And so to Galilee

First - happy feast day of Pentecost to everybody for yesterday!  Second, Sister Cristina went on to win The Voice Italy on Thursday...

But now back to the Holy Land. After arriving on Monday, by Saturday it was now time to leave Jerusalem for Galilee. As with each time I leave the city, I wondered if I would ever be back. Who knows?..  Jerusalem is hustle and bustle, a city modern and ancient, Jewish, Moslem and Christian - everything and everybody all wrapped up into one, with the life, death and Resurrection of Jesus embedded at its centre. Galilee, on the other hand, is calm, soothing, beautiful and largely rural.

We set off along the vastly improved modern highway system, north out of Judaea, dropping down to the coastal plain and then turning north towards Nazareth. Eventually there it was rising up on its hilltop, and soon we could see the huge modern basilica of the Annunciation rising up from among the bustling town centre (left). We were expecting to celebrate Mass in the church of St Joseph in the grounds, but when we were in the Basilica, a friar told us that the main altar in the big church was available, so we had Mass there instead. Our group gathered around the altar and many other people took part from further down in the church. We thought about Mary and Joseph, and how Mary heard the Word and made herself available to the Holy Spirit, so that the Word would become flesh. We too are to listen to the Word and put flesh on it through our lives.

After Mass we strolled over to St Joseph's and found a new statue of St Joseph in a garden that I found very inspiring (not very good pic right). Then after another lovely lunch all together, we moved on towards our destination Tiberias, via Cana, of wedding feast fame. Usually we have a time of prayer here, remembering deceased husbands and wives, or those we have left at home; we pray for the separated or divorced; we recall other vocations too - single life, including those in vows or or holy orders.  Those who are on pilgrimage as a couple have the opportunity to renew their vows. When we got to the church there was an extravagant, beautiful and moving Ethiopian marriage going on, with much music, dancing and devotion. Our group loved it - a real blessing and gift. We still had our prayers, though out in a corner of the forecourt instead, but it was still a lovely moment on our journey, when we each considered how we have answered the call of the Lord.

Eventually we pulled into Tiberias on the wonderful Sea of Galilee, where we would be based for a several more days. I found my room, opened my window onto the lake and thanked God for being able to return to one of my favourite places on earth.

(Pic is someone's Google Earth off-season shot from our hotel)

Peacocks, cable cars, mines and fresh orange juice

STOP PRESS - Sister Cristina - the Singing Nun - has made it to the final of The Voice Italy tomorrow! See my posting of  21st March...

 

On the Friday we took a trip out of the city to visit Jericho in the Jordan Valley and the Dead Sea. We hadn't devoted a day to Jericho before, but it is a place with a long history - possibly the longest continuous habitation of anywhere on earth!  There are many excavations in the area around the city, which is one of the main towns in the famous West Bank are of the Palestinian Territory. 

We headed to the Franciscan church in the town (left), where we were told that a bevy of bishops had arrived whom the Franciscans felt should have the church for Mass. We are banished to the garden, which turned out to be a blessing, as it was a lovely day, we were under an awning and a proud peacock strutted his way behind me through the celebration. In the Gospel, Jesus told us that he was and is the Way, the Truth and the Life. If we are to listen to the voice of the Lord, well, then, we must also act on it, making his Way, Truth and Life truly our own.

In 2000 a cable car was built to reach the Mount of Temptations which overlooks the town (above). We all went up in groups of six, swaying high above the dry land. The Monastery on the mountain was shut, but we enjoyed a relaxing interlude and cold drink gazing out over the huge vista.

Back on terra firma we headed for an open air restaurant for lunch and then drove out of the town in blistering heat to the site of the Baptism, south towards the Dead Sea. The West Bank side has only been reopened to visitors recently after being mined. It was good to visit this after several visits to the "imaginary" site way up by the Sea of Galilee, which is very attractive, but nowhere near where the event happened.  We renewed our baptismal promised, and I signed each on the forehead with Jordan water and poured some over their hands. A very hot stroll back in the 90sF to the coach and we were off to the Dead Sea.

I'm no big fan of the DS. I don't like the feel of it, and while it's good to have the experience of floating in it, on this occasion I opted for a gorgeous freshly-squeezed-in-front-of-you orange drink or two. Beautiful. And so back to the city for our last evening in Jerusalem, where the hotel put on its weekly Sultan's Banquet, where David excelled as sultan, Tania starred as his, er,.sultana, and Norbert stunned us all by his, um, exotic dancing (no pics alas!).

To Calvary and beyond

Our Jerusalem hotel was located right opposite the city walls, so in order to follow the Via Dolorosa, the Stations of the Cross, we just crossed the road, went in through Herod's Gate and strolled through the Arab quarter to Mass at the Ecce Homo Convent (left). Here the sisters look after the remains of the palace of Pilate, possibly where the trial of Jesus took place. Underneath is the famous pavement marked with the games that the Roman soldiers played.

Here, we remembered how Pilate presented the people with the choice - Jesus or Barabbas? Here the voice of Jesus is largely silent, we look, reflect - and choose. Barabbas, the world, the easy life, or Jesus, the Way, the Truth and the Life?

After Mass we set off on the Way of the Cross through the streets of the Old City. Half way along we managed to obtain a cross for the group to carry - 3 people for each Station. By now my toe problem was playing up after a few days of punishment - but it all seemed tiny compared to his condition...  Soon we arrived at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the goal of countless pilgrims down through the centuries... The surprise, some might say shock, of this crowded noisy complex building is long past for me on this my fifth visit. I left the long queue of people waiting to enter the Tomb, and as I came round to the front of it (below, on a quieter day!), a man got up from one of the few seats, smiled, and disappeared into the crowd. And so I sat there, right in front of the Tomb's entrance, for about half an hour. The noise and bustle slowly melted away in my mind, and I was left face to face with the simple truth of an empty tomb. Looking back, these moments were the heart of the pilgrimage for me this time round.

After this visit we went for lunch and then on to the area known as Mount Zion with its Dormition Abbey. We gathered around the statue of the deceased Mary in the crypt, remembering our loved ones, and I asked Clare to sing a verse of the Magnificat ("My soul is filled with joy..."). It was a beautiful end to the day.

God who cries

The second day of our p8lgrimage was centred on the Mount of Olives. We started admiring the beautiful panorama of the Old City from the top (above), then made our way down the steep path that marks the way that Jesus followed on Palm Sunday. At its bottom lies the Garden of Gethsemane, a place of tremendous spiritual power, while back at the top we visited the small Chapel of the Ascension and the church that marks the teaching by Jesus of the Our Father, where we find the prayer in so many different languages written out on ceramic tiles.
However, on the way down to Gethsemane we stopped for Mass at the famous chapel of Dominus Flevit - the Lord Wept (Luke 19). Whereas in Bethlehem we listened to the voice of Jesus as a helpless babe, now we listened again, and heard his man's tears. He weeps for his beloved Jerusalem - and maybe for us too. He weeps for our sins, the damage we do to others and to ourselves. He weeps for the wounds and scars in our lives - the damage done to us by others. But he does not stop at tears, he goes on to offer us forgiveness, healing and peace. And so here, where the Lord wept, we asked him to come to each of us and make us whole. The wall behind the altar here (right) is a window looking out, as Jesus did, over the city of Jerusalem. As we quietly reflected on where we are in our lives, a few of our tears were added to those of the Lord.

To Jerusalem

Long gap, because I have spent a wonderful week or so in the Holy Land, where Pope Francis has now decided to follow me!  I thought I might try and give a hint of what we get up to o these pilgrimages, and what kind of thing I share with the pilgrims during our daily Mass, the heart of our pilgrimage.

We flew out on Monday 12th May and spent the first five nights at the Golden Walls Hotel, facing the ancient city walls. We stayed there on our last visit in 2009, and its location is perfect. We  set out on our first day for Bethlehem, but to reach it you have to pass through the oppressive security wall that separates much of the Palestinian Territory from Israel. 

A brief walk in the city brought us to the little church of the Milk Grotto (left), where the Holy Family traditionally stopped on their journey to Egypt, either to hide from Herod or to feed the baby - or both! We celebrated Mass in one of the newer chapels added in more recent years, dedicated to Mary, Mother of God. 

Here I introduced a theme of the pilgrimage - listening to the voice of Jesus. Here, of course, it was the voice of a baby - God calling out to us through the gurgles and cries of a helpless little one. Bring a baby into a room full of adult strife and everything changes. An innocent bay radiates love and hope for the future, and draws love from those around. So the voice of Jesus, God-made-man, first calls out to us through the most dependent and trusting of human beings - a baby.

We then visited the Church of the Nativity (right), the 6th century building that protects the Grotto marking the traditional spot of Our Lord's birth. The queue to go down was very long... so after a brief visit to St Catherine's, the Catholic church on the site, we returned to the coach and headed off to lunch. This was near the Shepherds' Field, which we visited in the afternoon before returning to the Golden Walls to reflect on our first day.

Celebrating

Great weekend at Celebrate Wales 2014 up at our local Corpus Christi High School. I particularly noticed a beautiful atmosphere - exciting yet calm. Speakers were excellent and

included Pastor Clyde Thomas (left) from the Victory Church in Cwmbran. He must have been good, because I'm going to get the CDs - which is very rare for me now, to want to listen to a talk again. I was a proud parish priest to see so many of our parishioners taking an active part in every aspect of the weekend, from making the tea to playing the cello to running the PA system to praying with people... Must be doing something right, folks!

I was asked to be main celebrant at the final Mass on Sunday afternoon, which is a great privilege. There were so many children and young people involved, it was wonderful. One of the most distinctive things about Celebrate is that it is very geared to families, with "streams" of activities for all age groups. It really shows up so many Church events where families are excluded because of time of day, lack of facilities etc. Fantastic. Loads of credit to all the organizers especially Mary and Simon on the local level, and Charles, Sue and Jenny on the national level. I nabbed Charles Whitehead - Mr Big in the charismatic world - to come and lead a Day of Renewal here at St Brigid's in November.

Well, today is Bank Holiday, and I've had a quiet day, though the phone rang all morning it

seemed, with little regard for it being a holiday. I was looking forward to a production of "Under Milk Wood" on BBC Wales this evening. This is part of the centenary celebrations of Dylan Thomas's birth in 1914. It was a radio play, so it's not easy to translate to TV. I thought they did well, with its "star-studded cast", but felt that some of the non-actors lacked a certain quality. Tom Jones can belt it out, but Captain Cat's poignant reminiscences are something different. Still, it's a great play. I visited Laugharne last year - and almost froze to death - and, rather like listening to "Myfanwy" sung by a male voice choir, if your heart isn't stirred by "Under Milk Wood" then you're not quite Welsh in my opinion.

Easter life

It's been a bit longer than usual since my last post. Which is actually a good sign - that I'm back to normal energy levels after my brush with the demon bacteria of cellulitis, and catching up with stuff that I just couldn't face during that period.

We had great Triduum services at our 3 Churches. People seemed to get a lot particularly from Good Friday at St Brigid's. What great wisdom the Church has in making sure we revisit these sacred events each year. It's much deeper than simply reminding us in case we forget...

Since Easter we have had several funerals into which to bring some of the light of the Resurrection. Also I have done some dashing around to give talks here and there - something I wouldn't have been able to do a month or two ago. This past Friday and Saturday I was at the High Leigh Christian Conference Centre in Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire, where people involved in leading the various Celebrate weeks and weekends were gathered to mark 20 years since the first Celebrate Conference in Ilfracombe. I was very honoured to be asked to give one of the three addresses. Then this Tuesday evening I shot up to Abergavenny to lead the first of the series of Life in the Spirit Seminars that are happening there.

On the subject of Celebrate and the seminars, we are all prepared now for the Celebrate Wales this coming weekend at our very own Corpus Christi High School. I'm celebrating the final Mass on Sunday afternoon and shall be popping in and out during Saturday and Sunday to fit in with parish duties. Then the following Sunday we start the Life in the Spirit seminars at our own prayer group in St Brigid's (Sundays 7.30pm May 11th). There's lots happening, and I'll try to give some flavour as we go along.

Since I have been feeling better, lots of parishioners have said how am looking better too, some adding, "Oh you looked terrible". I know what they mean, but somehow it doesn't help to know that I looked as bad as I felt!

Mass of the Lord's Supper

Here is a rough precis of my homily at the Mass of the Lord's Supper yesterday evening. I spoke briefly about the third theme of the evening - the priesthood - at the end of Mass.

The Collect or Opening Prayer of our Mass this evening used a beautiful phrase, calling the Eucharist "the banquet of love". What a wonderful description of the Sacrament whose institution we celebrate this evening. In fact, in preparing for the Triduum this week, and seeking the Lord's wisdom, I felt the Lord prompting me to simply "Tell them I love them". The Eucharist is an outpouring of that self-giving love that overwhelms us during these precious days.

As a priest - and a human being - I am so often aware of how love pursues us throughout our lives. Babies enthrall us because they exude love - and they draw love from us in return. Visiting a parishioner in Holme Tower hospice this afternoon with her husband, the love between them was quiet but unmistakably palpable. When with the bereaved, there are often tears and sometimes people apologise, but I like to remind them that those tears are a sign of love - so cry on...

So love flows through our humanity from cradle to grave - and beyond. We receive, we give - it is absolutely essential to humanity - and flows from God, who St John tells us IS love.

This evening we are also to reflect on Jesus' washing of the Apostles' feet. This astonishing scene - the Son of God washing the feet of his own creation challenges us about love. In Jesus' day everything was thrown onto the street, so people's feet were, um, rather unpleasant, so the washing of guests' feet was a job left to the lowest servant. What kind of love, then is this that our God-from -God, Light-from-Light, is on his knees before us? This scene, to be imprinted on the Apostles' memories, is firstly symbolic of Jesus' whole ministry as servant-king. Service is love-in-action, as Jesus is God-and-Man. secondly this love is an example. He is absolutely clear that we are to copy him, to wash one another's feet, in whatever way we can do that.

So - a banquet of love is what we gather for every time we come to Mass. We are fed for our own journey and the journey of the Church from the Upper Room to the Second Coming, and on that journey we are to love another as he has loved us, in humility and self-giving.

So we now proceed to the foot-washing. After I have washed twelve parishioners they will take up places around the church and you are invited to have your hands washed by them.

Pope Francis at Palm Sunday Mass

This was the unscripted homily of Pope Francis  at Mass on Sunday...

This week begins with the festive procession with olive branches: all the people welcome Jesus. The children, the young people sing, praising Jesus. But this week proceeds into the mystery of Jesus' death and his resurrection. We've heard the Passion of the Lord. So it'll do us well to ask ourselves one question: Who am I? Who am I before my Lord? Who am I before the Jesus who enters Jerusalem amid celebration? Am I able to express my joy, to praise him? Or do I keep a distance? Who am I before the Jesus who suffers?
We've heard many names, many names. The group of rulers, some priests, some Pharisees, the teachers of the law, who decided to kill him. They waited for the chance to apprehend him. Am I one of them?
We've likewise heard another name: Judas. Thirty pieces of silver. Am I like Judas? We've heard other names: the disciples who couldn't understand any of it, who fell asleep while Jesus suffered. Has my life fallen asleep? Or am I like the disciples, who didn't understand what betraying Jesus meant? Like that other disciple who wanted to settle everything with the sword: am I like them? Am I like Judas, who made a show of loving and kissing Jesus, only to hand him over, to betray him? Am I a traitor? Am I like those rulers who rushed to hold the tribunal and seek false witnesses: am I like them? And when I do these things, if I do them, do I believe that I save people with this?
Am I like Pilate? When I see that the situation's tough, I wash my hands and don't know to take my responsibility and I let them condemn – or do I condemn – people?

Am I like that crowd which didn't know whether it was taking part in a religious gathering, a trial or a circus, and chooses Barabbas? For them it's all the same: it was more fun to humiliate Jesus.
Am I like the soldiers who strike the Lord, spit on him, insult him, enjoying themselves by humiliating the Lord?
Am I like the Cyrenian who was coming home from work, was tired, but had the goodwill to help the Lord carry the cross?
Am I like those who went before the Cross and taunted Jesus: "If only he had more courage! Come down from the cross, and we'll believe in Him!" They taunted Jesus....
Am I like those courageous women, and like Jesus' Mamma, who were there, suffering in silence?
Am I like Joseph, the hidden disciple, who carries the body of Jesus with love to give it a tomb?
Am I like the two Marys who remain before the Tomb crying, praying?
Am I like those leaders who went to Pilate the following day to say: "Be on guard – this one said he would rise, so don't let them be fooled again!" and blocked his life, blocked the tomb to defend doctrine, so that life could not come out?
Where is my heart? Which of these people am I like? May this question accompany us all through this week.
[Acknowledgement to Rocco Palmo for translation]

Of a toe and a leg

Ho hum. I was just getting over the gradual removal of a callus under my little toe by the podiatrist's scalpel, when cellulitis struck further up the same leg! For those who don't know, this is a bacterial invasion of your body via a cut, bite, graze or similar. It goes for the limb, usually the lower leg in men, it seems. Then, if it gets the chance it heads for the blood stream to see what havoc it can cause there. I did have it once before, but this time it had bigger effect. 

As well as swollen and reddened lower leg I was really sort of out of it for a week or two. I could just about take one service in a day, and the rest of the time I had to sit in my chair. Of course, being bacterial the main weapon is antibiotics, which I was on for a fortnight, and, yes, it's sometimes difficult to distinguish the effects of the antibiotic from the symptoms of the original problem. I finished the antibiotics last Monday and am well on the way to recovery, but still have to be careful, as I am clearly not as well yet as I think/would like to be. 

Anyway, this week I'm feeling much better, and people say I'm smiling again, which they seem to think is one of my characteristics. "Oh, Father, you did look awful" they say in an encouraging voice! What has made me smile is this genuine concern from so many people, especially the first Sunday that I was ill. First I forgot to send the Children's Liturgy out to the Hall, then I had a Eucharistic Minister give out Holy Communion for me, then I went straight to the sacristy after Mass instead of taking up my usual place outside the church door. Oh my goodness, it was like the end of the world. "But you are always there to say hello, Father!!"  I quickly realised that this was a huge compliment, even if it's also a reminder of how we can take our priests for granted... So, thank you, everyone, for your kind thoughts and especially your prayers.

They didn't expect that!

When all four judges on "The Voice Italy" pressed their buttons and spun around, they did not expect Sister Christina, a 25 year old sister from Sicily. Regulars of The Voice UK will know that getting all four judges to turn is something. In the chat after, sister says she half expects a call from Pope Francis, but it's all to do with evangelization... Go for it Sister!!

The language of love - Pope Francis sends video message

It's not often I shed a tear in front of the computer screen, but I must own up, as this video

went on... Watch the fear and prejudices of centuries melt before your eyes. If you have yet to be convinced of the gift to the Church that is Pope Francis, and indeed his predecessors, if you do not understand the power of the Holy Spirit in our time, then giving 45 minutes to watch this conference of Pentecostal Evangelical leaders will be some of the most valuable minutes you have given this Lent - or maybe ever! While it is true that the first speaker seems to be an advocate of a Christianity that is far from the Church would accept, so you can skip four minutes over him, and I'm not sure what kind of Anglican the second speaker is, he make ssoem interesting points and, of course, you are not allowed to skip over the third speaker!

The priest, the Mass, and love

This is a piece I wrote for the newsletter this week, that some people found to be powerful.

Every so often you come across a thought or some words that remind you about what’s really going on and what’s important. We all need that grounding from time to time – to get things in perspective, and stop us taking things for granted. And that includes priests. Our most common “activity”, indeed the occasion when parishioners see us most often, is when we are celebrating the Mass. How easy it could be to think that we’ve “got it”, that we totally understand what it’s all about.

So here is the great Cistercian monk Thomas Merton offering an awesome and humbling thought about what is really going on each time we approach the altar... ...

If you are afraid to love,

never become a priest, never say Mass.

The Mass will draw down upon your soul

a torrent of interior suffering which has only one function:

to break you wide open

and let everybody in the world into your heart.

For when you begin to say Mass,

the Spirit of God awakens like a giant inside you

and bursts the locks of  your private sanctuary.

If you say Mass,

you condemn your soul to the torrent of a love

that is so vast and insatiable

that you will never be able to bear it alone.

That love is the love of the Heart of Jesus,

burning within your own heart

and bringing down upon you the huge weight

of His compassion for all the sinners of the world.

Rembrandt live in Amsterdam

Last summer I visited Amsterdam and had a great time. One of the highlights is the beautifully restored Rijksmuseum, and the highlight of the museum is their collection of Rembrandts, and the highlight of them is the great "The Night Watch". This large and beautiful painting dominates the central hall and is truly a masterpiece. 

So, how clever is this? A flash mob was organized in a shopping mall in the city to advertise the museum. Watch and enjoy...

Why sinners go to Mass

The wisdom of Pope Francis... from his talk at this Wednesday's General Audience in St Peter's Square.

Judge carefully and humbly...

Not all things are as they appear... a clever two minute video

Acknowledgements to Mgr George Pope

The Ear of God

January has been a  gloomy month hasn't it? The wet weather has set the tone. I've had a problem with my little toe - isn't it amazing how so small a bit of our body can cause such disruption? Thank goodness we have excellent nurses at our local surgery who are taking care of Father... 

Then we have had rather a large number of deaths in our 3 Churches too. Someone else who died recently was Monsignor Ralph Brown of Westminster archdiocese. He has been what you might call the godfather of canon law in Britain for several decades, the top man in the little world which I inhabit when wearing that particular one of my hats. He asked Archbishop Stack to preach at his Requiem at Westminster Cathedral, and specifically asked him to quote a well-known passage from Cardinal Hume's book "To Be A Pilgrim". As I find it an inspiring passage too, here it is.

“Judgment is whispering into the ear of a merciful and compassionate God the story of my life which I have never been able to tell. Many of us have a story, or part of one at any rate, about which we have never been able to speak to anyone. Fear of being misunderstood. Inability to understand ourselves. Ignorance of the darker side of our hidden lives, or just shame, make it very difficult for many people. The true story of our life is not told, or only half of it is. What a relief it will be to be able to whisper freely and fully into that merciful and compassionate ear. After all, that is what he has always wanted. He receives us, His prodigal children, now contrite and humble, with an embrace. In that embrace we start to tell him our story and He begins that process of healing and preparation which we call Purgatory”

I Surrender

I was talking about Blessed Charles de Foucauld to a parish group yesterday. He was a big influence on me when, as a seminarian in Rome, I met the religious congregation inspired by his spirituality, the Little Brothers of Jesus. You can read about de Foucauld (not to be confused with the famous scientist) and his spiritual legacy here. The site includes a brief video of his life. He explored the spirituality of the hidden years of Jesus at Nazareth, and reached depths of commitment that led him to write a prayer that has become well known, as the "Prayer of Abandonment". I call it a "dangerous" prayer, because if we mean the words, then the Lord will quite likely take us up on it! 

Father,
I abandon myself into your hands;
do with me what you will.
Whatever you may do, I thank you:
I am ready for all, I accept all.

Let only your will be done in me,
and in all your creatures -
I wish no more than this, O Lord.
Into your hands I commend my soul:
I offer it to you with all the love of my heart,
for I love you, Lord, and so need to give myself,
to surrender myself into your hands without reserve,
and with boundless confidence,
for you are my Father.

The words "I Surrender" tend to be taken as a sign of weakness, but for the Christian, surrender to God is a sign of strength. Here is a video from the well-known Hillsong people which puts some of this theme into a worship song.

Holy Water

Another great video from Outside da Box, this time on Baptism

A Baby Is Comin'

Another great video from Igniter...