Any form of racism is wrong and yet it astonishes me that there is so much anti-semitism going on with no thought about how bad this is. I can’t say that I agree with some of the policies followed by the Jewish government, but why does that mean that we can dismiss a whole race and punish them all. Our governments often make very bad decisions: they invade countries, interfere with economies or destroy beautiful environments usually for financial gain.

I lived in Israel for a while on a kibbutz when I was young and spoke to the people there about their situation. I was told that when they are attacked, they strike back with even greater force because they feel surrounded by enemies and want to show that they are able to defend themselves well and deter any other attacks. Unfortunately, this has caused bad press about them. If you visit their country, you will notice bomb shelter signs everywhere. I visited Israel again a couple of years ago and was thanked by our guide for visiting a ‘country at war’. I felt safe at that time, but imagine what it is like to live a life under constant threat of being targeted by missiles.

There may be policies you don’t agree with, but that is down to governments and protests should not target the people as a whole. Racism is evil and we should all be on our guard against it. We are all created in God’s image.

God bless you and enable you to discern good from evil,

I can’t help worrying about lots of things, especially to do with my sons. As a parent the worry doesn’t stop when they leave home; if anything, it gets worse because they often don’t get in touch and when you try to give them advice, they often don’t listen.

I know that as a parent we have to ‘let them go’ and I thoroughly agree with this, if only for our sanity. But you never quite let them go. How can you? My present worry if for my youngest son who has coronovirus. He could have had a first jab earlier in a drop in hub but preferred to wait until he and his friend had it together by appointment. It is so frustrating when they won’t listen but you have to step back and pray and hope that the difficult experiences they have are for a purpose and that they learn from them.

We have to place them in God’s hands and let him do the rest. We have brought them up and now it is their turn to find their way in the world and find their own relationship with God.

This message about not worrying applies to every situation where we feel overwhelmed with worry. St Paul in Philippians (4:6-9) tells us not to be anxious about anything and recommends we set out minds on other things after we have rejoiced in God and given him our worries with thanksgiving for his help.

God bless all of you out there who worry and may following St Paul’s advice, bring you the peace you need,

Philippians 4:6-9

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence or if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things…..and the God of peace will be with you.

There is a difference between having an opinion and being right. We are all entitled to an opinion and most of us would be very angry if our opinion was ignored. However, what is difficult to remember sometimes is that there is the possibility that firstly, we can be wrong and secondly, that majority rule can override this and you either have to accept that, or move on.

A lot of decisions are made by leaders and these are often not popular; I am thinking of the Church in this particular instance. Popular opinions are forcing change and whether or not the Church bends with these changes has to be down to the leadership of the Church. Sometimes as lay people we are not even involved in the decisions that are taken and our opinions aren’t sought in making changes, or if they are, these seem to be ignored.

It is hard to follow a religion that dictates so much to us especially if we don’t agree with what is happening. I am trying to hold onto my central faith and see various changes as peripheral to that and not important. Something was announced today in my church that I felt unhappy with: it was to do with the way the priest faces when saying Mass. I prefer the priest to face the congregation, but our priest prefers to offer Mass so that he has our back to us and towards the East. He has given good reasons for this but I think it is still a shame. Others agree with our priest.

We have to be humble and submit sometimes and try not to grumble and moan in the background, but it isn’t easy. I think this is why so many people fall away. We have to remember why we are there – it is for God – and not let anything else affect this.

God bless and may you cope with change!

I have been on endless diets most of my life and had a yo-yo weight problem. I have also joined various exercise clubs and embraced aerobics and other recommended exercise regimes just as many other people have done.

As you get older you tend to realise first of all that diets don’t work in the long term and you will probably never stick to an exercise regime that you find hard work and not enjoyable. I think the key to looking after yourself is to find a healthy eating way of life that appeals to you and because you enjoy it, you will stick to it. Also an exercise regime that you look forward to: it could be a walk every day or gentle swimming, but it must be what you can cope with and at a level that helps you to enjoy it. It may take longer to get where you want to be, but isn’t it worth it, as in the end, this will be your way of life and you won’t have any further issues.

I now question everything that is put out there about diet and exercise and I refer it back to the body God gave us. When people go mad for coconut, seaweed or turmeric or any other type of addition to your diet, I always think about what God intended for us and when he designed our bodies, I am sure he wasn’t making them in such a way that we would need to use these supplements to be well.

I feel we should do everything in moderation. Even things that are good for us can be harmful if taken in large quantities.

When we alter what we eat our metabolism adjusts. I have heard that people who have cut out all gluten find it hard to eat anything with it in after a while because their stomachs have adapted and can’t cope with it. Obviously if you have to, then that is fine but to do it for a diet fad isn’t healthy.

I am not someone who has any form of qualifications to do with this topic. I just think common sense should prevail. Cut out too many carbohydrates and if you do have any, have them in the morning and eat plenty of protein, fruit and vegetables the rest of the day. God made us perfect and provided we eat well and get some exercise, most of our bodies will respond to that positively.

Most of all, we should be aware that what God sees is not our outer selves but what is inside us. He loves us no matter what. Don’t let your appearance and health obsess you.

God bless,

1 Peter 3:4

You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God.”

I read a ‘seed’ this morning that talks about the comparison between focusing on God and focusing on ourselves. It mentioned St Augustine’s idea of the ‘City of God’ which is compared to the ‘City of Self’.

In this era we seem to be very focused on our health both mentally and physically. There are so many organisations offering support of various kinds intended to help you; as an example: ‘holistic therapies’, so that we have the the ‘feel good factor’, and ‘mindfulness’, so that we live in the moment and focus in on ourselves to create a happier mental state of health. All of this leads to an indwelling of the City of Self. We think we are making ourselves better but in fact we are drawing more and more away from the City of God.

Dwelling in the City of God on the other hand enables us to focus on God and others rather than ourselves. This would lead to a much better state of mind and put into perspective the amount of time we think too much about our personal health and happiness.

It isn’t easy to remain in the City of God: it needs time spent in prayer with God and a dedication to redirecting our thoughts when we keep going over problems we are facing or past failures. Staying with God protects us from our minds controlling our happiness and sending us into spirals of depression and hopelessness. No matter what is in our past or what is worrying us in the present or about the future, God is in all of it with us, ready to forgive us, heal us and help us deal with the lives we are facing.

God bless you and may you go to him for comfort,

Matthew 11:28-30

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

It appears to me that the world is changing so fast at the moment, although perhaps each generation has said the same. But we do somehow seem to be speeding towards the most ungodly era we have ever seen.

Where the church and faith have lost ground, what is appearing to fill the void will not bring happiness ultimately. I don’t need to list here what is happening that is disturbing as I think that we can all see it and know what most worries us.

It is important to hold fast to your faith in these times as never before and try to encourage your children to do the same. It will get a lot harder as these testing times will worsen but if we stand true to our beliefs, God will see us through it.

I have been thinking about those saints who also lived in difficult times and held fast to their beliefs at great personal cost. We need to keep our eye on eternity and our focus on God and not let what is happening around us alter us; we should be trying to gently pass on what we believe as taught in the Bible and not bow to what we are being asked to accept.

God bless and protect you,

1 Timothy 6:11

But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness.

As a catholic I believe in the real presence of the Lord in the eucharist, and in the transubstantiation that takes place at every Mass. I also think that it should be distributed to christians without putting rules in place that would seek to use it as a weapon.

I am talking about this today as there is a new issue that has arisen with President Biden being a catholic but not agreeing with the church’s teaching on abortion. There is talk by some bishops that he should be denied the eucharist but the Vatican is saying that the eucharist should not be ‘weaponised’. It is a bit late for that, as it already has been. Catholics who divorce and marry again cannot receive the eucharist. Some have done so for very good reasons and through no fault of their own but they are denied this sacrament.

How can it now be said that to deny Biden the eucharist because of his views would lead to ‘weaponising the eucharist’? This is a complete double standard and astounds me.

Each of us receiving the eucharist should do so ‘in a state of grace’. If we feel we have something on our conscience that would make receiving communion wrong, then we should put it right, or confess it beforehand. It is a great sin to receive the eucharist knowing that we have sinned and will continue to sin. Each of us has to examine our own conscience in this respect.

If the church has instigated rules about communion and who should receive it, they should either stick to them if they believe them to be right, (infallibly), or welcome all to receive it. Whether you are a president or not.

There were no rules about who should receive communion at the Last Supper; perhaps we should reconsider who can receive this ‘bread of life’.

John 6:51 

“I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

The lives we lead mean that most of us ‘get on with life’ every day. We wake up, get ready, work, cook, clean etc. and we get through our days and make plans for the future. We sometimes dwell on the past as well but it is very difficult to just ‘be in the present’.

I have felt a push today to mention that we should start each day in thankfulness and praise of God. Before the busy day starts, it is very valuable to us to stop and thank God for a new day; thank him for all he gives us – both those things we are aware of and those that we might miss; and finally praise and worship him for being our God and for his beautiful gifts of creation and love for us.

By doing this, it will enrich your life and if you can also involve God in your day, that would make it even better. It isn’t easy, especially when we are busy and have lots on our mind, but it is so rewarding.

There are two prayers I pray daily. One was written by St Richard of Chichester (whose saints day it is today) and St Ignatius:

St Richard of Chichester

Thanks be to thee, my Lord Jesus Christ, for all the benefits you have given me; for all the pain and insults you have borne for me. Most merciful redeemer, friend and brother, may I know you more clearly, love you more dearly and follow you more nearly, day by day. Amen.

St Ignatius of Loyola

Teach us good Lord to serve you as you deserve, to give and not to count the cost, to fight and not to heed the wounds, to toil and not to seek for rest, to labour and not to ask for any reward save that of knowing that we do your will. Amen.

God bless you and may God walk with you through your day,

History is a part of who we are now. There may have been events in the past that we can look back on and be horrified by, but we can’t undo them. Everything exists in its own time and people behave according to the rules and beliefs of the era they live in.

At the moment, groups of people are jumping on issues and telling everyone how to react and condemn you if you don’t think as they do. As I write this I am thinking particularly of colonialism and the cruelty that was inflicted on indigenous peoples. Of course we can look back now and we would never sanction such behaviour, or we like to think that we wouldn’t, but these issues do belong in the past.

We would be living in a completely different world if certain events hadn’t taken place and who are we to be the judge and jury? A society is built on its past and we can’t know where we would be if our history had been different. There are repercussions we can’t possibly predict.

Rebellion seems to be the answer to anything people see as a wrong. Rather than attempting to make people aware of what they feel about an issue in a peaceful way, groups of people will now react very strongly, breaking the law and disrupting others’ lives.

We can’t possibly approve of some actions taken in the past and would never condone them, but we don’t live in that era and can’t really pick and choose what we would change and know that this would have led to a better present world.

Unfortunately, we are living in a broken world, not the world God intended when he created it. We must just make sure that we aren’t adding to this.

God bless,

I was listening to a podcast today from Bishop Robert Barron who I have always found to be very instructive and insightful – he usually focuses on the following Sunday’s Mass readings and it is always good to listen beforehand with this preparation as I find that I learn and retain more.

On his podcast entitled ‘What does God want from me?’ I began to question myself about whether I am really living the spiritual life that God wants for us. We should be living joyful lives. God is love above all else; he is love in his being which means that to reflect his true nature, we should be responding to this love and love equals joy. The more we participate in fellowship with God, the more joy it will bring us.

The Bishop cites the First Letter of St John and recommends that we read it. We are told that our hearts convict us if we are not leading our lives well and God cannot dwell in someone who doesn’t love. It is a difficult truth to take on board and in the busy, stressful lives we lead it is so easy to just forge ahead and disregard others when we focus on getting through certain phases of our life and fail to help others who are in need.

I think the question to ask ourselves is: do we feel we are living a life full of the fruits of the Holy Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. If not, it is time for reflecting on why this may be and how you can seek this fully spiritual life.

God bless you and help you in your spiritual journey,