickling water of a splash pool outside my hotel bedroom in Malta. I am currently less than an hour’s walk from where St Paul was shipwrecked and I attended Mass this morning, in a place where legend says St Luke painted a Madonna and child on a cave wall. This is a place of pilgrimage, where for nearly two thousand years people have travelled to pray and ask for the intercession of Our Lady to help them. As we know Our Lady is a vessel to help bring Christ closer to His people, just as she brought Him into the world on that first Christmas morning.

Being in a Catholic country, it highlights how much more secular our own country has become. The majority of the Christmas decorations in Malta, show images from the Nativity, whereas in our own country, there are more secular focuses, things like Father Christmas, snowmen, holly or post boxes covered with snow. But with this secularisation, comes a challenge and an opportunity.

The Gospel today speaks of a voice that cries in the wilderness, as we are introduced [again, this time by St John the Evangelist] to John the Baptist. In some ways the Gospel of John is laid out like a report into a criminal trial. He speaks of signs and not miracles, he introduces St John the Baptist as a witness; although from the interactions between John and the priests and Levites we hear today, he appears reluctant to witness for Christ during their interrogation. Listen again to his words – “I am not the Christ”, “ I am not”, “No”.  

He then of course tells them that he is the one foretold by Isaiah as being “a voice crying in the wilderness: Make a straight way for the Lord” and then “There is one standing among you whom you do not know, and I am not fit to undo his sandal strap.” 

Today, in the world we are Christ’s witnesses, it is us who are called to prepare a way for the Lord by the way we interact with those around us. 

If we take a long hard look at ourselves, and try and see ourselves as other do, would they see us as followers of Christ? 

Or have we entered into the ‘spirit of secularism’ so much that we tend to hide our Christianity? 

For example, there are times when I feel very self-conscious, if I am having a meal at a restaurant and say grace; worried what people will think. My concern should be more about what Jesus will think if I don’t acknowledge that I get to eat today through His benevolence.

In our first reading today, we hear about the spirit of the Lord being sent to Isaiah, and a message there which is also relevant for us today. Through our Baptism and Confirmation, we received this same Spirit, we have the same call to bring good news to the poor, to heal broken hearts, proclaim liberty to captives, to proclaim freedom and a year of favour from the Lord. We are called to rejoice, this Sunday is Gaudete Sunday, Gaudete, meaning Rejoice in Latin. The entrance antiphon sings out “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say rejoice. Indeed the Lord is near.” Does the Lord feel near to us? If I answer that question and the answer is no, then it is me who needs to change, because Jesus is always there, He never moves away from me, because He cannot move away. It is me who needs to change, because Jesus does not change, He is the same forever.

St Paul, in his letter to the Thessalonians; used today in our second reading; asks us to be happy always and to keep praying, thanking God for everything we have. We are to rely on the Holy Spirit, never try to suppress it, think before we act, avoid evil, ensure we are ready when the Lord comes again. Be sure that we realise, recognise and acknowledge that Jesus Christ Our Saviour is coming again and that He wants to see a faithful Body of Christ when He returns. We are part of that Body and we are called to maintain that Body while we are here on earth; and to make sure that we continually pass on our faith to those who will be here after us.

There is a very powerful message coming from the Church in Bethlehem, this Christmas. It says that all Christmas celebrations have been cancelled, and instead there is a time for prayers for peace. The image they are using is of the infant Child Jesus in the midst of rubble; symbolising the rubble found when a Palestinian home has been destroyed and the babies who have been pulled from the rubble. This is the reality of Christmas in Palestine, in Bethlehem in 2023. Families are being displaced, their homes destroyed, in what at times is indiscriminate destruction, while the world looks on and celebrates the birth of Our Saviour.

We pray that the people in war torn countries may be abler to rejoice again one day, when peace is restored to the whole world and all of mankind can recognise that we are all brothers and sisters from different parents, we are all friends who we have not gotten to know yet and that Jesus Christ came to save the whole human race, not just a chosen few.

Further Reading 

The Catechism of the Catholic Church

Third Sunday of Advent

CCC 30, 163, 301, 736, 1829, 1832, 2015, 2362: joy
CCC 713-714: characteristics of the awaited Messiah
CCC 218-219: God’s love for Israel
CCC 772, 796: the Church as the Bride of Christ

Please keep in your prayers this week 

• Those who are sick, those recovering from surgery, those who are dying, the recently deceased and those who mourn.  
• All those struggling to feed their families at this time.
• Those working to help others who are struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.
• Those discerning a vocation and those considering coming into the Catholic Church.
• The innocent people caught up in wars and conflicts around the world, but especially those in Palestine, Israel, Ukraine and Russia.

This is a time of year with many distractions; there tends to be more shopping for a start. If we switch on the TV, the adverts are sometimes more entertaining than the programmes; as those who wish to sell us things invest heavily trying to entice us to spend. At work, for many, projects are coming to an end or people are trying to get so much completed before the Christmas break. In homes with children, there’s lots of excitement as children prepare notes for Father Christmas or ask parents [at the last minute] to get their costume ready for the Nativity at school. Others are more concerned about how they can heat their house or feed their families. Meanwhile outside of our own ‘bubbles’ there are still wars going on in The Holy Land and Ukraine, with innocent civilians being killed in amongst those who are fighting.

All of these things can take our thoughts away from what this season is about; which is getting ourselves ready to greet The Lord when He comes again. In our readings today we hear Isaiah say, ‘Prepare a way for the Lord, make his paths straight.’ This phrase is repeated in mark’s Gospel. All of these distractions; while unavoidable for some; take us away from the ‘straight path.’ We try to get everything temporal [things of this world] ready for Christmas, but how are our spiritual preparations going?

In last week’s Pastoral Letter, Bishop Philip reminded us of the 6 Holy Habits, emphasising the first Holy Habit of keeping Sunday as a rest day, keeping it special. This will help us physically and spiritually, allowing us to recharge our inner batteries. As Bishop Philip also reminded us, Catholics in this country had to attend Mass in secret to avoid persecution, now that we can freely attend many are falling away from this obligation. For whatever reason they choose to not attend, they are not following the straight path advocated in today’s Scripture readings, our focus has to be on our redemption; which will be achieved through love of God and love of our neighbour.

Our Scriptures tell us that St John the Baptist made such an impact on the people that ‘all of Judaea and all the people of Jerusalem made their way to him.’ What was it about St John the Baptist that had such an impact? He preached repentance and baptised people; he was not removing any of the traditions handed down by other leaders or prophets. In hindsight, he was forming a bridge between the Old Testament and the New Testament. He was the first to announce that the Messiah’ promised in the Old Testament, was coming after him, and he, a man all of Judaea and Jerusalem thought worthy to go and listen to; would not be fit to kneel down and undo the strap of his sandal. John the Baptist, knew his limitations and the difference between himself and Jesus, we also remember that Jesus said no better man ever lived than John the Baptist.

Before ordination to the Diaconate, the Bishop asks the presenting priest if the candidate has been found to be ‘worthy’, like many of my brother deacons, I found these words to be very powerful, because the enormity of what we were about to commit to, meant that we knew that none of us are truly worthy to take on this ministry. When I think about those words, I remind myself of my limitations and of the balancing act I need to perform between my role as a husband, my family life, my employment and the Diaconate. I know that I don’t always get it right and that can cause upset, and on occasions calendar clashes; where I may have committed to be in more than one place at the same time. I haven’t been given the gift of co-location, so I need to get better at managing my time and putting things into my diary.

Touching back to our busyness, and what seems like an endless list of things to achieve before Christmas, just think for a moment, John the Baptist was chosen by God to baptise people with water in a desert. All we are asked to do is love God and love our neighbour.

At this time of the year we can be so busy that we neglect our prayer life. Please set a time aside to pray, if possible, read the readings of the day from the Missal, sit and think; allow yourself the luxury of a few minutes with God every day. Take time out from the busyness and treat yourself to that blessing of time with God. You will probably find that your list of tasks becomes easier, because you are no longer trying to do everything under your own power. But that time out with God allows you the space to see things more clearly and may allow you to prepare a path that is straight and clear of obstacles.

Further Reading

The Catechism of the Catholic Church

Second Sunday of Advent

CCC 522, 711-716, 722: the prophets and the expectation of the Messiah
CCC 523, 717-720: the mission of John the Baptist
CCC 1042-1050: a new heaven and a new earth

Six Holy Habits

First, to keep Sunday special, as a family day, by attending Mass, the ‘source and summit’ of the Christian life, supporting your parish community. 

Second, to resolve to spend at least five minutes a day in prayer, at whatever time you find best, using the Scriptures, maybe the Gospel of the day. 

Third, to keep Friday as a day of penance in honour of the Lord’s Passion, intentionally serving the poor and needy. 

Fourth, at least once a fortnight, to pay a private visit to church for a short period of prayer before the Tabernacle. 

Fifth, to go to Confession once a month or so, like a spiritual check-up when you can personally experience God’s love and mercy.

Sixth, to join a small group for formation, prayer and fellowship, where you can share with others your own experience and hear what God is doing in the lives of others. 

Please keep in your prayers this week

• Those who are sick, those recovering from surgery, those who are dying, the recently deceased and those who mourn.
• All those struggling to feed their families at this time.
• Those working to help others who are struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.
• Those discerning a vocation and those considering coming into the Catholic Church.

When I was a little boy, getting ready for Christmas meant looking through the pages of toys in the catalogue my mum had and trying to choose something that we thought we would like. My two brothers and I used to spend hours going through the pages and comparing notes. Come Christmas morning my middle brother always seemed to have chosen the better gift. As we got older, we started drifting into choosing clothes; Christmas was one of maybe three times in the year when new clothes appeared in our house.

As Altar boys we also got involved with Midnight Mass and this meant going to the odd practice and being encouraged to go to Confession. There was also the school play, which in my earlier days at school tended to be a Nativity, but towards the end of primary school there was a move towards finding roles for everyone and some of the Christmas message was starting to be diluted. In Scotland, Christmas was a time for the children and New Year was time for the adults. It was a time for lots of food and drink, and a time when lots of traditions came to the fore. It was also a time to learn as older generations passed on some of the traditions and methods of food preparation to their younger relatives. I remember my gran showing us how she prepared tongue meat from scratch, not something many people would do nowadays. Most of our preparations were centred around family activities, in those days Advent calendars were unveiling pictures which told the Christmas story, with no chocolates inside.

In our first reading today, there is a sense of their being great distance between God and the people. Isaiah is stating that the people have abandoned God, they have strayed from the path laid out by the prophets and found laws to suit their own purpose. Isaiah pleads with God to “tear the heavens open and come down.” Isaiah states that God is our creator, he is the potter, and we are the clay. We have been moulded into the image of God, crafted to be like Him and given a heart to love like Him.

As we look towards Christmas when we remember the first coming of Christ, we also remember that Jesus said He will return, and we need to prepare for that second coming. The psalm urges God to help us return to the true path, asking God to bless us so that we can be saved. This time of preparation encourages all of us to look at where we put obstacles between God and ourselves, asking ourselves what we need to do to be closer to God.

In the second reading St Paul is reminding the Corinthians of all of the blessings they have received and urging them to remain faithful until the last day, encouraging them to use the gifts they have received from the Holy Spirit, like the Corinthians we need to be aware of the gifts we have received and use them to stay on the right path. Jesus speaks about this Himself in the Gospel, reminding us to be ready, stay awake, something which if we remember the agony in the garden the disciples were unable to do at that particular time.

As we enter into Advent, what are we going to do to help us prepare for Christmas? Our Bishop has been urging us to take up the 6 holy habits¹. How are we getting on with them? Looking at them I know I need to work harder to develop these habits, which is really disappointing for me. In the past I would have been quite comfortable with at least 5 of them, at the moment I can probably only be happy with my response to three of them.

So, for me, this Advent is a time for me to work at being ready, by re-focussing on these 6 Holy Habits I hope I can be awake, should the Master decide to come I hope He will find me ready.

Further Reading

The Catechism of the Catholic Church

First Sunday of Advent

CCC 668-677, 769: the final tribulation and Christ’s return in glory
CCC 451, 671, 1130, 1403, 2817: “Come, Lord Jesus!”
CCC 35: God gives humanity grace to accept Revelation, welcome the Messiah
CCC 827, 1431, 2677, 2839: acknowledging that we are sinners.

Six Holy Habits

First, to keep Sunday special, as a family day, by attending Mass, the ‘source and summit’ of the Christian life, supporting your parish community. 

Second, to resolve to spend at least five minutes a day in prayer, at whatever time you find best, using the Scriptures, maybe the Gospel of the day. 

Third, to keep Friday as a day of penance in honour of the Lord’s Passion, intentionally serving the poor and needy. 

Fourth, at least once a fortnight, to pay a private visit to church for a short period of prayer before the Tabernacle. 

Fifth, to go to Confession once a month or so, like a spiritual check-up when you can personally experience God’s love and mercy.

Sixth, to join a small group for formation, prayer and fellowship, where you can share with others your own experience and hear what God is doing in the lives of others. 

Please keep in your prayers this week

• Those who are sick, those recovering from surgery, those who are dying, the recently deceased and those who mourn.
• All those struggling to feed their families at this time.
• Those working to help others who are struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.
• Those discerning a vocation and those considering coming into the Catholic Church.
• Cassian, who was baptised earlier this week.
• Those attending the RCIA at St Bede’s next Wednesday.

1 The Six Holy Habits – Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth (portsmouthdiocese.org.uk)

Today we are given the image of the Good Shepherd in both the first reading and in our Gospel. The Good Shepherd tends to his sheep, ensuring they stay together, that they are well pastured and watered; he ensures the ones who are sick or injured are not left behind. However, in these readings, the Good Shepherd also comes to judge as the Son of Man.

The parable in the Gospel is like an instruction manual for us as Christians, if you notice both the sheep and the goats call the Son of Man ‘Lord’. The message from Jesus is quite simple, it is not enough to call Him ‘Lord’, we need to put our faith into action and go out of our way to love.

God, our Creator, wants us to care for everything and everyone that He has created, good intentions are not enough, God wants action. When we hear this parable about how we will be judged, it should prompt us to do a bit of self-reflection. But not as a bit of a tick list. This is not about keeping score, we can’t afford to say well I visited so and so in hospital last year, so that is done for now, and I donated to the foodbank last week. No, the message is that we should never walk by. Jesus tells us whenever we do this for the least of my brothers then you do this to me and this works both in the times when we show those in need love and in the times when we fail to love them.

In the second reading St Paul reminds us that our salvation comes from Christ and that Jesus has destroyed death. In our baptism we go down into the grave with Christ, through His resurrection we have the hope of eternal life; all we need to do is love God and love our neighbour.

This week, may I suggest that we all review how much we actually put our faith into action.

Do we adopt a tick list approach? Marking off in our mind when we help those in need.

Do we reach out to the sick, the lonely, the poor? Do we see them as our brothers and sisters?

Do we ever give up on those who we try to help, who just seem to always be in need?

The times when we feel put upon or exasperated are the times when we need to decide to love. It is only through loving our neighbour that we can fully encounter Christ. The more in need our neighbour is, the more we need to love. This week Jesus is pleading with us to see His face when we look at those in need, if we see Jesus and reach out to help, then we have hope of eternal life, but if we fail to see Jesus or choose not to help; then we risk eternal damnation. Put simply, do you want to be a sheep who belongs to the Good Shepherd or a goat who doesn’t?

Further Reading

The Catechism of the Catholic Church

Solemnity of Christ the King: Christ the origin and goal of history

CCC 440, 446-451, 668-672, 783, 786, 908, 2105, 2628: Christ as Lord and King
CCC 678-679, 1001, 1038-1041: Christ as Judge
CCC 2816-2821: “Thy Kingdom Come”.

Please keep in your prayers this week

• Those who are sick, those recovering from surgery, those who are dying, the recently deceased and those who mourn.
• All those struggling to feed their families at this time.
• Those working to help others who are struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.
• Those discerning a vocation and those considering coming into the Catholic Church.
• The success of the Diocesan Diaconal Conference which takes place this weekend in Marwell.
• Sebastian, Aria and Vienna, who were baptised last week in St Bede’s.