27^th Sunday of the Year

Reflections on the readings

The interconnectedness between ourselves, God and creation is often overlooked in a culture that is often individualistic. We need to include the Church in this critique when it excludes people and groups from the table. The readings however, are a call to joy in finding welcome and relationship with one another. The gospel reminds us how we receive one another. It is a message for all. 

26^th Sunday of the Year

Migrant and Refugee Sunday

‘I want to tell you right away how much

the Church esteems and loves you,

and how much she wishes to assist you

in your spiritual and material needs.’

Pope John Paul II, Alice Springs 1986 to the Aboriginal people of Australia.

25^th Sunday of the Year

In Jesus first followers, we find the trappings of ego and greed. The familiar scene where they argue over seeking places of power reminds us that the desire to be elevated, to be the best, to be more than others, is very real. Deep wisdom forces a reality-check that there is within us a tendency to quickly turn a simple disagreement into dissolved relationships. This is where the love that Christ embodies is most tested, and most needed. James tries to help the community to be centred on Jesus and his teachings when it finds itself at odds.