While driving even greater distances than usual these Advent / Christmas days to celebrate the sacraments around the Hurunui I have had plenty of time to listen to...
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family life
It was Fr. Robert Barron who set my homily thinking off this week in preparation for this Sunday's feast of the Holy Family. In his Word on Fire homily for the feast...
homily inspiration
I hope you have managed to hear a great Christmas homily in recent days and that your priest or minister did not disappoint. I have heard (via Youtube) a superb homily...
how unexpected
The Christian community often struggles to be an effective communicator of the heart of the life of Faith. Thanks to St. Paul's Anglican Church in Auckland who in...
bye bye lully lullay
Surrounded by presents and tinsel, peaceful nativity scenes and Christmas goodwill, it is easy to forget the full reality of the Christmas event. December 28, the feast...
what about now?
Pope Francis never ceases to amaze us. Speaking at the December 17 General Audience, he said, “The Incarnation of the Son of God opens a new beginning in the universal...
God is with us
I have just arrived home after celebrating the first three Masses of Christmas: Amberley 5.00pm, Culverden 7.00pm and Hanmer Springs 9.00pm. In the past 30 hours I have...
worth sharing
Now here's a Christmas poster worth printing and sharing... (download at this link) perhaps print and give as an affordable gift...
santa’s birth
We can no longer assume that people know the meaning of Christmas. A child recently asked about the significance of Christmas replied: “it is when Santa Claus was...
a new bishop
Pope Francis has appointed Fr. Steve Lowe, priest of the Catholic Diocese of Christchurch, to be the new bishop of the Diocese of Hamilton. In this brief video he...
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truth & freedom
The child without thinking reaches out and grasps hold of maybe a finger and holds on. Perhaps they are thinking that if they hold on they will be more secure?
looking up
The serpent is not a bad creature – just an early ancestor of advertising which promises us the world, offering us the power and popularity of a god if only you eat this, do this, buy this, own this, wear this, shop here…
behind closed doors
The Church was born in closed rooms. It was in these confines where Jesus broke through locked doors and fearful hearts to form and now (in these days) to re-form the church.
living the storm
The storm exposes our vulnerability and uncovers those false and superfluous certainties around which we have constructed our daily schedules, our projects, our habits, and priorities.
indulging
I’m a great fan of indulgence and I know that in these lockdown days the temptation is to over-indulge in one or many of the good options available.