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Friday of Week 32 in Ordinary Time

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People were marrying wives and husbands.

Right up to the day Noah went into the ark.
They can only be stretched so far the elastic bands.
The end  the same however we have made our mark.
I was at the memorial mass of an old friend.
I had been at his wedding fifty years ago .
Someone on whom you could depend.
To cheer you up when low.
Some of the congregation believed in resurrection.
Others no doubt did not.
Both enjoyed Faure’s celebration.
Accepting our lot.
But this is much more than a tribute.
It is a Bon voyage and cheery salute.
……
Memorial mass
Is much more than a tribute
A sign on the way
…..
See Luke 17: 26-37

Thursday of Week 32 in Ordinary Time

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The Lord established for him
A covenant of peace.
And made him the Prince.
We can pray without cease.
But we still fail to convince.I was at the mass for deceased Oratorians.
Most of them who died this year were my age.
Of every type , not all like me , historians.
For death they have now earned their wage.

And so the rope draws ever tighter.
Pulling us towards the cliff.
You can be a great and noble fighter.
But the result is the same , you’re  a stiff.

But the hymns were calming .
If not entirely reassuring.

….

The final is here
We approach the end at last
Is there more to say

…..

See Today’s entrance Antiphon

Dedication of the Lateran Basilica 9 November

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O God who from living and eternal stones.
Prepare a eternal dwelling for your majesty.
We will not just be dead bones.
We will be spared any agony.

I was at the mass for deceased priests.
A time to remember selfless ministry.
To recall their names’ feasts.
And to remember their industry.

I recall one thought , at the threshold.
They will find many they have helped and known.
As a great light they behold.
And a new path is shown.

Lives , we can only hope, not wasted. A new glory , we pray , tasted.

……

Stand on the threshold
Will we meet there some old friends
But can we be sure

… …

See The Collect of the Day

Tuesday of Week 32 in Ordinary Time

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We are merely servants .
We have done no more than our duty.
Nor are we savants.
We are merely seeking beauty.

Think on this moment.
On the eternal being.
Seeking empowerment.
And a greater seeing.

The past is gone.
The future not yet here.
The line is drawn.
We need not fear .

We should be aware of the mind.
Not dwell always inside the mind.

…..

The past is now gone
And the future may not come
There is just present

……

See Luke 17: 7-10

Monday of Week 32 in Ordinary Time

Give them the hope of eternal life.
That was promised so long ago.
Free us from consuming strife.
So that in new life we may grow.

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I was asking  the Blessed Richard for a sign.
We pray but do we ever get a response.
However much we appeal to a shrine.
And hope for renaissance.

I suddenly felt a presence in the room.
I was so sure I was not alone.
Of course it might be illusion in the gloom.
But it was something  real and unknown.

I prayed so hard for an answer to receive.
And when it came I could hardly believe.

……

We pray, no echo
But of course if it does come
We do not believe

……

See Titus1:1-9

32 nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

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Graciously keep us from all adversity.
So that we may pursue the things that are yours.
In a greater  and more open fraternity.
And  to open more celestial doors.
That toothache of yesterday went away.
Maybe the prayers helped in some way.
Or maybe it was going to go away anyway.
Who can honestly say .
We never know.
I’m not sure prayers make things happen or not
But they help keep us out of feeling low.
And they cut  free the mind’s negative knot.
And as we take communion.
We feel part of a greater union
……
Why then do we pray
Is it to make things happen
Or just to accept
…..
See The Collect of the day

Saturday of Week 31 in Ordinary Time

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I am ready for anything anywhere.
Full stomach or empty stomach.
Bad weather or fair.
Whatever I may lack.

I was tossing with toothache.
How I dread a visit to the dentist
One can’t let go of the ache.
Will this pain persist

Should I pray to a saint that is constantly bothered.
No I prayed to poor blessed Richard.
He never in his short life really mattered.
To play and to win he had no  ace card.

The toothache didn’t get any better.
But off to heaven I had sent a letter.

…….

At night we feel pain
We stay awake but we pray
And we feel better

…..

See  Philippians 4: 10-19

Saturday of Week 31 in Ordinary Time

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I miss you very much.

You are my joy and my crown.
We try and keep in touch.
And not be cast down.
I was dreaming again around my mother .
I was praying with no answer.
The details of her life now seem so slender.
An enveloping mist seemed master.
But if we pray for the dead.
We should not worry if there is no echo.
We are doing our duty , much remains unsaid.
We are walking in a very different meadow.
We so often resort to prayer
And make do with no answer.
……
Our prayers go out
An into an immense void
We wait for answers
……
See Philippians 3 17-4:1

Thursday of Week 31 in Ordinary Time

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Consider the Lord and his strength.
Constantly seek his face.
Go to any length.
And find , eventually , grace.
I was lying awake again.
On my own problems, thinking.
Wondering how I could break this chain.
And then I fell to praying.
Not of my self but what my parents had gifted.
And then  my grandmas and grandpas.
And inexplicably my mood lifted.
I felt I was entering another land through a pass.
And I felt sure they were listening.
They were there and I was hearing.
…..
If we pray for them
You will feel them listening
If you start talking
…..
See Psalm 104

All Souls

Their going looked like a disaster.
But they are in peace.
One day we will hear the celestial choir master.
Then we will have on life, a freehold.
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I was standing in the Holy Souls Chapel.
Admiring Bentley’s design.
Quietly away from life’s terming babble.
Looking for a sign.

But I am soothed by the deep iconography.
My eye rising upwards.
Thinking of parents, grandparents’ biography.
There is no need for words.

Just prayer for their memory.
And a passing  century.

……

We are holy souls
And we are not risen yet
But soon we will be

……

See The Book of  Wisdom  3: 1-9

Tuesday of Week 31 in Ordinary Time. All Saints

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I saw a huge number , impossible to count.

Of people from every  race, nation , tribe and language.
We are all taken to account.
We must never fall into any kind of rage.
We are certainly not saints.
Just struggling souls.
Always subject to restraints.
They come and go our souls.
Will we stand around the throne.
Along with the angels.
Or will we be left alone.
To life mere strangers in remote fells.
And so in hope and trepidation we walk on
And then we are gone.
….
We are only souls
And never to be the saints
But we keep trying
…….
see Apocalypse 7

Monday of Week 41 in Ordinary Time

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Truly I have set my soul.
In silence and peace.
Try to make me whole.
If I pray without cease.

When I can’t sleep.
I think on maybe the Bhagavad Gita or the rosary.
Rather better than counting sheep.
Or thinking not of others but me.

I try to root out the negative.
Dwell on the good things .
And be positive.
Rather than go round on rings.

But I still stay awake.
Whatever I seem to do for his sake.

……

Often I’m awake
The night passes to slowly
Good to meditate

……

See Today’s psalm 130

31st Sunday in Ordinary Tme

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Lord, you love all that exists.
You hold nothing in abhorrence.
Through all our turns and twists.
Till our ultimate disappearance.

Are there really two types.
There certainly is two paths.
Good and bad, we come in many stripes.
On life’s stormy sea on our fragile rafts.

Contented , resentful, taking.
Angry and calm, lazy and full of zest.
Greedy and giving.
hypocritical and honest.

Understand, do not grudge.
And do not judge.

…….

We are two persons
We are all the good and bad
Our choice where to go

….

See The Book of Wisdom 11: 22-12:2

Saturday of Week 30 in Ordinary Time

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I shall continue being happy.
Because I know this will help save me.
To be content we do not need to be at the abbey.
Or pay any high  spiritual fee.

 

I was dreaming I was Arjuna or any man.

Being advised by Krishna the charioteer at his seat.

What qualifies make us inhuman.

Hypocrisy, arrogance , anger conceit.

The divine qualities lead to freedom.
The demonic to bondage.
Hypocritical, proud and living in delusion, no Te Deum.
Bound by scheming and anxiety , in a rage
Be fearless and pure, give freely .
Truthful , loving , full of desire to serve sincerely.
……
They say there’s no God
And no spiritual law
No moral order
……
See  Philippians 1: 18-26 and The Bhagavad Gita , chapter 16 , Two Paths

Friday of Week 30 in Ordinary Time

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You are no longer aliens or foreign visitors.
You are citizens like all this the saints.
Yet of fear and doubt we are prisoners.
We are never free of time’s remorseless restraints.
I wondered how Jesus could create the universe as God.
But I doubt if he did this as man.
But he was the essence , the Son of God
That’s the point he is God and man.
God is not some remote entity .
He came down to earth.
Not otherworldly, he shared our identity.
Giving us all eternal worth.
He is , all encompassing, infinite.
Yet like us , he once was finite.
……
Long have I doubted
Could Jesus create the stars
But he’s God and man
……
See Ephesians 2: 19-22

Thursday of Week 30 in Ordinary Time

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You must rely on God’s armour.
Or you will not be able to put up any resistance.
Today I was a distant mourner.
What do we really believe in, new life or non existence
I listened to those words at Lazarus’ resurrection.
Whoever believes in me will have eternal life.
But did I believe , however hard my concentration.
Why are doubts , day dreams , murmurings so rife.
In a universe of billions of stars.
Where stands this rabbi.
Did he really create all these super stars.
Or is it all mere speculation or a lie.

But sitting there I felt reassured.

Still sailing, but soon to be safely moored.

……
Put on God’s armour
And you put on resistance
Now and for ever
Does life carry on
Does anything else matter
Do we think on it
I was filled with doubt
Then seeing the Pieta
Some faith was restored
……
See  Ephesians 6 : 10-20

Wednesday of Week 30 in Ordinary Time

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Parents never drive your children to resentment.
But guide them as the Lord does.
If we want to head for contentment.
We don’t always need to catechise.
Work hard and willingly.
But do it not for the sake of men.
All with humility.
Over and over again.
You can be sure all will be properly rewarded.
For whatever work he has done well.
And it will be recorded.
As far as we can tell.
You have the same master.
The universal pastor.
…….
Work hard, willingly
And do it not for men’s sake
But heaven’s master
……
See Ephesians 6: 1-9

Tuesday of Week 30 in Ordinary Time

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Husbands should love their wives.
Just as Christ loved the church.
We do this through all our lives .
As we continue our never ending search.
Husbands love their wives as they love their own bodies.
For a man to love his wife is for him to love himself.
This is what we need to do for the ladies.
And truly for ourself.
A wonderful wife is the greatest good fortune.
Comparing only to the best of health.
And how we keep in tune.
Greater than any monetary wealth.
This has been my great privilege.
This is what gives any life the edge.
…….
Husbands love their wives
As they love their own bodies
This is the best way
…..
See  Ephesians 5: 21-33

Monday of Week 30 in Ordinary Time

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Be friends with one another and kind.
Forgiving each other as God forgave you.
It’s a question of being fully resigned.
At the unforgiving rock of life we can only hue.
Try then to imitate God as children of his.
And follow Christ loving as he loved you.
But can we be sure we are really his.
Do we expect more than is our due.
Do not let anyone deceive you with empty arguments.
You were darkness once but now you are light.
Let us be just the innocents.
Remove us from all blight.
Like the children of the light.
Walking towards the light.
…..
Befriend one another
And forgiving each other
As God forgave you
……
See Ephesians 4: 32- 5:8

Sunday of Week 30 in Ordinary Time

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I thank you God that I am not grasping.
God b merciful to me a sinner.
Two people thinking.
Which are we , who is the real winner.

This man  man went home at rights with God
The other did not.
Do we recognise we are flawed.
We just have to accept our lot.

For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled.
But the man who humbles himself will be exalted.
So do not be disgruntled.

Hope, if you accept  fate, is never halted.
If  we pray like the tax collector.
We can always look to our protector.
……
God be merciful
To me  a sinner always
That is all I ask
……
See Luke 18: 9-14

Saturday of Week 29 in Ordinary Time

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Each one of us has been given his own share of grace.
Given as Christ allotted it.
One day , we hope, we will see his face.
As by a celestial lantern lit.

He ascended to the height, he captured prisoners.
He gave gifts to men.
As of n an echo we are his listeners.
We can barely describe this with an inadequate pen.

The one who rose higher to fill all things.
Is none other than the one who descended.
Greater than all the Kings.
But will ever all our doubts be suspended.

But to some his gift was to be Apostles.
Some teachers or mere disciples.

…..

Are we apostles
Teachers or prophets
Or mere disciples

……

See Ephesians 4: 7-16

Friday of Week 29 in Ordinary Time

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Guard me as the apple of your eye.
In the shadow of your wings, protect me.
One day , we will let loose every worldly tie.
This will happen whatever our plea.May we always conform our will to yours.
And serve your majesty in sincerity of heart.
Then we will see them open, your doors.
And we will be given a new start.

Why not judge for yourselves what is right.
When you go to court try to settle.
Make light of any might.
As inconsequential as a frail  petal.

There is one body, one spirit , one baptism.
And we are given one chrism.

……..
We try to become
Then the apple of his eye
In his wing’s shadow
….
See Entrance Antiphon and Collect of today , Ephesians 4: 1-6 and Luke 12: 54-59

Thursday of Week 29 in Ordinary Time

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Bear with one another charitably.
In complete selflessness, gentleness and patience.
Seeking always some greater spirituality.
And coming thereby into his presence.

Do all you can to preserve the unity of the spirit.
By the peace that binds you together.
We need not have much merit.
And our faith may be light as a feather.

There is one spirit, one body.
Just as you were all called into the same hope.
When we were called to embody
Pulled by the same scriptures rope.

There is one God who is father of all.
Over all , through all and within all.

…….

God, father of all
Over all and within all
And of course through all

…..

See Ephesians 4: 1-6

Wednesday of Week 29 in Ordinary Time

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Happy that servant if his master’s arrival.

Finds him at this employment.
This is the way to ensure survival.
To usher in a new advent.
Are we always waiting.
And always prepared.
Or is the mind drifting .
Confused and scared .
His master will come on a day he does not expect.
And at an hour he does not know.
Our hopes wrecked.
As we just go with the flow.
Do we know what the master wants.
Are we ready with a response.
……
The master will come
At an hour we cannot see
But are we ready
……
See  Luke 12: 39-48

Tuesday of Week 29 in Ordinary Time

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The harvest is rich.
But the labourers are few.
But all does in time enrich.
Even if we start at the end of the queue.
So ask the lord of the harvest.
To send labourers to the harvest.
We will aim for the farthest.
Never forgetting our life zest.
Cary no purse, no haversack, no sandals.
Salute no one on the road.
Do not forget the candles.
Or despair of the heavy load.
The kingdom of God is very near.
Have no fear.
…….
The harvest is rich
The labourers are so few
But  they are enough
…….
See Luke 10: 1-9