Category: Baptism

Categories
Baptism Beatitudes Benedictine Spirituality Christ Discernment Divine Office Ecumenism Lectio Divina Liturgy Prophetic voices Scripture

Called to be one.

Image by Susann Schuster on unsplash.jpg

A post from the archives for the week of prayer for Christian Unity. In his letter to the Colossians St Paul writes:

“Clothe yourselves in heartfelt compassion, in generosity and in humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with one another; forgive one another if anyone has a complaint against another. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you must do the same. Over all these, put on love. And may the peace of Christ reign in your hearts, to which indeed you are called in one body.”

His words are an inspiration and a challenge. They show us the best that the Christian community can be, and they remind us of how often we fall short of that ideal within and between our denominations.

This has particular resonance as I reflect on our ecumenical journey. We all stand in need of forgiveness, having misjudged and misinterpreted the insights, gifts and intentions of other denominations. At other times we have all been able to take the risk of reaching out towards other Christians in ways that have brought healing and moved us closer to unity than we could ever have dreamt of.

Many of our denominations and churches are dealing with internal situations that take most of their energy and resources. That is understandable and necessary, but it can make ecumenism feel like its on the backburner.

My hope is that we have learned to love and respect each other enough be able to bear with one another in compassion, generosity and gentleness in a way that allows us the freedom to take the space to deal with internal issues without losing sight of the ground we have gained. Then, when the time is right we will be ready and able to take the next steps in our ecumenical journey together.

In this week of prayer for Christian Unity where are you inspired to be generous and compassionate?

Categories
Baptism Benedictine Spirituality Christ Discernment Gospel John the Baptist Lectio Divina Prayer Prophetic voices Saints Scripture

Light of the Nations

Photo by Daiga Ellaby on unsplash.com

Today’s readings are about call and response. Isaiah and St Paul reflect on their call to take the good news of salvation to the ends of the earth. In the gospel John recognises Jesus in the crowd and proclaims him as the Messiah. Reflecting on their accounts inevitably draws us back to reflect on our own call:

“I will make you the light of the nations so that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.”

Isaiah, St Paul and St John all heard and responded to some version of this call. Their responses may have looked different on the surface, and led them in apparently different directions. This shouldn’t come as a surprise because they lived in different times, faced different situations and had different personalities and skills. This meant that they each had to spend time reflecting on what it meant for them to become “the light to the nations” in their particular situations.

Through baptism we are also called by God to be “a light to the nations”. While the heart of that call is the same as the one heard by Isaiah, St Paul and St John the practicalities of what it will look like in the particular challenges we face today are different. So today’s readings are a call to discern how to I can best bring the light of Christ love to people today in ways that will lighten their burdens and offer consolation.

How are you being called to bring the light of Christ’s love to the people around you today?

Categories
Baptism Benedictine Spirituality Christ Divine Office Gospel Holy Spirit John the Baptist Lectio Divina Liturgy Scripture

Shaped by the Spirit

 Image by Biel Morro on Unsplash.com

Today Christmastide comes to an end with the celebration of the Baptism of the Lord. It’s a feast full of the promise of new life. It takes us back to our beginning, recalling creation when God’s spirit, hovering over the waters, called new life out of the the swirling chaos:

“As soon as Jesus was baptised, he came up from the water, and suddenly the heavens opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming down on him. And a voice spoke from heaven, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved; my favour rests on him.’.’”

It doesn’t take more than a quick glance at the news to recognise that we are living in chaotic times. That is stressful and unsettling, so this reminder that it was out of the chaos that God called us into being is consoling and encouraging.

It also calls to mind another, more personal beginning. Through our baptism in Christ each of us has been called to become a new creation, to blossom into new life in Christ. Through the gift of this baptism we have become favoured and beloved daughters and sons of God. This certainty can give us the courage and hope living away that allow our baptismal promises to shape our lives and our interactions with one another.

As we start a new year it’s worthwhile to take some time to reflect on these beginnings founded on love and hope. Time reflecting on our baptismal promises and how they might shape our life seems to me to be time well spent as we make our way through these challenging times.

As we celebrate the Baptism of the Lord how might your baptismal promises shape your daily life?

Categories
Baptism Benedictine Spirituality Discernment Divine Office Ecumenism Gospel Holy Spirit Lectio Divina Liturgy Scripture Uncategorized

United in Christ

Photo by Yoksel Zok on unsplash.com

I’m reflecting on St Paul’s letter to the Galatians. His words are a call to unity that has a particular resonance in today’s divided and fragmented world. It seems that wherever we look today we see broken broken relationships and broken communities. There are many voices today that encourage and fuel division, encouraging us to distance ourselves from others.

In challenging times these voices can be beguiling. They call us to draw together with others “like us”, creating divisions between “insiders and outsiders”, between “them and us”. St Paul reminds the Galatians and us that there is no place for such division in the Christian community:

“You are, all of you, children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. All baptised in Christ, you have all clothed yourselves in Christ, and there are no more distinctions between Jew and Greek, slave and free, male and female, but all of you are one in Christ Jesus.”

His words are not a call to uniformity, that would be fairly straightforward. We could create a “Christian model” that everyone has to conform to. We’ve tried that in various forms over the centuries and we know it doesn’t work.

Instead St Paul reminds us that in clothing us in Christ our baptism calls us to seek true unity. It’s a unity that risks allowing diversity to flourish, that acknowledges that diversity can enrich and sustain our unity. The unity baptism calls us to requires us to accept and embrace our differences.

It calls us to maintain our unity in Christ by welcoming those we consider “other” as we would welcome Christ. It requires us to put ourselves aside so we can listen to their stories with open and humble hearts. Baptism calls us to build a unity that delights in our rich diversity as God delights in us.

How are you responding to the unifying call of your baptism today?

Categories
Baptism Benedictine Spirituality Christ Eastertide Lectio Divina Liturgy Resurrection Saints Scripture Uncategorized

Bearing the light of the risen Christ.

Photo by Rémi Walle on Unsplash

Today’s first reading, from the Acts of the Apostles recounts the conversion of St Paul. I’m reflecting on Ananias, the Christian from Damascus who was told in a vision to seek out Saul of Tarsus to restore his sight. The instruction was clearly a shock to Ananias who, already knowing of Saul’s reputation, protested:

“Lord, several people have told me about this man and all the harm he has been doing to your saints in Jerusalem. He has only come here because he holds a warrant from the chief priest to arrest everybody who invokes your name.”

We’ve just heard how resolute and thorough Saul was in persecuting Christians. I imagine his name is enough to strike terror into the heart of these new Christians who are still struggling to come to terms with the resurrection. In such a time Ananias’ action would have seemed at best foolhardy if not downright reckless. Yet, despite his reservations, he accepts God’s call. He goes to Saul and says to him:

‘Brother Saul, I have been sent by the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on your way here so that you may recover your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.’

The result is that Saul has his sight restored and, filled with the Holy Spirit, is baptised.

Ananais’ action requires courage and faith. Ananias reminds me that we too are called to be courageous in sharing our faith. We’re called to carry the love of the risen Christ to those who need it. The risen Christ calls us to share the light of his love in the darkness of our challenging times.

Often I think that call comes in a myriad of small, seemingly insignificant encounters through the day. It’s in those little things that offer a glimmer of brightness in a challenging day… a smile to a passing stranger, the offer of a seat on a bus, holding open a door for someone struggling with bags or pushchairs…A endless list of small kindnesses…


Where is the risen Christ calling you to bring his light to those around you today?

Categories
Baptism Benedictine Spirituality Christ Gospel Holy Week Lectio Divina Lent Scripture Uncategorized

The anointed one.

Image by Gundula Vogel from pixabay.com

The 41st word in my Lent lexicon is:

ANOINTED.

It’s a word that has deep roots in our faith history and in our liturgical practices. At baptism we are all anointed with chrism to share in Christ’s role as “priest, prophet and king.” We are anointed again at our death. Throughout the Scripture anointing marks someone as having a special role from God.

Today’s gospel opens a new perspective on anointing. In frightening and uncertain times the disciples gather at Martha’s house It offers them an oasis of hospitality and safety in the increasingly dangerous times.

In times of great danger questions and doubts that we thought we’d put to rest often resurface so it is easy to understand Judas’ distrust and questioning. I imagine he wasn’t the only one feeling that way.

In the midst of the tension Mary’s action provides a fresh focus. Her action doesn’t deny or banish the fear or the danger, instead it points to a deeper reality:

“Mary brought in a pound of very costly ointment, pure nard, and with it and anointed the feet of Jesus, wiping them with her hair; the house was full of the scent of the ointment.”

Her anointing once again marks Jesus as the chosen one of God. Jesus tells his disciples that she has anointed him for his burial, acknowledging that he is facing death, and preparing his disciples for that. As the scent of her ointment fills the house her simple action is a sign that love is stronger even than death. As she anoints Jesus she reminds us that our Holy Week journey ultimately leads us through death to the new life of resurrection.

As we move through Holy Week how does the anointing of your baptism sustain you?

Categories
Baptism Benedictine Spirituality Christ Christmastide Divine Office Gospel John the Baptist Lectio Divina Liturgy Prophetic voices Scripture

The Feast of the Baptism

Photo by Biel Morro on Unsplash

Today Christmastide comes to an end with the celebration of the Baptism of the Lord. It’s a feast full of the promise of new life. It takes us back to our beginning, recalling creation when God’s spirit, hovering over the waters, called new life out of the the swirling chaos:

“When Jesus also had been baptised and was praying, the heavens were opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.’”

It doesn’t take more than a quick glance at the news to recognise that we are living in chaotic times. That is stressful and unsettling, so this reminder that it was out of the chaos that God called us into being is consoling and encouraging.

It also calls to mind another, more personal beginning. Through our baptism in Christ each of us has been called to become a new creation, to blossom into new life in Christ. Through the gift of this baptism we have become favoured and beloved daughters and sons of God. This certainty can give us the courage and hope living away that allow our baptismal promises to shape our lives and our interactions with one another.

As we start a new year it’s worthwhile to take some time to reflect on these beginnings founded on love and hope. Time reflecting on our baptismal promises and how they might shape our life seems to me to be time well spent as we make our way through these challenging times.

As we celebrate the Baptism of the Lord how might your baptismal promises shape your daily life?

Categories
Baptism Benedictine Spirituality Christ Cross Discernment Divine Office Gospel Lectio Divina Liturgy Scripture Uncategorized

The call of the King

Image by sabines from pixabay.com

The feast of Christ the King can be challenging. We know that the kingdom Jesus promises is based on a different value system to our human institutions. Yet this feast can bring to mind those human institutions, secular and religious, that have both used and abused power. In our times, when institutions and authorities are often viewed with suspicion, it carries particular challenges. This makes it an uncomfortable celebration and we can be tempted to walk away from it or underplay it.

I find that the parts of our Christian heritage that are most uncomfortable are the ones that need the most attention. If I can face the discomfort, and look beyond the surface they often yield a rich and unexpected harvest. Today I’ve gone back to the Baptismal call that anoints each of us as priest, prophet and king, called to unite with Christ in making his kingdom a reality:

“God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ has freed you from sin, given you a new birth by water and the Holy Spirit, and welcomed you into his holy people. He now anoints you with the chrism of salvation. As Christ was anointed Priest, Prophet and King, so may you live always as a member of his body, sharing everlasting life.”

This puts the whole notion of kingship into a new context, pointing to me back to the example of Jesus in the gospels. It is a kingship based on service, love, compassion and kindness. There is no arrogance or judgement in it. This is a kingship that we can all share in by serving others with love and compassion wherever we can.

As we celebrate the feast of Christ the King where are you being invited to live out your baptismal call today?

Categories
Baptism Benedictine Spirituality Christ Gospel Lectio Divina Liturgy Saints Scripture Uncategorized

All Saints Day.

Photo by Frantisek Duris on Unsplash

The feasts of all Saints and All Souls are intrinsically linked. I can never think of one without being aware of the other. They speak of a deep seated equality that is at the heart of the gospel. All Saints reminds us that through our baptism we are all one in Christ, equally called to live lives shaped by the gospel. Tomorrow’s celebration of All Souls allows us to reflect that other great equaliser, the impermanence of human life.

Today I’m reflecting on this from the first letter of St John:

“My dear people, we are already the children of God, but what we are to be in the future has not yet been revealed; all we know is, that when it is revealed we shall be like him because we shall see him as he really is.”

This is not a feast of the canonised and recognised saints of the church. They have their own feasts when we rightly celebrate their lives and example. Yet, while we greatly value this, it can distract us from those other unnamed and unrecognised saints who have built up the church through quiet, unrecognised faithfulness to the gospel and to their baptismal promises.

This is a celebration of the ordinary Christians who have striven to be faithful in all ups and downs of ordinary life. The people who have allowed their lives to be shaped by their faith so that in thousands of small, seemingly insignificant, ways they ease the burdens of those around them.

This is a day for celebrating all the children of God who will never be recognised officially as saints, but who have through their actions and example shared the love of God with their families, neighbours and workmates.

Where is Christ inviting you to share his love today?