Tag Archive for ‘fear’
Wednesday 10 September
1 Cor 7: 25-31; Psalm 45B; Luke 6: 20-26 Plain Speaking It is with the words in today’s Gospel reading, proclaimed on a level stretch of ground, that the Lord Jesus begins his Sermon on the Plain. To use well known clichés, this sermon tells us that he is a straight shooter, that he calls […]
Monday 8 September
Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Micah 5: 1-4; Psalm 13; Matt 1: 18-23 Counterculture The Greek for “fear not” in our Gospel reading can mean “don’t be overcome with awe.” This may be why St Bernard of Clairvaux, St Thomas Aquinas and others claim that Our Lady told St Joseph that she had conceived […]
Saturday 19 April
Holy Saturday Romans 6:3-11, Ps 1138 Matt 28:1-10 No need to fear The day after Jesus died was a day of grief and terror for his disciples. They had lost hope that he would establish the kingdom of God among them. The expectation that he would be their saviour had been snuffed out. There was […]
March
Fr Brian O’Connell, former MM editor, died on 13 January. As part of the family eulogy, one of his sisters quoted from a text message that Brian had sent to his family on 4 January. Brian quoted from a book he was reading: “All that we value in life and fear to lose by dying […]
Wednesday 5 February
Memorial of St Agatha 2 Samuel 24:2,9-17; Ps 32; Mark 6:1-6 Thinking about prophets Have you experienced a prophet from your own country? Someone you knew well giving you a message you didn’t want to hear? Sometimes we are willing to listen to a stranger with a big reputation when he or she tells us […]
Wednesday 15 January
Life is ordinary Sometimes my experience of God is not mature enough, so I miss God calling me to act in the ordinary commonplace of my daily life [1 Sam 3:1-10;19-20]. If I pray today Psalm 39 I will find the way to be more attuned in my ordinary day; trusting with an open heart, […]
Tuesday 17 September
1 Timothy 3: 1-13, Psalm 101, Luke 7:11-17 Healing hands The parlous state of this Jewish woman without family support moves Jesus to compassion. Amongst the vast array of His healing methods, hands play a vital role. The touch of a hand can convey a thousand messages from affirmation and congratulation right through to healing. […]
Wednesday 7 August
Numbers 13:1-2,25-14:1,26-29,34-35 Ps.106, Matthew 15:21-28 Feelings are cruel dictators God wills the best for us but allows consequences and will never negate free will. Adult faith requires trust in God and discernment, not simply reacting on feelings. In the Numbers account God told the Israelites he was giving them the land. Focusing on feeling like […]
Tuesday 2 July
Genesis 19: 15-29, Ps. 26, Matthew 8: 23-27 Rocky times Fear is a natural part of faith. By it faith grows strong as we learn to put our trust always in God. How long is it since fear has rocked my discipleship? Is my faith something that just ‘floats my boat’ as the saying goes? […]
Friday 28 June
Genesis 17:1, 9-10, 15-22, Ps 128, Matthew 8:1-4 Love carried me It is an iconic image and a beloved poem. Two sets of footprints, mine and God’s, in the sand, becoming one. And the puzzle – where were you, Lord? The Lord replied, “The times when you have seen only one set of footprints is […]
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