The Birthday of the Virgin Mary

They will live secure, for from then on he will extend his power.
To the ends of the land , he himself will be peace.
We glimpse far away a church tower.
We try to believe and accept without cease.
Her husband Joseph, wanting to spare her publicity.
Wanted to divorce her informally.
But he did not , he acted with eternity.
He listened to the angel faithfully.
Somewhere in our head.
Is the voice of the angel speaking.
We can look behind or look ahead.
Doubting yes sometimes, but always seeking.
Maybe a choice is difficult to undertake.
But we do it for his sake.
…….
We will live secure
He will extend his power
To the end of land
……
See Micah 5: 1-4 and Matthew 1: 1-16, 18-23

Thursday of Week 22 in Ordinary Time

He has taken us out of the power of darkness.
And created for us a place in the Kingdom of the son.
Into a place of kindness.
And bright warming sun.In him we gain our freedom.
The forgiveness of our sins.
An ever lasting Te Deum.
And where everything ends and begins.

I read that Bill has died at seventy five in his sleep.
The end may come now at anytime.
Was he worrying about something shallow or deep.
But he did not know that day was his last in time.

So why worry about the future.
There may not be any future.

… ….

Worry about now
There may not be a future
There’s only now

…..

See  Colossians 4: 9-14

Wednesday of Week 22 in Ordinary Time

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He left the house and went to a lonely place.
The crowds wanted to prevent him leaving.
Sometimes we too cannot keep up with the pace.
And we too have problems with believing.

If Jesus had to flee to a lonely place.
I think we can be forgiven for doing so too.
To escape from life’s endless chase.
We can begin life anew.

Sometimes it is best to be alone.
In thoughts and prayers.
A chance to rejoice or maybe atone.
A place of joy and occasionally tears.

So Jesus continued his preaching.
And we continue our searching.

…….

He then left the house
And went to a lonely place
To  now pray alone

…. ….

See Luke 4 : 38-44

Tuesday of Week 22 in Ordinary Time

So give encouragement to each other.
And keep strengthening one another , as you already do.
As was done to you by your own mother.
As you grew.God never meant us to experience the retribution.
But to win salvation.
However inadequate our contribution.
For we are in all nations, one nation.

All so easy to say.
So difficult to do.
We can only look for some small ray.
And say this is for me too.

I feel I can only take refuge in my Robin.
And its ceaseless carefree bobbin.

……..

Give encouragement
Strengthening one another
There’s no other way

……..

See 1 Thessalonians 5: 1-6, 9-11

Monday of Week 22 in Ordinary Time

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We believe that Jesus died and rose again.
And that it will be the same for those that have died in Jesus.
We pray that we are part of the same everlasting chain.
That this story is not just for him but for us.

He has sent me to bring good news to the poor.
To proclaim liberty to captives and to the blind new sight.
We need only look forward to a greater grandeur.
And to everlasting light.

One day we will be fulfilled.
We do not how or when.
But this we know is willed.
For all women and men.

Today , tomorrow .
In joy and sorrow.

…….

Jesus died and rose
The same for those who believe
That is our belief

…….

See 1 Thessalonians 4: 13-18 and Luke 4: 16-30

22 nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

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You have seduced me Lord and I let myself be seduced.
You have overpowered me: you were stronger.
But in this we are never in any way reduced.
We just have to pray for longer.

The Latin mass was beautiful.
But barely audible.
It was all a bit dutiful.
If thoroughly laudable.

And then after communion.
I walked past Cardinal Newman’s picture.
Something clicked , I was in union.
I felt God’s lure.

We may doze fitfully.
But we can never escape his gaze fully.

……….

You seduced me Lord
I let myself be seduced
And I am happy

……

See Jeremiah 20: 7-9

Saturday of Week 21 in Ordinary Time

To one he gave five talents, to another two.
To a third one , each according to his ability.
We receive according to our due.
But we all have some responsibility.
I went today to the pro life mass.
And to the rally afterwards.
Many good arguments to amass.
And a thousand potent words.But later in the garden, I watched a Robin fluttering.
Ignoring the book on War and Peace , quietly going about its work.
It seemed to encompass peaceful existing.
Just being in this moment in nature’s kirk

We all have a right to life
Whatever our talents in life.

……
To one five talents
To another two, third, one
To ability
…….
See Matthew 25: 14-30

Friday of Week 21 in Ordinary Time

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Make more and more progress.
In the kind of life you are meant to live.
But how, who can guess.
But first we have to forgive.

I was thinking again about the Nauria country.
Where everyone is loved as if they are one own’s grandchild.
And no one is just all and sundry.
And certainly not reviled.

But how could such a real country survive .
It would be wide open to the whole world.
Maybe it is only a thing of the mind, not live.
But a thing of heaven certainly and not any underworld.

But it is a nice thing to think of such a place.
A place for every type and race.

…….

And make more progress
In life you are meant to live
That is the best way

……..

See 1 Thessalonians 4: 1-8

Thursday of Week 21 in Ordinary Time

Your faith has been a great comfort .
To us in the middle of our own troubles and sorrows.
Often there is discomfort.
But then there are plenty of tomorrows.
While sleepless in the night.
I remembered Vespers and the translucent window.
And that mythical country,  Nauria in the light.
So there’s no point in feeling low.
Nauria is a place of happiness.
Because it is a place of love and giving.
And no restlessness.
But just accepting.So keep thinking not of ourselves.
But of other selves.

…….

Faith is great comfort
In the middle of sorrows
And even of joys

……

See 1 Thessalonians 3: 7-13

Wednesday of Week 21 in Ordinary Time

Where can I flee from your face.
If I climb the heavens you are there.
We search in vain here for a place of grace.
A place of meaningful  prayer.
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I dreamt today of a country called Nauria or Norah.
Arabic for salvation , Hebrew for divine light.
A place with a certain holy aura.
Another country with spiritual light.

Here everything seemed drawn in children’s colours.
And all was subsumed in love.
Where there was only care for others.
Rising like as a dove.

I woke into the real night.
And the  moon only gave  just enough light.

……..

A place called Norah
It came to me in my dreams
A place of true light

……..

See Psalm 138

Tuesday of Week 21 in Ordinary Time

We had as you know been given rough treatment.
And grossly insulted at Philippi.
Our troubles are frequent.
We say with a sigh.
I was at a good man’s memorial service  today.
I was sitting behind a pillar.
Looking at the ancient stonework and a sun’s ray.
Clearing out my mind’s cluttered cellar.How many lives had that column witnessed.
Whilst we ephemeral things pass on.
But in faith we are butressed.
Here now and soon into another place gone.Like the pillar something is permanent.
As long as we put faith into accepting contentment.

……..

Given rough treatment
Even grossly insulted we carry on.
It’s all we can do

…….

See 1 Thessalonians 2 ; 1-8

Monday of Week 21 in Ordinary Time

Alas for you Pharisees, you hypocrites.
You shut up the kingdom of heaven in men’s’ faces.
We worry overmuch about what fits.
And less about true graces.The old Greek meaning of hypokrites.
An actor wearing a mask.
To a lesser or greater extent we are all hypocrites.
We go about life wearing an invisible mask.

Jesus had us all well summed up .
We all act differently to what we preach.
We none of us need to be looked at close up.
We can’t even trust our own speech.

But let’s not despair .
It’s always been thus , let’s declare.

……..

We are hypocrites
Thus shutting up God’s kingdom
But it’s always thus

…….

See Matthew 23 : 13-22

Sunday ofWeek 21 in Ordinary Time

On the day I called you answered.
You increased the strength of my soul.
What is doubted should, but seldom is revered.
What wearies me should, but does not relieve my toil.
I had a nightmare in the night.
My wife’s gentle touch had to calm me.
Long hours passed before a dim first light.
When it came to hope , I could not hear or see.The mass today was barely understood.
The church at Combloux was crowded.
The communion seemed to give no spiritual food.
Then I stared at the stained glass window, light framed.

And now in its Jesus translucence.
I seemed at last to find some sense.

…..

I called, you answered
And you increased my soul’s strength
From doubt to some faith

……..

See Psalm 137

Saturday of Week 20 in Ordinary Time

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How have I so earned your favour.
That you take notice of me.
We must not waver.
For we have not yet paid our fee.

I am reading a Daphnie du Maurier short story .
Everything goes wrong on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.
We all find our different way to glory.
Yet as for others , we they condemn.

As I this story we all fail in a different way.
And suddenly we know it.
Maybe it is something we do or say.
We make a miss more often than a hit.

But salvation comes in unexpected ways.
For we cannot escape his gaze.

……..

Have I earned favour
That you take notice of me
Have I paid my fee

…….

See Ruth 2

Friday of Week 20 in Ordinary Time

It is he who keeps faith for ever.
Who is just to those who are oppressed.
In every endeavour .
However stressed.I walked down the hill in Montepulchiano.
Glorious Tuscan views on either side.
Carried on by the busy flow.

I went with the tide.

And then at the bottom of the hill.
In church , I listened to nuns singing the Salve Regina.
Here all was quiet and still.
There was no need to want to be in a larger arena.

But before I left Montepulchiano.
I took care to have a soothing Aperol aperitivo.

….

Keep faith for ever
Justice to the oppressed
This must be the way

.. ….

See Psalm  145

Thursday of Week 20 in Ordinary Time

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I tell you you will see greater things than that.
You will see heaven laid open.
Our soul magnifies the Lord, a greater Magnificat.
Nothing of promise need be left unspoken.
Assis’s Upper Basilica was seething.
I took refuge in the Lower for Vespers.
Calmed by the early hymn singing.
Forgetting for a moment ,  for truth comes in whispers.
It steals over one.
Joy does not come in a moment.
It is not easily won.
First we must dispense with all resentment.
Allowing a sense of the present .
And then the Lord sends his present.
…….
You will see great things
Will see heaven laid open
Definite promise
…..
See John 1: 45-51

Wednesday of Week 20 of Ordinary Time, Saint Rose of Lima

For him all things were created.
In heaven and on earth , visible and invisible.
Everything is weighted.
His truth infallible.
The walk was hot and tiring.
I took refuge in the Monastery of S. Agnes.
Vespers was starting .
The nuns voices angelic, dispelling all sadness.
Nothing heard more beautiful;  I walked back by S. Michele.
Originally a pagan temple ,  a church of the sixth century.
The Etruscan arch from 300 BC .
The medieval aqueduct ,a place to tarry.
Here was an extraordinary weight of history.
And I was going to remember this walk’s  story.
……..
All things created
In heaven and on the Earth
Visible , invisible
…….
See from today’s Vespers , Canticle , Colossians 1

Our Lady, Mother and Queen

Who can be saved then, they asked.
For men, Jesus told them, this is impossible.
Truth for us is so often masked.
For God everything is possible.
The pictures stretched out in the Priori Gallery.
Endless Madonnas, interest flagged .
And plenty of Calvary.
And feet sagged.
And then in front of one picture , the anthem  played.
Ave Maria Grazie  plena.
Suddenly the heart surged
Here was an end to all dilemma.
Here was no longer a joyless visit
Truth and faith were explicit.
……
Who can be saved then.
For men it’s  impossible
For god possible
…….
See Matthew 19: 23-30

Monday of Week 20 in Ordinary Time

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If you wish to be perfect, sell what you own.
And give the money to the poor.
Treat everything as just a loan.
There is only one lasting amour.

I am in Perugia Cathedral.
I can barely follow the Italian.
But I am amongst the people.
Seeking a spiritual medallion.

And then I found the Madonna delle Grazie.
She is pregnant , inscrutable.
My faith may be hazy and lazy.
But she stands there immutable.

The tourists ignored her stare.
But she still is the source of all our care.

…….

Wish to be perfect?
Give all you own to the poor
But do we do it

………

See Matthew 29: 16-22

20 th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Have a care for justice, act with integrity.
For soon my integrity will be manifest.
For now we can only act with sincerity.
If we are to pass this lifetime’s test.I am in the Lower Basilica at Asssi.
And at the end of mass they sing the Ave Maria.
This is the time to make one’s plea.
Here just for a moment all is pia.

A  Franciscan monk walks slowly  by.
The church is closing.
One still leaves with a questioning sigh.
Despite sadnesses you feel something is reassuring.

In the piazza the light is pinking.
And now it is the sun and not the soul sinking.

….  …

Have care for justice .
And act with integrity
For your time will come

……..

See Isaiah 56 : 1, 6-7

Saturday of Week 19 in Ordinary Time

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The disciples turned the children away.
But Jesus said , let the little children alone..
What is the right way , who can say.
We do know how we can atone .

But we can say, to such as these.
The kingdom of heaven belongs.
Thus we pay all our fees.
And release ourselves from lifes’ throngs.

I was from the heat,  in the Cathedral, resting.
Here was all calm, silent and dark.
Stained glass light diffusing.
A place , weary legs  to park.

Take refuge in simplicity.
From every difficulty.

……

Children turned away?
But to these heaven belongs
To such as all these

…….

See Matthew 19: 13-15

Friday of Week 19 in Ordinary Time

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I gave you a land where you never toiled.
You live in towns you never built.
You eat now from vineyards you never planted.
All as it were, purpose built.

We have done so little.
And so much given us.
Yet all us so brittle.
And it always was thus.

But a land is promised.
For all peoples and all time.
It is not physical,  but in faith fulfilled.
Never ageing all in its prime.

We just have to reach out.
To pray and not to shout.

…….

Land given to us
It’s only spiritual
But that is enough

…….

See Joshua 24

Thursday of Week 19 in Ordinary Time

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You are to stand still.

In the Jordon itself.
We only have to say I will.
And be ourself.
Once I stood there.
By this narrow river.
The light burning clear.
The water barely moving downriver.
But here so long ago.
A great event happened.
This we know.
All mankind now gladdened.
Just a baptism for him and us.
Of a man called Jesus.
…….
If you just stand still
On the bank of the Jordan
You know history
……
See Joshua 3

Wednesday of Week 19 in Ordinary Time

Moses went up Mount Nebo.
And the Lord showed him the whole land.
The path to the promised land is narrow.
Full of chocking sand.
I stood once myself on the Mount.
All the Dead Sea Valley is laid out below.
A sea of sandy mounds, more than you can count.
Here in the mind’s eye you can, the Israelites, follow.And we too are destined not to enter our goal.
We wonder , we strive , we wander.
But we cannot know our true soul.
Only that it is real and tender.

But where we cannot go.
Others surely, the road will know.

………

We climb Mount Nebo
And we see the promised land
But we cannot go

……..

See Deuteronomy 34: 1-12

The The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

He has looked upon his lowly handmaid.
From this day forward all generations will call me blessed.
Really no more can be said.
No more need to feel stressed.Never was it known that anyone who sought thy intercession.
Was left unaided.
Do we we then need to succumb to depression.
In faith we just have to be persuaded.

We lie in bed awake.
All those worries invade .
But if we just say I give and not take.
If in her all our concerns are laid.

Then sleep will come slowly
But surely.

……..
His lowly handmaid
Blessed for generations
Seek intercession
……

See Luke 1: 39-56