Before you watch, take a moment to call to mind the intention for which you want to pray.
Angelus
ring the bells
“To the person of faith, it’s a moment of grace; to the person without faith, it’s a moment of peace. What’s not to like?”
Angelus
The Opening Prayer (or “Collect” of today’s Mass for the Fourth Sunday of Advent is the concluding prayer of the “Angelus”
God with us
t's the feast of the Annunciation today - the day on which Jesus' human life began and therefore nine months until Christmas. Take a moment to appreciate...
Angelus Sunday
If I were to give this Sunday the Fourth Sunday of Advent a name, I would designate it as Angelus Sunday. Here's why:
Angelus Sunday
If I had to the opportunity to name a Sunday of the Church Year, I would give this weekend's fourth Sunday of Advent the name "Angelus Sunday." Here's why...
Advent Angelus
You might recognise the Collect or Opening Prayer from this Sunday's Mass for the Fourth Sunday of Advent. It is the prayer of the Angelus: Listen carefully to...
God comes down
While it's the morning after the Feast of the Annunciation here in New Zealand, there are many parts of the world still celebrating this great feast, so I still have...
birth & death
Take a moment to appreciate this Millet masterpiece. Even if you have never seen the image before, you will guess that these peasants are praying. When the one who...
the angel of the Lord…
One of my favourite formal prayers is the Angelus. This prayer focusses the pray-er on the moment when God took on human flesh in Jesus, the moment of the conception of...
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Annunciation
A couple of thousand years ago, a young Jewish woman was going about her normal morning routines, perhaps with a mixture of house and garden work, chatting with parents and neighbours, aware of the local drought, the sickness of a neighbour and annoyed by the neighbourhood’s lack of sleep caused by the Romans’ noisy party the night before, when God broke into her routine and entered her life in a new and powerful way.
the real centre
Over the last month I have had the opportunity to work with many people across Aotearoa and further afield. In every retreat and seminar I have been with committed and faith-filled people who often feel as though they are on the periphery of the Church
the adventure
It’s easy to make the mistake of seeing life as a treadmill, day after day ups and downs, a movement through time from youth to old age, then death and beyond.
Too often if feels as if we are helplessly captive carried along by the momentum of all that is expected of us and demanded from us, and we risk falling into an existence mode, a daily rhythm of survival, enduring, coping and so the treadmill rolls on.
the bigger picture
Over the years, and even in recent months, weeks and days, I’ve prayed many prayers which have not been answered as I had hoped.
You’ve probably had the same experience: praying and wondering if and when or how your prayer will be answered.
moving waters
Bible questions still pop up regularly in quiz shows and they often cost otherwise sharp players much needed points.
I’m ready for a question asking for the two names for the last book of the Bible. The book often known as Apocalypse is perhaps more often referred to as the Book of Revelation.
It’s common (thanks to movies) to think of an apocalypse as a devastating and unwelcome time of destruction.