“For the Love of God”
For the love of God. These five words provide a great focus for this moment. At this time the word “dreadful” so often fits the scene; people battling with bad health, loss of loved ones, the constant crisis that has been the coronavirus, and now the crisis in the Ukraine.
Last week’s focus was on six words. Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Jesus, Mary and Joseph. The life of God in heaven and the light of God’s family life on earth, the family home in Nazareth. It is only light that can dispel darkness, and because there is no magic in God, one of the most frequent signs that I turn to is the crucifixion ……. and to be honest, still remains for me a great mystery… hope remains in the words “no cross, no crown”.
Rightly there is a great outpouring of sympathy for the victims with a constant cry for help for the people from Ukraine. Pope Francis leads the appeal from our church with requests for novenas, fasting and prayer. Please God, we will make a good response.
Following up on last weeks expression “Lent means Spring”, at the core of our parish there is a great need for our response for Spring. As the contingences that were put in place for the pandemic are being lifted, a return to life is now very possible ….. but it is a very different situation. Age has certainly taken its toll, so unless we have a new generation, there is no magic, we will be at a great loss. I return to something important that I will continue to say. The only thing that we can rely upon for the future from the fruits of the harvest, is the seeds that we sow. A great thanks to those who are sowing new seeds. I am truly grateful, particularly those at work with our children’s liturgy.
Also a great significance is the work that is being done for the Synod, and the hope that new core groups will begin to take shape. To develop and grow must become a real desire. The great emphasis on convenience and being able to go to mass has had its day. The realization that all the seminaries were closing , the amount of Catholic teachers that are available from our Catholic schools are very few, with the amount of children making First Holy Communion, but it is also their last time. We have a great ray of sunshine from St George’s church with a very good programme of preparation for confirmation getting underway, a ray of hope, with the return of our communities to our Sunday Mass.