Weekday Masses

As from Thursday 2nd January 2020 the normal weekday Mass program will resume at St Monica's Walkerville. (See side-bar to the right)

New Year's Day Mass will be at St Monica's 8am.

The last weekday Mass at Sacred Heart, Hindmarsh will be Tuesday 31st Dec, 7am.

4th Sunday of Advent 22 Dec 2019 Sermon

4^th Sunday of Advent 22.12.19 Straight paths

We are nearly at the feast of Christmas. We summon all our best intentions as we seek to make straight the way of the Lord, to prepare for His coming.

This translates to giving Him the best possible chance of converting and saving us.

Much of the time the human race is obstructing the way of the Lord by ignoring, denying, insulting, or disobeying Him.

For one reason or another they do not want Him to come. It might be they deny their need for salvation; or they might think that salvation is not possible.

For our part, we do know we need saving, and we do want it.

We may be reluctant to part with some of our sins, but we know we would be better off without them.

God allows our response to determine at least partly what He will do, or when.

Why does God wait on us, when that seems to jeopardise the whole operation?

It is because saving us requires our response, from mind and heart, so our contribution cannot be bypassed or overruled.

God could overrule us, but that would defeat the whole idea for why He created us – that we would voluntarily come to know, love and serve Him.

We learn what we have to do from the key figures in the drama – Our Lady, St Joseph and St John the Baptist - who helped events to go as needed.

People say, where is God? Why does He not do something? He has been doing a great deal - prompting us, inspiring us, guiding us. Most of God’s interventions are too subtle to be immediately obvious, especially to the mockers.

If we want to see God in action we have to do some acting ourselves. It is very simple in principle; we do not usually have to do anything remarkable or difficult; just be faithful to the tasks our state of life requires; drawing inspiration from the major players in the infancy story.

St Joseph obeyed without question whenever he was told to do something. He was not given much explanation but he did not need it; he was happy to obey.

St John the Baptist deferred any praise of himself to its proper destination. He must grow greater; I must grow less (Jn 3,30), In both cases humility and a willingness to stand aside lest they obstruct the works.

God waits on us; He is interested in our response. We can give Him the right response, always with His help.

He wants us to be people who will interact with Him; who will want to know Him better, and become more desirous of pleasing Him.

He wants this for each individual, and for the Church as a whole; to be people who will welcome God into His own world. This is not so unreasonable when we think about it!

It should come easily but it usually does not. There is so much resistance to letting God take control of His own world.

It may need force for God to make it plain to people the choice they have.

Thus we have the apocalyptic predictions, including punishment for unrepentant sinners.

If it comes to cosmic disorders, we will stay calm and continue to serve till the end.

We will be the faithful servants, ready to greet the Lord when He returns (Lk 12,37); also faithful sheep who know the sound of the Master’s voice (Jn 10,27), who can discern His will and put it into practice.

Christmas is always something of a battle between what we wish and what we actually have. The world is so far from where it needs to be. We can help bridge the gap between ideal and real. We do our part to make straight the way of the Lord.

3rd Sunday of Advent 15 Dec 2019 Sermon

3^rd Sunday of Advent 15.12.19 Degrees of joy

Everyone is in pursuit of happiness, but not necessarily looking in the right places.

Many look for happiness in this life, as though it were the only life they have.

Earthly happiness has a way of being very fragile, and also somewhat futile.

Fragile, insofar as it can easily fall short of what was desired (like a holiday gone wrong, for instance).

Futile, insofar as such happiness can leave one no happier than before. It might be just a transient taste of happiness, lasting only for the moment.

Meanwhile the soul yearns for something deeper.

Christian joy is set deep - deep enough that  it does not vary with circumstances. It remains always firm, no matter what happens around it.

If our union with Christ is deep enough we will never be separated from Him. Nothing can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord  ( Rm 8,38-39).

He gives us a joy that nothing will take away (Jn 16,22).

But do not the misfortunes of the world take away our joy?

Not when we have union with Our Lord Jesus Christ. If we have Him we have everything. He is the source of all life, all happiness.

He can compensate us for anything we lose along the way; He can lead us to live with more purpose, free from destructive sin and false attachments.

In a world of much insecurity our certainty is found in Him, who is the same yesterday, today and forever (Heb 13,8).

He is the revelation of the one true God, and Himself that same God. Finding Him is better than winning the lottery or finding gold.

He has called us all to be His disciples, to be in close union with Him. This may not immediately strike us as a joyful thing, but we will reach that conclusion eventually.

He calls us, and then strengthens us. We will find we have the strength to uproot our vices and yield good fruit instead. With that will come joy, a sense of right order, everything working as it should.

Life might be harder in some ways (eg enduring persecution), but there is always that sense that with God s help we will get through.

We discover a deeper joy which is neither fragile nor futile.

Even if being martyred we can still be joyful – because we are close to Christ and that is where the joy comes from.

We graduate to a higher level of understanding whereby we are able to say that what He wants is the main thing.

If I get eaten by a lion tomorrow – if that is what He wants, or at least permits – then I want it too!

Our Lady shows the way, supported by many saints, including John the Baptist, featured strongly in this Advent season.

One thing God wills is – precisely on this note - that we will come to trust Him and be completely assured in His presence - in such a way that we do not change according to the last thing that happened. We learn to rise above circumstance to a more lasting truth.

We don’t know what happens tomorrow, or next week, or in ten years etc. We do know that in all those times Christ will be the same as He is today.

Thus I do not fear even ten thousand coming at me (Ps 3,6).

We can however still pray for the surface things to go well. Some things at least we can change by our actions or by prayer, and we should do whatever can be done in those quarters.

We do that much and then defer to deeper plans, trusting in greater wisdom than our own.

Immaculate Conception 8 Dec 2019 Sermon

Immaculate Conception 8.12.19 Second chance

It was a good day for us when Mary was conceived. Whether there was any sign in nature that something remarkable was happening that day, I do not know; but the event was worthy of some wonder from surrounding creation.

The conception of one baby, one particular baby turned human history on its head.

It was like a new creation of the human race. Adam and Eve had forfeited the perfect union with Almighty God, and from then on we laboured under original sin.

Mary was conceived without sin, giving the human race another chance.

Adam and Eve failed to grasp the privilege extended to them. Mary succeeded, and gave perfect return to God at every point of her life.

Into a diseased and disordered world a new stream of purity and holiness was released.

We can become cynical as we see the world around us, riddled with sin of every kind.

There is a purer world, not visible, but active all the same, calling us each and all to share in the fruits of a holy life, a life without sin.

We have tasted of this life and can tell that it is much better than the life of sin; but we find we have to break free from the ties of falsehood and vice.

It is like walking into a cobweb and having to fight our way through.

Salvation is an ongoing work. What we celebrate today was a major advance in God's plans for the world.

Mary had always been in His mind as an ideal. Now, she was here in reality.

Soon after would come the Saviour Himself, God made Man, saving us from within the human condition, by living as one of us.

The salvation and retrieval of the human race is at stake. The entry of Mary is a major event in pursuit of that objective.

God surrounded her with His love and she responded. She saw the better way.

Mary did not sin; did not want to sin. By not sinning she grew in love of God and that made any other sin even less likely.

She makes it look easy. People who are ‘best in the world’ at something make that thing look natural, even easy.

So Mary makes it look easy to be holy. It is simply looking at the glory of God.

The devil could not touch her with the normal tricks that worked with everyone else.

This made her a very powerful person, having direct and complete access to the power of God. Innocence is often portrayed as weakness, as in a kind of naivete.

Not with Mary. She was powerful because of her innocence. She could make miracles happen, and still can.

Now it is our turn to step up and take our part in the great Salvation story. It is a great story and still being written. Each of us has at least a paragraph to contribute!

Salvation for us is more complicated than for Mary, because we have to be extricated from sin, from false ideas, disordered passions etc.

We are far from immaculate, at least to start with. We can reach that state, slowly and surely, as we take on more and more God's view of things.

All our lives, and all of human history, we have been trying to subvert God's plan and make it our plan instead. Very Luciferian - I will be my own god.

If we can just accept that there is One greater than us. This should not be so hard when it is so obvious. We are created beings, and must never forget that.

We have a second chance in Mary. We will not allow ourselves to be deceived again.

1st Sunday of Advent 1 Dec 2019 Sermon

1^st Sunday of Advent 1.12.19 Recognizing the Saviour

We are often reminded we should repent of our sins; and that we should avoid sin.

Sin is anytime we offend God by breaking one of His commands. There are the Ten Commandments, and then there are sub-clauses that go with them. For example, Thou shalt not kill takes in hating or insulting as well.

It is difficult not to fall into one sin or another. To have to keep all the rules could sound like an impossible burden.

If we put the same thing another way, however, it all seems easier.

We can avoid sin simply by recognizing with sufficient clarity our Saviour Jesus Christ.

The more we come to know and love Him the easier it will be for us to align ourselves with His will.

And this will mean we no longer commit sin, because we have lost all desire for it. It will be no great effort, either, because it will come naturally.

There are already some sins we would not dream of committing, such as rob the local bank. We can come to the point where we would not dream of speaking unnecessarily about our neighbour’s faults, or having jealous thoughts.

The moral law comes from God and expresses His nature. The more we understand Him the more natural His laws appear. He has not just thrown us a rule book and said, Here, keep these!

Instead He has come among us and patiently shown us what He is like, what God is like, what Man is like when brought into union with God.

Jesus came to show us the Father (Jn 14,9).  He never sinned in His human nature, never rebelled against God;  because He had perfect union with God, perfect understanding of what was what, and why it was so.

This is where we need to be, or at least steadily pressing in that direction.

The rules still matter; and He does want us to keep them; only that it come from the heart; that it be an expression of the union we have achieved with God up to the present time.

And this is meant to catch on; so that the whole population will come to the same understanding; no longer resenting being told what to do.

God is not denying our natural desires, but rather purifying those desires, making us much happier than we would have been, if left to ourselves.

For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (Ep 5,8).

We have been liberated, at least in principle, and there is more to come.

It may hurt a little to re-orientate our desires; but the joy will be far greater than the pain.

In Advent we are reminded that our time is limited. We do not have forever to decide whether we will accept God's offer of liberating us.

The invitation is very generous on His part, but if we delay too long we will stay in our sins, and with that will come the penalty of eternal death.

In the end it comes to this: do we love God or Not?

Whether we keep the rules is one measure of that, but as we see that is only a start.

We have a long way to go to reach the full and serene union with the Heart of God, as we would see in Our Lady, for instance.

The time we have left is the time to travel this distance, to reach the required level of union.

We refer back to the time of Our Lord on earth, for constant reassurance and direction.

If we can draw from His humanity - His trust in God, His gentleness, generosity, wisdom, compassion - then we must arrive eventually.

Come, Lord Jesus includes that we come to Him; come in mind and heart; agree with Him; accept all He wants to do for us.

Last Sunday after Pentecost 24 Nov 2019 Sermon

Last Sunday after Pentecost 24.11.19 Security

The word Last conveys a certain sadness, the last farewell etc. the end of things we have valued or known, such as school or work.

Finality is not necessarily a bad thing if we can go to something better instead.

As Christians we definitely believe there is a better place than here; and we do not belong here. Our true home is in Heaven (Ph 3,20).

So we are not overly alarmed when we consider the prospect of this world’s being wrapped up.

We are secure because we believe in something much more substantial that this world.

[The world cannot satisfy us, either in terms of permanent life, or in happiness. The earth itself might disappear, and even if it remains happiness is elusive]

Our true home will last forever and we will have complete happiness there.

We still want to change this world, however, as far as it can be done.

We want to give it back to Our Lord as Lord and Saviour, freed from sin and glorified by His grace.

It is sin that has made things go so crooked as they are; it is repentance that will get things back to the right shape.

We are stewards of creation. Yes we should look after the environment, but even more so the moral environment, seeking to live as Adam and Eve were first directed, and as the Second Adam and Eve have shown us.

God provided the earth for us to live on, to learn how to apply His will to situations that arise, to glorify Him through His creation.

We give thanks for all His gifts as we use them according to His will.

God never wanted to send destruction on this earth. He does, however, want to purify it, and sometimes (because of sin) that requires a certain violence.

He sends chastisements so that people will turn back to Him.

He does not want to punish anymore than is necessary, and we can reduce the need for punishment by hastening our own response of obedience.

The threats of destruction and punishment are conditional upon our response.

If we put the things of this world before God that is what brings the disasters. If we put God first there will be no disasters; everything will run smoothly, as it does in Heaven.

Being reminded of the Last day, the End of our lives, should help us re-affirm our true objectives.

It is simple: God has given us the earth to live on, and each of us a certain role to play. He has allocated us certain talents and will want to know from us how we have exercised those talents (Mt 25,14-30).

If we have served Him, we inherit eternal life; if we have squandered our talents, eternal loss.

We are called to a wise balance of all the factors involved. We prepare for our entry to the next life by working on all the details of this one.

We do not just drift. Nor do we bury ourselves so completely in this life as to forget the next.

The Church gives us this thought every year; one more time around the clock - to see if we have learned anything.

In this last year, or in all our years taken together, what have we become? Has all our activity brought us closer to God, or further away?

We need to re-establish in our minds, and for people generally, that Christ is Lord, King, Judge, Saviour of the world. Somehow the world manages to ignore  Him.

The earthquakes, fires, floods, droughts etc are there to remind us that we cannot afford to do that.

We gladly affirm His importance and ask for every grace and mercy until He comes again.

23rd Sunday after Pentecost 17 Nov 2019 Sermon

 23^rd Sunday after Pentecost 17.11.19 Freed from slavery

The woman is healed and the girl is raised. All easy work for Our Lord!

We approach the end of the Church year, at which time we contemplate especially the last things – Heaven, Hell, Death, Judgment. We assess our readiness to meet the Lord.

He is the Judge but also the Advocate. He wants us to be saved more than we want it ourselves.

Our Lord shows His power to heal at every level. He can cure sickness; He can bring someone back to life.

The one that really matter is a third level of healing, that of forgiveness of sin.

Forgiveness of sin restores us to life of grace, soul-life

This is better than just being healthy, or just being alive. It goes to the very centre of our being, bringing us into union with Divine life - a great source of joy when we reach that state.

The idea is that we be not just forgiven of sins but raised to the point that we no longer have any inclination to sin; we are fully alive, like the saints themselves, who dwell in perfect concord with Almighty God.

The way we think, the way we regard one thing as more important than another – these can be set straight as for the sickness and death Our Lord overpowered.

There is more to the spiritual healing because it involves the will of the other person, and that will can be very hard to bend. Still it can be done, as long as the person concerned shows some degree of cooperation.

We will have new desires, purer and stronger, well-ordered; linked to the will of God. We will be free from all addictions, compulsions, and bad habits. We control our desires; not they control us!

This is what we should ask for when we call out to the Lord to heal us. We will gladly take any degree of healing or blessing, but the recovery of our own soul is the big prize.

To realize that we need such a change; and to believe it is possible to happen – Our Lord assures us that it is so.

When we cry, Lord have mercy, or any similar prayer, we are asking for all this.

Many would regard their sins as too firmly lodged to be movable. You can't change a leopard’s spots etc. Anyway everyone does what I do, so I don’t need to be better than they are.

This is false captivity. We do not have to settle for that.

It may be a process, not all at once, but we can get there eventually.

We cannot heal ourselves, or raise ourselves from the dead, or absolve ourselves from sin.

It has to be an external power that can do these things, and this power is from Christ; and we come to Him, asking Him to direct His merciful gaze upon us and just one fraction of His infinite power and goodness to revive us, and bring us back to life in the soul.

We ask Him to heal us in any way and any degree He chooses, but at least we give Him full access and understanding that we must be prepared to be His disciples if we are to ask His favours.

We can ask for freedom even if we feel bound. It may be beyond our strength but not beyond Him.

The captives are set free. From sickness, from death, from sin.

As we prepare for the end this freedom is what we seek. We will have no fear of judgment if we have established a continuous relationship with Our Lord, calling upon His healing.

And this we pray for each other, including the dead.

22nd Sunday after Pentecost 10 Nov 2019 Sermon

22^nd Sunday after Pentecost 10.11.19 Battle of wills

Give to God what is His. That comes to everything.

Even what we call our own, like cars or houses; but also, closer to home, even our minds and hearts, our plans, ambitions, desires…

The objects we ‘own’ are really His more than they are ours. He has a greater claim to our cars and houses than we have, and we should use them in accord with His will rather than our own. This would mean, for example, that we would drive safely, or be generous with using our money or resources.

But the hardest part is the interior. We have a way of thinking that we run our own lives., forgetting that we owe our existence to Almighty God, and must serve Him first.

Many would say they have complete dominion over their own bodies and their own lives.

Yet our bodies are not our own; we have been bought and paid for. (cf 1 Cor 6,19-20)

And we cannot control external circumstances, cf James 4,13-14. We do not know even what tomorrow will bring, let alone planning the rest of our lives.

And then there is the question of will. My will or God's will – which shall prevail?

I have certain plans that suit me; He has other ideas for my life. Should I submit to Him?

Yes, because He has absolute authority anyway, as above; but also because He knows far better what is best for us.

It is not as though we become robots or puppets. We have a fairly high degree of autonomy and freedom of initiative. God wants us to think for ourselves and make decisions, only to make those decisions in union with His will for us.

He wants us to be habitually attuned to His will, as Our Lady was, and thus be regularly and automatically making the right decisions.

Once we get close enough to Him, we recognize His will and come to love it as our own.

Not My will but Thine (Lk 22,42).

We can make plans but they have to be flexible.  Man proposes, God disposes (cf Prov 19.21-23). And at a moment’s notice. We must be ready to part with anyone, anything, and even our own lives, or the world itself.

We are allowed to have our own preference for one thing over another, but always be willing to submit to God's greater wisdom.

This is all by way of giving to God what is His. The course of history is His. The course of our own lives is His. It is all subject to His will – either what He directly wills, or at least permits.

Every breath we take, or every step - there is no escaping His rule. Go to the bottom of the sea; or into outer space – no place or time is outside His knowledge and authority (cf Ps 138, 1-15).

Nor can we escape the inevitability that we must face God in judgment one day; or that this world as we know it will come to an end.

But then we have the possibility, probability, even certainty of eternal life to console us.

We are fortunately placed, if only we can keep the balance and not think we can somehow bypass all this and just live ‘normal’ lives.

We give to God our own wills, our devotion, our commitment. This will please Him, at the same time being beneficial to ourselves and to the surrounding society.

If everyone bowed down before the true God it would be a perfect world, and even Caesar would be happy with what comes his way!

21st Sunday after Pentecost 3 Nov 2019 Sermon

21^st Sunday after Pentecost 3.11.19 Mercy for others

A notorious serial killer died recently in Australia. People were saying, as they usually do,  that he can rot in hell.

It is understandable to be angry with someone who does so much evil. But how we respond is important.

We cannot just give way to hatred and revenge. When people say, ‘rot in hell’, it means they want the person to suffer. This is clearly not the way. It is really just revenge, an unbridled passion.

We learn to love - not hate - those who hurt us.

We see the soul in need. Just as we would help someone in physical need – would feed a hungry man, would free a man who was trapped …  the spiritual domain operates the same way.

This man is in trouble; you can help him find what he needs, namely salvation.

To be cleansed of sin. Every soul still in transit could be moved to a better state than present.

However good or bad one might be, we all need improvement, and it is always possible.

The closer we look the more we realize everyone needs grace and mercy. Not all sins are as dramatic as murder. There are many others, not so easily detected, which can do their own damage: such as worshipping false gods, corrupting the young, sacrilege, blasphemy, pride, refusal to forgive.

We don’t need to know which sins are worse than which, only that any sin needs to be cleansed, and attachment to that sin needs to be loosened.

Those who know have a duty to help those who know less. We try to do as much as we can to help the whole process.

We do not have to assess each other soul - which we could not do anyway. All we have to do is pray for the salvation of each soul.

And we should not pray like it was a task, against the grain, but we are supposed to want the soul to be saved.

If you get to Heaven and you meet someone there who hurt you a lot… by that stage both he and you will be at one with God, and at peace with each other.

At this time of year, especially, we recall our practice of praying for the dead.

If the person is beyond help and cannot be saved, the prayer will not be wasted; it will help someone. It increases the flow of charity within the whole Body of Christ.

We believe we can help the dead, in two phases: one to be forgiven for their sin, and the other to be purified of all attachment to sin.

We believe we can hasten the time, or lessen the severity of the purification.

If one is contrite enough not so much punishment is needed. We seek to reach perfect contrition. And pray that we all do.

We need continuous cleansing on this point, to be drinking from the spring of Christ’s mercy – which flows like a torrent from His side.

This will change our hearts of stone to hearts of flesh, and make us more yielding and forgiving.

And it will make our prayer more powerful, able to touch the most hardened sinners.

We seek to grasp more fully the mind of God on these matters. It is really necessary that we come to this topic from a spiritual perspective and not the usual earthly way.

So it is not ‘may he rot in hell’ but ‘may he reach the courts of heaven’, however long it may take. And his victims, and the rest of us who struggle with the power of evil.

In any case, and all cases, Lord Have Mercy.

Christ the King 27 Oct 2019 Sermon

Christ the King 27.10.19 Christ supreme

This feast was instituted in 1925 by Pope Pius XI to reassert that the human race was not doing very well on its own, but if they were to give God His true place they would do much better.

Events at that time, and many other times, show how badly humans run the world when they do not heed God. (Some people think they can do better!)

The Pope’s idea probably has not been successful, insofar as there has been an even further turning away from the one true God, but he was right all the same.

The reaffirmation of Christ as ruling the world can be seen in two aspects, concerning faith and morality – what we believe and how we live; or theory and practice.

Regarding Faith: we acknowledge that there is a God over us who is infinitely good and powerful and who is in possession of every detail.

This is something we should factor in, if only because it makes sense to take account of all angles.

But also we owe it to God in gratitude for creating and saving us; and with that we owe Him worship, as an infinitely superior Being. We praise people when they do well; why not God? We acknowledge beauty when we see it; why not God?

Regarding Morality: If we did let Christ run the world what would it look like? People would be kind and gracious to each other all day long and in every place!

That is so far from our familiar reality that we might dismiss the idea as fantasy. Our Lord said the Kingdom is like a mustard seed: it grows until it becomes a large tree.

Qualities like charity can be in short supply, but like the seed they can increase. The Kingdom grows when individuals and communities take up the Lord’s example, calling upon His grace.

It is not fantasy; just still developing.

It is our role to help the Kingship of Christ take stronger hold in our world.

We must live like Christ even if no one else does. We should learn from Our Lord all that He demonstrated to us, and imitate Him in His kindness, humility, charity, mercy etc. He revealed what God is like.

If we are to have Him as King we must live the way He has set down.

So what does the human race usually do about all this? Act as though God does not exist, and if He does exist then He is wrong about how we should live (He is too ‘strict’!)

They change His laws, declaring them to be out of date. They certainly do not worship Him.

This does not change God's status or viewpoint; it just means the human race is piling up more trouble, and potential punishment.

We cannot control most of what people decide, but we can go some way to reversing the downward slide. We can make Christ present where we are; and we can help atone for the sins of the world.

It has to be a grass-roots movement, coming from below, because it must come from individual hearts and minds. It is not something that can be legislated into existence.

People will ignore laws that they think have nothing to do with them. But if they can be personally convinced of Christ’s importance then they will take notice. Such personal conviction could come in different ways – but every soul is in need of it.

We can help by doing our bit to lift the general tone of human behaviour.

And by reparating some of the damage done by so much sin over so many years.

Let us live in full acknowledgment of Christ the King, and in imitation of Him; that His virtues may be in us, and His kingdom among us.

19th Sunday after Pentecost 20 Oct 2019 Sermon

19^th Sunday after Pentecost 20.10.19 Challenge

We speak of the heavenly banquet, one image of Heaven.

It is an appealing vision, to be at a banquet, able to eat and drink all we want, freed from all our usual anxieties.

The Mass also can be called a banquet, where we are fed something of far greater benefit than any earthly banquet could give us.

To these banquets we are invited, but with the invitation comes a challenge.

We cannot merely enjoy ourselves just yet; there is work to be done.

That work could be described as the whole range of what it means to be a disciple of Our Lord, a child of God, a member of His Church.

It means we have to keep the commandments, choose good over evil whenever there is such a choice.

It means we have to love our neighbours, forgive our enemies, look after those in need, give thanks constantly to God, trust in God at all times, try to convince others of the rightness of these matters.

This last point is extending the invitation to the banquet to others.

There are a thousand points and sub-points which spring from all these things.

Taken all together they are the ‘work’ that Our Lord asks of us when He issues the invitation to follow Him, to take up our cross daily in His service.

We are not just passengers on this train; we are working as well!

If we come to Jesus Christ we get a whole deal. Sins are forgiven, we are transformed , filled with his charity and other virtues and we are being sent out whatever that might mean for each person.

The man without the wedding garment had accepted the invitation but not the challenge. He was not of one mind with the host, meaning Christ.

If we seek simply to take the benefits that Christ offers, without exerting ourselves in any way, then we run the risk of losing everything.

When we truly encounter the mercy of Christ we will spontaneously want to live by the new understanding that we have just received.

St Matthew, on being called by Our Lord, immediately invited his friends around to share his joy (Mt 9,9-13). And no doubt some of them would have been converted as well. Zacchaeus, a similar story, wanted to pay back fourfold whatever he had stolen (Lk 19,1-10). The woman who washed His feet with her tears was showing gratitude for mercy received (Lk 7,36-50).

This is how we know whether we have accepted the Lord’s invitation or not; are we in some way transformed by the encounter with Him?

We will want to be active in God's service, as we consciously rise above our previous faults and sins.

So the invitation always includes the challenge. We accept both.

We will want to know love and serve Him, not to break out on our own agenda.

God is not to be sidelined or relegated to somewhere down the list. He must be the first we are seeking to please.

Many do not see that; all the more reason why those who do see it must exert ourselves in putting His will into effect (thus the Challenge).

We thank God for creating us, for inviting us to share in His glory; for challenging us to work in His service, until we can finally partake of that Banquet that has no end.

18th Sunday after Pentecost 13 Oct 2019 Sermon

18^th Sunday after Pentecost 13.10.19  St John Newman

Today is the anniversary of the final Fatima apparition, with the miracle of the sun (1917). And also today is the canonisation of John Henry Newman.

As regards Fatima the miracle is as real as ever, but somehow has lost some of its impact with the general public. This is part of the folly of human nature to let the passing of time dull our perception of important matters.

Even miracles can be forgotten. See the Israelites who witnessed all sorts of miracles – the ten plagues upon Egypt, the parting of the Red Sea, manna from Heaven, winning battles against the odds. Yet they would constantly lapse back into sin and idolatry.

As soon as we get used to something we can take it for granted. In areas prone to earthquake the people who live there don’t react unless it rattles more than usual!

People can adapt even to punishment, or threats thereof - anything but repent!

The human race is generally not good at repenting, or at sticking with it when they do.

So we take advantage of anniversaries to remind us to heed the words and signs which come from Heaven.

Fortunately, many have recognized the call to conversion and give us good example. Today we have one such person brought to our attention.

John Henry Newman was one to think deeply about God's dealings with us, and was prepared to live by the truth he would uncover.

He was willing to do this to an heroic level having to withstand criticism and ridicule, while single-mindedly pursuing the will of God.

He was an Englishman, 1801-1890, a brilliant scholar, who converted from Anglican to Catholic in an era when such an action was very unpopular. The issue was compounded because Newman was such a good writer and speaker that he influenced many others to follow.

It is commonly said today that it does not matter much what you believe as long as you are living a good life.

We would not say the same about people we love, being content with just a vague notion of who they are. No, Love seeks knowledge of the beloved, not just treating them as abstract notions.

Further, the right beliefs are more likely to produce the right behaviour.

Further again, we are protected from error by staying within the Church. It is very draughty if we step outside the Church’s protective authority.

John Newman gives us an example of making a real conversion and sticking with it. He would not let the passing of time take the edge off his convictions. He kept everything up to date – belief and practice.

We must do the same – clarify our beliefs, study them where possible; believe and live them – whether that makes us popular or not.

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever (Heb 13,8). He draws us all to Himself, to live in truth and charity, in theory and practice.

Many are indifferent to God or are trying to hide from Him. We do not hide; we look for Him! It does not need a miracle of the sun to capture our attention; we are looking for Him anyway.

Dramatic moments can help, however. Imagine standing in that muddy field at Fatima and thinking you have seconds to live. What would you do? Of course, call out for mercy.

Well, let us do that anyway; because there is always that need. Mercy, Grace, Conversion – to a better life than we have been living, a better world than we have seen so far.

Short-term changes to weekday Mass programme

St Monica’s Church will be unavailable for weekday Masses from Monday 14^th October to approximately Saturday 30^th November 2019, due to renovation of the car park.

Sunday Mass will continue as normal at 8am St Monica’s each week.

Weekday Masses will be offered at Sacred Heart Church, Hindmarsh as follows:

Mon    No Mass

Tue    7am

Wed  7am

Thu   No Mass

Fri    7am

Sat  7am

Any changes to this programme will be noted on this website: luxvera.blogspot.com/

 God bless.

17th Sunday after Pentecost 6 Oct 2019 Sermon

17^th Sunday after Pentecost 6.10.19 Commandments

We can think of commandments as a burden – Oh, we have to do this and we have to avoid that – and this may be the opposite of what we feel.

It is possible to see God as a hard taskmaster, as someone who is giving out orders, and then punishing if not obeyed. This is not how He wants us to see Him.

God's commandments express His mind; they are what He would do if He were living  a human life on earth (which is just what He did do, in the person of Our Lord). He would not kill or steal or lie etc. And He would show great care for His neighbour, and forgive those who offended Him etc.

What He would or would not do is how the Commandments were formed. This is where they come from.

If we break a commandment we are acting in a way that is alien to God, contrary to His nature or will.

However, knowing this, we can still find it difficult to keep the Commandments.

Even if we want to keep them we just cannot do it, or we think we cannot. There is just not enough fuel in the tank to get us as far as we need to go, we would say.

It may be natural to God but we seem to struggle. It is no great effort for Him; all He is doing is what His nature dictates. It is what He is, what He does – He is like that.

Everything about God is in perfect harmony. All that is true, good and beautiful comes from Him.

Keeping commandments is along the same line. Simply draw from the truth and apply it in each case.

This is how we need to be, such that goodness comes automatically from a well-adjusted nature.

This is how divine nature works, and human nature is supposed to work. We are still in for repairs, even after 2000 years!

We are being reformed to see as God sees, to want what He wants; so that there is no more tension or friction between what we want and what we do. No teeth-gritting obedience, but freely and joyfully, from the heart.

We are no longer going against the grain; now we are living as we were designed. We are like birds in flight, or fish in water.

This is what it means to love God with our whole heart and soul (Gospel). It means that we are at one with Him in what we want and what we will do. A state of perfect union is what we call Love.

  

Loving neighbour works the same way. We come to see the other person as God sees him.

Our initial reactions of resentment, anger etc give way as we take on more of God's nature.

When Jesus was crucified He did not resent the people crucifying Him. He wanted to save them from the evil which presently afflicted them.

He commands us to be the same way – no small thing – but possible if united with Him.

If we still need the fear of hell to prompt us, by all means call on that.

If we need to use reason that it must always be better to obey than disobey God, then do that too.

Eventually we will not need to think our way there. It will be as natural as breathing.

We will get through a day, not commandment by commandment (I got four right today, only two wrong),  but we can glide through them all, no longer an effort.

Agreeing with God. His will is my will.  

Feast of St Michael 29 Sep 2019 Sermon

Feast of St Michael  29.9.19 Giving God the best

St Michael is especially noted for fighting against Satan and his followers.

He is depicted in art as having a sword. Of course, angels do not really use swords. The battle is fought at the spiritual level; at the level of thought, ideas – truth against falsehood, love against hate.

What is it like to fight at the spiritual level? We should know: we have been in it all our lives. The choice between right and wrong confronts us every day. Right and wrong, or better and worse. It comes to this: Do we love God or  not? This question means everything.

All day we face temptations to turn away from God, and invitations to turn towards Him. This is the essence of the battle we fight, and in which we are caught up.

When we experience the wrestling and the anguish that can go with a moral choice we might sometimes wish we could have a sword fight instead!

Evil can be attractively packaged, and look good to eat (cf Eve and the fruit).  And good can appear rather boring by contrast. Being good takes discipline, restraint, self-control – not always the most sought-after qualities!

Our desires tend to be somewhat distorted at the best of times – the result of previous sin.

If we do what our unreflected desires tell us we will often take the wrong path. With more maturity and balance (helped by the angels) we are more likely to choose rightly.

The fruits indicate whether we got it right or not (cf Gal 5 love, joy, peace or dissensions, envies, uncleanness etc).

The battle is invisible, subtle and long-term.

The obvious sins (like robbing the bank) are easier to avoid. The little things are not so easy. It is easy to go through a day without committing a murder; but how avoid the uncharitable remarks, the jealous thoughts, the impure glances?

The battle is fought on many fronts; we must be attentive to the whole battlefield.

Are we really attuned to the divine presence, to the claims that God has on us? Are we really trying to give Him the best we can?

We are tempted to give Him just what is good enough, not the best lamb in the flock. Good enough for God, so we think.

The angels give of their best to God, and they challenge us to follow their example.

They also pray for us that we will have the necessary strength to progress.

We need a large dose of humility. It was humility that enabled St Michael to hold firm in his time of trial; pride which brought down the evil angels.

With much practice we can reach the point where our will is locked in with God, permanently and securely; so we are no longer like a gate swinging in the breeze. We will come to see more clearly how both sides work, and make our decision to be on the right side.

The devil will frustrate as much as possible. Watch out for ‘snares and wickedness’ (St Michael prayer).

He will present things to us in whatever way is most likely to lead us to sin.

We must be vigilant and never over-confident. (everyone sins, this is only a little sin, God will forgive…not a sin this time… you are a good person… )  All this and more - whatever will work for him.)

St Michael and the angels did not take God for granted, and nor do we. We give Him serious attention; seeking to pull out the weeds and replace them with flowers.

The angels help us to search for God to love Him more. They would be learning still about God's infinite goodness. They want  us to share in it.

Let us thank God for such strong help. Let us acknowledge the Queen of the Angels, even holier than those angels.

15th Sunday after Pentecost 22 Sep 2019 Sermon

15^th Sunday after Pentecost 22.9.19 Death removed

One of the less pleasant experiences of this life is dealing with the death of other people, whom we loved or at least respected.

There is a lot of sadness involved with death, it being such a definite separation.

We cannot communicate directly with the dead but we can be consoled at being united with them in Christ. We are united with those who are united with Him.

He is Lord of the living and the dead and draws both to Himself.

That and many other things He helps us to deal with: He forgives those who die repentant, and offers them eternal happiness.

He strengthens us who remain on earth to persevere to the end, assuring us we will not have to suffer long.

Death where is thy sting?(1 Cor 15, 55-57)  When the sin has been forgiven death becomes no more than a sleep.

In today’s Gospel Our Lord raises the young man from death and restores him to his mother.

The Church has always understood this event as symbolic of her own role as Mother and her joy at having her children restored through repentance.

Many children are at present away from this Mother, and we pray fervently they will return.

Sin is a worse tragedy than Death. We notice death as it is more obvious, but sin is the bigger problem.

Our Lord could have raised every dead person in Israel. He could have emptied out all the graveyards, as He could do in the present day.

This, however, is not His normal way of operating. The dead have served their time here, and now move on to the next phase.

They do not come back to us, but we can go to them; and that is a better solution.

When we pray for the dead we do not pray they come back to earth, but that they be freed from their sins and any attendant punishment, thus to enter eternal happiness.

The Church has always encouraged prayer for the dead, prayer which operates on two levels.

On one level we pray that they receive a favourable judgment; that their sins be forgiven and they be saved.

This prayer we can make even long after the person has died; because God can see our prayers across time, and will accept them if they are sincerely meant.

On another level we pray that any punishment due to sin be removed by our prayer and penance.

It is one thing to be forgiven; another to be totally cleansed of any attachment to sin. We pray for both things to happen so the soul can enter Heaven.

We pray that we will not miss them too much, but that every remembrance will be a chance for further prayer; and that our sadness will be absorbed by a deep faith and charity.

The souls of the just are in the hands of God (Wisdom 3,1)

For ourselves we thank God that we have a second chance at life; that the death that would have followed on our sin has been lifted, and we can make another start in the service of Our Lord..

In fact, we can be forgiven many times for the same sins, provided we are serious in our desire to break free from those sins.

Such a level of contrition will itself be the fruit of prayer.

If sin is the greatest evil then Mercy is the greatest good. The mercy of God gives life even when it is not deserved.

For this we are eternally grateful.

14th Sunday after Pentecost 15 Sep 2019 Sermon

14^th Sunday after Pentecost 15.9.19 Security

The best kept secret is: that obedience to God brings more happiness than does disobedience.

Or similarly that trust in God brings more peace of mind than doubting Him.

Or generosity brings more satisfaction than hoarding one’s possessions.

One could go on through all the different polarities; the pattern will be the same.

The epistle today lists the good fruits that come from God and taking Him seriously – charity, joy, peace, patience, chastity.. and also the bad fruits that follow whenever we try to do it without God – quarrels, dissensions, envies, murders etc.

We live in a world where most people do it the wrong way, and this creates a lot of chaos.

All the more reason we must do it the right way: obey God in all things; trust Him at all times; give of ourselves rather than try to hang on to our false securities.

This we must do even if we are the only one; even if we are ridiculed by all around us.

It is the best way and the only way to make sense of it all.

God will provide whatever is needed for all who put their trust in Him.

It is a bit more complicated for us than the birds of the air and the flowers of the field (Gospel). But the principle is the same.

God provides for us but we have to do some work ourselves. He does not just deliver things ready-made from Heaven. We can use some human ingenuity to arrange things. (Even human ingenuity comes from God).

He provides in ways that involve us and require our cooperation.

For example, He sends rain to water the earth, and we meanwhile will plant the right crops, learning as we go. Then we turn those crops into food and we eat the food. So God has provided, and we have received; but also we have participated in the process.

We are tempted to accumulate resources for ourselves (especially money). Our Lord warns against too much self-reliance. Do not be like the foolish man who thought all he had to do was build bigger barns (Lk 12,16-21).

We can pile up money but it will not save us from sudden death or incapacity, should they come.

Did warriors strong around me throng, they could not stay [death’s] power.

God expects us to trust Him, not the assets we may have. We cannot cover every detail, no matter how hard we try; there are too many things that could go wrong.

Preoccupation with our security will paralyse our response to God. He expects us to walk in trust, wherever that takes us, even to the miraculous.

With God on our side who can be against us? (Rom 8,31)

If we obey Him and are generous with our possessions, we will see the path opening before us.

We have to obey first to get the full effect. This is part of our ‘participation’. Many will demand a sign from God before they give Him any consideration. They want manna from Heaven; they do not want to exert themselves in faith.

God, for His part, will withhold blessings to see if we can trust in Him.

He can do more with humble and contrite hearts.

If we do follow the general principles then we will see results.

If we cannot achieve a miracle we will benefit from trying. But we have much more chance of seeing a miracle if we live as God directs.

Our true and only security is in Christ. Give Him an obedient and joyful response and there is no telling how much good can come from that.

13th Sunday after Pentecost 8 Sep 2019 Gratitude

13^th Sunday after Pentecost 8.9.19 Gratitude 

Your faith has made you well… the leper who came back must have had enough faith to enable him to interpret his experience as an encounter with God, and he responded accordingly.

He was passionately moved in gratitude, throwing himself at Our Lord’s feet, acknowledging more than just a physical healing.

He was glad to be healed but he was able to see deeper; that in Our Lord here was someone to compel one’s attention; to whom one should profess allegiance.

This is what Our Lord means by being ‘made well’ –  every part of the human person working in unison, body and soul coming together.

To be healed means healed in soul as well as body.

Faith is the ability to discern the workings of God in our lives. Sometimes His working is powerful and instantaneous, and we rejoice in that.

Other times it is much more of a grind and we have to persevere in prayer and trust for ages, maybe all our lives, before we see the desired change. This would apply to big prayer projects like world peace, conversion of sinners.

Faith will hold us together, enabling us to sense God's presence and activity behind the scenes, if not in full view.

We know that God does not change; does not forget us; does not go back on His word. He does not have changes of mood, as we do. We do not have to wait for God to be in a good mood before we place our requests before Him. He is always the same.

We come to a state of union with Him whereby we believe just as strongly when things go our way and when they do not. It is this union which enables us to see beyond just the latest circumstance.

We see the plans of God unfolding before us. Whether things happen quickly or take centuries - we thank God for all of it.

The other nine lepers presumably did not have enough faith to be able to make the spiritual connection. They took the healing for granted… just one of those things… and did not derive the spiritual benefit that was there for them if they had sought it.

Worse still, people often hold grudges against God, because of misfortunes they experience. This is clearly not the best way forward. We must not resent the One who is perfect goodness.

At such times we have to raise our eyes to the larger picture. Sufferings and disappointments of every kind can be absorbed in God's nature, simply who and what He is.

Our prayer becomes one event, not just random episodes according to need, but a continuous state of harmony with God.

We call on Him, but without needing to shout – like Our Lady at Cana: Son, they have no wine. That is asking for a miracle, but without raising one’s voice.

If the one leper could turn into millions of disciples who believe to the point of death; who come back every day to say Thanks, who throw themselves at the Master’s feet and promise loyalty!

This would be progress. It would mean, among other things, more daily miracles, and less lag time before major breakthroughs would follow.

When we question or complain we are blocking the works, making it less likely that prayers can be heard.

Instead let us keep a reverent silence and simply go to work on the prayer that is respectful, grateful, and will move mountains (Mk 11,23).

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.

12th Sunday after Pentecost 1 Sep 2019 Sermon

12^th Sunday after Pentecost 1.9.19 Loving our Neighbour

We must love our neighbour, whoever that may be, and whatever love requires in each situation.

Our neighbour could be someone we see all the time, like family; or a stranger we see only once.

What love requires may not necessarily be what the person wants from us.

Sometimes love requires that we refuse a request, or that we correct the other person’s behaviour.

One situation that often arises is that people come to churches to ask for money. We should generally refuse such requests because a lot of the claims for help will be untruthful; and we run the risk of being overrun with other people doing the same thing.

We will be accused of being un-Christian if we do not give, but we must seek the best path to take.

The Church has structures for helping the poor, and we should encourage the proper use of those structures. This will keep due order and reduce fraud.

We work for the overall good of each person and of the whole Church.

This  is how God expresses love for us - He works to an overall plan.

We believe He hears our prayers; yet He does not always give us what we ask, nor does He always give it immediately.

We might lament this apparent inaction on God's part, but we can be assured He is working for our overall good.

He will give us what is best for us, and in the way that is best.

We can apply the same logic to our love for others. We will give what we think is best and in the way that is best for each person. We do not have God's infinite wisdom, but we can seek His guidance for the best response in each case.

The whole Church is charitable, materially and spiritually.

The spiritual help is always more important, but we must attend to material help also.

It is no use preaching to a man if he has an empty stomach. We feed him first; because simple charity requires it, and it will put him in a more likely mood to receive the Gospel.

Many would resist the spiritual help, but they need it, even if they do not know or do not want.

The Church is seen as helpful in the material domain, but not for its spiritual value.

But we must pursue the spiritual side of the matter. We must instruct the ignorant and admonish the sinner, two of the spiritual works of mercy. Ignorant and sinful people will not usually admit they are in those states.

This is where we have to overrule sometimes. We hope that those whose requests we refuse will not be embittered, but come to a proper spiritual understanding of their position before God, and see their way to a higher destiny.

In our prayer we ask this of God, acknowledging that He knows best; and while we cannot understand all His ways, we do see the general pattern to which He is working.

That everyone, including ourselves, will see our ultimate happiness as union with God, and all other needs along the way as subservient to that.

We do not find this easy as urgent needs press upon us. We do not find it easy to convince other people that this is their situation.

But it is true for everyone, and God Himself will not allow us to forget it.

He could rain down every conceivable material blessing on us, but He knows that would distract us from the main task, which is to have our sins forgiven, and right relationship with Him restored.

May we find the right balance; that all our giving and receiving be according to God's holy will.

11th Sunday after Pentecost 25 Aug 2019 Sermon

11^th Sunday after Pentecost 25.8.19 The necessity of faith

The people that walked in darkness has seen a great light (Is 9,2),  a verse used at Christmas time. And today, the deaf discover hearing (Gospel).

Our sense experience is limited enough for spiritual matters, even when all five senses are operating well.

We see but not perceive, hear but not understand (Mk 4,12). We do not see or hear what is really happening as we are too much immersed in the world.

It needs a special work of grace to enable comprehension on the part of each person.

Some do not hear the word often enough (or ever).

Others hear it time after time, but familiarity with the message can sometimes dull the comprehension. This could be a problem for the loyal Catholics who have been turning up at Mass for decades.

Breakthroughs can be achieved, however. It could be the atheist, the lapsed Catholic, someone holding to a false religion; and sometimes even the practising Catholic.

A moment of realization is reached; Christ is the Saviour of the whole world; and He has come among us. And risen.

Once reached, never let go. It has to become part of our lives, ingrained in our world view, something that we can recall at any time or place. This is what St Paul is urging in the Epistle reading: hold fast to what I have preached to you.

If we had to believe our faith only for a short time, say a week or a month, we would sail through easily.

But having to hold firm over a lifetime means that we have to face a lot of temptations and distractions.

We can forget that this earthly life is only the way, not the destination. It is too easy to try to make this life the endpoint of all our hopes and plans.

Many do exactly that, and relegate their faith life to something that belongs to long ago and far away – a childhood memory, a time when life was simpler. They ‘outgrow’ their faith, thinking they have made a mature decision.

But the faith is still true! As when the angels appeared to the shepherds, as when you received your first Holy Communion, as when the Apostles were filled with the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.

Others again will talk of the faith as though it is just another subject that might or might not be pursued – like learning the guitar, or French – a matter of taste or inclination.

No, Jesus Christ cannot be reduced to an option. He is all there is; the whole universe is under His authority.

Yes, He can be ignored (for a time) but that is never a good idea. It is to negate the whole basis of our existence.

We believe in Him because our lives depend on it (eternal lives). We need Him for eternal life; and we need Him for this life. If we give Him the prominence He deserves from us we will be assured of reaching Heaven on the one hand, and making the best of this life on the other.

It is tragic that on both counts – final salvation and living in the present – so many do not find Him. They have eyes but do not see; ears but do not hear.

We pray ceaselessly for the grace of God to penetrate the fog that lies over the current world.

God is never asleep, never away. He can always be reached.

And He wants, more than we do, that people will grasp His presence.

May He not give up on us, and may He keep pouring forth His grace and mercy to penetrate even the deepest fog.