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A reflection from 1 Kings This week in the Old Testament, we hear of the enthronement of King Solomon, son of David. He is but a boy when placed on the throne, but is discerning and already wise. So wise in fact, that he asks God for wisdom to govern fairly and Read...
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In the first reading today we have the beginning of God’s response to Job: From the heart of the tempest, the Lord gave Job his answer…’Who put the sea behind closed doors?… come thus far and no further …I marked the bounds it was not to cross.’ In scripture, the Read...
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This is what the kingdom of God is like……… Gospel The literal meaning of ‘kingdom’ is ‘rule’. Jesus is trying to describe what the rule of God is like. Clearly, he does not describe this in terms of rules and laws. Rather, he uses stories to describe God’s extraordinary love Read...
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Jesus went home with his disciples, and such a crowd collected that they could not even have a meal. When his relatives heard of this, they set out to take charge of him, convinced he was out of his mind. Gospel So often people seem to imagine Jesus as someone who Read...
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I am the Lord your God who brought you from the land of Egypt. Responsorial Psalm The Hebrew people knew exactly what they meant by being ‘saved’ – it was the passing from slavery into freedom. We tend to think of salvation in terms of ‘getting to heaven’. It can Read...
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All my being, bless God’s holy name. We acknowledge fairly readily that we as human beings are unique on this planet of ours. We have intelligence and free will. We can love. We are creatures before the Creator, and in the immensity and vastness of creation we are unique in that Read...
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No need to recall the past; no need to think about what was done before. See, I am doing a new deed, even now it comes to light, can you not see it? We should not take these words about recalling the past literally. We must keep recalling the ways Read...
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Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him. Gospel Every human being has a need to be touched. Jesus touched the leper. He had no need to do so to heal him. By touching him, Jesus broke the law demanding separation (cf the first reading), and so made himself an outcast, Read...
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His teaching made a deep impression on them because, unlike the scribes, he taught them with authority Gospel People experienced a difference in the way Jesus taught. He did not speak down to them. He did not lay burdens on them. He practiced what he preached. It is easy to imagine the Read...
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A message of thanks from all at St Paul’s, Manly. As we come to the end of Fr David’s tenure as Associate Priest at St Paul’s we would like to offer a few words of thanks to David and Rhonda for their spiritual guidance, love, support and good humour during their Read...
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