Tag Archive for ‘mercy’
Sunday 23 October
Thirtieth Week of Ordinary Time Sirach 35:12-14, 16-19; Psalm 34:2-3, 17-19, 23; 2Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18; Luke 18:9-14 Lord have mercy They say that the Mass is a celebration. So wouldn’t you expect to begin with a cheery greeting, a glass of fizz and a feel-good story? Instead, straight in, we ‘call to mind our sins.’ […]
Friday 29 October
Romans 9:1-5; Psalm 147:12-20; Luke 14:1-6 God, forever blessed The praise of God echoes through the psalms, together with pleas for protection and renewals of repentance. These prayers are mirrors reflecting the human condition. I am capable of the highest form of bravery and the deepest treachery. O God, I praise you for your faithful […]
Our Merciful God
Sometimes, when you go to another place, you listen to the Mass with different ears – the familiarity is gone. The voice of a different priest and the slight variations in liturgy make you take more notice. That happened for me recently and it suddenly struck me about how often in the Mass we ask […]
8 February: Day of Prayer Against Human Trafficking
St Josephine Bakhita was born in Darfur, Sudan, in 1869. She was nine when she was kidnapped and sold as a slave, so traumatised by the experience that she could no longer remember her name. Her captors named her ‘bakhita’, which means ‘fortunate’. In 1882, she became the property of the Italian consul, whose family […]
Tuesday 22 October
Romans 5:12, 15, 17-21; Psalm 40; Luke 12:35-38 Grace was even greater While St Paul teaches that human sin and death are the bitter fruit of Adam’s original sin, he proclaims repeatedly, “it is even more certain that divine grace, coming through the one man, Jesus Christ, came to so many as an abundant free […]
Monday 14 October
Romans 1:1-7; Psalm 98; Luke 11:29-32 Jesus, the sign of Jonah In the Old Testament, Jonah preached to the Assyrians of Nineveh; and the Queen of Sheba visited Jerusalem to listen to the wisdom of Solomon. The pagan Assyrians repented and were saved. The pagan Queen was entranced by the graced wisdom of Solomon. Jesus […]
The Role of Law in the Catholic Church
A sanctuary in the city Just a few kilometres from central Wellington is an extraordinary sanctuary – Zealandia – where dozens of endangered New Zealand species thrive. What makes it a sanctuary is the mesh fence that surrounds it, bending sharply outwards at the top and sitting deeply under the ground to keep out climbing […]
Wednesday 21 August
St Pius X (m) Judges 9:6-15; Psalm 21; Matthew 20:1-16 Exposing our holy veneer This parable strips off our veneer of holiness, exposing our hidden jealousy and anger that God would flout our internalised justice. God’s radical mercy shocks us. Something screams at the idea that God is in total control and astonishingly chooses to […]
Wednesday 14 August
St Maximilian Kolbe (m) Deuteronomy 34:1-12; Psalm 66; Matthew 18:15-20 The gift of reconciliation Seeking reconciliation rather than engaging in destructive gossip, resentment, revenge or hatred is designed to bring healing and harmony. Sometimes, however, perpetrators are unwilling or unable to accept responsibility and true reconciliation with them is impossible; then Jesus advises distance. We […]
Saturday 3 August
St Dominic (M) Leviticus 25:1, 8-17; Psalm 69; Matthew 14:1-12 Jubilee mercy Leviticus prescribes a Jubilee every fiftieth year. Slaves and prisoners are freed, debts forgiven, crops and lands rested, and the mercies of God lived out. We constantly debate climate, war and mass migration, while God’s wisdom calls for respite for the earth, personal […]
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