Reflections

Homily for 28/8/22 Some of you may remember the film from 1967. It had a great cast of famous actors. Sidney Poitier, Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn to name but a few. The plot went like this. Joanna Drayton, a 23-year-old white woman, returns from her Hawaiian vacation to her parent's home with Dr John...Continue reading→

Of Aromatherapy I never actually thought that I would be writing about aromatherapy. From this old codger's perception it's a relatively new age thing, but the idea that aromas, good or bad, has been around for years For example, the smell of a hospital ward with its hand cleaners and antiseptic is very potent. You...Continue reading→

There’s a fair amount of shame slushing about in the synagogue story today. There is the shame of Jesus' opponents “When Jesus calls out his opponents they were put to shame;” There is the shame of the woman who is stooped over. It cannot have been easy for her, what with the gawping of the...Continue reading→

The funeral of Fr. Graham It was the funeral of a priestly colleague who died from death at his own hands. The homily was particularly outstanding, in fact it was so good, that I wanted to offer it as it is the best I can do for you. Most of us have been confronted by...Continue reading→

Maybe it's just me. Maybe it's because my eyes have grown dim and my perception has been dulled over the years, but I fail to see and be inspired by great and illustrious leaders. Maybe I am expecting just a little too much, or maybe they don’t get the attention they deserve and so I...Continue reading→

14/8/22 homily In praise of the God who never sleeps. Time is a wibbly wobbly old thing. I’m actually typing this week's reflection before Jeanine and I go on our adventure but it will magically and mysteriously pop up while we are in New York. At least that is the plan and that is what...Continue reading→

The idea for this reflection came from someone much wiser, astute and perceptive. They pointed out that life is a bit like a bowl of ice cream. Chocolate with chocolate chips would be my preference. With a bowl of ice cream, you have two choices. First, you can just look at it and let it...Continue reading→

3 cheers for Fr. Scott, Fr. Robert and you. Over the next 5 weeks, Jeanine and I will be going on quite an adventure. We will go to places we have never been to before and in fact, if we are brutally honest, never quite actually planned to go to in the first place. And...Continue reading→

The parable of the pots of jam One of the very good things about holidays is that you see things with fresh eyes when you get back. This happened to me recently and what I saw upon my return was many pots of jam. I was surprised at how many levels I operate on and...Continue reading→

Homily for 31st July It had been a most un-pretty day. A priestly colleague had died in tragic circumstances and so come the time when I sat down to pray about it all at evening prayer,  I was completely gazumped. And then I remembered this prayer. Come Holy Spirit kindle in our hearts the fire of...Continue reading→

Time to fess up. I am a first-generation Australian. Yep, my dad was a pom and came to this land as a teenager. This confession should not come as a complete surprise. Most of us would only have to go back three or four generations to discover that we are relatively fresh to this land....Continue reading→

This prayer business… Today, the disciples have glimpsed something. They are aware that John the Baptist has taught his disciples to pray. Now they are watching their own Rabbi / Teacher / Master / Guru praying in a certain place and decide that this prayer thing is actually a bit of all right.  They want to...

The tale of Miss Cindafred Miss Cindafred lived in a parish many crow flights away and in a different age when dinosaurs and woolly mammoths ruled the earth. Cindafred had been widowed young and had three burgeoning children. Her options were limited and she resolutely worked at least two jobs that I knew about. She...Continue reading→

Homily July 17. “The better part” In the scene from today's Gospel Martha and Mary welcome Jesus to their home, but they seek to welcome him in two different ways. Martha seeks to please the Lord by doing various things for him. The Gospel doesn't specify exactly what she was doing, but I reckon she was...Continue reading→

Fr. David’s Folly Over the past 3 three years, I must have backed out of my garage hundreds of times. It's a comfortable fit but there isn’t mega room to spare. However, the other morning all that went awry as I scraped the winged mirror on the right-hand side thus  ‘liberating’ the outer shell and the...Continue reading→

Homily 10th of July “Our Liminal time” Fun fact friends. Did you know that the word wait occurs no less than 129 times in the Bible? Yes, that’s right 129 times. As far back as Noah waiting for the dove to return from its reconnaissance trip at the end of the rainy season, right through...Continue reading→

When you apply for a job in the secular world there are things called K.P.I.’s. KPI is the TLA*  for Key Performance Indicator. So if you work at the check out in the Supermarket, a Key Performance Indicator might be how many items were processed through your check out in any given shift.  Fortunately, the Kingdom...Continue reading→

Meet Mother Silence  - your new best friend. I was trying to negotiate an important phone call the other day. The content of the conversation was life-changing for the person at the other end. Fortunately, the effect was for the better. The things that we were chattering about would make a lot of people smile. When...Continue reading→

“Name your demons”. A reflection for Pentecost 2. Today it might be helpful to begin with a little geography lesson. The sea of Galilee is roughly oval in shape. It is 21 kilometres long and 11 kilometres across. It is a four hour boat trip from top to bottom for the sea of Galilee and...Continue reading→

When I have completed my snowman and ark I shall be able to write more words like this. I was having a good ol 'whinge. Yep, a colleague and I were munching away together and the conversation inevitably turned to the past couple of years. “There were times” I wailed “When it was just me and...Continue reading→