Gospel Reflection for Sunday May 5th 2024 | Sixth Sunday of Easter Our Gospel today is a direct continuation from last week’s reading. Jesus has shown himself to be the ‘good shepherd’ (two weeks ago) and the ‘vine of Israel’ (last week), and in doing so he has described an intimacy with the Father which...

Last week, it was sheep and shepherd. This week, it is vine and branches. If we admire nothing about Jesus except that he was a superb observer of people and nature and that he was an equally superb storyteller, we will have much to admire. Sheep, vines, wheat, corn, sowing, harvesting, salt, foxes, snakes, coins...

Gospel Reflection for Sunday April 21st 2024 | Fourth Sunday of Easter “Sheep are not only dependent creatures; singularly unintelligent, prone to wandering and unable to find their way to a shepherd even when he is in sight.” This was written by an animal behaviourist about thirty years ago. Luckily sheep cannot read because if...

Gospel Reflection for Sunday April 14th 2024 | Third Sunday of Easter I read somewhere that one species of whale takes twenty-five years to fully mature. That, in fact, makes us humans equal to the ‘bowhead whale’ in terms of time taken to mature, time dependant on parents and time in need of protection. These...

Gospel Reflection for Sunday April 7th 2024 | Second Sunday of Easter (Divine Mercy) Those first days after the discovery of the empty tomb must have been chaotic. I can’t even begin to imagine how Peter and the Apostles even began to get their head around the possibility that Jesus was alive again – Risen...

Gospel Reflection for Sunday March 31st 2024 | Easter Sunday “…and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain, your faith also is in vain.” (1 Corinthians 15:14) On this one verse from St. Paul, writing to the small Christian community in Corinth, rests our entire faith. This is not an...

Gospel Reflection for Sunday March 24th 2024 | Palm Sunday Wouldn’t it be wonderful if this Sunday’s Gospel – the Passion story from Mark’s Gospel – began with the disclaimer we are used to seeing at the front of so many books we read: “…This is a work of fiction. Unless otherwise indicated, all the...

Gospel Reflection for Sunday March 17th 2024 | Fifth Sunday of Lent The 2004 film “The Passion of the Christ”, produced by Mel Gibson, was a powerful depiction of the last twelve hours of Jesus’ life – the hours of his suffering and death. Some people loved the movie, seeing in it the stark and...

Gospel Reflection for Sunday March 3rd 2024 | Third Sunday of Lent Imagine for a minute going to Lourdes, or indeed any other site of religious pilgrimage throughout the world, and joining the throngs on visitors making their way to the shrine, Temple, Church or Holy Place to pray and offer sacrifice. Now imagine as...

Gospel Reflection for Sunday February 25th 2024 | Second Sunday of Lent I think the well-known phrase, “the agony and the ecstasy” properly puts into context this week’s Gospel – Mark’s version of the Transfiguration story. Last week we were with Jesus in the desert where he was ‘tested by Satan’; this week we accompany...