Prayer in support of life (Week -4)

Introduction

It is four weeks away.

Where two or three are gathered in your name you are present, Lord Jesus Christ. Be present, Lord, be present now in this place and at this time.This evening, we gather together in your name to pray for life in Ireland at this time. We remember and offer this prayer for our sisters and brothers who are canvassing, explaining and clarifying the various issues arising from the 8^th Amendment referendum.

Come Holy Spirit and give us courage, patience, perseverance, wisdom, tact and, above all, true compassion.

Pray for the 8 at 8^th :

“I pray for the protection of the unborn child. Guide the people of Ireland to vote according to the truth of your word. Lord protect life by preserving the 8^th Amendment. Amen”

Psalm

Psalm 8           A cosmic song on the lips of children

How great is your name, O Lord our God, through all the earth!

Your majesty is praised above the heavens; on the lips of children and of babes
you have found praise to foil your enemy, to silence the foe and the rebel.

When I see the heavens, the work of your hands, the moon and the stars which you arranged,

What is man that you should keep him in mind, mortal man that you care for him?

Yet you have made him little less than a god; with glory and honour you crowned him, gave him power over the works of your hands, put all things under his feet.

All of them, sheep and cattle, yes, even the savage beasts, birds of the air, and fish that make their way through the waters.

How great is your name, O Lord our God through all the earth! Glory…

Glory be to the Father…..

Scripture Reading

Luke 1:39-45

 In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry, ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leapt for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.’

Intercessions

For justice in society….

For the homeless…

For those cast aside, marginalised or judged by society….

For children facing poverty and social exclusion….

For all human life….

For those alive today because of the 8^th…..

For mothers and their babies…

For those facing difficult news or challenging circumstances…

For fathers, partners and families….

For those working in our health services…

For those hurt by abortion…

For civic, church and political leaders….

Our Father …..

Concluding Prayers

Lord God, Thank You for creating human life in Your image.

Thank You for our lives and the lives of those we love.

Thank You for teaching us through Scripture the value You place on life.

Help us to uphold the sanctity of life in our churches and community.

Give us the strength to stand up to those forces that seek to destroy the lives of those most vulnerable, the unborn, the infirm and the elderly.

Today we commit ourselves never to be silent, never to be passive, never to be forgetful of respecting life.

We commit ourselves to protecting and defending the sacredness of life according to Your will, through Christ our Lord. Amen

We are not alone

“…Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me.” (John 15:4)

John 15:1-8 (Year B: 5^th Sunday of Easter, 29^th April 2018)

In modern society, it is not uncommon for people to have a strong sense of being alone in a crowded and busy world. At the last Census of Population, in the Republic of Ireland, 400,000 persons, or just over 11% percent of all adults, were living on their own.  This figure is set to rise.  At some point in our lives, we are likely to live on our own for at least a while following any number of circumstances including bereavement, separation or travel to study or work away from home.  In former times, people moved around less and the concept of the extended family meant that the elderly lived with, and were cared for, by their families more than is the case today.  Improvements in life expectancy mean that many of us are likely to live well into our 80s or even 90s.

In a highly connected and digitally charged life, many people seem to be constantly ‘connected’ to others by phone, email or some form of social media chat. Yet, it can happen that people can be very much ‘on their own’. This can be even so in Church where we gather regularly.  There is nothing wrong about that but it is a clear social trend in a fast-changing society. As young people come of age they are less likely to go on holidays with parents or, indeed, to regularly attend church (Christmas might be an exception when attendance is almost compulsory in some families for the day that is in it!). The great tradition of getting spruced up in ‘Sunday best’ and all going together, as a family, to church is a rarity nowadays as competing sporting events and the pressures of modern living have invaded Sunday mornings (and evenings for those who might have gone to church morning and evening on a Sunday two generations ago).

Today, many people feel isolated, cut off, unsure, rudderless. This passage from the gospel of John is for them. Without God, in our lives we are cut off from the living tree. With the God of life and love in our lives we are connected into a living tree and we can flourish and grow. But we grow with pruning. Note that the branches that bear fruit (because they are growing) are the ones that get pruned (or ‘cleaned’ to use the literal Greek word καθαροὶ (katharoi). ‘Katharoi’ of heart is also used in the Beatitudes: ‘Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.’ (Matthew 5:8).

We should welcome seasonal pruning!.  The point of our journey is not only to follow together with others but to bear fruit and to bear it in plenty. We are, each, no matter who we are or where we are at, called to flourish and to bear fruit. That is the excitement, the mystery and the unknowing of Christian discipleship at the very outset. We cannot foresee where exactly it leads and how. We trust.

In the Christian journey there is no need for lone rangers.  Church is meant to be what it says: a gathering in and a sending out.  It could be described as a field hospital for the walking wounded. We need help, support and healing on the journey but we also need to keep moving and reaching out beyond the boundaries of the hospital where others seek healing and relationship. We need to acknowledge the uniqueness of each branch on the tree. But, we need to stay connected in and nourished as branches of the one tree. We are made for one another and it is a joy to be welcomed into such a fellowship. 

Perhaps, nowhere is this unity best expressed than in the sharing of wine of the new covenant in the Eucharist when many Christians have the great privilege not only of eating but drinking as well. There, the ancient tradition, as testified in the 1^st/2^nd  century Didache recalls the ancient Jewish blessing over the bread and over the wine and sets it in the era of the new testament and covenant:

We give thanks to You, our Father, for the holy wine of David Your servant which You have made known to us through Jesus Your servant.

By sharing the one cup of joy and fellowship and partaking in the spiritual food, life and joy of the blood of the risen Lord we are healed, set free, re-united and send out no longer as lone rangers but as gifted team players.  This 5^th Sunday of Eastertide was made by the Lord let us rejoice and be glad. Once again, let us rejoice (Philippians 4:4).

 (words above = 804)

WWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW

Further reading: notes and questions, verse by verse

Preliminaries

This passage forms part of a flow from Chapter 13 up to and including 17. Jesus is instructing and strengthening the first disciples. This is no mere discourse of ‘how to be holy and get to heaven’. It is much more than that. It is about enlightening the minds of the disciples and those who will hear these stories, teachings and parables. We are one body and one vine and God the Father is the vine-grower. We are inserted into this living thing by means of Jesus who is the ‘true vine’.

Many of the images, stories and examples used by Jesus come from the natural world including the world of agriculture and the land.  Images of seeding, growing, pruning, harvesting, preparing, manufacturing, selling, buying, storing, giving, taking and keeping arise throughout all of the gospels. I wonder what images, stories or parables would be told today in a fast-moving and fast-changing post-industrial and increasingly digital society?  One key aspect, at least, of the stories told about Jesus and by Jesus is the presence of personal relationship as a core point of the story. Along with this we hear about organic development and not mechanical determination. Put simply, we hear stories about

• Ordinary people;
• relationships and struggles; and
• whole-istic view of reality embracing, meaning, source, development, change, feeling, action and will.

In other words, the Gospels are not a book of philosophical theory (although they can well inform such a theory). Neither are they a book of mechanical engineering and cosmic physics to explain how the world was created and developed. And they are not a political manifesto or tract (although they may and should inform such matters). The Gospels (note plural) are what they say on the tin: Good News. Good news to change lives, to change relationships, to change societies. We must work out what this means and what to do today, here, now. The Gospels are vital signposts and lighting paths. We can truly say:  ‘Your word is a lamp for my steps and a light for my path’ (Psalm 118:105).

So, the gospel writers told stories about Jesus or stories told by Jesus. These stories connect with the world of those hearing and telling and re-telling the stories. We need to hear these stories anew every time they are told. And, we in our turn need to tell them with a twist and relevance for today’s audience in today’s world whether it is a favela in Sao Paolo or a busy drop-in centre in Dublin. The stories echo down the ages.

1-3:   Pruning back and growing

I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine-grower. He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit. You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you. 

We are joined together in one living organism.  To bear fruit we need to be cut back: to lose some things and experiences. This can be so hard at times. The fruit we bear may be new relationships, renewed relationships, healed relationships as wells works of art, research, cooking, voluntary work, public service, etc.

4-6   Remaining in love

Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. 

Abiding in God and his abiding in us is possible.  However, this abiding is the fruit of mutual love just as mutual love is sustained by God’s abiding in his through his word.

7-8:  Abiding, flourishing, glorifying

If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples.

Discipleship is a matter of being rooted in love – the unique love of God, of bearing fruit in our daily lives and in giving glory to our Father in heaven each and every day of our lives together as disciples.

Prayer in support of life (week -5)

Introduction

Where two or three are gathered in your name you are present, Lord Jesus Christ. Be present, Lord, be present now in this place and at this time.

This evening, we gather together in your name to pray for life in Ireland at this time. We remember and offer this prayer for our sisters and brothers who are canvassing, explaining and clarifying the various issues arising from the 8^th Amendment referendum.

Come Holy Spirit and give us courage, patience, perseverance, wisdom, tact and, above all, true compassion.

Pray for the 8 at 8^th :

“I pray for the protection of the unborn child. Guide the people of Ireland to vote according to the truth of your word. Lord protect life by preserving the 8^th Amendment. Amen”

Psalm

Psalm 21(22):2-12

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? You are far from my plea and the cry of my distress.

O my God, I call by day and you give no reply; I call by night and I find no peace.
Yet you, O God, are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel.
In you our fathers put their trust; they trusted and you set them free.

When they cried to you, they escaped. In you they trusted and never in vain.
But I am a worm and no man, scorned by men, despised by the people.
All who see me deride me. They curl their lips, they toss their heads.
"He trusted in the Lord, let him save him; let him release him if this is his friend."
Yes, it was you who took me from the womb, entrusted me to my mother's breast.
To you I was committed from my birth, from my mother's womb you have been my God.
Do not leave me alone in my distress; Come close, there is none else to help.

Glory be to the Father…..

Scripture Reading

Matthew 5:1-12

Now the word of the Lord came to me saying,

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

‘Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

‘Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

‘Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

‘Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.

‘Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

‘Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

‘Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Intercessions

For justice in society….

For the homeless…

For those cast aside, marginalised or judged by society….

For children facing poverty and social exclusion….

For all human life….

For those alive today because of the 8^th…..

For those who could be saved if the 8^th is retained…

For mothers and their babies…

For those facing difficult news or challenging circumstances…

For fathers, partners and families….

For those working in our health services…

For those hurt by abortion…

For civic, church and political leaders….

For all voters in the upcoming referendum….

For those who are unsure how to vote…

For those canvassing tonight in this area….

For those who will receive the message of life in this area this evening…

For the entire community in this locality

Our Father …..

Concluding Prayers

Lord God, Thank You for creating human life in Your image.

Thank You for our lives and the lives of those we love.

Thank You for teaching us through Scripture the value You place on life.

Help us to uphold the sanctity of life in our churches and community.

Give us the strength to stand up to those forces that seek to destroy the lives of those most vulnerable, the unborn, the infirm and the elderly.

Today we commit ourselves never to be silent, never to be passive, never to be forgetful of respecting life.

We commit ourselves to protecting and defending the sacredness of life according to Your will, through Christ our Lord. Amen

Prayer for life (Week -6)

Introduction

Where two or three are gathered in your name you are present, Lord Jesus Christ. Be present, Lord, be present now in this place and at this time.

This evening, we gather together in your name to pray for life in Ireland at this time. We remember and offer this prayer for our sisters and brothers who are canvassing, explaining and clarifying the various issues arising from the 8^th Amendment referendum.

Come Holy Spirit and give us courage, patience, perseverance, wisdom, tact and, above all, true compassion.

Pray for the 8 at 8^th :

“I pray for the protection of the unborn child. Guide the people of Ireland to vote according to the truth of your word. Lord protect life by preserving the 8^th Amendment. Amen”

Psalm

Psalm 138(139):1-17

O Lord, you search me and you know me,
you know my resting and my rising, you discern my purpose from afar.
You mark when I walk or lie down, all my ways lie open to you.
Before ever a word is on my tongue you know it, O Lord, through and through.
Behind and before you besiege me, your hand ever laid upon me.
Too wonderful for me this knowledge, too high, beyond my reach.
O where can I go from your spirit, or where can I flee from your face?
If I climb the heavens, you are there. If I lie in the grave, you are there.
If I take the wings of the dawn and dwell at the sea's furthest end,
even there your hand would lead me, your right hand would hold me fast.
If I say: "Let the darkness hide me and the light around me be night,"
even darkness is not dark for you and the night is as clear as the day.
For it was you who created my being, knit me together in my mother's womb.
I thank you for the wonder of my being, for the wonders of all your creation. Already you knew my soul
my body held no secret from you when I was being fashioned in secret and moulded in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw all my actions, they were all of them written in your book; every one of my days was decreed before one of them came into being.
To me, how mysterious your thoughts, the sum of them not to be numbered!

Glory be to the Father .....

Scripture Reading

Jeremiah 1:4-10

Now the word of the Lord came to me saying,

‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.’

Then I said, ‘Ah, Lord God! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy.’ But the Lord said to me, ‘Do not say, “I am only a boy”; for you shall go to all to whom I send you, and you shall speak whatever I command you.  Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord.’

Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth; and the Lord said to me, ‘Now I have put my words in your mouth.  See, today I appoint you over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to pull down, to destroy and to overthrow,
to build and to plant.’

Intercessions

For justice in society….

For the homeless…

For those cast aside, marginalised or judged by society….

For children facing poverty and social exclusion….

For all human life….

For those alive today because of the 8^th…..

For those who could be saved if the 8^th is retained…

For mothers and their babies…

For those facing difficult news or challenging circumstances…

For fathers, partners and families….

For those working in our health services…

For those hurt by abortion…

For civic, church and political leaders….

For all voters in the upcoming referendum….

For those who are unsure how to vote…

For those canvassing tonight in this area….

For those who will receive the message of life in this area this evening…

For the entire community in this locality..

Our Father .....

Concluding Prayer

Lord God, Thank You for creating human life in Your image.

Thank You for our lives and the lives of those we love.

Thank You for teaching us through Scripture the value You place on life.

Help us to uphold the sanctity of life in our churches and community.

Give us the strength to stand up to those forces that seek to destroy the lives of those most vulnerable, the unborn, the infirm and the elderly.

Today we commit ourselves never to be silent, never to be passive, never to be forgetful of respecting life.

We commit ourselves to protecting and defending the sacredness of life according to Your will, through Christ our Lord. Amen

Are we ready for the challenge? (Holy Thursday)

“…I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.’” (John 13:34-35)

John 13:1-17, 31-35 (Year B: Maundy/Holy Thursday, 29^th March 2018)

Arnaud Beltrame is the name of a little known police officer in a little known village in the far south of France. Last week, however, he became famous. He offered himself in exchange for a person who was held hostage by a terrorist in a supermarket.  He entered the shop without his firearm.  He faced almost certain death. His brave action not only saved the life of one woman held hostage but, almost certainly the lives of many others.  As a trained Gendarme who had served in Iraq, he acted quickly and humanely knowing that the risk of dying was high to almost certain. By discretely leaving his mobile phone line open he was able to alert his comrades outside the supermarket.  He knew exactly what he was doing and what fate very likely awaited him. He did not hesitate. There was no time. He acted. He loved. He died.

One newspaper account reported the words of Arnaud’s mother:

“I’m not surprised. I knew it had to be him. He has always been like that. It’s someone, since he was born, who gives everything for his homeland.”
Asked if she was proud of him, she said he would have told her “’I’m doing my job Maman, that’s all.’”

At the worst of times and circumstances, the best of things can happen. Human nature is a mystery.  Moments of incredible bravery, generosity and goodness just seem to burst out from nowhere when something evil is afoot.  In 1941 the Polish priest, Maximilian Kolbe, gave his life for a fellow prisoner condemned to death by starvation. The saintly Maximilian Kolbe offered his arm calmly to the Nazi guards who gave him a lethal injection because two weeks of starvation and dehydration in a dark cell had not worked quickly enough for them.

On this very special day of Holy Week, we remember and unite ourselves with Jesus and his company in the upper room somewhere in Jerusalem. We call to mind his sacrifice and his teaching and actions that fateful evening.  ‘The longest night’ would be an apt description. It was Jesus’ final night before his death and his final night with his disciples until they would meet together after the Resurrection.

God knows us and loves us more than we can ever imagine or more than we can ever know or love ourselves.  It is love that calls us. If some human beings are capable of rising to the heights of generosity it is because our God is a God of infinite generosity. Jesus showed what generosity was, above all, on Good Friday.

Were we asked what is Christianity and who Christ is for us, the only answer we can give is ‘God is love: God is love in Jesus Christ for the whole world’.  But, it is not enough to say that with our lips. We must know it, we must feel it, we must live it, we must tell it aloud with our lives.

In a short while, we will receive the Body and Blood of our Saviour as real spiritual food in the sacramental signs of Bread and Wine. This can never be an act of mere individual piety or a collection of individuals like a line of cars waiting to be refuelled at the filling station. This is a gathering of disciples and the Host is none other than Jesus himself who invites us to a fellowship meal and to hear his Words again. We are standing, kneeling and sitting in his company as one body and not just as scattered individuals seeking the Lord as if we were strangers to each other and loners in search of God.

 ‘I give you a new commandment, that you love one another’ (verse 34)

But what is new about that commandment? After all, the commandment to love and love our neighbour is found in many places across the entire Bible and the lived experience of the Hebrew people (for example in Leviticus 19:18). We could easily miss the point of what is new here. No, it does not mean that all the other religious ‘rules’ are redundant (some were and are because it all depends on how they serve the Law of Love). Neither does it mean that the commandment is new because Jesus or John or his community of disciples said so to annoy the Jewish authorities at the time. Rather, it is new because it is RECIPROCAL. John’s gospel is full of notions of growth, communion and mutuality.  That A loves B is one thing. That A loves B and B loves A is something else. The totality of individual loving acts and dispositions is greater than the sum of each individual part. In plain language, loving one another gives rise to a communion of persons where Christ dwells and a whole new reality is possible because of this. Love is THE sacrament of church (a gathering together) and without it there is no real church.

The litmus test

And so the litmus test to prosecute Christians is more than just a test of their love individual by individual.  The killer punch that the prosecution can use to knock out any defence is that the reality of a community of love is so strong that we are faced with the real thing. No mistaking that! ‘ Writing a century after the gospel of John was written the North African theologian Tertullian wrote in The Apology (39:7):

See, they say, how they love one another, for themselves [pagans] are animated by mutual hatred; how they are ready even to die for one another, for they themselves will sooner put to death.

Is there enough evidence to incriminate us were we on trial as Christians? Would we be ready to give our lives for another – even a stranger as Arnaud Beltrame did last week?

Mar phobal seolta

“…Sheol mise sibhse uaim chun fómhar a bhaint nár shaothraigh sibh féin. Shaothraigh daoine eile é, agus chuaigh sibhse isteach ina saothar” (Eoin 4:38)

Eoin 4:31-38 (Year B: Lá le Pádraig, 17 Márta 2018)

Sán áit bheannaithe seo ina bhfuilimid bailithe le chéile chun an Chomaoin Naofa a chéiliúradh ar an lá speisialta seo, Lá le Pádraig, cuimhnímid ar Naomh Dúileach. Níl mórán eolas againn faoin bhfear naofa sin seachas the scéalta a tháinig anuas ó na sinsir. Is léir gur áit speisialta, naofa agus cáiliúil í seo inar chaith na mílte daoine laethanta fada ag guí, ag obair agus ag fónamh ar riachtanais an phobail thart timpeal.

Saint Doulagh’s church is described, in Irish, as Clochar Dúiligh.  Normally, the word ‘Clochar’ refers to a convent.  I wonder if the use of stone in this pre-norman church including the stone baptistery gave rise to the expression Clochar Dúiligh?. Be that as it may be, we are standing on holy ground. Yet, we stand in a fast-changing, multi-ethnic and post-modern Ireland where we are challenged to adapt our thinking but not our core faith – the faith of Paul the missionary, Patrick our national patron saint, Sampson and Doulagh our local saints and many others. That faith shared and expressed in the Creed which we will say together in a few moments is our rock – our Cloch or clochar.  It is, above all, our real, living and life-giving personal relationship with the Lord Jesus that must be the Cloch of our lives.

Just imagine all the countless generations who have worshipped, cried, laboured, rejoiced, died and who were born close to here? Just imagine the many languages that have been spoken here over the centuries from An Sean-Ghaeilge to some Viking dialect to Norman French to Anglo-Norman early English to modern day Northside Dublin not to mention the many ethnic and linguistic groups that have visited or even stayed here to join us for worship.

Fingal – the name of this part of Dublin – comes from ‘Fionn Gall’ or the tribes or territory of foreigners. Agus is maith rud gurb é sin ainm an cheantair seo. And it is very good that this is the name of this part of Dublin.

Sa lá atá inniu ann, táimid – mar a déarfeá ag na ‘croisbhóithre’ idir ceantar sách compordach and rachmasach ó thuadh ón áit seo agus ceann de na ceantracha is boichte sa tír seo ní I bhad ó dheas anseo. Níos faide siar ón séipéal seo tá aerphort rí-ghnóthach Bhleá Cliath trína imíonn na miliúin daoine gach bliain ar thurasóireacht nó fáthanna eile. San áit bheag, ciúin ina bhfuilimid an mhaidin seo táimid cóngarach do na naoimh a d’imigh romhainn. Níl Dúileach é féin ró I bhad mar

Óir, mar a mbíonn beirt nó triúr tagtha i gceann a chéile i m’ainmse, bím féin ansin ina measc.” Matha 18:20

San áit ina bhfuil beirt nó triúr tagtha le chéile ní I bhad uainn ríocht na bhflaiteas. Táimid ag gcéiliúradh I gcuideachta na n-aineal, na naomh eile agus an pobal a d’imigh romhain. 

“bíodh a fhios agaibh go bhfuil ríocht Dé in bhur lár.” Lúcas 19:21

Ag an am céanna táimid cóngarach do na mílte daoine atá ina gcónaí thart anseo. Is iad seo daoine le mianta, le buarthaí, le haislingí, le páistí, le seantuistí, le ceisteanna, le riachtanais spioradálta nó ábhartha. 

(thousands of people live in this district. These are people with worries, dreams, children, grandparents, questions along with spiritual and material needs).

Ó thosaidh an tseirbhís seo ceathrú uair a chloig ó shin is dócha gur imigh na céadta gluaisteáin thart ar an mbóthar amuigh. Tá daoine go imeacht dtí lár na cathrach chun an pharáid a fheiceáil. Tá daoine ag dul ar thuras fada, b’fhéidir, chun cuairt a thabhairt ar lucht muirneach éigin. Tá daoine eile, b’fhéidir, ag filleadh abhaile ó a bheith ag obair san óiche mar bhanatraí nó baill den fhoireann éigeandála.

Tá dhá mhíle bliain ar ár gcreideamh ach níl dhá mhíle bliain ar ár smaointeoireacht.

Our faith is two thousand years old but our thinking is not and must not be.

Is é sin le rá go roimmimid an creideamh céanna leis na deisceabail, le Naomh Aindriú, leis na mairtírigh fadó agus inniu, le Naomh Pádraig and Naomh Dúileach and Naomh Mearnóg  agus Naomh Sampson cibé daoine iad sin agus leis na naoimh sa lá atá inniu ann og obair, ag strachailt, ag fulaingt nó faoi ríméid ag déanamh toil Dé ó lá go lá díreach mar sa staid ina bhfuil siad agus sa timpealacht ina bhfuil said.

Óir is fíor don seanfhocal sa mhéid seo: ‘Cuireann duine, baineann duine eile.’ Deir Íosa linn arís inniu sa soiscéal dár chualamar:  ‘Sheol mise sibhse uaim chun fómhar a bhaint nár shaothraigh sibh féin. Shaothraigh daoine eile é, agus chuaigh sibhse isteach ina saothar.”

In English that translates as:

For here the saying holds true, “One sows and another reaps.” I sent you to reap that for which you did not labour. Others have laboured, and you have entered into their labour.’ (John 4:37-38)

And we stand here this morning as people who have reaped much benefit from the self-sacrificing faith and love of those who reaped here and who directly reaped in our own lives by their teaching and example. We have the joy of entering into the fruits of the labour others in this hallowed place between affluence and acute poverty, between the different historical Viking, Celtic and Norman linguistic and spiritual roots and in which early Celtic monasticism mixed with the arrival of a Norman and a very Roman ordered style of Christianity and then the tragic political and religious events in which Western Christianity and many kingdoms were sundered apart in Europe and on this island and in this very area. We also stand on the ‘Northern Fringe’ of Clongriffan and surrounding areas where thousands of new families and individuals will come to live in the coming years. These are exciting and challenging times for us who have been entrusted with the torch of faith and hope. Will we pass that torch to others? Will future generations follow in our footsteps when we are long gone?  Might St Douglaghs described as the ‘Jewel in Fingals’ Crown’ – Seoid Choróin Fhine Gall become a special place of healing, prayer and outreach where Christians of all traditions might offer hospitality and listening?  Does this sacred place have potentials that we cannot even imagine this morning?

Is mór an onóir dúinn seasamh anseo mar oilithreacha agus mar dheisceabail – i gcónaí ag cosa an Tiarna ag éisteacht agus ag ithe Briathar agus Arán na beatha I dteanta a chéile.

It is a great honour to stand here as pilgrims and disciples – always at the feet of the Lord listening to his word and taking to ourselves his Word and his Bread as we are gathered here.

Is pobal seolta sinn cinnte.

We are, surely, a people sent.

Mothers are special

“…and a sword will pierce your own soul too” (Luke 2:35)

Luke 2:33-35 (Year B: Fourth Sunday of Lent, 11^th March 2018)

Have you remembered?  Flowers, card or even a meal out?  Or, as many do in Ireland, perhaps a flower and a chat in the cemetery with granny when nobody is overhearing one for the theologically unscrupulous?

 

Our hyper, commercialised and digitalised world will not let us forget it that this Sunday is ‘Mother’s Day’ at least in English-speaking North-West Europe. In some places and traditions, it is referred to as ‘Mothering Sunday’ and it falls on the fourth Sunday of Lent each year. While the origins around this particular day are a bit obscure, we know that it provides a type of half-way mark during our Lenten journey and it is linked to a special remembrance or appreciation of our mothers.

Mothers are held in high regard across the world and nobody can deny the very special and unique experience of a mother’s love at least for most of us who have been blessed and lucky enough to have had loving mothers. I realise that it is not always that perfect and even far from it in a minority of cases.

I remember my own mother with fondness and appreciation. Although deceased some years ago, I often remember her and recall with gratitude the many things she did and said over that part of her long life which spanned 97 years which I had the grace of knowing.  Indeed, it was sometimes the things that she did not say or do when she might have had good reason to that I remember with particular gratitude! Silence allied to a loving patience is a wise policy when better alternatives are lacking.

What is it that makes a mother’s love so special and central to our human experience? In the first place, we come forth from our mother in the womb. We are bonding with her as we are knitted together in that sanctuary as it says in Psalm 139:13. And then we are fed, clothed, cuddled, carried, talked to, listened to and loved as we move through the natural stages of growing up. She was there when we had our first day at school. She was there when we celebrated birthdays and special treats. She was there when we cried. She was there when we were bold and needed to be corrected. We learned to speak our ‘mother’s tongue’ in the first years of our life. And, for most of us, she was there when we left home to study or work or get married as the case may be.

The love of a mother is generous, unconditional and sustained. This is why, when we hear the words of scripture we associate a motherly love with that boundless love that God has for each one of us. Though we always address God as Father, there are many places in scripture where the love of God is spoken of in motherly terms. For example, the prophet, Isaiah, declares the Word of God in these terms:

Can a woman forget her nursing-child, or show no compassion for the child of her womb?  Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you. (49:15).

As a mother comforts her child, so I will comfort you; you shall be comforted in Jerusalem. (66:13)

In both cases, God acts towards us as a mother would. Even then, if it were to be the case that mother and father were to forsake us, God would still be there for us as Father and as Mother as David declares in Psalm 27:10.

But, motherhood is far from being all joy and happiness. In today’s reading from the Gospel of Luke we hear a hard saying of prophecy spoken by Simeon:

This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed—and a sword will pierce your own soul too.

Simeon saw and affirmed what others could not see in this child.  He saw beyond this moment of great joy to a time when all would be hardship and pain because a sword will pierce our souls.  And why? ‘the inner thoughts of many will be revealed’ and the truth will be told and that ‘sign that will be opposed’ will be the cause of grief. In our lives, there will be times of tribulation, sickness, possibly betrayal, conflict, doubt mixed with times of extraordinary consolation, uplifting, grace and renewal. Let nobody pretend that life is a bed or roses. Mothers know that only too well.

Sometimes people can say and do things to us that are deeply wounding. Or, we sometimes can do the same to others.  What is so wounding is the ‘thoughts revealed’ as Simeon says. We speak from what is within the heart and, unfortunately, what is there is not always to our own good or those who hear us. But, sometimes what has a wounding effect is, ultimately, for the good of the other or ourselves.

The ultimate wounding for Mary occurred in the desolation of Calvary.  There, she grieved for her son. Jesus, according to the Gospel of John, who gave his mother, Mary, to the disciple John, ‘Behold your mother’, he said to John. Many Christians see in this story an invitation for Christian disciples to experience the motherly love of God in the person of Mary who accompanies us in our earthly journey. She, too, grieves for us when we go astray as some of us do from time to time. In these moments, Mary reminds us that her son Jesus Christ, alone, is sufficient for us.

But, in addition to Jesus and Mary, there was someone else who heard what Simeon said. This was Joseph.  Fathers and fatherhood are often overlooked in modern culture.  I look forward to a liturgy focussed on fathers later this year! J

But, there is a question we might consider today and at this time in Ireland.

How do we regard and treat mothers? When it comes to rights in the workplace as well as rights to housing, healthcare, training and community support for families, are we as good as we say we are or should be?