 |
| John Keily, Shane Ambrose, + Donal Murray, Lorraine Buckley |
Calm the Soul - A book of Simple Wisdom and Prayer
In Calm the Soul, Simple Meditations and Prayers for Every Day, the Poor Clares look at ways we can incorporate prayer into our lives. We have a short interview with the Poor Clares this week about their new book. They recognise that in today's busy world, we can neglect our souls focussing instead on the mind and body. Using their simple prayer ideas and meditations we can learn to speak to God in a direct way to bring him to our everyday lives. With practical advice for preparing for prayer from creating a suitable atmosphere in a quiet room with candles, to the importance of embracing moments of silence into our everyday lives so we become more aware of our surroundings and of the world God created, they look at the different ways you can incorporate prayer into your everyday lives to enrich and nourish the soul. Here, the nuns combine reflections on familiar prayers such as the Our Father, the Hail Mary, the prayer to our Guardian Angel with prayers for specific needs such as depression, self-esteem and self-worth, loneliness and in times of sickness, to bring us a powerfully spiritual book which offers faith and hope for those seeking solace in today's world.
The book is available both in hard copy and for download from all good bookshops
"Keeping open the Door of Faith: The Legacy of Vatican II"
Dr Donal Murray the bishop emeritus of Limerick joins us in studio this week to speak about his new book which was launched in the last few weeks. As the year 2000 approached, Blessed John Paul II, who had himself participated in the Second Vatican Council, referred to it as ‘this great gift of the Spirit to the Church at the end of the second millennium’. Looking towards the coming millennium he asked to what extent the fruits of the Council could be seen in the Church. This year, 2012, fifty years after the Council opened, is a good opportunity to reflect again on that question. This book looks at some of the important topics that were central in the Council's work including the understanding of the Church as a community, the role of the laity in the Church and in society, the wonder of human existence and the question of belief in a changing world. A complete examination of all the rich teaching of the Council and how it has been implemented is beyond the scope of this book – or perhaps of any book. What is written here is one person’s reflection on five themes of the Council and their implications for today’s world. And comes with a very high recommendation from the SS102fm Team!Bishop Donal tells us what he has been up to since he stepped down in December 2009 which has included writing two new books "Let Love Speak" and "Keeping Open the Door of Faith" as well as a little pamphlet "On the Road to Emmaus". The book is available in Abbey Bookshop and O'Mahoney's in Limerick and is published by Veritas.
+ Donal tells us of his memories of the Council as a seminarian and during his studies in Rome after the Council had ended. Echoning Pope Benedict, he puts it to us that the challenge for us today is a challenge of faith in a culture where we are asked to compartmentalise our lives including our relationship with God; where as in fact God is the meaning of life and we can't just close him off into one part of our time. We discuss with him the different sections of the book looking at the role of the laity and our understanding of the human person. He discusses some of the challenges facing us as a church community in Ireland including the need to renew the communion and understanding of the church not just the structures alone. We are reminded that if we are not searching honestly for the kingdom of God we are not really living out our christian lives and vocation.
The books is published online and in Ireland can be purchased from Veritas and all good bookshops. For international readers/listeners who may be interested it is available from Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
+ Donal has written an article on his new book for The Pastoral Review which you can read here.
You can listen to + Donal's interview excerpted from the programme HERE.
Gospel - Mark 12: 38-44
For they all contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, her whole living.
How much did the Pharisees put in? ... What seemed so important, such a 'sign of faith' in that moment, is now long forgotten. The Widows mite however has served millions of people all over the world. Every persons contribution matters, but only God knows how God will use what we give.
Jesus didn't see the coins people put in the basket. Jesus saw the people putting the coins in. Our Christian vision "seeks to discover the meaning of being human the context of God’s love." (Share the Good News, 44). Gods love - not human wealth or consumption - defines us. Do we live as if we are defined by the love of God!?
If we are to be followers of Jesus, then we too are called to have new eyes when we consider what it is to be generous. For example, as we begin the pre-Christmas frenzy; can we stop and consider what we mean by generousity? Can we be a witness, a sign post to another type of sharing and caring this Christmas?
Heres a challenge for this week - look at people with Gods eyes.
- Look not at what they have to give, but at the love with which they give what they have.
- Look not at their abilities, but at their generousity.
- Look not at your lack-of-resources, but at the opportunities God offers you to be generous, kind and loving.
Other reflections on this weeks gospel:
Liturgical odds and ends
Divine Office - Week 4
Saints of the Week
November 12th - St Josaphat
November 13th - St Columba of Cornwall
November 14th - St Laurence O'Toole. Also All the Carmelite Saints
November 15th - St Albert the Great
November 16th - St Margaret of Scotland. Also St Gertrude
November 17th - St Elizabeth of Hungary
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.