Solemnity of St Joseph - Spouse of Our Lady and Patron of the Universal Church

 Today we have the principal feast day of the foster father of Our Lord Jesus Christ, Saint Joseph. The other feast is that of St Joseph the Worker. For a man of few words Joseph has had a tremendous influence in the life of the Church especially as patron of religious orders. He was poor - the Holy Family offered, at the Presentation of Our Lord, the sacrifice of the poor; he was chaste - Our Lady is a perpetual virgin and he respected that; he was obedient - he responded with alacrity to the instructions given by God to him in dreams. He is often portrayed as holding lilies. This is derived from the personification of Israel: "... he (Israel) shall blossom like the lily." (Hos 14: 5) As a member of the Holy Family of Nazareth he is a role model, intercessor and archetype for fathers and other male roles in the Church and the family. A righteous man he was still open to the action of God which took him beyond his comfort zone. Three times he responded to God's call and moved to protect his family. We need something of his faith and courage today.

Feast of Saint Patrick

 A Catholic visitor to the southern hemisphere might be puzzled as to how the Feast of St Patrick, which is listed as a Commemoration in the Universal Calendar, is celebrated as a solemnity in Australia and a feast in New Zealand. The key lies in the Irish roots of the many Catholics who came, voluntarily or otherwise, to this part of the world in the Nineteenth Century. They brought with them their faith and the historical memory of their homeland. Not only that, but at the Synod of Thurles 1850 they had instilled in them a new energy and focus. The desire to renew the Church through the discipline of clergy and devotional practices helped a people scarred by poverty, colonialism and famine to build a new life on the other side of the world. The linking of faith and nationalism, which also took place in other countries, for example, St Joan of Arc in France, harnessed the spirit of the age to Catholic society. Now, in 2026, this link has been weakened if not dissolved as Australia and New Zealand establish new bases for community and identity. What then does the celebration of this feast have to offer? The key is to be found in the gospel for the day where St Peter says to Jesus: "Master, we have worked all night ling but caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets." (Lk 5: 5) We need, as missionary disciples, the courage of St Patrick. He was prepared to go to a people who were not his own to bring them the Good News despite the ill-treatment he had received in being enslaved by them. We can abandon our own hurts and disappointments, as the church we knew of our youth implodes, to embrace the future with confidence and the Holy Spirit: "When they had brought the boats to shore, they left everything and followed him." (Lk 5: 11)

4th Sunday of Lent

 We hear today in the Second Reading: "Try to find out what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them." (Eph 5: 10-11) The spiritual life takes effort. Jesus tells us: "For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it." (Mtt 7: 14) We must resist the temptation to be complacent. To take God's grace for granted is to commit the sin of presumption. Lent is a season to help us open our eyes to our sinfulness and strive for greater holiness. The Pharisees in the Gospel sit in judgement on Jesus and seek reasons to condemn him for breaking the sabbath law. They are blind to their hypocrisy. Jesus passes judgement on them when he tells them: "If you were blind, you would have no sin. But now that you say, 'We see,' your sin remains." (Jn 9: 41) When our eyes are opened to sin, we have the opportunity to see not only the truth about ourselves but the truth about Jesus. The formerly blind man's response to Jesus, when he reveals himself, is: "Lord, I believe." (Jn 9: 38) We too are called to see Jesus for who he is and make an act of faith in him.

We hear today in the Second Reading: "Try to find out what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them." (Eph 5: 10-11) The spiritual life takes effort. Jesus tells us: "For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it." (Mtt 7: 14) We must resist the temptation to be complacent. To take God's grace for granted is to commit the sin of presumption. Lent is a season to help us open our eyes to our sinfulness and strive for greater holiness. The Pharisees in the Gospel sit in judgement on Jesus and seek reasons to condemn him for breaking the sabbath law. They are blind to their hypocrisy. Jesus passes judgement on them when he tells them: "If you were blind, you would have no sin. But now that you say, 'We see,' your sin remains." (Jn 9: 41) When our eyes are opened to sin, we have the opportunity to see not only the truth about ourselves but the truth about Jesus. The formerly blind man's response to Jesus, when he reveals himself, is: "Lord, I believe." (Jn 9: 38) We too are called see Jesus for who he is and make an act of faith in him.

We hear today in the Second Reading: "Try to find out what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them." (Eph 5: 10-11) The spiritual life takes effort. Jesus tells us: "For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it." (Mtt 7: 14) We must resist the temptation to be complacent. To take God's grace for granted is to commit the sin of presumption. Lent is a season to help us open our eyes to our sinfulness and strive for greater holiness. The Pharisees in the Gospel sit in judgement on Jesus and seek reasons to condemn him for breaking the sabbath law. They are blind to their hypocrisy. Jesus passes judgement on them when he tells them: "If you were blind, you would have no sin. But now that you say, 'We see,' your sin remains." (Jn 9: 41) When our eyes are opened to sin, we have the opportunity to see not only the truth about ourselves but the truth about Jesus. The formerly blind man's response to Jesus, when he reveals himself, is: "Lord, I believe." (Jn 9: 38) We too are called see Jesus for who he is and make an act of faith in him.

We hear today in the Second Reading: "Try to find out what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them." (Eph 5: 10-11) The spiritual life takes effort. Jesus tells us: "For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it." (Mtt 7: 14) We must resist the temptation to be complacent. To take God's grace for granted is to commit the sin of presumption. Lent is a season to help us open our eyes to our sinfulness and strive for greater holiness. The Pharisees in the Gospel sit in judgement on Jesus and seek reasons to condemn him for breaking the sabbath law. They are blind to their hypocrisy. Jesus passes judgement on them when he tells them: "If you were blind, you would have no sin. But now that you say, 'We see,' your sin remains." (Jn 9: 41) When our eyes are opened to sin, we have the opportunity to see not only the truth about ourselves but the truth about Jesus. The formerly blind man's response to Jesus, when he reveals himself, is: "Lord, I believe." (Jn 9: 38) We too are called see Jesus for who he is and make an act of faith in him.

3rd Sunday of Lent

 Jesus says to the Samaritan woman: "But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship him." (Jn 4: 23) The question I ask is, are we such worshippers and how do we know? We know that there are sadly divisions among Christians and even among Catholics about the correct way in which to give proper worship to God. Throughout history there has even been much violence between those who disagree on what this means. The key, for Christians, is surely the interpretation of the injunction of the Lord at the Last Supper to: "Do this in memory of me." We have advantage not only of the Scriptures, including the teachings of St Paul on the Holy Eucharist, but also of the testimony of the Church Fathers, Papal Magisterium and the uninterrupted Tradition of the Church. When we enter the liturgy, therefore, we must be attentive to these teachings so that we are not ultimately worshipping in a manner inconsistent with the example and person of Christ. This is not a question of legalism. Sometimes priests will say: "Say what is black, do what is in the red" however, there is a need for engagement of the heart. We need not only to obey the Church and its liturgy but also to love it. Our love of the Church will help us to love the Lord and to be guided and informed by the Holy Spirit. let us always strive therefore to worship in spirit and in truth.

2nd Sunday of Lent

 Last Sunday we heard at the conclusion of the temptations in the desert: "Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him" (Mtt 4: 11) The gospel of the Transfiguration, for today, comes after an unsettled time in the ministry of Jesus. He has said to Simon Peter: "Get behind me, Satan!" (Mtt 16: 23). and the disciples are admonished: "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me." (Mtt 16: 25) I find it a rule of the spiritual life that consolation follows from desolation.  This is the case with Lent. We intentionally enter the desolation of fasting, prayer and almsgiving, so as to prepare ourselves for the consolation of Easter. In our times of suffering the ability to endure given us by our faith in Jesus Christ can be helped by knowing that the Lord will grant us consolation when we emerge from the time of trial. St Paul speaks of this when he wrote: "And not only that, but we boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us." (Rm 5: 3-5)

1st Sunday of Lent (Year A)

 Eve looks at the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. She knows that she and her husband are forbidden to eat from it because she reports as much to the serpent. Yet the serpent assures her that God is a liar: "You shall not die; for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God knowing good and evil." (Gn 3: 4-5) Eve can see three reasons for why she should eat the fruit: the tree was good for food, the fruit was a delight to the eye, and it could make her wise (Gn 3: 5-6), in other words, food/appetite, beauty and knowledge. The devil also holds out three reasons to Jesus to tempt him to disobey his heavenly Father in the gospel: food, fame and power. How many of our obvious or hidden addictions/compulsions are underpinned by a desire for such things? For this reason, Lent is a valuable season to purify our hearts and the vision of our minds so that we repudiate any form of idolatry. Jesus dismisses the devil saying: "Worship the Lord your God and serve only him." (Mt 4: 10). I exhort all Catholics to commit to the process of repentance and renewal of Lent by attending Mass every Sunday and, if possible, on weekdays, as well as the ceremonies of the Easter Triduum: Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Vigil. Together we will vindicate ourselves against all temptations in a society that has eyes only for the blandishments of the devil.

Ash Wednesday

 The sight of Catholics going about their business on this day, with ash crosses marked on their foreheads, reminds us that faith is not a purely subjective or private matter. Many are fond of saying: "I am spiritual but not religious." Why do they say that? It is like saying: "I have words but I do not have language." Since we are enfleshed spirits, our spiritual exercises for Lent will necessarily have an observable effect. It remains that as missionary disciples we are called to manifest our faith to the world so that others may know the joy of the Gospel.  This does not mean that we are going to congratulate the world or conform ourselves to it. Our message is that of the Gospel which was, from the beginning one of metanoia or repentance. This change of life is a response to the revelation of God's grace and is enabled and sustained by the Holy Spirit. To this end we can take St Paul's words to the Corinthians as our own as we encounter a wounded world: "We are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us, we entreat you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God." (1 Cor 5: 20)