I am the Sheep Gate

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Mass readings for April 30th, Feast of Pope St Pius V

I am the Good Shepherd

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Mass readings for the 4th Sunday of Easter, Good Shepherd Sunday, and the World Day of Prayer for Vocations.

The Eucharistic Love of Jesus Heals our Hearts

Jesus receives us into his Eucharistic Heart to heal us.

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Mass Readings for the Feast of St Mark

Baptism Homily: Branches on the Vine, Plugged into God, Saved by His Grace

Happy St George's Day: If you Love England, Become Holy

Listen to my homily for the Solemnity of St George, Patron of England:

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St George is the Patron Saint of England.  It is no coincidence that he is a soldier and a nobleman.  It is the courage that allowed him to stare the Emperor Diocletian in the face and win the victory over human authority to witness to the divine Authority of Jesus Christ the Lord, gaining for himself the royal crown of martyrdom.  We need this same courage today in England.

God's response to any historical situation is to send saints.  If you love England, become holy.  If you are concerned for the nations future, her welfare, for her citizenry, become a saint!  If you are concerned for the future of this world, and want to do the most fruitful and useful thing to help, become a saint!

My the prayers and intercession of St George, all the angels and saints, and the glorious intercession of the Immaculate Virgin Mary, Queen of Martyrs, obtain for our age a harvest of holiness, that the Spirit of God may raise up holy men and women in our time.

Lord Let the Light of Your Face Shine Upon Us

Listen to my homily for the Third Sunday of Easter:

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In the readings for today, we find that Jesus desires us to gaze upon his risen face.  There are many things that seek to cloud our vision of God, and contemplating him is an ongoing process.

Firstly we see that he has to walk through our walls.  He walked through the walls of the upper room where the apostles were cowering.  They did not expect him to be alive and so he said to them, as he says to us, walking through the walls of our fears, anxieties, pretenses, masks and games, saying:

Peace be with you!

At the sight of the one they previously saw tortured, mocked, scourged, scorned, hated, and crucified, he says to them as he says to us, surprised by the novelty of an unmerited visit from the Lord:

In a state of alarm and fright, they thought they were seeing a ghost. But he said, ‘Why are you so agitated, and why are these doubts rising in your hearts?'

This is not a question he actually expects us to answer, even though we may try to come up with excuses and justifications why we feel unworthy or incapable of God's friendship: I am too busy, I am under stress, I don't have anyone to talk to about my problems who understands me, I am afraid.  It is a rhetorical question as if he is saying to us, Why are you so upset if I am here for you.  Then he invites us to encounter him, Risen from the dead, victorious over our human evil, our fear, our sinfulness saying:

Look at my hands and feet; yes, it is I indeed. Touch me and see for yourselves.

We touch Christ in the Eucharist.  The Risen Saviour touches us, or rather invites us by living faith in his presence like the doubting Thomas, to touch his wounds, his scars of love, so that we may know that he is truly alive and wants to show us his love.  

The love of Christ then moves us to know ourselves as love.  This love, I find, is the only thing that gives us the courage to be honest with ourselves about our state.  St Peter spoke of this in the first reading.  It sounds at first like he is merely accusing the Jews of rejecting the Christ and his hour of visitation to his people, when in actual fact, we remember that the man speaking denied Jesus at the hour he needed him most.  The truth of St Peter's conviction of sin rests firstly with himself.  All have sinned and it is not just the Israelites, but all of mankind and each man to whom St Peter speaks:

It was you who accused the Holy One, the Just One, you who demanded the reprieve of a murderer while you killed the prince of life.

These are the effects of sin, to reject God and to not recognize him in our lives.  So St Peter's words also apply to us:

Now I know, brothers, that neither you nor your leaders had any idea what you were really doing 

This is why Jesus prayed from the Cross and he intercedes for us before the father as St John says about him:

We have our advocate with the Father,Jesus Christ, who is just;he is the sacrifice that takes our sins away,and not only ours,but the whole world’s.

It was this Advocate who prayed for all mankind on the Cross:

Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.

We understand here that God knows that we, who still struggle in this valley of tears, this dominion of the evil one, to be free from sin.  Therefore, it is not because of our merits and goodness that God appears to us and reveals himself to us, but for the very reason that we, like St Thomas, doubt the presence of God in our lives.  It wasn't the holiest of apostles that Jesus said to touch him and probe the scars that were caused by man's sin and God's desire for our redemption.  It was the doubter.  It is the same with us.  God reveals himself because we need him to.

F.A.C.E 

How do we see the Face of Jesus Christ?

Here is a simple acronym to help us see the face of Christ:

F - Faith: to have faith in God's mercy that causes him to reveal himself to us

A - Attentive prayer of the Rosary, where Mary teaches us to contemplate the face of Christ

C - Confession, the great Sacrament where we learn to know the Mercy of God

E - Eucharist, where we actually touch God and he heals us

Feast on the Succulent Graces, Choice Merits, and Luscious Blessings of the Resurrection

Listen to my homily for Easter Monday:

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Mass readings for the day

The holy octave of Easter is a kind of 8 day long feast on the succulent graces, choice merits, and luscious blessings of the Resurrection.  Jesus our Food, our Bread, who feeds us of his own divine essence and eternal perfections, spares no expense in giving us the costly fruits of his Passion.  In this week every day is a kind of course of the meal and the grand company of apostles, their resurrection speeches and missionary preaching that we find in the epistles of the week feed us lavishly as well.  Every day also is a different kind of choice wine from the storehouse of gifts of the Holy Spirit, inebriating us and soothing our souls with the medicine of immortality.

May Our Lady, queen of the Angels, whose song of Alleluia, mightily instructs us to praise, adore, magnify, and laud the Almighty God in joy and thanksgiving.

HOMILY: The Resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ is Manifested in the Sacred Mysteries of Faith -the Sacraments

Listen to my homily for Easter Sunday:

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The Mass Readings for Today

Alleluia, the Lord is truly Risen!

His Glorious Resurrection is manifested to us in simple ways in human appearance but have a divine effect in our lives.  St John, the beloved disciple knew Jesus.  He lived with him.  That is why when he looked in the tomb and saw the way his friend had folded his garments after rising from the dead, he believed that he was risen.  St Peter first met Jesus fishing, so he went back to hope to see him again, and there he appeared in Galilee.  God appears to us in our spouses, children, parents, loved ones, families, friends, workplace, in prayer, and in the peace and joy of the moment, but most especially in the ordinary appearance of the Sacraments which bring about a divine effect in our lives.

This is true for all the Sacraments, but most especially for the Most Holy Eucharist, where Jesus, He who IS the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25).

The Catechism of the Catholic Church (1324) is explains that the Eucharist is the "Source and summit of the Christian life" and

"A memorial of his death and resurrection: a sacrament of love, a sign of unity, a bond of charity, a Paschal banquet 'in which Christ is consumed, the mind is filled with grace, and a pledge of future glory is given to us."

May Our Lady, the glorious Queen of Angels pray that the living Resurrection of the Lord, presented and offered to us in the Sacraments, help us to live the Easter graces and joys of peace and love of God.

Chrism Mass Renewal of Commitment to Priestly Service at the Archdiocese of Southwark

Archbishop Peter Southwark Addresses the Priests
(I am standing between the two bishops on his right)

Yesterday I had the great privilege of attending our Archdiocesan Chrism Mass in which I renewed my priestly commitment to serve God and his people.  Here are the words the priests, people, and Archbishop said:

Renewal of Commitment to Priestly Service:

Bishop (addressing the priests):
My brother priests today we celebrate the memory of the first Eucharist, at

which our Lord Jesus Christ shared with his apostles and with us his call to the priestly service of his Church.
Now, in the presence of your bishop and God’s holy people, are you ready to renew your own dedication to Christ as priests of his new covenant?

Priests:  I am

Bishop:

At your ordination you accepted the responsibilities of the priesthood out of love for the Lord Jesus and his Church. Are you resolved to unite yourselves more closely to Christ and to try and become more like him by joyfully sacrificing your own pleasure and ambition to bring his peace and love to your brothers and sisters?

Priests: I am

Bishop:

Are you resolved to be faithful ministers of the mysteries of God, to celebrate the Eucharist and the other liturgical services with sincere devotion? Are you resolved to imitate Jesus Christ, the head and shepherd of the Church, by teaching the Christian faith without thinking of your own profit, solely for the well-being of the people you were sent to serve?

Priests:    I am

Bishop Cordileone (addressing the assembly):

My brothers and sisters, pray for your priests. Ask the Lord to bless them with the fullness of his love, to help them to be faithful ministers of Christ the High Priest, so that they will be able to lead you to him, the fountain of your salvation.

Assembly:  Lord Jesus Christ, hear us and answer our prayer.

Bishop:

Pray also for me, that despite my own unworthiness I may faithfully fulfill the office of apostle which Jesus Christ has entrusted to me. Pray that I may become more like our High Priest and Good Shepherd, the teacher and servant of all, and so be a genuine sign of Christ’s loving presence among you.

Assembly:   Lord Jesus Christ, hear us and answer our prayer.

Bishop:

May the Lord in his love keep you close to him always, and may he bring all of us, his priests and people, to eternal life.

All:   Amen

Photos from the Archdiocese of Southwark website

Catholicism Launching in the UK, Wednesday April 18th at St Patrick's Church in Soho

Catholicism – An adult’s study formation programme in the Catholic Faith. 

Wednesday evenings starting 18 April 2012 at St Patrick’s Church in Soho running for eight consecutive Wednesday’s from 7.00pm – 9.00pm.  There will also be one Saturday session in May.  We will start to gather from 6.30 pm for light refreshments, giving us a time of fellowship. 

Catholicism is a programme of 10 films made by Fr Robert Barron from the Archdiocese ofChicago as part of the “Word on Fire” on-line ministry of Catholic evangelisation (seewww.wordonfire.org).  Fr Barron presents a modern-day pilgrimage to places across the globe where God has touched the earth and revealed something of His mystery.    

Do you want to understand your faith better? Do you want to equip yourself to explain it to friends and colleagues? Do you want to discover the relevance of your faith in daily life?  This study programme will help you to do just that.  Sessions combine DVD, catechesis and group discussion to help you understand the Faith thoroughly and apply it to your everyday life. 

You are warmly invited to register for the Catholicism series and bring a friend!  Please get in touch, for further info and registration, contact:  Deanna at stpatcatholicism@gmail.com or on 0207 434 9965.

Watch the trailer for this series here!

Medley Minute Video - HOLY WEEK: Hearts Broken Open For God

Choose Jesus and Anoint Him for He Has Chosen and Anointed You

Listen to my homily for today:

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Readings of mass for today.

Jesus has chosen you.  In doing so, "he who created the heavens and spread them out, who gave shape to the earth and what comes from it, who gave breath to its people and life to the creatures that move in it,"  bestows on you all the gifts described in the first reading.  He not only "opens the eyes of the blind," and "frees captives from prison and those who live in darkness from the dungeon," but he "appoints you as covenant of the people and light of the nations."  Such a rich inheritance is mightily overwhelming.  In return we are indebted to choose Jesus, to give him all of our gifts as he has richly endowed us.

Mary Magdalene is a sign of the Church.  Redeemed and gifted by Christ with undeserved gifts, graces, and blessings, she gives him the costly ointment of all of her temporal riches.  As her hair wiping his feet was the sign of the deepest part of her womanhood, the Church offers to Christ the deepest sacrifice of her inmost heart, her all.  Unworthy do we approach the feet of the Redeemer, his lowliest part, to give back to him that which he gave to us.

This anointing prepared Jesus for sacrificing himself on the Cross.  From this point on, his Sacred Humanity was consumed in the fires of divine charity for the redemption of all mankind.  So we should also be consumed this week in a spirit of interior recollection, praise, adoration, thanksgiving, reparation, blessing, intercession, and worship of the Christ, our God.

The Immaculate Virgin Mother of God's Heart was ablaze too with the desire to offer herself in union with him.  We ask her to pull us close as she did with the beloved disciple that we may not flee the ignominy of the Cross, but faithfully stand firm in test and trial to witness the great love of God made man.