I Met God Today

I saw God today! No, let me rephrase that! What I saw were glimpses, darting into my vision and then gone just as quickly - a kingfisher, not once, not twice, but three times - a trinity of reminders, if they were ever needed, of the beauty of God's holy creation. I say ‘reminders, if they were ever needed’ because all afternoon I had been bathed, washed, drenched in green, above and below, things in themselves and in canal bank reflections ... beauty and wholly, wholly aware of the holy, of God’s holy presence with me and around me, making everything a glimpse, making everything radiant, making everything radiate, making everything a prayer yes, I saw God today!                                                                               ...

Tonight, we set our clocks back an hour.  Autumn is reaching its end. Winter is approaching. The sun is further away from us each day and its warmth lessens. The trees are ever more rapidly shedding their vividly-coloured tapestry of leaves. The migrating birds are gone. Outside my window, our two squirrels are hoarding horse chestnuts all day long. The light is changing and colours are fading. Nature is entering into its time of rest.  We've come to the point of the year when the nights are longest, when we have more time in darkness than in daylight.  This year, perhaps, we are each living that longest night with a greater intensity. These are dark times in the life of each and every person. This long, seemingly endless, time of pandemic and repeated lockdowns, is not easy. And my spirit is jangled - often.  Tonight, as I sat in our convent chapel in the darkness, my spirit was not at peace. I cried. I told God what God knows already. In a quiet whisper, I poured ...

Apt words for these times from today's Evening Prayer: "Hold firm and take heart" - Ps 26(27) Who would ever think that advice on motorway signs would one day quote the Psalms!? #holdfirm  #trustinGod  #keepthefaith  #allwillbewell  #covid19  #Godiswithus

Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time - Reflection on the Gospel  Matthew 22:34-40 25 October 2020  The opening line of a poem by the late Mary Oliver could have been taken from Jesus’ teaching in today’s Gospel: “My work is loving the world.” One of the Pharisees asks Jesus to name “the greatest commandment of the Law”. This incident is one of the so-called ‘controversies’ recorded by Matthew, where, in true Jewish form, Jesus debates aspects of Jewish teaching with Scribes, Pharisees, and Sadducees. Over these last weeks, we have heard some of these discussions. Here, a lawyer approaches Jesus, addressing him as “Master”. The title seems respectful but there is an agenda - the Pharisees are trying to catch out Jesus. Motive notwithstanding however, there is nothing particularly unacceptable or remarkable in this question. Jewish tradition holds that there are 613 commandments in the Torah - both positive and negative (dos and don’ts) - governing all aspects of life. Discuss...

What would Jesus think of IKEA? Last week, I assembled my first pieces from IKEA.  I know! Shocking, isn't it?!  What took me so long?  Just to clarify: I have shopped in IKEA before, buying things for other people. Temptations everywhere in that huge space!  I've enjoyed the vast array of items I never realised I was missing - things I might find handy were I to buy them! I have admired the clean lines of their furniture. I've dreamt of having an empty home to decorate with the simple beauty of IKEA's designs - and a full wallet to achieve that dream.  On a morning both extremely warm and extremely rainy, my Billy bookcases arrived and so began the process of putting them together. I have always enjoyed self-assembly. There's something very satisfying about it. Perhaps it appeals to that part of me that enjoys jigsaws and puzzles. It cultivates both mindfulness and mindlessness.  Mostly, this time, it was a state of mindfulness. As I hammered the small tac...

Seeing traces of God everywhere Pope Francis tweets:  Nature is filled with words of love, but how can we listen to them amid constant noise, and interminable and nerve-wracking distractions? #SeasonOfCreation Nature is filled with words about God too ... how can we not listen and notice? And, of course, God is love.  Where there's love and beauty, there is God. So today,       wherever you are,            go outdoors and drink in the beauty of our world                 and thank our God for it.  #getoutdoorsmore #beinnature #SeasonofCreation2020 #searchingforgod                                                                        

Four words towards the end of today’s reading at Mass really stood out: 'you are God's farm' (1 Corinthians 3:9). While the surrounding phrases are so familiar I could almost recite them verbatim, until today I have never noticed these four words. Of all days, they were particularly meaningful today. On the third anniversary of his death, my uncle Timmie was very much in my heart. At morning prayer, I prayed in thanksgiving for his beautiful personality. So why did these words of St Paul’s strike me? Because my uncle Timmie was a farmer, because I grew up next door to his farm, because I spent hours in his company, in his home, on his land. St Paul reproaches the Corinthians for being ‘still unspiritual’, for missing the point: we are ‘co-workers with God’ but only God matters. It is God who makes things grow. This is something my uncle was keenly aware of and passed on to us. Were St Paul to meet him, he would surely recognise in Timmie a man who was ‘of the Spirit’, someo...

I don't know if this prayer is Irish in origin but a prayer for putting on a mask fits well with the traditional Irish way of being a person of faith.  It is very much in line with that older Irish way of living one's faith in God and with God. Irish people had a prayer to accompany each action of the day, trivial and profound - a prayer for setting the fire, for damping down the fire, for milking the cows, for rising, for going to bed, for baking bread, for mealtimes, for leaving the house, for returning home, and on and on. Perhaps, it's a practice to return to in earnest. God is with us. Always. Let's acknowledge His presence, seek His blessing, assistance and protection, and express our gratitude. #GodWithUs #Pray #TalkToGod image credit: Cork and Ross Pastoral Development Facebook Page 21.08.2020 Credit : Cork and Ross Pastoral Development posted this prayer on Facebook - thank you

"Do not be afraid!" When the world seems a frightening place and we feel powerless, we can still do something ... ... we can turn to Him who reassures us "do not be afraid" ...         ... and we can pray ...             ... and remember that we do not need to have the words to express what is going on ...                      ... because " the Spirit helps us in our weakness;                                             when we do not know how to pray ...                                             the Spirit intercedes for us with groans too deep for words " (Romans 8:26).  ...

Walking on the Lagan Towpath Distracted by so much green or rather captivated      (it is beautiful) a little girl’s voice draws me back. Up in her daddy’s arms waving at the aeroplane that has not long taken off from Belfast City Airport and is ascending into the sky. ‘Hi airplane!’ she waves, then blows a kiss into the sky. Love and beauty are not just in the green; captivating distracting beauty is not reserved to the natural world. It still resides in humans too. Sometimes it takes a very small child to remind us. Lagan Towpath, 16.08.2020

Reflection on the Gospel(s)  Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time -  Matthew 14:22-33 9 August 2020 "Jesus went up to the hill-country by himself to pray. ... he was alone there" (Matthew 14:23). "Contemplare et contemplata aliis tradere ... Contemplate and share with others the fruits of contemplation" (St Thomas Aquinas, ST III, Q. 40, A. 1, Ad 2). Each of the Gospels relates incidents of Jesus' prayer. As the evangelists present their versions of Jesus' life, they each record that our Lord prays even as he ministers to those he encounters.  Often, Jesus goes to a lonely place, away from others, to pray. It happens before important decisions or before he acts, and after he has preached, taught, healed, or been with, people. At times, the crowds follow him, making solitude impossible and effectively stopping him before he can begin. At other times, Jesus is called from his prayer by the disciples. Often, the needs of others draw Jesus away from prayer. These ...

‘Martha, Martha ... you are worried and upset about many things’ Reflection on the Gospel Feast of Saint Martha - Luke 10:38-42 29 July 2020 Today, in the liturgy, we celebrate Saint Martha - sister of Mary and Lazarus and friend of Jesus. In these siblings, we see what friendship with Jesus means and how discipleship is lived. The sisters welcomed Jesus and offered hospitality, Martha busying herself by attending to meal preparation, Mary by paying full attention to listening to Jesus. Both loved Jesus who loved them. So close are they that, without hurting their friendship, Jesus can encourage Martha to look at things differently. Martha, Martha ... you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed indeed only one  (Luke 10:41-42). To me, Jesus is telling Martha that she is loved. That love is freely given, not hard-earned. Martha doesn’t need to worry. She doesn’t need to win Jesus’ friendship and love. Instead, being loved she can live from that reality - b...

"Stay with us, Lord Jesus, as evening falls" This prayer, that I've prayed so often, really struck me tonight. It says it all ! ... companionship of Jesus ... praying for His mercy to fill us with love, hope, unity ... and praying for the ability to know Him in the tables of the Word and the Eucharist - as happened at Emmaus! Stay with us, Lord Jesus, as evening falls: be our companion on our way. In your mercy inflame our hearts and raise our hope, so that, in union with our brothers and sisters, we may recognize you in the scriptures, and in the breaking of Bread. Who live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen (from the Breviary - Evening Prayer, Monday)

Instructions for a life pleasing to God ~ from Micah Reading for Mass, Monday 20 July 2020 Micah 6:1-4, 6-8   Listen to what the Lord is saying:   Stand up and let the case begin in the hearing of the mountains and let the hills hear what you say.   Listen, you mountains, to the Lord’s accusation, give ear, you foundations of the earth, for the Lord is accusing his people, pleading against Israel:   My people, what have I done to you, how have I been a burden to you? Answer me. I brought you out of the land of Egypt, I rescued you from the house of slavery; I sent Moses to lead you, with Aaron and Miriam.   – ‘With what gift shall I come into the Lord’s presence and bow down before God on high? Shall I come with holocausts, with calves one year old? Will he be pleased with rams by the thousand, with libations of oil in torrents? Must I give my first-born for what I have done wrong, the fruit of my body for my own sin?’   – Wha...

Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time - Reflection on the Gospel Matthew 10:37-42 28 June 2020 Matthew’s account of Jesus’ instructions to his apostles continues this Sunday. Called by name, the twelve are sent out to proclaim the kingdom. Jesus has warned of possible rejection, hatred, persecution, family division and betrayal. One could be forgiven for feeling some trepidation, even reluctance, about being a disciple of Jesus. It is not for the fainthearted. What is Jesus doing? Does he want to scare off (potential) disciples? Despite the dire warnings, it seems not. Instead, Jesus offers encouragement, repeating ‘do not be afraid’ three times (10:26, 28, 31). This is the context in which the striking triple claim in today’s Gospel is situated. Jesus’ focus is less on what disciples are to do and more on how they are to be, on their attitude. Jesus speaks of a wholehearted, single-minded commitment: ‘ Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son...

Covid-19 and Vocation  An article I read this week mentioned how hard, even impossible, it is to make plans during this time of lockdown. It led me to think again of my tentative, but very exciting, plans for this coming summer. One by one, these have come to nothing as each has been cancelled or called off or postponed. Perhaps, the learning of these days and weeks and months is that we are not in control and plans are just that - plans. They are no more concrete than our hopes and dreams until they come to pass. How, you might well ask, does that connect to vocation? What does Covid-19 have to do with vocation? My vocation story is perhaps one of seemingly radically changed plans! Certainly the life I had envisioned was called off, very much redirected in an unanticipated way. Despite always having belief and faith in God, I don’t remember ever wanting to be a sister or a nun. I don’t think it even fleetingly crossed my mind. Yet, here I am: a Dominican Sister, a member of the C...

The Temptation of Jesus  First Sunday of Lent 2020 - Reflection on the Gospel  Matthew 4:1-11 This Sunday’s Gospel presents one telling of Jesus’ testing or temptation. It is an event recorded in each of the synoptic Gospels. Just prior to this passage, Saint Matthew recounts that Jesus sees ‘the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming down on him’ (27:16). In today’s Gospel, this same Spirit leads Jesus out into the desert to be put to the test by the devil. Only after his forty day fast, when Jesus is hungry, does the tester approach. The devil’s twice-repeated taunt, ‘if you are Son of God,’ is not a doubt regarding Jesus’ identity. At the Jordan, all present had heard the voice from heaven proclaiming clearly who Jesus is: ‘my Son, the Beloved’ (27:17). Rather, this is a question of how Jesus will exercise his Sonship, of how he will live and indeed how - or whether - he will die. Later, as Jesus hangs on the cross, this same taunt echoes again ‘if you are God’s so...

Reimagining Prayer This Lent 2020. ‘Lord, teach us to pray.’ Be careful what you pray for!   Lent can be a little like New Year. In some senses, both have a penitential flavour to them, albeit driven by quite different motivations: January’s “New Year, New You” becomes Lent’s “Return to the Lord.” We start with great intentions to clean up our life – giving up those things we have determined enjoyable but bad for us or taking up habits we consider good for our body or for our soul. We might resolve to fast from social media, chocolate, coffee, alcohol, cigarettes (insert your favourite poison!). Alternatively, we might commit to attending daily Mass, making time for prayer or Bible reading, giving to charity (insert your chosen virtue!). Of the many possibilities we might consider, drawing closer to God needs to be at the heart of our living of Lent. The forty days of Lent are a graced time, an opportunity to satisfy our thirst for God, a chance to rediscover the gift of relationsh...