Friday of the 5th Week of Lent

I would dare to say that anyone who lives in close proximity to other people can, at times, feel a little bit neurotic.  It’s not just a common trait among religious.  I’m sure we’ve all felt that someone has had it in for us, or that people were out to get us.  Someone gives us

Tuesday of the 5th Week of Lent

The account of the Hebrews’ grumbling, and the punishment of the fiery serpents is just one of many in the Old Testament that recount how hard life in the desert must have been.  The plagues that God used to convince Pharaoh to let his people go must have been dramatic; almost as dramatic as the

Monday of the 5th Week of Lent

According to Jewish law, adultery was a capital crime punishable by death (Leviticus 20:10).  But according to Roman law—which governed occupied Palestine—Jews had no authority to put anyone to death.  Capital cases had to be referred to the Roman Procurator.  So, if Our Lord had agreed with the Pharisees, he would have violated the Roman

The Fifth Sunday of Lent

Next Sunday is, of course, Palm Sunday and it marks the beginning of the holiest week of the Church’s liturgical year.  Over the five weeks of Lent we have tried to spend, at least some time, looking in at ourselves instead of the usual looking out at others.  Lent shows us how easy it is

THE ANNUNCIATION OF THE LORD

In the first reading, King Ahaz is being offered something that he may not want: a military victory that comes not from fighting, but from patiently waiting.  God commissioned the prophet Isaiah to give Ahaz an unexpected set of directions about a dangerous military threat; he tells Ahaz to sit tight and wait for God

Friday of the 4th Week of Lent

In common with most, if not all human beings, we Religious have an in-built tendency towards keeping up with the Jones’.  We all know people, perhaps other Religious, whose lives appear to be pretty much perfect, and we may yearn to be more like them, and even live their lives.  Each element of their perfect

Thursday of the 4th Week of Lent

Have you ever wondered why you have faith in God and others don’t?  Maybe you had parents who passed their faith on to you, but like me, you could have been brought up in a family which had no religion at all.  Maybe you are a convert, but you could have lived in a country

Wednesday of the 4th Week of Lent

A reporter once asked Mother Teresa as she began her mission to the poor in Calcutta if she thought her work would be successful.  She responded, “Young man, the Lord doesn’t call me to be successful.  He calls me to be faithful.”  Our Lord calls us in exactly the same way.  He knows that we

Tuesday of the 4th Week of Lent

Today’s first reading reminds me of my student days when I discovered that throughout salvation history, the imagery of rivers and streams has been used to describe God’s desire to bring healing and refreshment to his people.  For example, the Book of Genesis tells us that a river watered the garden of Eden (Genesis 2:10). 

SAINT JOSEPH

Today the Church honours the man whom God chose to entrust Our Lord and Our Blessed Lady.  It is to Saint Joseph’s care that we owe so much because we see the faith of Saint Joseph, the faith which Saint Paul tells us is similar to that of the patriarch Abraham: because of Joseph’s faith,