On the Glorious Feast of Saint Andrew

As soon as Andrew heard the Lord preaching,
he left the nets which were his livelihood and way of life,
and followed the Lord who gives eternal life.

This is the man who endured suffering
for the love of Christ and for his law,
and followed the Lord who gives eternal life.

On Waiting

‘The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light’
Isaiah 9:2

People, Look East

People, look east. The time is near
Of the crowning of the year.
Make your house fair as you are able,
Trim the hearth and set the table.
People, look east and sing today:
Love, the guest, is on the way.

Furrows, be glad. Though earth is bare,
One more seed is planted there:
Give up your strength the seed to nourish,
That in course the flower may flourish.
People, look east and sing today:
Love, the rose, is on the way.

Birds, though you long have ceased to build,
Guard the nest that must be filled.
Even the hour when wings are frozen
God for fledging time has chosen.
People, look east and sing today:
Love, the bird, is on the way.

Stars, keep the watch. When night is dim
One more light the bowl shall brim,
Shining beyond the frosty weather,
Bright as sun and moon together.
People, look east and sing today:
Love, the star, is on the way.

Angels, announce with shouts of mirth
Christ who brings new life to earth.
Set every peak and valley humming
With the word, the Lord is coming.
People, look east and sing today:
Love, the Lord, is on the way.

Matthew 13:33-34

Jesus said to his disciples:
Be watchful! Be alert!
You do not know when the time will come.
It is like a man traveling abroad.
He leaves home and places his servants in charge,
each with his own work,
and orders the gatekeeper to be on the watch.
Watch, therefore;
you do not know when the Lord of the house is coming,
whether in the evening, or at midnight,
or at cockcrow, or in the morning.
May he not come suddenly and find you sleeping.
What I say to you, I say to all: Watch!

The Advent season is upon us. Just last week we celebrated the end of the Liturgical Year by recalling the eschaton, the end of the world, the Triumphant return of Jesus, our King and our Brother! The beginning of his great recapitulation and reign.

In this season we continue to anticipate the culmination of God's redemptive work as we wait in joyful hope for the coming of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

On endings and beginnings

It's the end of the World as we know it
It's the end of the World as we know it
It's the end of the World as we know it
And I feel fine

Christus vincit!
Christus regnat!
Christus imperat!

Ezekiel 34:11-12, 15-17

Thus says the Lord GOD:
I myself will look after and tend my sheep.
As a shepherd tends his flock
when he finds himself among his scattered sheep,
so will I tend my sheep.
I will rescue them
from every place where they were scattered
when it was cloudy and dark.
I myself will pasture my sheep;
I myself will give them rest, says the Lord GOD.
The lost I will seek out,
the strayed I will bring back,
the injured I will bind up,
the sick I will heal,
but the sleek and the strong I will destroy,
shepherding them rightly.

As for you, my sheep, says the Lord GOD,
I will judge between one sheep and another,
between rams and goats.

We celebrate the end of the liturgical year. We look forward to the end of the world and the final appearing of Christ and his victorious reign--the completion of the salvific cycle that began with creation.

I have to say that I'm deeply disturbed that the Lord might destroy the sleek and the strong, but I deeply hope that he will seek me out, bring me back, bind up my injuries, and heal me. I hope that there are none for whom God will not act in mercy.

On Trust and the Trustworthy

From Galatians 2:16

Only by faith in Jesus Christ is a man made holy in God's sight. No observance of the law can achieve this.

We read this every Tuesday night before chanting eleven verses of psalm 143, A prayer to God to hear my appeal. A pledge to trust the trustworthy God.

What a relief this snippet of Paul's proclamation should be. I cannot make myself worthy of God's gift of holiness, of salvation. Only God can give the gift. Obedience to the rules will not make me a good boy, welcome at the Feast. So I will have to try to trust the trustworthy God, to love me for Jesus' sake. Even my trying will not be enough.

For your name's sake, Lord save my life;
in your justice save my soul from distress.

The Beatification of Charles de Foucauld

The Prayer of abandonment:

Father,
I abandon myself into your hands;
do with me what you will.

Whatever you may do,
I thank you.

I am ready for all, I accept all.
Let only your will be done in me,
and in all your creatures.
I wish no more than this, O Lord.

Into your hands I commend my soul;
I offer it to you
with all the love of my heart,
for I love you, Lord,
and so need to give myself,
to surrender myself into your hands,
without reserve,
and with boundless confidence,
for you are my Father.

On the cry in the night

Do not hide your face from me; in you I put my trust.

The Antiphon on Psalm 143:1-11 from Tuesday Compline.

Do not hide your face from me; in you I put my trust.



Help me.

Help me.

Help me, to trust you.

There is no one else.

Help me.