Josh Garrels - "Love & War & The Sea In Between"

This was voted "Album Of The Year" on a US website that I am subscribed to (http://bit.ly/y6c4aT). It is a wonderful album and I thoroughly recommend it. To cap it all, you can download it legally for free from noisetrade.com or from his own website!! http://joshgarrels.bandcamp.com/

See here for a lovely video for the first song from the album, "White Owl":

Fr. Maurice Zundel

Here's a quote that came to me via Facebook (in the original French) from one of my favourite spiritual writers, the Swiss priest Fr. Maurice Zundel (1887-1975). He was a good friend of Pope Paul VI and was invited by him to preach retreats at the Vatican. His books "Je est un autre" and "Je parlerai à ton coeur" have been a big influence on me and the expression of my own faith.

http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maurice_Zundel

"If I could sum up my faith, I would do so as follows: I believe in the life of this "other" in me, I believe in the infinite risk taken by God, I believe in the fragility of God because, if there is indeed nothing stronger than love, there is also nothing more fragile." - a (translated) quote from one of my favourite spiritual writers, Fr. Maurice Zundel

The original text:

"Si je pouvais résumer toute ma foi, elle est vraiment là : je crois à cette vie d'un autre en moi, je crois au risque infini de Dieu, je crois à la tragédie éternelle de l'Amour crucifié, je crois à la fragilité de Dieu parce que, s'il n'y a rien de plus fort que l'amour, il n'y a rien de plus fragile"

The Irony of the Epiphany

I have just read this from the Protestant Desiring God website and I think it raises a very interesting issue which I might summarise as follows: the danger of a disconnect in the matter of faith and discipleship between the head and the heart, i.e. the danger that the knowledge (biblical, theological, philosophical…) one might accrue in one's studies becomes an end in itself and a source of pride, preventing one from having "eyes that see and ears that hear" the presence of Christ in one's life. It is an attitude which results in an insensitivity to the action of the Holy Spirit, the source of all true enlightenment for the mind and heart. Knowledge is very important but it can only take us so far. We might know about Jesus, but do we truly know him in the sense of having had a deep personal encounter with him?

 

 

The Irony of the Epiphany:

 

January 6 has long been the date the Western church has observed the feast of the Epiphany. From the Greek for “appearance” or “manifestation” (epiphaneia), Epiphany marks the appearance of the Son of God among us in fully human flesh.

In particular, the day has become identified with the visit of the magi, those pagan astrologers who make their surprising appearance in Matthew 2 to worship baby Jesus.

It is not only striking in Matthew 2 that the religiously uncouth magi are seeking to worship the newborn Jewish king, but that the religious leaders of the day are not. The pagan astrologers bow their knee (verses 10–11), but the Jerusalem religious bow their back (verses 3–8).

An Easy Answer for the Religious

Herod’s wickedness is apparent. Insecure, disturbed, deceitful, murderous, of course he does not really intend to honor the child but to kill him. But don’t miss the role of the religious leaders. Verse 4 says that Herod assembled “all the chief priests [Sadducees] and scribes [Pharisees] of the people, [and] he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.”

So here we have the trained theologians of the day. They know all the biblical jargon. They’ve read and re-read and re-re-read the Scriptures—and memorized them. And it’s a piece-of-cake answer for them. “Where is the Messiah to be born?” Bethlehem. Check Micah.

A Strange Indifference

But here’s the tragic thing: They know the answer, but none of them acts on it. None of the trained theologians go to Bethlehem. Dirty shepherds leave their flocks and go to the manger. Pagan astrologers traverse far, hundreds of miles and months on the road. Meanwhile, the religious leaders, full of insider jargon and Bible knowledge and pat answers, don’t bother to make the relatively short five-mile journey to Bethlehem to actually see this baby that all their theological classes should have prepared them for.

Commentator David Turner calls it “the strange indifference” of these Bible-answer-guys who have amassed loads of scriptural knowledge but don’t act on it. Their heads are filled with verses, doctrines, and religious facts, but their hearts reject the very Messiah their training should have pointed them to.

The Danger of Religion

Is the warning here not obvious for those of us who have taken class after class and read Christian book after Christian book? Many of us are all too familiar with the church jargon. We can say all the rights things to appear pious. We’ve memorized Scripture. We know how to sound very churchy in our repeated use of precious theological terms and concepts. But biblical training does not guarantee that our hearts are inclined toward worshiping the true king. Religious language and learning can cloak the kingdom of self.

Note the contrast between the pagan astrologers and the religious establishment. The magi don’t know much, but they rejoice exceedingly with great joy (verse 10) at the true revelation from God they have received, while the religious leaders with all the answers and books about books about books are disturbed along with Herod and refuse to bow the knee in their hearts.

Don’t Take Jesus for Granted

“The religious leaders,” writes Turner, “replete with scriptural knowledge, react with apathy here and with antipathy later [when they crucify Jesus]. The magi, whose knowledge is quite limited, nevertheless offer genuine worship to the born-king of the Jews.”

Note this from the African Bible Commentary (page 1111):

The successors of these [religious] experts would be at odds with the adult Jesus, and in the end they would conspire to put him to death. The most knowledgeable church people often include those who take Jesus for granted. It is a dangerous situation to be in. It is no less a sin than the outright hatred of Herod, for in the end it leads to the same destiny (where Herod failed to kill the baby Jesus, the chief priests succeeded). Our pride in our knowledge of Christ, the Bible, and the church may turn out to be a snare in the end.

For the Religious and the Magi

A word to the modern-day chief priests and scribes, the religious establishment, the well churched: Bible knowledge from all the classes and all the books can be precious fuel for worshiping the true Jesus or a scary excuse for keeping Jesus at arm’s length. Increased knowledge doesn’t necessarily translate into increased worship.

And for those more like the magi, the non-churched “pagan” and de-churched disenfranchised: You may not have any Christian background (or you did and rejected it, maybe because of the religious). You may not know the Christian jargon. You don’t fit nicely into the church-goer box, and yet you’re being drawn to Jesus. And this whole church scene may feel really foreign, but we want you with us. We want the magi. Please don’t let imperfect Christians scare you away from the perfect Christ. Let the astrologers come to Jesus, and do not forbid them, for such is the kingdom of heaven.

 

(Via Desiring God Blog)

If the Mayans are right, how should we live our last year?

My sister wrote the below on one of her blogs.

If the Mayans are right, how should we live our last year?:

 

What if this were the last New year? How would you plan to live your last year?

There are those who believe the Mayan prediction. It will be interesting to see how it impacts their living, if at all?

St Paul believed he lived in the end times two thousand years ago. His advice was to make no major life changes – if you are married stay married , if single stay single. Instead, he suggested, focus on what’s more immediately important. And what was that – to Paul and to you? And me? This deserves some reflection. 

 

(Via Catholic in 21st Century - Mo)

 

It reminded me of something I said during a round table after giving a personal testimony/talk (about my experience of evangelising through teaching and pastoral work with young people) during our annual 2-day Study Session at our Mother House in Ploërmel, Brittany. A fellow Brother asked me what aspect of our Founder's (Fr. Jean-Marie De La Mennais) writing spoke to me most in relation to evangelisation. I replied that for me it was his emphasis on the quality of our human relationships as a fundamental aspect of our apostolate to "make Jesus Christ better known and better loved".

This also links back to a New Testament passage that has been a constant touchstone for me since my studies in Paris back in the 1990s:

John 17:20-23

“I am not praying only on their behalf, but also on behalf of those who believe in me through their testimony, that they will all be one, just as you, Father, are in me and I am in you. I pray that they will be in us, so that the world will believe that you sent me. The glory you gave to me I have given to them, that they may be one just as we are one - I in them and you in me- that they may be completely one, so that the world will know that you sent me, and you have loved them just as you have loved me.

If we live our relationships with others (young people, colleagues, fellow Brothers, family, strangers…) in love, a true love that is selfless, joy-giving, God-inspired, then we bear witness most powerfully to the God who has loved each of us since before we were born and who invites us into eternal union with him through his Son.

We should live EACH DAY of our lives with the expression of such love as a priority… but do we?

And what if this year, this day was to be our last? Who is in need of knowing how much God loves them? Into whose lives am I being called to bring the light of God's love?

Love, and the relationships through which we express our love, are really all that matters. CARPE DIEM

Olympic Games selction! :-)

Some of you will have seen the following on my Facebook page, but I can't resist sending this out anyway… I'm so excited I could crush a grape (as the immortal Bobby Ball once said):

I'm in!!! Just heard that after the 18 months selection process I've been accepted as an Olympic Games Chaplain!! Place of work = the Sailing Village for all the Sailing events which take place at Weymouth, just down the coast from here. Sailing village = a cruise ship in Weymouth Harbour (heh, heh!!). 8 hr shifts every 24 hours for 3-4 weeks, i.e. including preparations before the start of the Games. Yee-ha!! :-)

Since I've been back in Southampton I've done a bit of crewing on a yacht for someone here who is the brother of a friend of mine from Liverpool. So, I have got quite into sailing the last couple of years... the international competition side too. But I don't really know that much. I'm "winch man" and just do what my captain says!! When I was asked during the application process what my 2 preferred work locations for the Games would be, however, I indeed said London + Weymouth. Will have to seriously gen up now!!

Those final moments with Mum

I got back to Southampton on Oct. 23rd after having buried my mother 2 days previously, and went straight into 2 days of trustees meetings for our two schools with Brothers over from Liverpool + France. My cycling friend from Liverpool who rode to Assisi with me, Pete Smith arrived a few days later for some cycling together and to help us with some jobs around the house (inc. the day and a half the 2 of us spent clearing out and tidying up the dumping area that was our cellar workshop). This meant that I was kept occupied at a time when I needed to be. Physical work in particular was of great benefit, but even more so was the presence of a dear friend.

Pete's visit was only possible because I was on half-term that week. Things would have been harder for me if I'd had to go straight back into school. So, the timing of Mum's death was a Godsend for me, having this week to recover + reflect, but be busy enough not to be just sitting + moping.

Indeed, the whole circumstances of Mum's death were blessed, to the extent that I cannot say that her passing has left me depressed, deeply saddened, or in a state of grief. Events seemed to be so tightly choreographed, guided by a divine hand, with God's presence so palpable through it all, that when the tears came they were filled with such a lightness, love, tenderness, sense of wonder and even joy.

First of all, I was able to get to the nursing home 90 mins. before she died, having flown to Dublin within a few hours of getting the news from the home that this time it really did look serious, and then driving straight down to Co. Limerick WELL above the speed limit. I'd warned my cousin Pat Hayes and asked him to go in and be with her whilst I was journeying being there. He had been with his Mum when she died and when I got to the home he started briefing me as to what to expect as time went on and Mum's breathing got weaker. He said, "You watch, she's going to open her eyes and look at you before she goes and it will be the most wonderful thing for you and will stay with you for the rest of your life." At the time this struck me as an odd thing to say... what if she didn't? How would I then feel? Let down? But somehow, he intuitively knew. She did open her eyes, it was wonderful and it will stay with me for ever.

Once she had, he stood up, gripped my shoulders and said, "I'm just going to pop out for a cigarette…" leaving me to be on my own with her in what, again, he intuitively knew were going to be her final moments. I made a "confession" to Mum, thanked her for everything she did for me, etc... and said something to her + God that closed the circle on something she'd said to God when I was born and which she only told me about once I'd become a Brother… "James, I'd been praying so hard for a 5th child that when you were born I said to God, 'You've given me what I asked for… now I give him back to you.'" (Just like so many great women of the Old Testament!) So, at that moment at Mum's bedside I thanked God for having given her to me and I gave her back to him. I then blessed her with the holy water from Mount Melleray that was on the beside table, kissed her on the forehead and sat back down. As I did so, she then took what was to be her last breath. At that point she closed her eyes, hunched her shoulders, as if trying to reach up, and her facial muscles suddenly - just for a few seconds - seemed to come alive again, as if she was awake with her eyes closed, but very relaxed. Then after a moment, she slowly exhaled… and she was gone, but looking as if she had just fallen into a deep, restful, peaceful sleep. 

Then, a minute or 2 later, Pat came back in. Nurses followed and we all said a decade of the rosary together, all of us tearful, but all, I think, deep down happy for her. The nursing staff had all grown very fond of our Mum. Everyone did. You couldn't help it. She brought light into the life of every person that she met.

I will be able to remember these moments for ever (at least until Alzheimer's gets me) and feel so privileged to have experienced them. I couldn't have scripted it… no-one could have. This is why my "grieving" has had such a lightness in it too. All light and no dark, just like the beautiful, simple pine wood coffin that we chose for her. 

I now pray that whatever happens to Dad may be the best for him. I went over to be with him last weekend and although frail physically (he is 87, now weighs only about 6-7 stone, about half his "fighting weight", and has Parkinson's) mentally he seems ok, though it is clear that the fact of Mum's death seems to be buried deep in his mind. He didn't mention her and neither did I. His way of coping. The way he looks at me though is enough to make me cry... all his old barriers have gone in his current vulnerability and all I see is love. The "butch" butcher is no more and he seems genuinely at peace for the first time that I have known.

He's in God's hands and there is no better place for him to be.

Dad on Oct. 23rd, just before I left to come back to Southampton - the chocolates were for his birthday. We was 87 on the day of mum's funeral.

On Death from "The Prophet", Khalil Gibran

Well, in less than 2 hours it will be exactly 1 month since Mum passed away. In the next few days I will endeavour to write here the story of my final minutes with her... blessed, God-given minutes that I think made subsequent events (the funeral, etc...) easier to deal with.

One thing I wanted to share is the text that my brother Shaun (a druid... yes really!) read just before I read the eulogy during the funeral. I had read this text some years back, but had pretty much forgotten it. I think it is one of the most beautiful and intelligent writings on death I have ever read or heard. My most emotional moment during the funeral came when hearing the last 3 lines, especially the very last one. Such a beautiful image and so, so true (according to what my faith tells me).

On Death (from “The Prophet” by Khalil Gibran)


Then Almitra spoke, saying, "We would ask now of Death."
And he said:
You would know the secret of death.
But how shall you find it unless you seek it in the heart of life?

The owl whose night-bound eyes are blind unto the day cannot unveil the mystery of light.
If you would indeed behold the spirit of death, open your heart wide unto the body of life.
For life and death are one, even as the river and the sea are one.

In the depth of your hopes and desires lies your silent knowledge of the beyond;
And like seeds dreaming beneath the snow your heart dreams of spring.
Trust the dreams, for in them is hidden the gate to eternity.

Your fear of death is but the trembling of the shepherd when he stands before the king whose hand
is to be laid upon him in honour.
Is the shepherd not joyful beneath his trembling, that he shall wear the mark of the king?
Yet is he not more mindful of his trembling?

For what is it to die but to stand naked in the wind and to melt into the sun?
And what is it to cease breathing, but to free the breath from its restless tides, that it may rise and
expand and seek God unencumbered?

Only when you drink form the river of silence shall you indeed sing.

And when you have reached the mountain top, then you shall begin to climb.

And when the earth shall claim your limbs, then shall you truly dance.

You are more than the choices that you've made

... and here's a quote from the 2nd Tenth Avenue North song ("You Are More") whose video I included in the last post: something else that should cheer us up!!

“you are more than the choices that you’ve made
you are more than the sum of your past mistakes
you are more than the problems you create
you’ve been remade
cause this is not about what you’ve done
but what’s been done for you
this is not about where you’ve been
but where your brokenness brings you to
this is not about what you feel
but what He felt to forgive you
and what He felt to make you new.”

Deck the Halls with a bit of fun!

A bit of Christmas-spirited cheer from Christian band Tenth Avenue North... to cheer you up on dark November nights :-)

And here is the video to a single of theirs from this time last year: more serious in tone, obviously, but a great video + great song.

Helen Hayes (1929-2011)

Mum had been very frail for sometime. Fortunately the nursing home phoned me on Sunday afternoon to warn me that her condition was deteriorating rapidly. I flew out to Dublin from Southampton that night and drove straight down (ignoring speed limits), arriving at the home at 11.45pm. She passed away 90 mins. later. 

I feel privileged to have been there with her. It was the least thing we could do after she had lived her life so totally for others.

Just before she died she opened her eyes at me. I prayed with her and talked to her, blessed her with holy water, kissed her on the forehead and as I did so she stopped breathing. It was so beautiful. At last she was at peace after so much suffering.

Someone's 43rd birthday meal!

Before...


and after...




:-)

Audience Award for Ed, Pedro + Greg

This morning I attended the Youth Film Awards as part of Southampton Film Week. Congratulations to Ed, Greg + Pedro from last year's GCSE Film Studies group for winning the Audience Award for a short film they did last year. Well done guys!!

Here's the film.

Who needs therapy?

Part of an interesting article over at The Guardian:

Reel therapy: can films make us feel better?

... In 2005, researchers at the University of Maryland school of medicine compared the effects of watching the first 15 minutes of Saving Private Ryan to watching 15 minutes of Kingpin. They concluded that comedy is brilliant for the vascular system. If you're the kind of person who gets grouchy when denied a weekly trip to the cinema, there could be a genuine medical reason. Graef points out that film is "like a kind of active meditation". Meditation has been found to lower blood pressure, aid relaxation, improve concentration and even slow down brain deterioration due to ageing. Regular practitioners report feeling irritable and depressed if forced to go without. If watching a film really is like meditating, that could be why you get prickly when denied it.

My sister on T.S. Eliot + God

A moving blog post from my sister Mo over at Catholicism in the 21st Century:

T.S. Eliot speaks of God

Catholic in 21st Century - Mo

Friday I was reading a T.S. Eliot poem on-line, Little Gidding, searching for a quote I  wanted, and when the words of a friend's passing came to my ears the poem became  a prayer.

V
…With the drawing of this Love and the voice of this
Calling
We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.
Through the unknown, unremembered gate
When the last of earth left to discover
Is that which was the beginning;
At the source of the longest river
The voice of the hidden waterfall
And the children in the apple-tree
Not known, because not looked for
But heard, half-heard, in the stillness
Between two waves of the sea.
Quick now, here, now, always—
A condition of complete simplicity
(Costing not less than everything)
And all shall be well and
All manner of thing shall be well
When the tongues of flame are in-folded
Into the crowned knot of fire
And the fire and the rose are one.


I have always struggled to understand Eliot but have not, until today, tried to understand him with critical commentaries and scholarly insights. But Friday, when I lost Kitty, the words themselves were enough, speaking of endings and beginnings and oneness. And I thought about revelation and scripture and wondered why the poetry was more consoling than the psalm or the gospel verse. And I wondered: isn't  God speaking in each and through each of these?

Writing that struggles to give voice to the mystery of life and death, give name to the Mystery of life and death, give meaning, give hope. Isn't that what scripture is, what poetry is? And I asked: is there poetry in the rituals of our faith? Does God speak through those, or only patriarchy and pomposity?  When did we lose the poetry in our sacraments? Perhaps when we replaced poetry with prescription, inspiration with instruction, prophecy with pomposity, mysticism with Magisterium.

Today, even with the reading of a critical commentary, I find myself drawn to the depths of spirituality in Eliot: his struggle, his inspiration, his insight. He was a flawed man and didn't lay claim to the Truth and yet in his images and allusions I find more Truth than in our doctrine. Once Truth is claimed, Truth is lost. The humility of the Christian poet is more illuminating than the arrogant protestations of the Catholic hierarch.

Friday, in the moment of loss, it was poetry that spoke to me of Hope, God, continuation, Oneness. And I feel no need to honor her further than with these words, in which Eliot references the medieval mystic, Julian of Norwich:


All manner of thing shall be well
When the tongues of flame are in-folded
Into the crowned knot of fire
And the fire and the rose are one.


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The beauty of our natural world: Astronomy Picture Of The Day - 27 Sep 2011

This is a quite stunning time-lapse view of our beautiful planet, courtesy of Astronomy Picture Of The Day (apod.nasa.gov/apod/).

27 Sep 2011 - Flying Over Planet Earth

Image Credit: NASA; Acknowledgement: Infinity Imagined

Have you ever dreamed of flying high above the Earth? Astronauts visiting the International Space Station do this every day, circling our restless planet twice every three hours. A dramatic example of their view was compiled in the above time-lapse video from images taken earlier this month. As the ISS speeds into the nighttime half of the globe, familiar constellations of stars remain visible above. An aerosol haze of Earth's thin atmosphere is visible on the horizon as an thin multi-colored ring. Many wonders whiz by below, including vast banks of white clouds, large stretches of deep blue sea, land lit up by the lights of big cities and small towns, and storm clouds flashing with lightning. The video starts over the northern Pacific Ocean and then passes from western North America to western South America, ending near Antarctica as daylight finally approaches.

NB Some images are copyrighted and to use publicly or commercially, permission must be obtained from the owner. APOD text by Robert Nemiroff and Jerry Bonnell.

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