Fr John’s Reflection 27th Sunday of the Year

27th Sunday of Ordinary Time – 6th October

Listening for the still, quiet voice!

Our faith starts from where we are and the place where we encounter Christ. This call to follow him is not just a private endeavour or a personal preference but rather a living response to how Christ calls us to follow. Often, we can feel that when we are perfectly formed, well educated and have our lives together that we will meet God. Yet the contrary is true. God meets us in the midst of our daily lives when we are working hard when we are finding it difficult to find spare time to be by ourselves and when the demands of daily living seem to mount up like a wall of water around us. The focus on the immediate and our availability is tested by many things. 

However, the still quiet voice of God rings out in the midst of this seeming never-ending activity. It calls us to bear witness to the Good News not at a time when it is convenient but in the middle of what seems to hold our attention. This is not one of compulsion but rather a loving voice which creates a response in a way which is present to people with grace and power. This is the ability to respond with a loving heart. Nothing is foreign to God yet in all situations he calls us to hear his voice and not harden our hearts. 

This level of faithfulness is not just generated by a stoic resistance to the events of life but rather slow, patient anticipation of the unfolding of God’s vision. Even when world events proclaim doom and disaster we are called to respond with mercy and grace. In an age where we can be provoked to make a response based on the latest headline or the most recent news report. This steady and careful gazing at what is real allows us to be contemplatives who take action for the good of others, for the good of ourselves and the good of God. In all things, we seek to be people who seek silence, stillness and solitude which touches that which brings life and Good News to our world.

Fr. John Armstrong