Fr John’s Reflection – Second Sunday of Ordinary Time
Proclaim the Gospel with your lives!
Second Sunday of Ordinary Time – 19th January
Where do we see Christ at work in our lives? Our prayer and our actions are called to raise our awareness and attentiveness to this question. This is a sense of anticipation that Jesus walks in our midst, often unseen, and prompts us to notice where we bump into him on a daily basis. This openness to discover how God is present in our daily lives allows us the possibility to notice what truly centres us as people of faith, hope and love. It changes our outlook to see as God sees and to notice what God notices in our daily lives. It calls us to become people who become co-creators with God by enabling moments of grace which transform our lives and the lives of others.
Particularly as we live through one of our worst bush fire seasons we hear many stories of heroism and generosity. There is a resilience in the human spirit which naturally reaches out to the other in a way which seeks to bring life to another. This daily call allows us to notice how God is at work in our midst on a daily basis and allows us to be open to the promptings of the spirit. On 26th January we will commemorate the effects of the bush fires on our communities and how this can be a moment of solidarity which seeks to bring life out of the ashes.
Yet we also need to pause to reflect on what deeper issues bind us together for the good of God, the good of others and the good of ourselves. How does this experience shape our nation and our souls? What is it that we seek together and what is God calling us to listen to? These questions are the backdrop to our current experience and speak to us of how the Plenary Council helps us to become more responsive as individuals and communities to the prompting of God’s spirit. May we journey together in faith, hope and love bring the light of Christ to our world.
Fr. John Armstrong
