After the Good Shepherd Parish Masses yesterday morning I drove down to Christchurch for a couple of meetings. The latter meeting was with the Vocations Team, the group that I am working with to promote Vocations to the diocesan priesthood in the diocese.

The first meeting was with young people who have made a commitment to the School of the New Evangelization formation programme in the diocese. I was with them for a weekend six weeks ago and yesterday’s session was a follow-up. It was inspiring to be with the group again. They shared some of their reflections since our weekend together. One of the group reminded me of a great C.S. Lewis quotation. While Lewis is best known for his Narnia books, he has many other inspiring writings, including a sermon entitled : “The Weight of Glory.”  In that sermon he writes:

“It would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.”