Reflection and Prayer (Page 5)

What a difference a week makes! This past week brought close to home feelings of fear, anxiety, anger, disappointment, frustration, sadness, uncertainty, and a sense of loss. Day 1 – What was to be five days for my husband and I without parish responsibilities; five days of beach, sun, food, wine, games, quickly changed to the unexpected and unplanned. Five days became one as we realized we were part of the evacuation alert of the Christie Mountain Fire. Anxiety. Fear.…

I believe in the Holy Spirit What if I asked you what does God look like? You probably could describe your image to me – is He an older man with a beard? Is He sitting on a throne? What if I asked you what does Jesus look like? You probably could draw me a picture. We all have a concrete image engraved on our very hearts. What if I asked you what does the Holy Spirit look like? What…

He will come again to judge the living and the dead. Well, I certainly have never stood before a judge. However, in my humanity, I certainly feel as though I am being judged. Judged by what I say, what I do, how I act, how I look, and so much more. I put myself through incredible stress to fit into what I conceive as acceptable in the world I live in. And I do pay attention to what I say,…

He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; Ever look upward toward heaven? What are you looking for? Imagine yourself walking and talking with your Risen Lord and he brings you to the mountaintop and before your eyes he ‘departs’ from you while leaving you His blessing. He is simply lifted up. It’s a moment of incredible clarity, sadness and joy all combined into one moment in time. He leaves us with…

He descended into hell. The third day he arose again from the dead. How many times have I acclaimed ‘well, that was hell’, or ‘I have been through hell and back?’ Of course, we use that as imagery – our human understanding of what hell is – the burning fire and unending torture, the eternal isolation from and deprivation of God. But let’s consider the understanding of the ‘hell’ that the Creed speaks of. This hell, Sheol in Hebrew and…

..suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. Why do you think we, as Catholics, return again and again to this moment? It is perhaps because, although we are an Easter people, we cannot turn away from the truth and the sacrifice Jesus endured for our salvation. There can be no Easter people with this moment. He suffered. He was crucified. He died. He was buried. Pontius Pilate is mentioned personally. This is an historical moment. The suffering…

“who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary” In God all things are possible. I want to bring us to the Gospel of St. Luke, Chapter 1, verses 26-38. Imagine yourself a young woman, going about your every day chores and in a singular moment in time you encounter an Angel of God and you have choice to make – yes or no. And so it was with Mary. The Gospel makes it clear to us…

And in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord It’s such a simple phrase with very few words and, yet the Nicene Creed does a beautiful job at expanding on the real essence of these simple words. The name Jesus translates to “God saves.” Wow…if we pause here for just a moment…He saves…He is the Saviour…who is He saving and why is He saving? For me, here’s another reason to ask, “Is it I, Lord?” I guess I need to…

I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth. Apostles Creed – Article 1 I think a wonderful way to look closer is to break this simple line into pieces and find our faith revealed word by word. Let’s begin with: I Believe in God I think even the first two words bring us to really understanding the word “faith” itself. When I say, “I believe”, it’s usually because I either have proof or because I have…

Welcome everyone to our Creed – our Profession of Faith. We’re going to take a closer look at the twelve articles of faith contained within it. The focus will be on the Apostles Creed, however I will be introducing into it the beautiful richness, expansions and clarifications that the Nicene Creed offers. The Apostles Creed is a summary of the Apostles’ teachings and faith, and considered to be written from 150 AD. It is the ancient baptismal symbol of the…