COMMENT St. Andrew 1

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: William W.  . . .
To: Fr Donald . . .
Sent: Wednesday, 30 November 2011, 5:58
Subject: Re: [Blog] 

Saint Andrew - reading from Eckhart

Dear Father Donald,

 

What a treasure you give on this feast for all followers of Christ!

 

Meister Eckhart's wonderful clarity of thought carries me to the band of disciples walking with Jesus after the call to follow him. Along the narrow path, those positioned in front of Him will have been excitedly reasoning with each other, carried forward in their zeal for the overthrow of their oppressors, misinterpretating the salvation that Jesus was bringing to their land: those beside Him will have been trying to reason with Him, arguing about the way they best judged for Him to bring salvation into the world; and those following quietly behind will have been reasoning within themselves, pondering in their heart the salvation that was promised, listening to Him.

 

I have read recently that the Cistercian desire for silence is in order to listen.

 

That has been a delight, thank you!

 

...  in Our Lord,

William 

Saint Andrew 30 November 2011

Saint Andrew - Fife

Gospel:
Matthew 4:18-21.

Night Office - Alternative Reading

From a sermon by Meister Eckhart
(Meisler Eckhor), pages 175-179)

• God in creating all creatures instructs and enjoins, advises, and commands them, by the very fact that he creates them, to follow him and conform themselves to him, to turn and hasten back to him as the first cause of their entire being.
• There are some who follow God: these are the perfect. 
• Others walk close by God, at his side: these are the imperfect.  
• But there are others who run in front of God, and these are the wicked.
• These are the sort of people who never have an y thought of God in their actions, who do not care or consider what is good or evil, pleasing to God or displeasing. They throw all that behind them as an old woman might throwaway bad eggs or rotten apples and their sole concern is how to gain honors, wealth, and pleasure. These are the adversaries of God; they are devils, in fact they are the Devil himself, the adversary of God, as the Lord said to Peter: Get thee behind me, Satan. "Behind me," he says, not "before me."
• There are others who walk close by God, at his side, and these, although they are not wicked, are nevertheless imperfect. For instance, someone may suffer insults, poverty or physical infirmity and have no desire to be rid of this threefold suffering unless God so willed and it were his good pleasure. Nevertheless he would prefer it to be God's will that he should be well rather than ill. These people do not follow God: they wish to lead God rather than be led by him. They would like God to want what they want. Such as these run in step with God and at his side. It is true that they want what God wants, but they would prefer God to want what they want. They do not realize that God has no equal. Wherefore none should walk on equal footing with him and by his side. Inferior things must by their very nature be led by superior and not the reverse.
• Thirdly, there are others who do not run before God like the wicked, nor accompany him at his side like the imperfect, but follow him. Of these it is said: They left their nets and their father, and followed him. And this is what is expressed here in the words, Follow me. These are they who look at nothing behind them nor at anything standing apart to one side or the other but look only to God who is before and above them. Hence Augustine says: "He is thy best servant, a Lord, who is not so much concerned to hear from you what he himself wants as to want what he hears from you." Of these people it is said: They follow the Lamb wherever he goes.
• It is remarkable how happy such people are, even in this world. For things always turn out as they wish; they are always
• joyful, because they rejoice in all things alike. This is the fullness of joy spoken of in John: Ask and you shall receive, that your joy may be full. Augustine, speaking of this joy says: 
• "There is a joy which is not given to the ungodly, but to those who worship you without thought of reward, 0 Lord. You are yourself their joy, and this is the blessed life: to rejoice unto you, in you and for your sake." 

Scripture Bulletin July 2011

 It may be late but we are grateful to receive this

Scripture Bulletin

Thank you.

July 2011 - Volume XLI No. 2 Written by Editor    Tuesday, 05 July 2011 00:00 In the first article of this issue, Michael Tait considers the various New Testament options for the Church’s birthday. Whilst its traditional birthday of Pentecost might well be described appropriately as the Church’s ‘official birthday’ given its public character, the New Testament offers several further possibilities for its ‘actual’ birth. Tait’s conclusion is that any answer to the question depends upon the aspect under which the Church is being viewed. Several ‘birthdays’ may need to be celebrated in order for all aspects to be appreciated. In his provocative contribution, Henry Wansbrough explores the Acts narrative of Paul’s arrival in Rome, against the backdrop of Luke’s literary artistry and in the light of parallels with contemporary novels. He points to significant difficulties with Luke’s claim in Acts that Paul was a Roman citizen, a key plank for the Rome episode which is presented as the culmination of Paul’s appeal to the emperor. Wansbrough suggests that Paul’s actual visit to Rome may have been rather less glorious, the Acts story being an imaginative reflection of Luke’s overall concerns, not least to represent in narrative form the triumph of Christianity. In our third article, the ambiguous figure of the Apocalypse’s rider on the white horse (the first of the four horsemen) is examined. Although it has similarities with the later portrayal of Christ riding a white horse, not all may what it appears to be. Is he a Christlike figure, or a figure of the ‘dark side’? This contribution proposes that this ambiguity might be a deliberate strategy of the book. It would then reflect what is one of the Apocalypse’s greatest contributions to the theology of the New Testament: that recognizing evil, naming it for what it is, is a notoriously difficult task, which calls for ‘wisdom’ and divine revelation. Finally, the Executive Committee of the Catholic Biblical Association has received news of the recent death of Fr Reggie Fuller, founder member and one-time Secretary, at the age of 102. Fr Henry Wansbrough pays tribute to Fr Reggie in a reminiscence which can be read on the ‘CBA News’ section of this website (http://www.cbagb.org.uk/cba-news). Ian Boxall Editor Attachments: SBJuly2011.editorial.pdf 49 Kb

Many Happy Returns: When was the Church’s Birthday? Written by Michael Tait    Tuesday, 05 July 2011 10:51 Michael Tait holds the Licence in Sacred Scripture from the Pontifical Biblical Institute and the PhD from the University of Manchester. As a child, I doubt if I were alone in finding the notion of the Queen’s two birthdays (official and unofficial?/natural and unnatural?) puzzling. Apart from the tantalising questions as to whether she received two sets of presents, two cakes and two parties, the basic difficulty lay in the fundamental oxymoron. It is the same question as that posed by Nicodemus: ‘Can a man be born more than once?’ (cf. Jn 3:4). I was reminded of this conundrum when a postgraduate student friend recently asked me about the birthday of the Church. On reading through his thesis for the umpteenth time, he had just realised that he had referred to the resurrection of Jesus as the birthday of the Church. Attachments: SBJuly2011.article1.pdf 171 Kb   “Who Rides the White Horse?” Truth and Deception in the Book of Revelation Written by Ian Boxall    Tuesday, 05 July 2011 00:00 Ian Boxall is editor of Scripture Bulletin, and Tutor in New Testament at St Stephen’s House, Oxford One of the most famous artistic portrayals of Revelation’s vision of the four horsemen, and one which has had a significant impact on the Western Christian imagination, is Albrecht Dürer’s woodcut of the scene, which was published along with his other Apocalypse scenes in 1498, when Dürer was only twenty-seven. Here we are presented with the four horses galloping furiously side by side across the page, ‘as if catapulted’ (in the words of one art historian),  bringing war, disaster, famine and destruction in their wake. Attachments: SBJuly2011.article3.pdf 208 Kb   Did Paul ever go to Rome? Written by Henry Wansbrough OSB    Tuesday, 05 July 2011 10:40 Henry Wansbrough is a monk of Ampleforth. He has been Chairman of the Faculty of Theology at Oxford University, and served on the Pope’s Biblical Commission for eleven years. He is General Editor of The New Jerusalem Bible, and has written a number of books on biblical subjects. The purpose of this essay is to sketch the possibility that Luke’s purpose in devoting so much attention to the journey of Paul to Rome, with all its drama, is less to complete a biography of Paul than to achieve other objectives of Luke’s writings. In particular it was important to Luke to complete the geographical scheme for Acts, laid out by the Risen Christ in Acts 1:8, of bringing the gospel to the heart of the Roman Empire. Since Luke’s Gospel depicts the spread of salvation from the Jews to the gentiles, it is also appropriate that his two-volume work should end with the formal protestation at the heart of the gentile world that Jewish resistance to the message has forced the messengers to concentrate on the gentile world. Attachments: SBJuly2011.article2.pdf 371 Kb   Book Reviews July 2011 Written by Editor    Tuesday, 05 July 2011 10:27 Attachments: SBJuly2011.bookreviews.pdf 137 Kb

CBA News

• Durham Scripture Study Day
• Canon Reginald Fuller (1908-2011) - A Reminiscence

Bible's Buried Secrets: A personal review

 

Matthew 8:5-11 Centurion's Servant

Cross on stair-well, from Peter Whiston
sunshine 25 November 2011

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Nivard 
Sent: Monday, 28 November 2011.
Subject: Many will come and sit at table

Wk 1 Mon 28 Nov 2011-11-27

"Many will come and sit at table in the kingdom of God." Mt. 8:5-11

When Jesus comes again he will fully establish his universal rule of peace and justice. He will unite all things in himself. His promise extends to all generations who believe in him. 

We, too, will feast at the heavenly banquet table with the patriarchs of old. They believed but did not see the promised Messiah. We must believe in God's promises, seek his kingdom first in our lives? 

The season of Advent reminds us that the Lord wants us to actively seek him and seek his kingdom. 

We can approach the Lord Jesus with expectant faith. Like the centurion in today's gospel reading, we know that Jesus will show us his mercy and give us his help.

Prayer: Father in heaven, may we never lose hope in your promises nor lag in zeal for your kingdom of justice and peace."

See: The prophet Isaiah foretold a time of universal peace when all nations would come to "the mountain of the Lord and to the house of the God of Jacob" and "beat their swords into plowshares" (Isaiah 2:2-4). Jesus fulfills this prophecy first by restoring both Jew and Gentile to fellowship with God through the victory he won for us on the cross. When he comes again he will fully establish his universal rule of peace and righteousness and unite all things in himself (Ephesians 1:10). His promise extends to all generations who believe in him that we, too, might feast at the heavenly banquet table with the patriarchs of the Old Covenant who believed but did not see the promised Messiah. Do you believe in God's promises and do you seek his kingdom first in your life? The season of Advent reminds us that the Lord wants us to actively seek him and the coming of his kingdom in our lives. The Lord will surely reward those who seek his will for their lives. We can approach the Lord Jesus with expectant faith, like the centurion in today's gospel reading, knowing that he will show us his mercy and give us his help. Go to http://www.dailyscripture.net/|Daily Reading; Meditation Index |  (c) 2011 Don Schwager

ADVENT Solemnity. Sermon in Community Chapter

Sunday, 27 November 2011  

First Sunday of Advent – Year B  

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 13:33-37.

Be watchful! Be alert! You do not know when the time will come. . . . 

ADVENT - Sermon by Fr. Hugh . . .

ADVENT 2011

'Behold the King is coming, let us go to meet our Saviour'

The Latin word from which the English term is derived means 'He comes'. The coming of God to mankind is a persistent theme running through all salvation history. God is infinite love infinite is of the nature of goodness to pour itself out; to share with others. It is of the very opposite to self-centredness, being mean, and being disinterested in others. All through the Bible we see this divine desire to draw mankind into close friendship and to give a peace, joy and security which the world cannot give. In a word it is to share in the Divine life. 'I have come,' said Our Lord, 'that they may have life and have it more abundantly.

'Behold the King is coming' 'God became man, that man might become God' said the Fathers of the Church. It involves deification. For this reason God speaks to us and for this reason we are told throughout the Bible to listen, 'Hearken' Listen' is the first word in St Benedict's Rule. Christ is the Word of God, He has to be listened to, and listening, said the Cistercian Adam of Perseigne requires Silence.

Some years ago a former novice master of the Monastery of Gethsemani was giving talks to the formators of the Region in Roscrea. He told us that some of the seniors of that monastery complained to him that the novices were not keeping silence. "Why don’t you tell them to shut up". He replied very perceptively: 'Silence begins when you realise that someone else. is speaking.'  St. Benedict’s Chaper in his Rule 'On Silence ",'could equally be .headed "On Listening' because that is what Silence is all about.

Christ's Incarnation occured at a precise moment in history. His birth at Bethlehem can never be repeated but the fruits of that coming will go on for eternity. Blessed Guerric in his Advent Sermons says that there are three comings of Christ.
The first at Bethlehem was' hidden and lowly, the last coming of Christ, at the end of time, will be public and glorious. Between these two comings there is another one which is certainly hidden but no less wonderful. It is a' spiritual experience of quiet admiration. Guerric says that Christ shows himself as wonderful and loveable.

What sort of reception can contemplative communities give to the God who comes to meet us of which St.Benedict speaks in his Rule? What sort of experience is on offer?

No two people pray in quite the same way but the Orthodox Monk and Bishop, Kallistos Ware, who visited Nunraw a good many years ago; describes an experience which may be familiar to many.
He says in his book 'The Orthodox Way: 'We should distinguish between 'experience' and 'experiences'. Some people may have a crisis experience such as St. Paul had at his conversion; something sensational. This type of experience seems to be described in St.Bernard's writings and elsewhere but there are many others, writes Bishop Kallistos, who have not had this but can affirm that throughout their lives as a whale there has been an experience of the living God. Where would their life have been if they had only known about God without in some measure experiencing his peace, his love and his joy.

This seems to be a good description of the awareness of the presence of God which st. Benedict expects in his Rule.
A tuning in to a presence which is always there, an habitual awareness, like a young man in love will always be conscious of his fiancée. God is always' looking for a. response, wanting to share his peace, joy and love – to support at difficult moment s.

Every Christian is called not just to know about God, but to know God. As Blessed Guerric says this is an ongoing process: he states ‘at every stage we meet the Lord and at each stage we see: him-vas a much greater figure than we met before',

'Behold the King is coming let us go to meet Our Saviour.'

Stained glass window at the Melkite Catholic Annunciation Cathedral in Roslindale, Massachusetts depicting Christ the King with the regalia of a Byzantine emperor. January 2009 photo by John Stephen Dwyer

St. Columban, abbot († 615)

Wednesday, 23 November 2011 St. Columbanus.  Window of the crypt of  Bobbio Abbey St. Columban, abbot († 615)          Saint Columban was born in Ireland before the middle of the sixth century.          He was well trained in the classics and theology. After entering the monastic life, he went to France and founded many monasteries which he ruled with strict discipline. After being forced into exile, he went to Italy and founded the monastery of Bobbio.         He died in 615. Christian Prayer : The Liturgy of the Hours; Daughters of St. Paul * St. Paul Editions * 1976 Lord, you called Saint Columban to live the monastic life and to preach the gospel with zeal. May his prayers and his example help to us to seek you above all things and to work with all our hearts for the spread of the faith. Grant  this through Christ our Lord. Amen.                       + + +

 

Mass Introduction/

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Fr. Nivard . . .
Sent: Monday, 21 November 2011, 12:58
Subject: Your Endurance 

      St Columban 34 Wed 23 Nov 2011                            

                      Lk. 21: 13-19.

Your endurance will win you your lives.

 

     Jesus laid down His life for us. No one has greater love than he who lays down his life for Christ and His brothers. From the earliest times some Christians have been called upon to give the supreme testimony of this love to all men.

     The Church considers martyrdom as an exceptional gift. It is the fullest proof of love. By martyrdom a disciple is transformed into an image of his Master. He freely accepts death for the salvation of the world.

      Few are presented with such an opportunity. But all of us must be prepared to confess Christ before men.

     Like St Columban, we must live our ‘white’ martyrdom in the monastery or the home.

 

Father, Fill us with joy, hope and courage, to witness the truth of your love for us, sinners, through Christ our Lord.

 

« Lumen gentium » §41-42 (©Libreria Vaticana editrice)

May all those who are weighed down with poverty, infirmity and sickness, as well as those who must bear various hardships or who suffer persecution for justice sake—may they all know they are united with the suffering Christ in a special way for the salvation of the world. The Lord called them blessed in His Gospel and they are those whom "the God of all graces, who has called us unto His eternal glory in Christ Jesus, will Himself, after we have suffered a little while, perfect, strengthen and establish" (1Pt 5,10)...

Since Jesus, the Son of God, manifested His charity by laying down His life for us, so too no one has greater love than he who lays down his life for Christ and His brothers.(cf 1Jn 3,16; Jn 15,13). From the earliest times, then, some Christians have been called upon—and some will always be called upon—to give the supreme testimony of this love to all men, but especially to persecutors. The Church, then, considers martyrdom as an exceptional gift and as the fullest proof of love. By martyrdom a disciple is transformed into an image of his Master by freely accepting death for the salvation of the world—as well as his conformity to Christ in the shedding of his blood.

Though few are presented such an opportunity, nevertheless all must be prepared to confess Christ before men. They must be prepared to make this profession of faith even in the midst of persecutions, which will never be lacking to the Church, in following the way of the cross.

« Lumen gentium » §41-42 .    

                       The basilica of San Colombano.

COMMENT Holy Cross Jubilee

COMMENT

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Anne Marie ...
To: Fr Donald ...
Sent: Monday, 21 November 2011, 17:56
Subject: Re: [Dom Donald's Blog] Holy Cross Jubilee Dixon Avenue Glasgow
Dear Fr, Donald,

Lovely photos
I wish we could have met up, but I forgot. 

It looks as if you had a lovely day

Sent from my iPhone

Anne Marie

Bp. Mone cuts the Jubilee cake.

Father Neil Donnachie.  PP

1886 1911 2011

Jubilee Thanksgiving Mass

Sunday 20 November 2011

Principal Celebrant: Bishop John Mone

History:

  http://www.holycrossparish.org.uk/H%20C%20History.pdf   

Holy Cross Church
1886 - 1911 - 2011