Sunday July 29th 2018 ~ John 6:1-15 Jesus comes to serve.

 In John’s version of the Feeding of the 5,000 Jesus performs this great miracle and it is the sign the crowds were waiting for. There is a lot of rich symbolism in this passage referring to Jesus as the Bread of Life, the one who will satisfy people’s hunger, the great teacher. But perhaps the final lines tell us a lot about the type of ‘King’ Jesus really is. The crowds are so enthused by Jesus’ miracles and teaching that they want to ‘take him by force and make him King’. Jesus tries to discourage them from their own ideas of Kingship. His Kingship involves a different path to the one the crowd are expecting. Jesus is cautious and to escape the attention, perhaps to be alone and pray, he takes himself out of this situation and retreats to the mountain. It could be tempting to give in to the crowd and have them declare you as their king. Jesus’ example of leadership is service in today’s Gospel, feeding the people, nourishing the people, meeting their needs. It also shows us how God can work with what we have to offer, no matter how little that sometimes is, He can turn this into much fruit.

A final lesson may be for those in authority of any sort, that they know when it is time to leave the people they serve, to reflect on their mission, to recharge and nourish themselves. Only in this way can they listen to the Spirit and experience the inner freedom necessary to lead as servant.

July 22nd 2018 Gospel: Mark 6:30-34 Crowds and Shepherds

The Gospel today emphasises the importance of taking time for yourself as Jesus takes the disciples to a deserted place after all their hard work. It teaches an important lesson about remaining connected to Jesus if we are to be his followers. It is unfortunate for them that their break is interrupted. The crowd are thirsty for more and suffering from a lack of real leadership. Jesus has so much compassion for the people that the phrase Mark uses actually means he felt compassion in his intestines! A biblical way of saying he felt compassion for them in the pit of his stomach.

Next month we greet the shepherd of the Catholic Church as Pope Francis comes to Ireland for the World Meeting of Families. It will be a momentous occasion, a once in a life-time experience to see and to hear from a Pope who has so much to say to us about sharing the Gospel message in our world. He calls us to be joyful Christians, to reach out to the poor and abandoned, to be disciples in our families, communities, on the streets and to help build a world that is true to Christ’s vision for this world. Pope Francis is a leader who inspires many. Whether you are travelling to the festival or watching it at home we pray for the success of this extraordinary event. Let us pray today for leaders in our church and in our communities that they will inspire people, nurture people and listen to the Spirit who guides us on this path.

July 15th 2018 Gospel: Mark 6:7-13 A better world.

Being a follower of Jesus means to be ‘sent out’. Our spiritual lives ought to be visible on the outside through our actions and dealings with others. The disciples are sent in twos for companionship but also as a team, one person cannot have all the gifts and there is support in working with another.

We might interpret the many demons that they cast out as all those things in the world that are not of the Spirit, the injustices in our world. Jesus sends the disciples out to work for a better world, to bring more love, compassion and peace to those that they encounter. They go and urge people to repent, to turn around. This is one of the goals of their mission and Jesus’ mission: to turn the world around.

Jesus’ instructions to shake the dust from their feet when they feel unwelcome may seem harsh at first. We too may fear rejection and when we experience it, it can leave us feeling exhausted and upset. Perhaps the message here is to free ourselves and move on; to not let that disappointment and upset control our lives because if we do, we lose our freedom, it holds us back and it starts to define us. In the midst of that experience, our true mission can become lost. As we prepare to welcome Pope Francis to Ireland, let us go out and bring joy and hope to those we encounter.

  “You might be the only Gospel which people read.”

July 8th Gospel: Mark 6:1-6 Prophets & Home Countries

Prophets and home countries – it’s a well known phrase. You don’t have to go too far to see examples of this Gospel around you. Anyone who returns to their home town with new knowledge and wisdom will soon be put in their place. This is what occurs in Jesus’ home town of Nazareth in today’s Gospel. Even though the crowd are impressed by the local carpenter’s son, astounded even, and note that he has great wisdom, still He could do no deed of power there. It is definitely a reality check experience. Have you ever had this experience in your own life? A time you were really excited about a new found knowledge or inspired by a great event or speaker; yet when you returned to tell friends or family members they made fun of you or greeted you with cynicism? Or you can imagine yourself in the crowd today, listening to the local carpenter’s son, so full of wisdom and great teachings, yet you can’t quite believe it. In the end the Gospel tells us that Jesus, having been unable to do any deeds of power there, left and went around the villages teaching. Simply put, there are times when you have to move on.

“Lord how often you have sent Jesus to us in the form of someone we knew well, but they were just too ordinary for us. All we could see was the carpenter, the son of our neighbour . . . So the great miracle you had in store for us could not be worked. Lord have mercy.” (Michel de Verteuil)

July 1st 2018 ~ Talitha Kum!

Today’s Gospel offers us two stories of the healing miracles of Jesus showing us something of how God’s grace can enter our lives and transform our situations. We can all recall times when we were struggling, whether it be with a relationship or illness. We needed something to move us, to help us forgive, to help us walk away or to relieve us of physical pain. In the end it can be the simple gestures that save us: a kind word, someone praying for us, a gentle touch or we reach out to someone and like the woman with the haemorrhage we suddenly feel within ourselves that we are healed.

The woman is physically healed through her faith-filled action but Jesus reaches out to her in another way by calling her ‘Daughter’. He restores her status among the people. She would have been completely outcasted in society because of her illness and Jesus does not let social convention dictate who he should or should not acknowledge. All are children of God. We are called to do the same, to reach out to those whom society declares ‘unclean’ and those with whom we would rather not be associated. Jesus reminds the people of this woman’s true identity as a child of God. 

As Mark returns to the account of Jairus’ daughter we hear how Jesus restores the young girl to life with the simple words: ‘Talitha, Kum!’ (little girl, get up). God’s grace is gentle yet can bring life to situations of death. What do you need healing from today? Ask the Lord for what you need.

Sunday June 24th 2018

Today we celebrate the birth of John the Baptist and listen to Luke’s account of his nativity. John’s story is one of sacrifice and humility. His parents know there will be something very special about this child. The circumstances surrounding his birth already have people amazed. Jewish historians account that John was a preacher around the time of Pontius Pilate who went around calling people to renewal! He spent a lot of time in the wilderness, eating wild things and wearing sackcloth. He must have been a very interesting and attractive figure as we are told in the gospels that people flocked to the River Jordan to be baptised by him; a sign of their repentance or renewal of relationship with God. John gathered so many followers around him that he was considered a threat to Herod Antipas who feared he might begin a rebellion. John was a preacher, a prophet, a signpost pointing people in the right direction: towards Jesus of Nazareth.

We can pray today for all those people who acted as signposts in our lives and brought us closer to God in some way, those who guided us and pointed us in the right direction when we needed it. We too are also called to be signposts for others.

‘Lord, we thank you for people who guided us, but did not try to possess us: parents, teachers, spiritual guides, friends. For a time we stood with them. Very simply, like John the Baptist, they said to us, “Look, there is the one you should follow,” and hearing this we followed that person.’

Michel de Verteuil