Reflections for July 2022

Recently I received a message telling me that a friend I had known for 30 years had gone out for a bike ride, as he often did, had a heart attack and died. He was not old and was in good health.  Such events can shock us into a reappraisal of our expectations and priorities. […]

Today in Luke’s Gospel (Lk 11:1-13) we hear how Jesus taught his his disciples to pray – the prayer we use every week at mass, and on many other occasions, privately and publicly. This prayer is also given in Matthew’s Gospel (Mt 6:5-15), with slightly different words, but in a very different context. Matthew is

Do you feel like maybe Martha was rather badly treated? After all she was the one who welcomed Jesus. (Lk 10:38-42) When Abraham welcomed the Lord he got a son by way of recognition for his efforts. (Gn 18:1-10a) When Martha asks for a bit of help in the kitchen (and who hasn’t been in that

Yup, it really is that simple! Love God and love your neighbor and, by the way, everyone is your neighbor. It’s not complicated. It may not be easy, but it’s not complicated… Moses himself pointed out (Dt 30:10-14) that the law of the Lord wasn’t away in the sky or in some far off place.

Last week we were focused on our individual, personal response to Jesus’ call. This week our attention shifts to the external impact of this call – what does it mean for us and the people around us, the people we come into contact with? We are very used to the idea that Jesus’ message included