SeasonsMarch 29, 2020” You Shall Live . . . ” – Fifth Sunday of Lent 2020
"Jesus’ lordship over death does not prevent him from showing sincere compassion over the pain of this separation. It is in this account that we get the famous line: Jesus wept"
SeasonsMarch 22, 2020The Man Born Blind – Fourth Sunday of Lent
"Jesus is speaking in the same way that St. Paul does about weakness and strength. It’s when I am weak that I am strong."
SeasonsMarch 15, 2020For what Do I Thirst? – Third Sunday of Lent 2020
"God’s grace comes most powerfully to us when we know our need, our thirst. "
SeasonsMarch 14, 2020Dial 1-1-1 for Lent
" . . many times we either take on too much or too little for Lent, and we often lose focus part way through. " What to do?
SeasonsMarch 13, 2020The Desert
"He himself is to become the reconciler of nature with the supernatural. He himself, as both man and God, is their bridge. He is the knitting back together both Creation and Creator."
- SeasonsMarch 10, 2020
Helpful Hints
With the start of Lent, the poet reflects on the various possibilities that are present for us.
SeasonsMarch 08, 2020Peak Experiences – Second Sunday of Lent 2020
"The grace of those transformative moments has the potential to give us power when we most need it. They lift us out of self-pity or complacency."
SeasonsMarch 02, 2020The Greenhouse.
"So let’s consider prayer, fasting, and almsgiving as the three tools in our greenhouse, and ask ourselves how we are using them today."
SeasonsMarch 01, 2020Listening in the Desert – 1st Sunday of Lent 2020
"His deeply personal encounter with the power of evil and the attraction of temptation culminated in a choice for God and a deeper sense of his vision."
SeasonsFebruary 29, 2020Living Lent to the Fullest
"Lent is the time to ‘give up’ making excuses. The time to stop saying ‘No I can’t do it!’"
SeasonsFebruary 26, 2020Ash Wednesday 2020
"“We must live this life now. Death changes nothing. If we do not learn to enjoy God now we never will. If we do not learn to praise Him and rejoice in Him now, we never will.”"
SeasonsFebruary 25, 2020Shrove Tuesday 2020
"During the week before Lent, sometimes called Shrovetide in English, Christians were expected to go to confession in preparation for the penitential season of turning to God."
SeasonsFebruary 02, 2020Presentation of the Lord – Candlemas 2020
"Simeon refers to Jesus as the light to the Gentiles and it is traditionally on this day that beeswax candles are blessed for use at home."
SeasonsJanuary 19, 2020Second Sunday in Ordinary Time 2020 – The Messiah
"Our belief is that the messianic prophecies in the Old Testament were fulfilled in the ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth."
SeasonsJanuary 12, 2020Baptism of the Lord 2020
"Baptism is a major life event. It opens us up to a changed way of engaging with the world, a way that is marked by life in Christ."
SeasonsJanuary 08, 2020Mary, Did you Know?
As we end the 2019 Christmas season, a modern Christmas song invites controversy.
SeasonsJanuary 06, 2020The Journey of the Magi
T.S. Eliot's famous poem marks the Feast of the Epiphany.
SeasonsJanuary 05, 2020Epiphany of the Lord 2020 – What Gift Will I Bring to Bethlehem?
"“We have seen the Christ …and like the wise ones of old we can no longer go home by the familiar route. A new way is ours today.”"
SeasonsJanuary 04, 2020The Huron Carol.
With lyrics by St. Jean de Brebeuf, SJ, The Huron Carol is Canada's oldest Christmas song.
SeasonsJanuary 03, 2020A Bit of Fun – The Digital Nativity
And now for something completely different. Enjoy!
SeasonsJanuary 01, 2020New Year’s Day 2020: Mary the Mother of God + World Day of Peace
"Francis urged political leaders to accept that true peace and international security cannot be built in a climate of distrust."
SeasonsDecember 31, 2019New Year’s Eve in the Anthropocene
On this New Year's eve, the poet offers - for your consideration - a pledge you might want to consider.
SeasonsDecember 30, 2019A Christmas Carol
The simplicity belies its profound wisdom. The last two lines could easily be an Advent theme.
SeasonsDecember 29, 2019Feast of the Holy Family 2019 – The Protection of a Parent
"The separation of children from their parents is an indescribable cruelty. It goes to the heart of what is the most sacred bond that can exist, that between parents and their children."
Daily LifeSeasonsDecember 27, 2019“These are a few .. . “
"And since I control the choice of music and the amount of time listening, I can savour the words/music and spirit of the Holy seasons."
SeasonsDecember 26, 2019A PARTRIDGE FOR DINNER
"Well, I have wonderful memories of many partridges; actually, the proper name is ruffed grouse, and my late husband, Jack Earle, was a very good grouse hunter. In fact, we bought 110 acres in the middle of nowhere in 1996 because this was one of his favourite grouse hunting spots."
SeasonsDecember 25, 2019Christmas Day 2019 – Speaking some words to the close and holy darkness
"It remains always essential to continue speaking to the close and holy. In these days leading to Christmas, let’s take time to deepen that conversation, .. ."
SeasonsDecember 24, 2019Away in a Manger
How did the shepherds that wondrous night manage the words of the angels?
SeasonsDecember 22, 2019Fourth Sunday of Advent 2019 – The Righteous Man (or Woman)
"What is it to be righteous? Merriam-Webster suggests that righteousness is connected with acting in accord with divine or moral law, as morally right or justifiable"
SeasonsDecember 19, 2019Believing in love, goodness and hope
It makes my heart beat faster to think that there is mystery that we don’t fully understand. Now I think of Santa as a comforting father figure, kindly, friendly, caring: like God."
SeasonsDecember 18, 2019Advent Reflection – “God is With Us”
"We don’t listen to our dreams much today, but for the ancient people, they were legitimate channels through which the supernatural could speak"
SeasonsDecember 15, 2019Third Sunday of Advent 2019 – Let Nothing Disturb You
"So many threats to our security can cause us anxiety. I could be anxious about having to perform or prove myself in some way."
SeasonsDecember 14, 2019“Someone told me it’s all happening at the Zoo. I do believe it. I do believe it’s true.”
" I was thinking of them as I used Magi stamps on some of my Christmas cards, remembering the creche under the tree in my boyhood home was never complete without all the animals, sheep, oxen, donkey, AND camels! "
SeasonsDecember 12, 2019The Real Spirit of Christmas
"Thomas Merton, noted that although Jesus was born in a stable far removed from the hub of power and influence, he is still more easily recognised by the culturally marginalised and the poor. Merton said: “His peace is with those others for whom there is no room.”"
SeasonsDecember 11, 2019Advent Reflection – “Sight”
"Let’s ask him for new sight of radical trust, so that we may cast out fear and anxiety from our lives."
SeasonsDecember 08, 2019Second Sunday of Advent 2019 – Prepare the Way of the Lord …
"How are we challenged on the Second Sunday of Advent? A good starting point is to ask ourselves if we are in need of the kind of repentance that John speaks of."
SeasonsDecember 05, 2019Advent Reflection – “Repent”
"Being baptized by fire and the Holy Spirit is to be met with the consummate fire of God’s love."
SeasonsDecember 01, 2019First Sunday of Advent 2019 – Stay Awake!
" Keep awake, you must be ready. The time has come for us to rise from a spiritual slumber."
SeasonsNovember 30, 2019Advent Reflection – “Awaken”
" . . . it is sometimes necessary to awaken ourselves from the dreamy stupors we may have permitted to take hold in us."