Redcliffe City Catholic Parish in Kippa-Ring | Community organisation

Redcliffe City Catholic Parish

Locality: Kippa-Ring

Phone: +61 7 3293 0800

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25.01.2022 We continue to follow the Wisdom theme in the first reading with the reading today from Ecclesiastes. The words we hear sound quite negative. All is vanities. Into the sea all the rivers go, and yet the sea is never filled, and still to their goal the rivers go. All things are wearisome. Is there any reason to get out of bed? This reading will flow into tomorrow’s and it will be quite memorable because it was picked up as a song in the sixties by the Byrds, ‘Turn, Turn..., Turn’. Words such as, A time to be born a time to die, will be familiar to us. The point of these words is to remind us that without our participating with God in the activities of life, everything we do would be in vain. What would be the point of life if we didn’t see it as having some kind of eternal value bringing a contribution to God’s creation? Herod presents as one such person whose life was for vanity. He showed little evidence that he participated with God and yet, he should have been most keen to do so as the shepherd of Israel. It is apparent from the Gospel that he has no idea what he is doing.

25.01.2022 Just to let you know that due to a delay in the discussions between our Archdiocese and the State Government, it is unlikely that we will return to an increase of numbers this coming weekend.

25.01.2022 HOMILY FOR OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, KING OF THE UNIVERSE This past year should have us deepening our understanding of Jesus as the universal king. The reason I say this is that the control we thought we had over our lives had to succumb to a greater good which was the attempt to eradicate the threat of COVID-19. We lost control of how we came to mass. We lost control of how we stepped outside of our houses. We lost control of our ‘right’ to determine how we wanted our lives to ...Continue reading

23.01.2022 Today is the Feast of St Matthew. It is interesting to consider the people Jesus asked to become his Apostles. Simon Peter and Andrew, James and John had already been called when Matthew was called and all of them lived in Capernaum. As a tax collector, we might imagine that he was known to these fishermen who reluctantly, had to give their taxes to Rome. We also know that tax collectors were considered as cheats and traitors to their own people for working for the Romans. Pe...rhaps Matthew might have said, It’s a living. What else can I do? However, into this group of tradesmen, a tax collector is welcomed as a future Apostle. Also, interestingly, along with this, Jesus is given access to other tax collectors and ‘sinners’: ‘sinners’, because anyone who was seen as unworthy was considered a traitor to his or her own people. Yet, Jesus sat with them and ate with them and, although we don’t know whether they became followers or not, they would have been very aware of someone in their midst who treated them with respect and honour someone who loved them. I remember that when I was young, my mother used to be concerned about some of the people I was mixing with as their ways might rub off on me. I do think we need to grow out of that thinking. It might protect the young but, we can’t carry that into adulthood when we should be able to hold our own and not be influenced by others. Jesus always seemed to run with ‘a bad lot’, or at least that is what the Pharisees accused him of. I think I still have some growing up to do as I mix with a fairly ’safe’ group however, I also know that Jesus wants all of us to be prepared to be with others, regardless of who they are or what they do and to simply love them. Matthew’s Gospel is full of wonderful parables about God’s mercy. We have been hearing them during these last Sundays. Matthew, who knew so beautifully the mercy of God, devoutly recorded the Good News of this mercy. As a postscript, I must admit that with respect to my mother, when I did mix with the ‘bad boys’ at school, it was then that I got into the most trouble. Perhaps that is why God made me a priest.

22.01.2022 ‘Seven’ hits the ‘charts’ once more in the first reading from the Apocalypse. Here is a sure sign that what ever is happening, God is there and actively bringing the world to a glorious end. Interestingly and, a little out of character, the ‘seven’ number is spoken of here in condemnatory terms. God is exhausted by the seven plagues. Still, better that God has had enough of plagues than God being ambivalent and uninterested. God is going to do something to rid the world of th...e power of evil. We are in a good place. Carrying on from the Gospel reading yesterday where Jesus began to warn about the scaremongering in his name regarding the end of the world, he speaks about endurance. This is endurance comes from trust and a willingness to let God determine the outcome of our worries. Human anxiety, struggle, pain and rejection are always going to be a part of the journey but, our journey is nothing to God’s journey. Once one is caught up in the world of faith, one can only be disinterested in the boring powers of evil.

22.01.2022 Imagine if you could look into the future. Melbourne Cup day would have us being smug. Alternatively, we might only get so far through the future and we might find ourselves feeling very afraid of what we were seeing. How far would we go? 100 years? 1000 years? I’m not sure trying to work out our future would be a helpful thing. It would completely confuse us. The Book of the Apocalypse is, however, a look into the future. It is a Revelation. The difference is that it is not ...our future but, the future which God is determining. To put it another way, it is not a future which puts us in the centre. It is a future which puts Christ in the centre. Regardless of how frightening our future might unfold for us if we could see it, the future of Jesus Christ determines our best future. The Gospel parable is a story about a future. It is a future about the Kingdom of God. What it reveals is a future where Christ is and what Christ has to offer. This future becomes the goal which determines our actions in this present time. As such, ultimately, if this is the future we are focussed on, there is no need to be afraid. There is no looking ahead 100 years or 1000 years. It is a look into infinity. This is why the present should always be about serving Jesus as our king because, the future into eternity is all about that as well.

22.01.2022 How fitting, that the day after the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, we are met by the Mother of Sorrows. The words in the first reading said, Although he was Son, he learnt to obey through suffering. How keenly these words cut into the silence of Mary at the foot of the cross. He is also her Son and she must allow him to take this journey set before him. She has been so much a part of his life but, now, she can only look on, supported by the other women and the disciple, Joh...n. Her blessed joy is pushed aside by blessed sorrow. A blessed sorrow, because she knows what he must do and, she knows what she must do. She must stand with him in his darkest moment and recognise that the hand of God the Father is somehow present in this ghastly event. In the midst of the last words of Jesus from the cross, Mary is given as the mother to the beloved disciple who, in John’s Gospel, always represents the Christian community. As Mary watched faithfully her suffering and dying Son, she faithfully watches over us in our suffering and our dying, for she believes that the hand of God is always at work, even here.

22.01.2022 Apologies for the 'technical issue' (clumsy priest thumbs) that interrupted the LiveStream of the mass yesterday. It was the Annual Catholic Campaign and when the link to his homily is made available I will post it to this page.

19.01.2022 Seven is a very significant number in the Book of the Apocalypse. In the beginning, John addresses seven churches who are possibly the reason for the seven seals on the scroll. It seems to suggest that the church held the mysteries yet to be revealed and, that the revelation it has to reveal is Jesus the one who is worthy to break the seals and reveal the work of salvation he has achieved. I was amused by the words of Daly Cherry-Evans, the Queensland State of Origin captai...n who finished his victory speech last night with a huge smile on his face, From the worst Queensland team ever, thank you very much. This was the team who was considered inadequate to win the competition this year. Not all that unlike the expectations of those who crucified Jesus. He was a loser right up until the moment he defeated death. However, the first reading affirms that he is the worthy winner because he was the one who subjected himself to sacrifice. The Gospel presents us with another football image. This is the ‘kick-off’ moment of Jesus’ passion. Imagine him dropping down into Jerusalem and lamenting how they will reject him how they will not recognise the power of God present in his being. Yet, he continues his journey because he knows God will be the winner. In fact, as we come to the celebration this Sunday of Jesus as the Universal King FOR ALL TIME there is no greater victory. This is what the Church has sealed within its life. It’s up to us to reveal it.

18.01.2022 There is no doubt that the first reading assures us that God is worth our while. In fact, it almost sounds like an advertisement. Its words are eye-grabbing, Lift your eyes and look. The words are ear-grabbing, Had you not heard. He does not grow tired of strengthening the weary and the powerless. Our God gives wings to those who place their hope in the Lord.... You can imagine how these words lifted the people of Israel. They lift me running and never growing weary. Walking and never tiring. As we know, these are not just about physical demands. These are emotional, spiritual and even intellectual and all of these, have a place in the faith we have in God. Our spiritual, physical, emotional and intellectual wellbeing, all intertwine together and all are nurtured by our heroic and giving God. No wonder Jesus identified these four elements of being human when he said in Luke 10:27, 'You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbour as yourself. When Jesus proclaimed his words in today’s Gospel to the labouring and overburdened, he was not only reproducing the spirit we find in Isaiah. He was also adding even more. He was giving a gentleness which makes no demands. A rest for our souls but, does not expect anything in return. It’s nice to live a faith which doesn’t have any pressure upon us but, because of love, becomes what we want to choose.

18.01.2022 Our motivation for subjecting our wills to Jesus Christ should come about because we have been overwhelmed by his love, much like the 144,000 in the first reading who follow the lamb wherever he goes. These are the ones who have offered themselves to the one who offered himself first. It is difficult to work out why the widow subjected herself so generously and gave all she had to God or at least, that’s whom we assume she was giving it too. There is no indication that this... was a response to Jesus. Some scholars see in this story a reference to the greed of the Pharisees and Scribes who demanded that tithes one tenth of the value of what you had - be paid on everything, even the herbs you grew in your own back yard for your own use. This widow may well have been stripped of money so much so in the past that now she came to the final straw and gave up the lot to the treasury. It is a sad interpretation of this reading but, challenges those who demand so much from those who have so little, especially when the ones making the demands could probably get by without it in the first place. An episode of the principles getting in the way of love. The classical interpretation of this story is that the widow really did give all she had to God. What touched Jesus so much about this gesture was that he would be doing the same with his own life in the very near future. The true measure of a gift is what lies in the heart.

17.01.2022 As we move into the last two weeks of the liturgical year and look ahead to Advent and Christmas, the first readings place us into the Book of the Apocalypse, also called the Book of Revelation. A man called John, we think the Apostle, had a vision which revealed the world we were heading towards, as well as the one we are in. This is the world of God’s salvation with Jesus at the centre. The apocalyptic element of this vision revealed great battles between powers beyond our ...earthly comprehension where evil seemed so strong and threatening. Ultimately, the victory becomes God’s and evil is completely destroyed. ‘Destruction’ is the meaning of ‘apocalypse’. This is a book about the end times and, for us, the coming to the end of the year, overshadowed by the celebration of Christ as Universal King, symbolises our cyclic year. In the expectation of the second coming of Christ and the destruction of evil, we come back to the beginning of the story of Christ’s birth to commence once again what might be called, ‘the annual cycle of our salvation history’. Coupled with these themes in the first readings, the Gospels in this time reflect the all embracing love of Jesus who heals people, both physically and spiritually. The healings of Jesus always point to the final destruction of evil. Jesus is always about looking to the future and overcoming the past.

17.01.2022 The first reading reveals something of the heart of Saint Pius of Pietrelcina, known to his friends as, ‘Padre Pio’. His counsel and merciful care of sinners, along with calling the wayward to walk more closely to God came from the desire that he not misrepresent God in any way. This is a wisdom we should all be careful to hold by. How easy it is to put words in God’s mouth when we find a need to condemn another for example, God would not want you doing that.... The openness to allow God to move people’s hearts, not our condemnation, is certainly a theme in the Gospel reading. The gesture of shaking sand off the feet is a declaration that rejection does not cling to the disciple. When opposed, rather than try to coerce, we should let people be where they are. The most powerful influence on people is love. Of course, it must be a true love a love found in our dependence upon God and our knowledge that we are sent on behalf of God to love as God loves. This is where God works with others.

16.01.2022 In a season of preparation for one of our major feasts a season of ‘purple’ and penance, our loving God says, I will teach you what is good for you. I know we ‘speak the speak’ of what we believe Jesus is about but, I know, as much as the rest of you, that we’re not good at listening to what God says is good for us. It is always a blessing when we succumb to what is given to us as a God given direction. Nothing else perturbs us. Nothing else enslaves us. What a freedom to... come to a place in life where nothing else matters except that we find ourselves in a right place with God. Jesus recognised how difficult it was to get to this place. There is such a negative ‘vibe’ in our world which often has us wondering whether we are ever going to find the place God wants us to be. In the gospel today, Jesus makes fun of those who believe that devotion to God is joyless. Are we mourners and not those who dance? Life is to be lived. Let God show us how to live.

15.01.2022 Some words go well with other words. For example, ‘hide’ and ‘seek’; ‘run’ and ‘jump’. The readings today have highlighted two words for me, ‘look’ and ‘love’. ‘Look and love’ is much better than ‘look and judge’.... ‘Look and judge’ seems far too easy and common. We see others and before we even get to know them, we make up in our own minds how we will treat them. Will we totally reject them? Will we treat them with suspicion? Will we decide what kind of people they are and make some preconception about how we will ‘show’ our love? Jesus had this beautiful way of looking and loving with everyone. He could even sit in a room with a Pharisee, expressing his love for Simon through showing compassion and patience. As equally, he could let the woman who had greatly sinned, receive the same compassion and patience. Jesus had no favourites. Jesus looked and loved. Imagine if we could make the effort to look and love. What a wonderful way to commence any relationship.

14.01.2022 This is the week of Job. We began on Monday with the story of how God gave permission to Satan to test his faithful Job. As a result, Job lost his family and all his livestock, servants and property. Everything was obliterated. This story is of the Wisdom writings and is told to teach us something about God. The bulk of the book of Job is his trying to work out why things have gone so badly. He even has three friends who visit him to try and help. The outcome of the story is... that we can never know for sure why bad things happen. Job had no idea of the conversation between God and Satan which had taken place at the beginning of the story and was the real reason things went as they did. The moral of the story is that we trust God and continue on in faith, even in our failures, frailty and sufferings. Are we really so important that we believe that we have some right to know why things happen as they do? In the Gospel, Jesus sends out the seventy-two disciples and tells them of the wonderful things that will happen (we find out later in the Gospel that wonderful things do happen). We also heard Jesus speak about those who would not respond to the disciples. He instructs his disciples to simply shake of the dust and move on. ‘Move on’ from this failure and rejection: there is something happening here beyond your own understanding but, God is faithful and for whatever reason bad things happen, move on in faith. Today we remember St Therese of Lisieux, The Little Flower and The Child of Jesus. Entering the monastery before she was old enough (talking her way in at fifteen), she suffered ill health for a large part of her life and died at the age of twenty-four of Tuberculosis. Her writings later became inspirational. She spoke about feeding birds with crumbs of bread. She said that when you feed the birds, the food goes here and there but, you do really see what becomes of it. The feeding is a good thing but, you don’t know what becomes of the lives of the birds. In the same way, despite how little we know and understand, especially in the experiences of suffering, failure and struggle, the important thing is to remain faithful and simply keep giving and loving. Why do we think that we are so important that we need to know everything? Trust in God.

14.01.2022 LINK TO ARCHBISHOP'S HOMILY - ANNUAL CATHOLIC CAMPAIGN https://www.dropbox.com//2020%20ACC%20Homily%20%28Subtitle A sign in will be requested but, simply ignore it and remove it.

13.01.2022 John is in many ways, more significant than Jesus Christ in the first part of the Gospels. This is why Jesus can say that no greater man than John has ever been seen. He also acknowledges that John is less than the least in the kingdom of heaven. Jesus says this because John is for Christ who is for the people. In fact, John is important only in so far as those who are far from God, come to know God’s love and mercy through the one whom John brings into play Jesus Christ. H...ence, the least in the kingdom of God are raised up because of John who, even though, by this stage, has been beheaded, is still influencing the future work of the Messiah. Jesus doesn’t want the memory of John to be lost. John is very significant because he is the first of the ones to be prophesied. We actually have more feasts in memory of John than most other saints. He is not simply a prophet, pointing to the coming of the Messiah. John is the first person to fulfil the predictions of the prophets. He is the voice calling in the wilderness. He is an Elijah type of person, as Jesus says, whose coming was predicted before the arrival of the Messiah. So, his importance was that he was the one we had to have before we could have the Messiah. John moves us from an era of prediction to an era of fulfilment. From John, all that follows will only go on to confirm that Jesus Christ is the redeemer sent by God to ‘purchase’ back the world lost to sin. John is the prophet we had to have before we could have a Saviour.

11.01.2022 Babylon, that symbol of the destruction of God’s people the nation who drove Israel into exile for seventy years is described as a prostitute. The symbolism of Babylon is that it refers to anything which pulls us away from a unique and pure relationship with God to a life lost in self-indulgence and rejection of God’s goodness. In his vision, John sees that Babylon is on the rise again. It’s great language to inspire a reaction to choose faith. Jesus also gives fuel to th...e ‘doomsday deliverers’ as he continues with his description of a world in disarray and fear. He even brings it closer to home with his talk of Jerusalem falling. Not that it was intended to be so by Jesus but, these warnings become, for some, reasons to predict the end of time and to call for a reaction to choose faith. The Church has had a history of trying to form people’s faith out of fear. It kind of worked well for a long time but, it doesn’t work today and it has set certain precedents which are unhelpful to our proclamation of the Gospel. Again, it was never what Jesus intended. In fact, Jesus spent his ministry continually saying to people, Be not afraid. Jesus knew that being afraid was no way to live in relationship with a loving and merciful God. The alternative, which is an even greater inspiration for faith is the image of the sacrificial lamb who chooses the road of suffering. He becomes a positive reason to choose faith. As we hear at the end of the first reading, Happy are those who are invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb. We have a foretaste of that feast when we come to the mass. Here is a motivation for faith. In the Gospel, Jesus simply says at the end of his description of disasters, Stand erect, hold your heads high, because your liberation is near at hand. Again, we look up to the body and blood of Jesus as these elements are raised when we come to the Eucharist. Here is a motivation for faith. How easy it is to use descriptions of darkness and horror in the Scriptures as a tool for motivation. There are so many of them. How sad that many people never see the light, which may come as one line at the end of dark passages, as both readings show today. That one line is the final answer. The gift of Jesus’ life is the motivation for faith.

10.01.2022 HOMILY FOR THE THIRTY-THIRD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME Proverbs is another exploration into the Wisdom of God, which is often regarded in the Old Testament as a feminine person which one unites to. Wisdom from God comes through a healthy relationship with God. Much like a good marriage, as we hear in the first reading from Proverbs. Besides the reference to the ‘perfect wife’, Proverbs has twelve other references to a wife. Most are good. Some, however, say things like, A conti...Continue reading

10.01.2022 In a small cave, located in the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, is a chapel honouring Jerome. It acknowledges the years he spent in the Holy Land where, in the early 400’s, he translated the Scriptures from the original Greek text (including the Old Testament Septuagint) into the Latin Bible we know as the Vulgate. In doing so, he gave access to the world of the Bible to many scholars at that time and, his work continues to be referred to by scholars today. Born in moder...n day Croatia, he had not intended to be a priest or a biblical scholar but, God had other ideas and later led him to the East, to Bethlehem. In the land of the story, he brought the adventures of the Old Testament patriarchs and prophets, Jesus and the Church, alive through his experience of being in the culture of the people. We can imagine him reading Job amongst the people of Job’s own culture; seeing foxes and birds; family grief and its cultural requirements of what a son should do for his dead father and; a person’s hand on the plough. He would have pondered the meaning of words and how to retell the stories as faithfully as possible, the challenge of following Jesus, even in that time. We are no less challenged in our modern lives. If we want our faith to be meaningful, we too need to struggle to bring the Scriptures alive afresh for our own times. We, too, need to struggle amidst the expectations and cultural habits of our modern society to find a place for Jesus. A significant understanding of the Scriptures for Jerome was that they were not to be read by an individual in isolation. He wrote commentaries on the some of the books to open up the context and meaning of the stories. He saw the Scripture as a book for the community and one which, like himself, needed scholars to help people interpret the meaning of God’s word. The Bible is a book for a community of people who see Christ in each other and who find the meaning of the Scriptures by engaging in the community of faith.

09.01.2022 Elizabeth of Hungary troubles me a little. She was married at 14 years of age and widowed at 20. She retrieved her dowry and sent her three children away to free her to build a hospital. What troubles me is that I’m not clear why it was okay to send her three children away. However, I am thinking like a 20th-21st century male who loves his children and could never imagine sending them away, regardless of what my heart was drawing me to. It is one of the blessings in my life t...hat God has never made my family a hindrance to my ministry. Neither of the two have ever been in competition. Competition is certainly apparent in the Gospel today. Zacchaeus is hated by everyone and everyone thinks that Jesus should hate him as well. Everyone ‘complained’ when Jesus went to the house of Zacchaeus. Yet, Jesus saw more to Zacchaeus than anyone else. Jesus knew Zacchaeus more than Zacchaeus knew himself. The actions of Jesus, although so unexpected by others, revealed a purpose for Zacchaeus. This purpose was that he live as a redeemed man. This is the beauty of the story of Zacchaeus. He brings to light our ‘smallness’ our less than what we can be - to trust in the Lord who can make us even more than we have been now that we are redeemed people.

08.01.2022 The Corinthian Church, still influenced by its Greek Philosophy and idol worship, had an attraction for spectacle. The Spiritual gifts which had become manifest in this People of God became a reason to admire those whose giftedness seemed more unusual. In this most beautiful passage about love, used often at weddings, Paul reveals the most important and spectacular elements of Spiritual giftedness faith, hope and love. Those who live these three things are truly people of t...he Spirit. Paul, perhaps like no other writer, unfolds the meaning of love. It is never simply an emotion which is why our current Missal uses the word ‘charity’ in place of the word ‘love. The love of Jesus is more akin to how we would understand charity as actions of good works to those in need. Love is also possible where relationships with others are difficult. There needs to be patience and kindness and not be resentful. As such, we can love our enemies as Jesus instructed us. It is our action towards them, enabled by the Jesus Christ himself. It is spectacle that the ‘men of this generation’ in the Gospel are looking for in order to make a commitment to Jesus Christ. They do not see that Jesus coming as a friend of outcasts and indeed, sinners, is the greatest spectacle they could imagine. It is love beyond the boundaries but, they don’t see it. Well done as well to Pope Cornelius and Bishop Cyprian whom we celebrate today as Saints. They maintained the journey of the Church through difficult and vulnerable times, demonstrating faith and hope and maintaining the ‘spectacle’ of true love.

07.01.2022 Today we remember the three Archangels: Michael, Gabriel and Raphael. Their names end with ‘El’ which means ‘God’. They exist wholly for God and are present to do his will. Michael is the warrior, Gabriel, the messenger and Raphael, the healer. The readings today present heavenly images. Daniel has a vision of the one of great age the ancient one surrounded by thousand thousands serving him. This was a heavenly image of God and the angels. Bishop Robert Barron, in his vi...deo series, Catholicism describes the angels as being like God’s army. In Daniel’s vision, he saw one like a human being coming on the clouds and being presented to the Ancient One. We Christians interpret this as an image of Jesus coming before God and interceding on our behalf. This one like a human is given an everlasting dominion and a kingship that shall never be destroyed. Who else would Daniel have seen in his vision? The interchange between Jesus and Nathanael is caught up in mystery whereby Jesus identified him as a future disciple even before he was called. There is a strong hint here that things happen beyond our human logic. This is indeed a reason we remember the Archangels. It is why we often speak of the heavenly host in the Preface to the Eucharistic Prayer. We need to keep in mind that heaven is a place other than here. We need to remember that we are subject to a greater realm than any realm on earth. We also need to remember that the inhabitants of this greater, heavenly realm are interested in us and care about us. In fact, they wants us to belong. God ensures that every avenue of heavenly help is made available to his creation.

07.01.2022 Link to the Annual Catholic Campaign Website https://catholicfoundation.org.au//annual-catholic-campai/

06.01.2022 I remember as a child falling in love with the Book of Proverbs. I enjoyed the example we find today of the little sayings. What such great wisdom? Imagine learning them off by heart and being able to live by them. And, yet, there is a sense in which these words which extend through the book of Proverbs are words to return to as a kind of Lectio Divina a reflective reading involving prayer, meditation, contemplation and action. How wonderful to have the time and the wherew...ithal to take such an opportunity. How wise Jesus wise to present much of the wisdom of the Proverbs in the many parables he told: parables which we have listened to a lot during this year. He told parables about greed and vengeance and presented a wisdom which grew from within, especially in the lives of his audience who, for the most part, were not well educated or did not feel any sense of power and approval. For all of us, the life of Christ is a parable. He presents truth in the midst of a world which wants to dominate what we should think. He shows a different reality to what we expect as the norm and think therefore, that it can’t be changed. Is it any wonder that he would raise the level of significance of the poor and vulnerable to becoming his mother and brothers, simply as those, who, through him, hear the word of God and put it into practice? We don’t need to read all the Scriptures to gain the wisdom of the Scriptures or even the Proverbs. We do need to focus on Jesus. As such, our desiring to know Jesus and what he wants from us should be our delight and the reason we read the Scriptures.

05.01.2022 Saints Andrew Dung-Lac and his Companions are honoured for their being some of those who brought the Christian Faith to Vietnam at a cost to their own lives. It is a typical story of the Christian gentleness confronting the aggressive authorities who believe that by simply eradicating the Christians, they will be silenced. The Universalis website tells me that there were 96 Vietnamese, 11 Spanish and 10 French. Of these, 8 were bishops, 50 were priests, 59 were laymen and lay...women. There deaths were by beheading, strangling, being burned alive, being torn to pieces while still alive and dying of tortured in prison. The journey to their destiny was frightening and horrendous, creating fear in the hearts of many. Pope John Paul II canonised them as a group in 1988. The ‘deception’ Jesus speaks of in the Gospel for today, connects us with these heroes of the faith. The ‘deception’ is that such horrific deaths, wars and revolutions are not the final say on the state of the human future, nor that of creation. As horrific as these things are, they are a part of the final venting of the forces of evil which Christ has destroyed on the cross death being the final enemy to be destroyed, as we were reminded in the second reading last Sunday - Christ as Universal King. These are the stories which throw us into the world of the Apocalypse. These horrific events are not signs that the end is near, as some might imagine. They are simply realities in every age, reminding us that in every age, the sacrifice of Jesus Christ continues to confound the forces of evil. The resurrection continues to confound the power of death. When all this will come to an end is not known, not even by the Son. What is important to us is to hold onto the Paschal mystery of Christ’s suffering, death and resurrection which continues to counter the worst of human evil. Maybe not as quickly as we would like but, certainly as powerfully as one who rises from the dead.

05.01.2022 I love the Book of Job. In particular, it gives a very accurate image of Satan. So often, we see Satan as having nothing to do with God and yet, Job clearly shows a conversation between the two. In fact, Satan is called one of the sons of God. God says, almost as a passing comment, Did you notice my servant Job? . (he) fears God and shuns evil Satan replies, But Job is not God-fearing for nothing. Basically, everything is going well for Job and so he sticks to God. Satan... suggests that with a little pushing, Job would crash in a heap. So, God gives permission for Satan to test Job. In the same way, Jesus announces to Peter in Luke’s gospel (22:31) that Satan has received permission from God to test the disciples but, Jesus has prayed that Peter’s faith will not fail. With those words, he then predicts the denial of Peter at Jesus’ arrest. Scripture identifies Satan as someone who puts God’s creation to the test. He tested Jesus on the mountain and he did not win. Satan is not some horrible little creature with a spiked tail and a fork. Much of what we think about Satan is legend. Satan is certainly hard work he is the personification of our temptations. And yet, Satan does not operate without God’s permission but, he does test his own limits at times and becomes a little too zealous. Ultimately, despite the testing, the final decision of our actions rests with us. Jesus is praying for us as are the Saints. We’re well supported in a world of temptations to make the right choices. The disciples, in their self-importance, allowed themselves to be tempted to an assumption that they were great. They also had issues with those who weren’t under their control and yet doing good works for Jesus. Again, if we step aside from our own assumption of self-righteousness and become more dependent upon God like a little child, we actually might discover a peace in this corrupted world which the world cannot give.

05.01.2022 Live Streaming returns for 9:00am mass tomorrow

03.01.2022 HOMILY FOR THE 27TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME It all started off as good. God made light and said it was good. God made fish and animals and said that these were good. God made humans and said that they were good....Continue reading

03.01.2022 HOMILY FOR THE FIRST SUNDAY IN ADVENT YEAR B The first Sunday in Advent, Year B is one of the best days in the Lectionary. At no other time do I begin my homily having heard the words of Jesus instructing us to, Stay awake. I often say in my head when I hear people regretting COVID-19 restrictions and our booking in for mass and closing the doors and so on, which the Church has had to take on, but I hear myself saying, It’s not what you decide and it’s not what I decide....Continue reading

03.01.2022 HOMILY FOR THE 26TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME I have used cling wrap for many years so I was a little put out when my family introduced to our house, these environmentally friendly reusable and washable silicon covers which come in various sizes to fit all dishes. Although, sometimes it seems like you need four hands to get the covers on, I have changed my mind and agree that it’s a good way to go. So, our family doesn’t cling like it used to. The hymn we have heard in the seco...Continue reading