Easter Reflection based on John 20: 1 - 18 Christ is Risen...Hallelujah….It trips off the tongue doesn’t it, but what does that really mean? Easter morning is not easy to comprehend. You see, everything about Jesus, up until Easter morning, is within the realm of our human experience. We are born, we grow, we eat,… Continue reading Easter Morning John 20: 1 – 18
Category: Contemplation
Contemplative Silence
To find the still point within our own soul is to find that space where God's ground meets our ground. To intentionally take regular (preferably daily) time in that space is to discover God's 'still small voice' which we hear through the 'ear of the heart' as Saint Benedict describes it. Over time, if we… Continue reading Contemplative Silence
God’s question
It is as if in creating us God asked a question, and in awakening us to contemplation he answered the question. Thomas Merton
The still small voice
Modern technology has wonderful benefits such as being able to respond to calls, emails and texts much more efficiently than before the days of mobile devices. The downside for me was that it contributed enormously to the busyness of my life. I found people expected a response within a few hours, if not immediately; I… Continue reading The still small voice
The mystic impulse
The Christian of the future will be a mystic or he will not exist at all.’ Karl Rahner Religion can sometimes be a hostile environment for those who discover there a god who is controlling, judging and demanding adherence to a strict set of rules. This god is usually very remote from us, often… Continue reading The mystic impulse
Reflection on the mystic vocation
Church teaching on the whereabouts of God has often presented us with a God who is separate from our sense of self, or a God who is taught in very cerebral ways so that we might learn about God but not how we might experience God directly. For many this is all well and good,… Continue reading Reflection on the mystic vocation
A visit to Tintern Abbey
I am fortunate enough to have rarely lived more than an afternoon's outing away from Tintern Abbey. It is one of those places that draws me for its sheer peace and it's stunning location in the Wye Valley. And there is something else about it too, it feels to me like one of those thin… Continue reading A visit to Tintern Abbey
Heavenly honeysuckle
Figs are beginning to ripen; the air is fragrant with blossoming vines. Come on then, my love; my darling: come with me. Song of Solomon 2:13 One of my earliest memories as a child is the fragrance from the honeysuckle that used to grow along the wall just outside my bedroom window. On a warm… Continue reading Heavenly honeysuckle
Contemplating nature
I am fortunate enough to drive along one of the prettiest roads in Gloucestershire as part of my working week. The road runs from Tewkesbury to Newent and and no matter that I have come to know this road very well it still creates within me a sense of awe and wonder at every turn.… Continue reading Contemplating nature
A gift is given
Where meadow meets meandering stream across the bridge there rises green, a gently sloping grassy mound, upon whose heights all heaven is found. North West the town of Ross on Wye, while South, the Severn winds on by. All around the Forest of Dean; those deep dark woods of which I dream. And here… Continue reading A gift is given
Beauty
That which God said to the Rose and caused it to laugh in full blown beauty,He also said to my heart,And made it 100 times more beautiful. Rumi
The Tewkesbury to Newent Road
There is a town that winds around from Tewkesbury to Newest Town. Shell pink blossom strewn in Spring; and new born lambs to mothers cling. Dawdling swans drift under Haw Bridge. Then looms majestic Malvern ridge. And in the early morning chill, thin swirls of smoke on Tirley Hill. Travellers ponies gently graze, verdant… Continue reading The Tewkesbury to Newent Road
