-
Unworthy Men In The Church
“As the German Chancellor, Hitler instigated the mass murder of as many as 6 million Jews. He forced Western Europe, and eventually the whole world, into a calamitous war in which over 50 million Europeans were killed. When he committed suicide in 1945, he left his country a burning heap of ruins, financially bankrupt, militarily…
-
Parishes Of The Future(1)
Last year, for a short while, Paul was unable to be with us at Sunday mass, but he was able to watch and share our mass on YouTube. He was grateful for this opportunity and wrote, wondering if this might be a way of planning for the future. With the continuing fall in the number…
-
Madeleine McCann
It is 13 years today since Madeleine McCann was abducted. Every week since then, Madeleine and the family and all missing children have been in our parish newsletter prayer box. The pain doesn’t lessen. In her book, Kate writes that when she wakes up every morning her first thought is of Madeleine. When I read…
-
Our Inner Self
Are you praying more in these quiet days? Are you thinking, reading, more? Are you glad of the slowing down of life so that you have more time, or worried by the slowing down because you don’t know what to do with the extra time? In the film ‘Educating Rita’ a lady in a rowdy…
-
Could You Write A Book?
Did you ever say “I could write a book”? Now is the time to do it. You have entertained other people with your stories time and again, now you can do it for yourself. All you need is paper and pen because the quiet and time are already yours. Start at the beginning. Tell us…
-
Covid 19 – NHS Applause
At 8.00 pm on Thursday evening, we rang the church bell and lit the beautiful windows which light out across the traffic lights junction. It was our parish way of applauding the NHS and all who serve us in this difficult time by continuing at their work. It was good to know that around the…
-
Giving And Receiving
It has been a horrifying week for our world. We have seen refugees pushed away in their dinghies, refused opportunity to land, and drowning their probable fate. We have seen refugees returned across the border, everything lost after their long and dangerous journeys from war-torn homelands. We have seen the bombing of helpless civilians in…
-
Beloved Amazon (Querida Amazonia)
“Querida Amazonia” (“Beloved Amazonia,”) is the title of the long-awaited document by Pope Francis, following last year’s Synod on the Amazon. In it he shares his dreams for the region whose destiny concerns everyone: (1) In the fight for the rights of the poor (2) Preserve of the cultural riches of the region (3) The…
-
Prejudice
On the wall of one of our primary school classrooms was a large map of the world. The teacher would say proudly “Look, children, all the red is ours.” There was a lot of red – Canada, Australia, parts of Africa and Asia. It was our empire, she told us. Living in Wales, a country…
-
News – January 2020
What a week for our world. News from China has dominated: the coronavirus and its powerful impact on global travel, Huwei and the 5G network, persecution of Muslims and Christians in re-education camps and destruction of churches. President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu put brave faces on a solution to the problems of the Holy…
-
The Bible And Me!
The first three chapters of the Bible are about man and woman, you and me, and our turning away from God. It is a powerful story – a myth, which means a story teaching religious truth, and tells us we human beings have chosen to bring evil into God’s good world. We have all “eaten…
-
Blessings
Every now and then I catch my breath at how blessed my life has been. It happened again, just before morning mass on 31st December – the feast of Pope St Sylvester. The whole story flooded back . . . Pope Sylvester was the pope of the era of the Emperor Constantine – who gave…
Daily Prayers
Prayer is Love, I want to Love