Blogging With Purpose

It can seem at this of year that we are waiting, always waiting …waiting in queues, waiting for holidays, waiting for people to come home, waiting for time to do all the preparations, waiting for time to make that phone call, waiting to get all the work cleared up, but above all waiting for Jesus to arrive! Today I looked ...

Thanksgiving is on Thursday, November 23, 2023.  Thanksgiving has been celebrated independently by colonies and states for more than 200 years.  However, in 1941, Thanksgiving was established as a federal holiday held on the fourth Thursday of November.  The first Thanksgiving celebration is believed to have occurred in 1621. The story, historically told from the pilgrim’s perspective, is that Plymouth colonists from ...

The Feast of the Presentation of Mary in the Temple is celebrated by all Presentation people throughout the world.  Mary, who knows how to listen. In the lead up to November 21st, Presentation Day we share together a period  of reflection and prayer. “As we make this journey, let us be inspired by mystery seen at the heart of Mary. ...

As this phase of the Synod on the future of the Church comes to a close on Sunday, 29th October, and the delegates prepare to return home, Father Timothy Radcliffe, OP, offered the following spiritual reflection on Tuesday 24th October, entitled:  ‘The seed germinates.’ This is a very apt and beautiful meditation that we too, as Church, can live together. ...

On Sunday morning, October 1, Dominican Friar and former Master of the Order of Preachers, Father Timothy Radcliffe’s gave a second meditation for those who would participate in the General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops set to begin on Wednesday, 4 October.  This meditation focused on the theme “At home in God and God at home in us”. See ...

On Sunday morning (1 October 2023), Dominican Friar and former Master of the Order of Preachers, Father Timothy Radcliffe, reflected on the meaning of Hoping against hope with those who will participate in the General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops set to begin on Wednesday, 4 October. This rather unique and special opportunity to share in this reflective and prayer-filled ...

We are familiar with Thomas (recorded in John’s Gospel) asking Jesus “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”  and Jesus answering, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me”.  There are many times in our lives when we need to understand well ...

The Church celebrates the Feast of the Holy Name of Mary, on September 12th to honour the name of Mary, the mother of Jesus.  This feast day has been celebrated since 1684, but actually dates back to 1513 as local celebrations were held in Spain.   The name of the Blessed Virgin Mary, invokes the inexpressible love of the Mother of ...

In his beautiful Apostolic Exhortation ‘Gaudete et Exsultate’, Pope Francis spoke at some length about the call to holiness in today’s world. He reminded us that holiness exists not only in those whom the Church has beatified or canonised, but in those “saints next door”, who don’t appear in any book and whose names are known only to God. Such people are ...

“ … we are called to join the river of justice and peace, to take up climate and ecological justice, and to speak out with and for communities most impacted by climate injustice and the loss of biodiversity. As the people of God, we must work together on behalf of all Creation, as part of that mighty river of peace ...