Why do we and the Pharisees fast.
But your disciples.
Do not fast.
And neither do we fast.

Fasting.
Is not the key.
It is loving.
That we must see.

Love your God.
Love your neighbour.
Pray to God.
Help your neighbour.

If we just fast.
We will not last.

……

Are we then to fast
Fasting is just not enough
We must be loving

……

See Matthew 9: 14-17

Jesus said to the paralytic.
Your sins are forgiven.
We are our worst critic.
We never feel ourselves striven.

In some way we are all paralysed.
Perhaps not physically but mentally.
We are over analysed.
Feeling we must pay some penalty.

Grief , fear , worry.
Relationship.
Disappointment, regret and anxiety.
We struggle to get a grip.

But we can get up and walk.
If we let Jesus talk.

….

We’re all paralysed
Physically, mentally
But we can be cured

.. ….

See Matthew 9: 1-8

To one whose way is blameless.
I will show the salvation of God.
We do not need to be restless.
Be calm in the presence of God.

It is the feast of the dedication of the Cathedral.
And we are at the luminescence.
Ode to joy fills the cathedral.
And amazing light seeks its essence.

One day this building will be finished.
The ceiling covered in gold mosaics.
Beauty to be praised and relished.
Poetry and music elegiacs.

In sound and light we are immersed.
A moment to be cherished.

…..

Immersed sound and light
He cathedral is living
And for all of us

……

See Psalm 50

Save us Lord , we are perishing.
And he said, why are you afraid O you of little faith.
We are the same, always worrying, complaining.
How we wish we had more faith.

Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea.
And there was a great calm.
Can’t we understand , can’t we see.
If we believe , we will experience great calm.

And the men marvelled.
Saying what kind of man is this that winds obey him.
Have we marvelled.
Do we seek him and obey him.

……

The sea obeys him
But do we obey him too
Then only we know

……

See Matthew 8: 23-27

Foxes have holes.
And birds of the air have nests.
We all have our roles.
But fail so often to pass our tests.

We all pray for a road to Damascus.
That we will know complete faith.
We ask is this really for us.
Is this our belief a mere wraith.

But there will be no voice in the sky.
No blinding light, leading to new sight.
We just cannot lie.
There never will be that blinding light.

But we do have some time.
We hope that with truth, in time, it will rhyme.

……

Where the blinding light
The commanding voice skywards
It comes in our head

….

See Mathew 8: 8-18

From all my terrors.
The Lord set me free.
We all have these quiet terrors.
We beg to be set free.

There is only one thing to do.
Realise these problems pass.
Our joys are many , serious problems really are few.
We live and love even though not top of the class.

And of course we can pray.
We can stay in this moment.
What the future brings who can say.
But all that really matters is this moment.

So be spiritual.
And hopeful.

……

We all have terrors
But with prayer they will pass
That’s what we must hope

…….

See Ps 34

Lord , I am not worthy.
To have you under my roof.
Like the centaur Ian , we too know we are not worthy.
With any right to  consider ourselves aloof.

Blessed Josephine Catanea’s legacy.
Known for her spirituality and humility.
And especially.
Her simplicity.

How we wish for spirituality.
Hope for humility.
Yearn for simplicity.
But what is our true entity.

We know we are self centered.
And not always perhaps good tempered.

……

Seek humility
And for more simplicity
The spiritual

.. ….

See Mathew 8: 5-17

The leper said, Lord, if you will.
You can make me clean.
Meanwhile we must remain still.
Not boastful, patient, unseen.

And Jesus stretched out his hand.
Saying I will, be clean.
To us too he stretches out his hand.
We have been heard , understood and seen.

And immediately his leprosy.
Was cleansed.
All our faults , failings, jealousy.
Too will be cleansed.

We only have to ask.
A fairly simple task.

……

We ask make me clean
Like the leper we must ask
But do we do so

……

See Matthew 8: 1-4

Not everyone who says Lord,Lord.
Will enter the Kingdom of heaven.
Where on earth or in heaven is the Lord.
And what is , where is heaven.

All I know is that the body is not the one.
The immortal soul is at one .
It alone will be united with the one.
And thereby with everyone.

There will be no rich or poor.
Young or old.
Healthy all over or sick to the core.
Neither hot nor cold.

On earth what doesn’t work is socialism.
But perhaps in heaven there is a kind of celestial  socialism.

……

We are all just one
We have to wait for heaven
All will be made clear

.. ….

See Matthew 7: 21-29

So whatever you wish that others would do to you.
Also do to them.
Assume they love you.
As you love them.

Enter  by the narrow gate.
For the gate is wide.
That leads to destruction’s gate
You only can decide.

The gateway is hard.
That leads to life.
And those who find it are few, so keep on your guard.
Try to avoid strife.

So we persevere.
To that we swear.

…..

Our life is so hard
The gate to new life narrow
But we persevere

…..

See Matthew 7

The one who endured to the end.
Will be saved.
We do have a celestial friend.
But have we had faith , have we believed.

As I’m reading this scripture, paradoxically.
I’m in a long hospital queue.
I just must wait patiently.
There’s nothing else to do.

So I try to keep Saint Mathew engraved.
The one who endured to the end.
Will be saved.
And then I might be on the mend.

Have faith , all will eventually be right.
Be patient in life’s endless queues, sit tight.

…….

We just must endure
And then we just might be saved
Or that’s what we hope

……

See Mathew 24: 4-13

Do not be anxious about tomorrow.
Tomorrow will look after itself.
Today is the only reality , not tomorrow.
And care for others not oneself.

Sufficient for the day.
Is its own trouble.
What is the only thing we need say.
Ultimately life’s worries are mere rubble.

But heaven is there
Just wait patiently.
Be mindful and clear.
Our fate will come right if only slowly.

We cannot add a single day to our span of life.
But there is another life.

……

Anxious, tomorrow
Tomorrow cares for itself
Just live for today

……

See Mathew 6: 24-34

Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth.
Where moth and rust destroy.
Worry here not about dearth.
But future spiritual joy.

This sums up all we need to know.
What matters here doesn’t matter.
Whether we are high or low.
It’s all mere decaying matter.

What’s to come lives.
For ever.
If thrives.
For ever and ever.

Take nothing here to heart.
This is only the start.

….

Take nothing to heart
Nothing matters very much
Because it won’t last

……

See Matthew 6: 19-23

You who raised a corpse from death
And from Hades, by the word of the most high.
But you give us eternal breath.
Merely by us raising a prayerful sigh.

You who brought kings down to destruction.
And famous men from their bed.
But us, we pray to resurrection.
We must do it , not merely assume it is said.

The world is fraught,
We need compassion.
God’s word sought.
Releasing us from temptation.

For the word is there.
It really is clear.

……

Raised a corpse from death
From Hades by the most high
We believe in you

……

See Sirach 48: 1-14

Beware of practicing your righteousness.
In front of other people in order to be seen by them.
Practice mindfulness.
We are not greater but less than them.

When you give to the needy .
Sound no trumpet.
One day we ourselves may be needy.
Will we like it when they sound the trumpet.

When you give to the needy.
Do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing.
Just do good and be steady.
Caring, helping.

We say all this.
But do we do all this.

……

Give to the needy
But of course sound no trumpet
That is the best way

……

See Mathew 6: 1-6 and 16-18

Love your enemies.
And pray for those who persecute you.
We don’t need to ask who are our enemies.
Or whether they persecute us or you.

If you love those who love you.
What reward do you have.
We don’t need to ask who loves  you.
Or what reward do we have.

We know we must love everyone.
But of course it’s difficult.
Who is everyone.
Are they really at fault.

So we keep trying.
And winning and failing.

……

Love your enemies.
And if they persecute you
But so difficult

…..

See Matthew 5: 43-48

Jesus said, do not resist the one.
Who is evil.
There is only the merciful one.
To him we pray , to all others we are civil.

Just as I was irritated with some .
I read St Matthew.
Calmed, anger no longer justified whatever may come.
Taking forgiveness in lieu.

If anyone slaps you on the right cheek.
Turn to him the other also.
We just have to read , understand and seek.
For he calls us also.

Do we listen.
To joy do we hasten.

…..

Slapped on the right cheek
Turn the other one also
And just carry on

……

See Matthew 5: 38-42

Jesus had compassion for the crowd.
Because they were harassed and helpless.
Let’s just say it out loud.
Sometimes we are hapless.

At his death Jesus had failed.
Despised and rejected.
So often we know we have failed.
And feel rejected.

But this was his lot.
He accepted his fate.
So what if it’s our lot.
Life, we know, does grate.

And soon we will die.
But with joy we await the open sky.

….

Despised, rejected
This too is our own sad fate
But we live again

….

See Matthew 9

The harvest is plentiful.
But the labourers are few.
Is our belief faith full.
Are we the many or the few.

Heal the sick and say to them.
The kingdom of God has come near.
And what do we say to them.
Do we give hope and dispel their fear.

But this surely is our task.
To spread the word.
We just have to ask.
But I think we know the word.

The word is the good news.
We must be the good news.

……

Plentiful harvest
And we are the labourers
Do we know our job

……

See Luke 10: 1-9

For my yoke is easy.
And my burden is light.
Yes easy.
And with it we have new sight.

I was standing outside the church.
Reading Matthew in the rain.
I felt my heart lurch.
There was so much to gain.

In these moments you believe.
And you accept.
You receive.
Joy had leapt.

Faith is surging.
Joy abounding.

….

My yoke is easy
And my burden too is light
Yes , for all of you

……

See Matthew 11: 25-30

Everyone who is angry with his brother.
Will be liable to judgement.
Everyone should be my brother.
This is our testament.

But we quibble .
Aren’t they different.
Are they from the same stable.
What have they really meant.

First be reconciled to your brother.
And then bring your gift.
And to wife, brother, sister, daughter.
Put aside this rift.

We are one.
Offering all to the one.

…..

We are all but one
Where is this our resentment
Just put it aside

….

See Matthew 5: 20-26

Until heaven and earth pass away.
Not a dot will pass from the law.
Until it is accomplished and holds sway.
To our very core.

Whoever relaxes the least of these commandments.
Will be called the least in heaven.
But whoever does these commandments.
Will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

So we know the law.
We know what to follow.
We know what it’s for.
We know our reply is hollow.

We are called.
But have we failed.

…..

We know what is law
We know we must follow it
But do we do so

.. …..

See Matthew 5: 17-19