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

Blessed are the meek.
For they shall inherit the earth.
But the meek.
Don’t inherit the earth.

It would be nice if they did so.
But too often they’re rolled over.
They are just treated as the low.
And they take cover.

Do we follow the beatitudes.
Or pay lip service to them.
Depending on our moods and attitudes.
We follow or forget them.

But they are there.
Have no fear.

…..

Blessed are the meek
They will inherit the earth
Or that’s what we’re told

……

See Matthew 5:1-12

If anyone eats of this bread he will live for ever.
And the bread, Jesus said, that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.
But will we believe this for ever and ever.
Is this communion bread really his flesh.

But he made it clear.
He is God and man and spirit
It’s my flesh, he said, let’s be clear.
It’s the truth, we can partake of his spirit.

They disputed among themselves saying.
How can this man give us his flesh to eat.
We may just have to start believing.
We may be asked at the judgement seat.

Otherwise the Mass is nothing.
A mere symbol, something fleeting.

…..

Is this his true flesh
We ask this at every mass
What is our answer

…….

See John 6: 51-58

My mouth will tell of your salvation
O Lord.
That’s all with can do with a little inspiration.
Say that you will save us O Lord.

We each do it in different ways.
Some are kind.
Some seem to exude spiritual rays.
Some of our ways are difficult to understand or even find.

Some preach
Or do good works
Or write or beseech.
For others only the faintest faith lurks.

But in own way many of us try.
We just are bound by our Lord’s welcoming tie.

…..

Proclaim salvation
That’s all we do in our way
And that is enough

….

See Psalm 71

The lovers of your law.
Have great peace.
And we wonder, do we follow that law.
Fully or perhaps at our own slow pace.

But if we did really follow your law.
What great peace would we have.
And we know in our hearts what is that law.
We know that for everything it is a soothing salve.

But things get in the way.
Our ego , what we want , our pride.
So, of course, we lose our way.
We falter and we slide.

But we keep going.
And keep hoping.

……

Lovers of your law
Have we all know that great peace
So why not follow

…..

See See Psalm 119

Remember, St Paul writes, my Gospel, for which I am suffering.
But the word of God, he says, is not bound.
Suffering but still believing.
Reaching out for what is sound.

I endure everything, he insists, for the sake of the elect.
That they also may obtain salvation.
The elect but not the select.
But still capable of jubilation.

If, he ends, we have died with him,
The statement is trustworthy.
We shall live with him.
We will endure, we are worthy.

We will not deny him,
We will reign with him

….

We will reign with him
And we will not deny him
That is our future

….

See 2 Timothy 2

He is not God of the dead.
But of the living.
We will rise from the dead.
We will go on living.

Ours is a religion of hope.
And of joy.
Somehow we will cope.
We will know eternal joy.

We will rise.
To new life.
Even if it will be another form of us that will arise.
To enjoy everlasting life.

Of course now we just live here.
After death we will live everywhere.

…….

We will find new life
And we will never despair
It is our crusade

…..,

See Mark 12: 18-27

Render to Ceaser, the thing that are Ceasor’s
And to God the things that are God’s.
And what we ask are Ceasor’s.
And what are God’s.

We render to Government what are Government’s
And to God the things that are God’s
But do we get a fair return from Government’s.
I think we get a fair return from God’s

From God we get joy.
And contentment.
More joy.
And more contentment.

And what do we get from Givernment.
Just ever more Government.

…..

Render to Ceasor’s
All the things that are Ceasor’s
And to God his things

……

See Mark 12: 13-17

A man planted a vineyard.
And leased it to tenants.
God has planted us in our own vineyard.
We are his disloyal tenants.

We care so much for material things
But they give us no happiness.
What is money , possessions, power but passing things.
Only the divine gives happiness.

So I sat alone in the empty church.
A great silent heavy emptiness descended.
There was nothing but a wooden cross in that church.
But peaceful joy ascended.

Five hundred witnesses testified to Christ resurrected.
But a moment’s joy can see faith resurrected.

…..

We can read the books
We can listen to sermons
But then joy just comes

……

See Mark 12: 1-12

For God so loved the World.
That he sent his only son.
That whoever believes in him anywhere in the World.
Should not perish but have eternal life with the son.

God can be in three but be one.
Just as water , steam and ice are one.
The two can love the one.
And the one can love the other one.

All three can love the World and each other.
For what is the Trinity but love.
For us all and each other.
It is all about love.

We may not fully understand the Trinity.
But we can believe in the Trinity.

…..

Ice steam water, one
All H2O but they’re one
Thus the Trinity.

….

See John 3: 16-18

Keep yourself in the love of God.
Waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ.
That leads to eternal life with God.
And Jesus Christ.

I dreamt that all I wanted.
Was just a lemon.
And it was given, unmerited.
I felt such joy at my lemon.

Perhaps because every morning.
I give my wife some lemon juice,
Such a small gesture every morning.
But something little to rejoice.

We can be happy with very small things.
If true love makes those things.

…..

What makes happiness
Just the very smallest things
Given in true love

……

See Jude 17: 29-25

The end of all things is at hand.
Therefore be self controlled and sober minded.
Our life runs out in shifting sand.
Whether bloody minded or kind hearted.

I dreamt, drowning, I was trying to clamber onto a boat.
And the only crew, I found there, on the deck, was a corpse.
What a shock, how could I keep afloat.
And was this, I seeing, my own corpse.

Why do we obsess about our death.
Yes the body will decay and die.
But our consciousness, our soul will not know death.
This is the joyful truth and no legend or lie.

So we will surely  live.
And spiritually thrive.

….

Why do we worry
The body dies the soul lives
That’s all that matter

….

See 1Peter 4 : 7-13

Behold I have come Lord.
To do your will.
If only we could do your will Lord
And always keep in mind your will.

Jesus cried out , my soul is very sorrowful,
Even to death.
He was prepared to pay the price to the full.
Even to death.

Our life is so easy.
We make so little an effort.
But still prayer is not so easy,
It’s all such an effort.

But we keep trying
And seeking.

…..

Jesus gave his all
We merely make a pretence.
So is it enough

……

See Psalm 40 , Philippians 2: 8-9 and Mathew 26: 36-42

Peter said , see we have left everything.
And followed you.
I wonder if we will ever say , I have left everything.
And followed you

But let us not be over serious.
And laugh like St Philip Neri.
We need not be over anxious.
Or our faith too unbending,fiery.

We are Christians, we can be joyous.
If still seeking.
Nothing ultimately will destroy us.
Even as we are always seeking.

One day we will have everything.
Because our body will be nothing.

……

Be not serious
For Christians have much joy
And s great future

..  …

See Mark 10: 31-38

Jesus said to his mother.
Woman , behold your son.
Then he said to his disciple , behold your mother.
And the disciple took her into his own home as a son.

Is there anything more loving.
Than this little scene at the crucifixion.
Jesus in agony remembering.
A final  family rendition.

Jesus knowing that all as finished.
Said , I thirst.
We too must know that this life will soon be finished.
And we should ask , for what do I truly thirst.

It must be for eternal life.
Not this passing life.

….

At the very last
Will we think of our mother
Or just of ourselves

….

See John 19 : 25-34

There came from heaven a mighty rushing wind.
And tongues as of fire rested on each.
And us , we ask but do we find.
But we continue to search.

I was dreaming.
And I saw a ray of light coming from the saint.
I felt it awakening.
Real , however celestial, faint.

We need to concentrate.
Welcome a saint into our mind.
Accept our faith in fate.
And then we will find.

But the light was definitely there.
Something precious and rare.

….

The light seemed to come
Like a sword from my own saint
We just have to look

…

See Acts 2: 1-11

This is the disciple who is bearing witness.
And we know that his testimony is true.
Now we must bear witness.
For what we read, we hope, is true.

I find these last lines of John moving.
We are at the end of his gospel.
Now we can stop for a moment reading.
And ponder the eternal entirety of the Gospel

What poetry
Sublime .
Into faith an entry.
For all time.

John writes for the ages.
And we are the ages.

……

John ends his gospel
We are left profoundly moved
Now it’s up to us

……

See John John 21: 20-25

He said to him.
Simon Peter do you love me.
Do we really love him.
He asks us also , do you love me.

He said to him.
A second time , do you love me.
For the second time , do we really love him,
He asks us again, do you love me.

He said to him.
A third time, do you love me.
For the third time, do we really love him.
He asks us again, do you love me.

Are we also grieved because we are asked again.
But because of our doubts , we will be asked again and again.

……

We are asked three times
Jesus asks do you love me
What is our answer

……

See John 21: 15-19