Perhaps it was being in the presence of so many Jesuits over the past weekend that stirred a deep gratitude in me for the Jesuits who have had a hand in my own formation. Each of them in their own way and using their own abilities, have communicated something of the breadth and depth that…(Read More)
There is one moment in the year when Christians around the world gather at the same hour, 3.00pm on Good Friday for the celebration of the Lord’s Passion. This is one of the best attended liturgies in the year and it surprises and encourages me that people continue to come to this liturgy…(Read More)
These three days, from Holy Thursday evening until the Saturday evening Vigil of Easter, are at the heart of our life as Christians and therefore the core of our human existence. An Invitation I find it helpful to live these three days, the Triduum, as days of retreat. You will probably be fully occupied…(Read More)
Last night at the Vigil Mass the priest used the line: “no one gets out of life alive.” It is a sobering thought and a fact. It’s the kind of fearsome one-liner that fire and brimstone sermons once relished but thanks be to God last night the priest was much more gentle and…(Read More)
I often think that I have the best job in the world, not a job really but a life. As a priest I am very fortunate. I have to add that I love my work because I am someone who has always embraced and enjoyed adventure and challenge and the daily life of a priest…(Read More)
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 for those citizens who are most vulnerable and…(Read More)
In the early 1980‘s I lived for six years of formation for priesthood at Holy Cross seminary in Mosgiel. In the late 1990’s when the number of seminarians was relatively low, the seminary was shifted to Ponsonby in Auckland where a new surge of passion for the life of faith has seen significant…(Read More)
Don’t get down when you hear this Sunday’s first reading. Jeremiah is having a bad day. He’s a bit overwhelmed with the negative response he is getting when he passes God’s message to the people. In short, Jeremiah is having a Jeremiad. While we all have bad days, Jeremiah is very…(Read More)
It’s a beautiful Sunday morning here at sunrise, the bells of the monastery have been ringing calling the monks to prayer, and in a couple of hours we will gather with the community and other retreatants for the Sunday morning monastery Mass. We have a wonderful selection of readings in today’s liturgy. I…(Read More)
Today I’m at one of the many very beautiful cemeteries of the Hurunui. We the family and friends of one who has died, have gathered here in Waikari to bury him. When we gather for a funeral, we are confronted with the reality of death. The one we have known and loved in life…(Read More)
It was only a few short months ago that I posted some pictures taken at this spot (in the Cheviot Hills Reserve) on the Food For Faith Facebook page. The pictures were of daffodils among the trees here behind me. Well, it’s a very different scene here today. There are Autumn leaves everywhere…(Read More)
This evening I plan to be at the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament choir and orchestra performance of Bach’s St. John’s Passion. Details below. But before then, at 3.00pm in Hawarden, I will unite with Christians around the world for the solemn Celebration of the Lord’s Passion. This liturgy seems to…(Read More)
Here in Canterbury New Zealand these past few years we rarely share our stories without telling of earthquakes. Our stability has been rocked in every way. We had thought that our turn on shaky ground had passed and recovery was underway. But then just after midnight on the morning of November 14 the entire region…(Read More)
the king, with the crown…of thorns. It’s the last Sunday of the Church year today. In recent weeks the readings of the liturgy have been preparing us for the end times (eschaton) with reminders that there will come a time when all that we can see and touch on earth is no more…(Read More)
I will never know the depth of enduring pain felt by a mother who watches helplessly as her child suffers and dies. As a priest I have buried too many children and young people, and witnessed the torment of the anguished parents. Today’s feast of Our Lady of Sorrows reminds me of the ancient…(Read More)
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