Archives for Articles

The Ordinary’s Easter Message

Thursday 17 April 2014

The Ordinary, the Rt Revd Msgr Keith Newton PA, published his Easter message on Maundy Thursday. In her liturgy from Palm Sunday until Easter Day, the Church gives us the opportunity not only to hear the story of the Lord’s passion, but also the experience of participating in it. We are there, watching with excitement, […]

The Last Seven Words 5: “I thirst.”

Wednesday 16 April 2014

“I thirst,” stands alone as a stark statement of one who has suffered so much: the pain and suffering of the scourging; the sweat and toil of the Via Dolorosa; the blood lost and the struggle to breathe in the slow suffocation and the crucifixion. It is no surprise that the one crucified would seek […]

The Seven Last Words 4: “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?”

Monday 24 March 2014

My God, my God, Why have you forsaken me? This isn’t the last words uttered by Jesus from the cross but they are the most terrible. We have see in the first three saying something emerging. The first words speaks about forgiveness, the second about salvation and the joy of Paradise and the third about […]

The Seven Last Words 3: “Behold your Mother.”

Tuesday 18 March 2014

When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple he loved standing near, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” In Jesus’ words we are drawn to focus on the wider scene of his crucifixion. What we glimpse is not an unfamiliar scene of distort […]

“And I’m going with you.”

Sunday 16 March 2014

A couple of weekends I spent some time listening to Peter Kreeft talk about evil (and also good) in Lord of the Rings. It was, as always is with Kreeft, thought provoking and it got me thinking about what Tolkien does in the story. The part that struck me particularly strongly, on this listening, was […]

The Seven Last Words 2: “With me in Paradise.”

Friday 14 March 2014

‘Today you will be with me in Paradise.’ Here we witness the encounter of Jesus and the two thieves that are crucified alongside him. Both criminals would have seen the particular attention that Jesus drew from the religious leaders and leading men of the city. They may have already heard of Jesus before they found […]