We left the hotel at 8 this morning for the Church of the Pater Noster; the place where pilgrims remember the disciples request of Jesus: Lord, teach us to pray. Jesus...
john oconnor
prayer intentions
A large number of people have asked us to carry prayer intentions on their behalf. We are happy to do this since this is at the heart of the mission of the pilgrim. Two...
day one
It is the end of our first full day in Jerusalem. Today our guide, Adrian, led us around the old city of Jerusalem. The city is a brief five-minute bus ride from our...
Jerusalem
A couple of hours ago our group landed in Tel Aviv. We were met by our guide and driver and within a further hour we were at our hotel in Jerusalem, 'tired and...
Singapore
The pilgrims have landed in Singapore. But we are also aware that this was the point that most of the group reached two years ago before the volcano put an end to the...
departure
Christchurch airport. 29 April 2012, 10.30am Thomas Merton's Pilgrim's Prayer:My Lord God,I have no idea where I am going.I do not see the road ahead of me.I cannot...
pilgrimage departs tomorrow
Tomorrow morning the pilgrims depart from Christchurch for the Holy Land.Please keep us in your prayers. If you have a special prayer intention you wish us to carry...
Vocations Sunday
When did you last encourage someone to consider that God might be calling them to serve as a priest?This Sunday (“Good Shepherd Sunday”, the Fourth Sunday of Easter) is...
Easter IV newsletter
The weekly newsletter for the Catholic Parishes of the Hurunui and the Chatham Islands is now uploaded at www.catholichurunui.co.nz
brain food
Too often we seek nourishment for our faith only in what is labelled 'spiritual'. Then we thing that 'spiritual' is a synonym only for what is 'nice' or 'good feeling'...
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joy for life
As we make our way through Advent we are not alone. Not only are several hundred of us making this daily Food For Faith pilgrimage, but we are preparing for Christmas as a part of the praying church, that is united with those for whom the Hours of the Church's liturgy...
choosing life
This week the End of Life Choice bill has been debated in the New Zealand parliament resulting in the decision to send the bill to Select Committee and consult citizens in a referendum. The most reliable measure of a civilised society is the degree of care provided...
freedom
Humans are made for freedom which is why we react so strongly against anything that appears to limit our liberty. However our understanding of freedom is often very impoverished. Freedom is not about being able to do whatever I want to do whenever I want to do it....
lectio divina
In our first Advent reflections I offered an encouragement to take time during these Advent days to be still and silent perhaps a couple of times each day and to know the presence of God. I also emphasised that it doesn't matter too much what happens during these two...
crooked lines
In his video reflection on Sunday Christchurch Bishop-elect Paul Martin encouraged us to use the daily scriptures to guide us through Advent. These daily readings are available at this link. Today's scriptures remind us that God is not just another good human person,...