A small secret

 

I’m blessed to live in a rural village where, every so often, I can slip away for a quiet audience with the King of the universe. It’s a small secret, really — no announcements, no fuss. Just a place where conversation, complaint, or simple silence are all welcome. You might try it yourself sometime; you’d be surprised who’s waiting.

A sacrifice of thanks

 

Those few quiet moments following the reception of holy communion are precious. They are a time to close in so to speak and savour the moment as well as enjoy – in faith – the loving presence of God. It is like sitting motionless and quietly with the beloved, hand in hand, seeing with the mind’s eye a beautiful landscape.  There is a special private prayer that I mull over at this point in the sacred liturgy and which is taken from the Anglican tradition:

Fulfilling the law of love

 

Sunday 15 February 2026

 Lectio Divina:*

Ecclesiasticus 15:15-20

Psalm 118 (119):1-34

1 Corinthians 2:6-10

Matthew 5:17-37

 

Meditatio:

“Let your word be “Yes, Yes” or “No, No”; anything more than this comes from the evil one.’ (Matthew 5:37)

Commentary:

Following the opening of the Sermon on the Mount with the eight Beatitudes, Matthew now presents Jesus’ elaboration of the Law of the Gospel. The “New Law” is not, strictly speaking, different from the “Old Law.” The Law is — and always has been — the Law of Love: to love God with all our heart and mind, and to love the person beside us as ourselves. This Law must be written on our hearts by its Author, who sent His Son to show us what love truly entails.

Love is in the air

 

Its spring here in the Northern Hemisphere.  The daffodils are budding everywhere.  Dashes of white snow drops appeared weeks ago already.

We do not presume

 

In the ‘sixth movement’ of the mass, a casual and routine approach to the reception of Holy Communion is something that we should guard against.  The best way to prepare for this sacred moment of the liturgy is to live our lives – as best as we can – according to the values of the Gospel we hear and read regularly.   Then we need to approach the sacrament not with an attitude of entitlement or presumption or indeed despair but an attitude of trust, gratitude, joy, humility and openness.  Holy communion is pure gift.  We receive rather take the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ.  This is why, if given  the choice and if it were customary to do so, I would rather receive on my knees and on the tongue as is still the case in Eastern Catholic churches.

Abandoned

 

In the eucharist we recall the sacrifice of Jesus.  We proclaim his death and resurrection as it says in scripture. St Paul writes, ‘For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.’ (1 Corinthians 11:26).

All of creation

 

There is a key moment in the mass as we move from what I call the fourth movement (offertory) to the fifth (The Great Thanksgiving or Eucharistic Prayer) when the priest declares (Common Preface III):