Sep 27 – Memorial for St. Vincent de Paul, Priest St. Vincent (1581-1660) spent four years with the Franciscan friars getting an education. He was taken captive by Turkish pirates and sold into slavery, then freed when he converted one of his owners to Christianity. He started organisations to help the poor, nursed the sick,... Continue Reading →
25 September, Thursday — The Gaze I Fear, the Face I Seek
Thursday of Week 25 in Ordinary Time Hag 1:1-8Lk 9:7-9 And he was anxious to see Jesus. Herod was a powerful man. He had soldiers, wealth, influence. Yet, Luke tells us he was anxious to see Jesus (Lk 9:9). That word ‘anxious’ is striking. It suggests restlessness, urgency, even discomfort. Why would someone like Herod,... Continue Reading →
24 September, Wednesday — Travelling Light: Trusting God on the Journey
Wednesday of Week 25 in Ordinary Time Ez 9:5-9Lk 9:1-6 “Take nothing for the journey…” Every time I plan for a holiday, I find myself thinking carefully about my outfits, how to pair them, and where I will stay. I enjoy planning and like to be sure that my accommodation is comfortable and convenient. And... Continue Reading →
23 September, Tuesday — To Be His Mother and Brothers
Sep 23 – Memorial for St. Pio of Pietrelcina (Padre Pio), Priest St. Pio (1887-1968) was ordained when he was 22. He founded the House for the Relief of Suffering in 1956, a hospital that serves 60,000 a year. In the 1920s he started a series of prayer groups that continue today with over 400,000... Continue Reading →
21 September, Sunday — Networking for God’s Kingdom
25th Sunday in Ordinary Time Amo 8:4-71 Tim 2:1-8Lk 16:1-13 “You cannot be the slave both of God and of money.” When I first read this parable as a child, I was confused. I thought, “Why would Jesus tell a story where a steward is rewarded for morally questionable actions?” More than a decade later,... Continue Reading →
14 September, Sunday — Climbing the Tree of Life
Sep 14 – Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross The feast was celebrated in Rome before the end of the 7th century. Its purpose is to commemorate the recovering of that portion of the Holy Cross which was preserved at Jerusalem, and which had fallen into the hands of the Persians. Emperor Heraclius... Continue Reading →
12 September, Friday — Baking, Blindness and Becoming
Sep 12 – Holy Name of Mary This feast is a counterpart to the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus (January 3); both have the possibility of uniting people easily divided on other matters. The feast of the Most Holy Name of Mary began in Spain in 1513 and, in 1671, was extended to... Continue Reading →
7 September, Sunday — “The eye of the needle…”
23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time Wis 9:13-18Phi 9-10, 12-17Lk 14:25-33 “So in the same way, none of you can be my disciple unless he gives up all his possessions…” I believe that all of us are hoarders, even though you may claim that you are not, or that you do a ‘Marie Kondo’ once every... Continue Reading →
6 September, Saturday — St Paul is a real person
Saturday of Week 22 in Ordinary Time Col 1:21-23Lk 6:1-5 …now he has reconciled you, by his death and in that mortal body. Now you are able to appear before him holy, pure and blameless… Today’s first reading is from St Paul’s epistle (letter) to the church in Colossae. This chapter in the New Testament... Continue Reading →
5 September, Friday — Do I want to fast?
Sep 5 – Feast of St. Teresa of Calcutta Mother Mary Teresa Bojaxhiu (born Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu, 26 August 1910 – 5 September 1997), honoured in the Catholic Church as Saint Teresa of Calcutta, was an Albanian-Indian Roman Catholic nun and missionary. She was born in Skopje (now the capital of North Macedonia), then part of the Kosovo Vilayet of the Ottoman Empire. After living in Skopje for eighteen years, she moved to Ireland... Continue Reading →
OXYGEN 