Reflections

Transfiguration Sunday Who needs a tent anyway? This morning’s story comes to you fresh from Chelmsford Cathedral in the year 2013. Jeanine and I are on a parish exchange and I am undeservedly privileged to attend the diocesan Synod. There are literally several hundred of us, in a gorgeously appointed cathedral singing as though our...Continue reading→

The Lie I Believed My father died swiftly and unexpectedly. The whole thing was shocking and surreal at the time. One of the many things that came out of it was the brutal realisation that one day it will be my turn. With the generation ahead of me now gone I was ‘next in line.’...Continue reading→

The Sound of Silence I’m typing this with one of my ears heavily waxed. I am given to understand that this is not like having your legs waxed, but an experience that lasts much longer in time with quite different outcomes. I expect that this situation will last a few very annoying weeks when I visit...Continue reading→

So Who is Gill Hicks? Gill was an Australian woman living in London in 2005 when she got on the tube on the Piccadilly Line on her way to work. It was just another day and she was on the way to the office. On this particular day amazingly and weirdly, she was running late....Continue reading→

Of Faith, Hope and Carnage Some of you will have heard me speak of Nick Cave and heard me quoting him. I devoured his book ‘Faith, Hope and Carnage’ on Retreat last year in pretty much a single gulp, which is a really big deal for me. I decided to find out a bit more...Continue reading→

Of our Concrete Pylons The idea for this little reflection came to me when I had the indulgence of visiting Stonehenge. Huge big chunks of stone in a circle, some capped with more blocks of stone. It occurred to me that sometimes we are tempted to encircle ourselves with impenetrable  lumps of grumpiness and ‘hoomphiness’. Sadly...Continue reading→

Of Revenge and Retribution. This is a story about no one particular funeral. There were two sides to old Merle’s family just as there were two sides to the argument that had been tossed about over the decades. Exactly how long no one could actually say. The cycle of retribution had grown stale and then...Continue reading→

It was Never About the Fish. A few observations First, this story shares elements that are common to John’s story of Jesus meeting his disciples at the Sea of Galilee for a BBQ. See John 21:1-10. In both stories, we see a futile night of fishing, Jesus offers some unsolicited fishing advice, an overwhelming catch of...Continue reading→

Presentation of Our Lord Three cheers for the old fogeys. In my little lifetime, I think I have begun to see the first glimpse of a recovery of respect and concern for those folk who are ‘mature years’. Maybe you’re familiar with some of those charming TV shows where there is a cross-fertilisation of generations...Continue reading→

Plunge into the Grunge Over the years it has been my undeserved privilege to totter along to a few dinner parties. These were often colourful and riotous occasions with tasty food and refreshing beverages. Sometimes new acquaintances were initiated. Frequently old relationships were enhanced and strengthened. There was often giggling and sometimes uninhibited, raucous laughter....Continue reading→

It’s time to play… “Catch the Snowball” I heard of this endearing game the other day from the other side of the globe. You create a snowball and allow your pet dog to see it. Then you hurl the snowball into the distance where it splatters into a thousand snowflakes. Your dog has followed the...Continue reading→

A reflection for Australia day Where is Home? Today’s story begins in 1981. I am visiting England for the very first time and somehow this naive country boy had not only managed to navigate Heathrow airport, the London spaghetti of railway lines, but also the regional rail service all the way up to a place...Continue reading→

January 19th 2025 Three cheers for Felicity and Fr. Scott. Clergy aren’t supposed to have favourite readings from the bible … are they? So perhaps it would be a better turn of phrase if I told you that today’s gospel resonates more powerfully with me than say… the beheading of John the Baptist or Judas...Continue reading→

Today I shamelessly pinch some words from the guru Nick Cave. "You are right to be worried about your growing feelings of cynicism and you need to take action to protect yourself and those around you, especially your child. Cynicism is not a neutral position - and although it asks almost nothing of us, it...Continue reading→

Baptism of Our Lord 12/1/25 In praise of our excitable God In my mind’s eye I can very easily imagine the scene of today’s gospel. For one thing, those who have been to the river Jordan tell me that it would not pass our stringent O. H. & S standards. The river Jordan is not...Continue reading→

The difference between doing and being. Someone once asked me if I had ever done anything else apart from being a priest. The answer is ‘Yes’. I had a very wise bishop who strongly encouraged me to go and get a regular 9 to 5 job so that I might have some sense as to...Continue reading→

Epiphany 2025 - January 5th The poem I offer this week comes from Scott Bates. It’s cleverly written and takes the vantage point of one of the camels in the Epiphany story. The Camel tells us about his own search and it’s not the quest we often think of at Epiphany. Usually, we think of...Continue reading→

Making an Investment. Have you noticed that some media burbles at this time of year are where to invest your cash? Shares, property, term deposits and superannuation. They usually ask some guru to fill our space with what will be an astute and profitable exercise. One year I will note what they say and 365...Continue reading→

The first thing to reach for is … the  bowl and towel. Today’s story begins at a dinner party. The Master is there with some of the more snooty, well-to-do, entitled folk. It’s all going swimmingly well with the swilling of expensive wine and canapés that are more designed to be a work of art than...Continue reading→

By Norman Habel Mary’s Gift For long months I pondered my child within me, the line of its nose, the turn of its face. I pondered in pain how the lurking shadow of God had shaped form or deformity within my womb. Then we were two, Jesus and I, facing each other with shocks of...Continue reading→