All Saints Day – 1^st November

Called to be saints

We are used to the process of elections where we seek to choose the person we believe is best able to govern on our behalf. The process of choosing the right person causes us to notice both their words and their actions. We seek not only to understand who they are, but we also weigh their ability to work for our benefit.

Yet God calls us all to be saints. Rather than just choosing one person he sees that all of us are called into a life-giving relationship with God. God seeks us out that we may discover our capacity to be holy. This holiness is lived out in ordinary ways for the good of God. 

The saints remind us that while each of us are gifted we can choose how we use these gifts. They are not solely for our own good. In helping us to centre our lives on God’s loving presence we notice that we see our lives differently.  We see ourselves as cocreators with God. Each day provides the opportunity for God to pray in union with us. God seeks us out with a love so intense that we can become saints.

Fr. John Armstrong

29^th Sunday in Ordinary Time – 18^th October

The Piper plays the tune

 Each of us from time to time would be concerned about our financial wellbeing. We are called to be people who do not live beyond our means but also become accountable for how we spend our money. This is one of the difficulties in many settings at the domestic level, in our local parish community, in the policy of the government and in the way we act as good stewards of the things entrusted to our care. In some cases it can seem that money dictates what we can and cannot do in life. Yet in reality, it is only a tool which can help us to recognise our priorities and what we truly need. 

In modern life, we are often “sold” an image of ourselves or of the perfect life. We can rely very heavily not just on what is in favour but also what seems to add value to the person we are. This can at times seem elusive and ethereal. Just as we buy something because of its looks or its utility we find that it never works like we see on tv. We seem to fall for the dream of the perfect body, the perfect home, the perfect family and ultimately the perfect life. The danger that we encounter is that these dreams seem fleeting and can be disrupted or interrupted by events beyond our control. These times reshape our thinking and call us to consider what is truly important.

At the heart of the Gospel is not that we abandon our daily activities or our responsibilities to our communities but that we see them in the right perspective. We are created in the image and likeness of God to cooperate with that creative vision of building the kingdom. This is not just an external structure or a home run into heaven but rather a disposition of the heart which informs, forms and transforms our way of being present to our world. It sees the centre of our life shaped in God’s creative vision for humanity which promises faith, hope and charity as the KPI’s of our lives. These are difficult to measure but essential for lives. They shape who we wish to become and where we spend our time and money. In this, we daily seek to encounter God in our prayer so that we can encounter each person as a graced moment. There is a capability to see that God is present in each encounter enabling us to grow in faith, hope and love.

Fr. John Armstrong

27^th Sunday in Ordinary Time – 4^th October

Becoming pastors not managers

 Pope Francis in speaking to priests reminded them that they were called to be pastors not managers of the parishes in which they lived. The difference that he was pointing to was that in one case we focus on managing people and resources entrusted to us in the other we look at how God is present in the place where we live in caring for people and what most allows them to build the kingdom. The emphasis seems to be at the heart of these weekends readings on whether we own the product of our labour or whether we see it is as a gift given to us to be used wisely. I feel that this is the tension that we are called to exercise in our daily life: how do we notice the practical needs of those around us but also our attitude to responding to those needs.

I believe there is something within all of us which wants to be recognised and rewarded for a job well done. This is the natural place of thanksgiving and gratitude which lies at the heart of human living. Good things are entrusted to us for the common good. Yet there is also that subtle voice which says this is mine and not another’s work. We can become careful about what we share that someone may steal our good name or our good work as their own. We build fences to keep our ideas and our efforts secure. This does not diminish the reality that a person deserves a just reward for a just day’s work. Yet it is the suspicion which can cause us to possess the gift entrusted to us and see it as our own.

We are called to be people who find meaning in our work. Yet our work is not the sole judge of our character, important as it is for our own welfare and the welfare of others. What is more important is that we are called to be people who are in communion with each other. This communion reflects a deeper reflection that we are called to be in communion with God. It is present in many of our fair work acts, in our care for work, health and safety, in the safety net for those without productive work. Yet at the heart of the matter is how we notice the good of the other. In seeking their good as well as our own we are able to produce good fruit. This allows people to discover that the fruit is both material and spiritual in sustaining life and giving glory to God. Our work is not an end in itself but an expression of God’s bountiful love, that in labouring for others we cooperate with God’s creative plan.

Fr. John Armstrong

26^th Sunday in Ordinary Time – 27^th September

When we say yes what do we mean?

 What we say yes and no to shapes our life. Our choices influence the person we seek to become. They indicate what is our preference and help us to notice what most draws our attention. Yet in our society, we live in a culture which seeks to have us say yes to everything for fear that we will miss out on something. This fear of missing out seeks us to be present to all things with the same level of attention which can often leave us fearful and afraid. If we choose one thing that means that we miss out on something else. We fear been left behind or not having enough interesting stuff to talk to other people about. We feel that there is a drive to be self-sufficient, altruistic and magnificent all at the same time.

Yet if we give our yes’s too easily, we can notice that there is only so much time in the day to dedicate to what we do. We start to cram activities and to-do lists into every corner. We measure our success by external indicators which consume our lives and our attention. Yet in the end, we can be tired, exhausted and directionless until we find another task to be undertaken. The call I believe is to ponder on what is essential and what builds life-giving options for ourselves and for others. 

Who are we called to become? This seems to be the central question. By weighing up not just what we say but in how we become present to our choices, this helps us to see who and what is central to our lives. Which voices we listen to, what creates our best self and what enables us to be present to the needs of others. When we say yes too quickly, we notice that we create masks from people knowing our true selves. Yet when we notice our reluctance or resistances, we can ponder more deeply what is the right thing to do not just for ourselves but for others. 

Fr. John Armstrong

24^th Sunday in Ordinary Time – 13^th September

Making peace with ourselves

 There can be times when a person or an event can cause deep resentment to stir within us. This may be disproportionate to the situation but it can well up in us like acid or a volcanic eruption waiting to burst forth. It is important at these times to allow us the room to notice the anger and bring it before God in prayer. Some psychologists would notice that our angry reaction can last but a moment but our response can last a lifetime. This is why it is vitally important that when we notice this strong passion rising within us that we allow God to befriend us in prayer.

Anger often has a history which is a safety measure which allows us to protect ourselves from danger either to ourselves or to another. We do not become angry about things that don’t affect us or harm something or someone that we treasure. The importance then is to notice that our working through our angry feelings means that we need to give ourselves the space to resolve our own internal reactions. This should be done apart from the person or the situation which has caused us anger. Untamed anger can become our enemy which can unleash inner violence which does harm to us or to another. Anger which is befriended allows us to make constructive use of that passion for the good of another as well as ourselves.

What is strongly associated with anger is noticing both the facts that lie behind it but also the attitude that we have towards the world. At the heart of the readings are the words of the psalmist, “The Lord is kind and merciful, slow to anger and rich in compassion”. What is essential is how having acknowledged and befriended these feelings we notice that we are not called to plan vengeance but seek forgiveness for ourselves and for the other. This is not so that we do not acknowledge serious injustices but that we allow us to notice how each person is called into a living relationship with God and with another. The two go hand in hand. We become people who build relationships of trust and healing. This is not just a simple panacea but rather forgiveness which is heartfelt and life-giving. When we do not allow God’s forgiveness to be at the heart of our lives our anger can be like drinking poison hoping the other person will die! 

If you are in the midst of a dispute as you read this take time to dwell with God about how you are present to yourself and the other. Be honest, be creative but ultimately be open to compassion for yourself and the other. In so doing we replace the feeling that we are called to be a doormat by becoming a welcome mat. A person is hospitable to others as we seek to befriend ourselves.

Fr. John Armstrong