De La Mennais Brothers: Making Jesus Christ better known and loved by young people

Last Sunday, I went with confrères to a 17th century chapel near my new home of Châteaulin, the chapel of Notre Dame de Kerluan, for it’s annual “Pardon” (Breton equivalent of the ancient Irish “Pattern” days) which coincided with the inauguration of beautiful new stained glass windows by local artist (and former teaching colleague of some of my French confrères) Jean-François Chaussepied (www.chaussepied.com). The Mass and inauguration were led by the Bishop of Quimper, Mgr. Laurent Dognin, in the presence of the Mayor of Châteaulin, Mme. Gaëlle Nicolas.   ***   Dimanche dernier, je suis allé avec des confrères dans une chapelle du 17ème siècle près de ma nouvelle communauté à Châteaulin, la chapelle Notre Dame de Kerluan, pour son « Pardon » annuel (équivalent breton des « Pattern days » en Irlande autrefois) qui co...

This is a song I wrote and recorded back in May 2020, the same evening that my Twitter friend, "Bodmin Hermit", shared the words in this song as a prayer on his Twitter feed. Whilst reading his prayer, I immediately felt the urge to set them to music which I did there and then.       God Speaks In The Silence   Verse 1: God speaks in the silence In the silence of the stars In the quiet of the land God speaks in the silence In the heaving of the sea You speak to me, Lord.   Chorus: Tonight, hold me in silence Tonight, hold me Tonight, hold me in silence That I may hear you (x4)   Verse 2: God speaks in the silence In the stillness of this room In the calming of my mind God speaks in the silence In the longing of my heart You speak to me Lord.   Chorus: Tonight, hold me in silence Tonight, hold me Tonight, hold me in silence That I may hear you (x4)

Here’s a reflection I was asked to write for an Advent vocation discernment Zoom meeting on the theme of Shepherds + Wise Men.     The Shepherds + Wise Men (Compass in Advent - 18/12/20) Each group, in its own way and in its own context, responded to a call from God. We find the story of of the Shepherds in Lk 2 and the Wise Men in Mt 2. The Shepherds (Lk 2:8-20) It was not the most trusted profession, so why are they reported as being the first to witness the birth of this Saviour?  They were considered unclean and outside the law, not the poorest of the poor, but certainly mistrusted, sometimes making use of other people’s land to graze their sheep. But, as such, they chime well with Luke’s emphasis in his Gospel, where Jesus states that he came to save outcasts and sinners, people on the peripheries, as Pope Francis would say, people who would have been relatively uneducated. And yet, God saw something in them that he could work ...

A song and video that have been with me right through these past 9 months of turmoil (not just to do with Covid-19) from the great Tenth Avenue North.   “Hallelujah, you are right here with me, Hallelujah, you have always been there, Hallelujah, you will never stop chasing me.” ("Greater Than All My Regrets”, Tenth Avenue North)    

I’m listening to the albums by Indelible Grace quite a bit at the moment (especially from “Indelible Grace V” onwards). They are a Christian music collective who take the words of old US hymns (or write fresh words in an old style) and add new music with guest vocalists sharing lead singing duties. This particular song is gorgeous.     

Here’s a recent devotional from Liz Milani (The Practice Co devotional app - https://www.thepracticeco.com) on the theme of inner peace and fulfilment, making use of the famous prayer by St. Teresa of Avila which is one of my favourites.   The Apostle Paul wrote to his friends and said: "Wake up from your sleep, Climb out of your coffins..."* Like me, maybe you've heard this screamed from pulpits and social media platforms like a battle cry, a condemnation, a strike on your record or on that of others. But that's not what it is at all. It's the simple reminder of what's important. Wake up. Wake up. Friend, wake up. Life is happening all around you, and while you will be asleep to some of what is going on, if you live with an open heart and open hands and open eyes, all will be revealed in time - you will wake up, and you will continue to wake up your whole life long. You will experience a million tiny revelations that will collectively and continuousl...

Here’s a rewritten recording of Chasing Cars that I did during the first lockdown back in May, altering the lyrics to refer to the lockdown situation. I did this as therapy for myself and as an encouragement to keep up our lockdown discipline for the sake of others. Images and video taken from lockdown memes on social media, news outlets and creative commons images collections.   The family dancing near the beginning is from the Family Lockdown Boogie video by Jack Buchanan + family: https://youtu.be/G-ugfNXYcDg .   Only acoustic instruments used: Woodwind - clarinet, bass clarinet, tin whistle Strings - acoustic guitar, banjo, mandolin, ukelele Percussion - seat cushion, coffee flask, calabash (African shaker), djembe   Rewritten lyrics (by me):   Verse: We'll do it all Everything In our homes And offer time To those who need A helping hand   Chorus: If we stay here If we just stay here Would you stay with me and help protect the w...