EditorialAn alphabet of hope?
Anthony Towey St John Paul II is generally thought of as a traditionalist, but he was not averse to breaking moulds when it suited him. His first ...
Celebrating the common good
In October 1996, the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales published a substantial statement about Catholic Social Teaching, The Common Good and ...
SpiritualityThe trouble with angels
Angels are more than guardians of our wellbeing, we need to understand their place in the divine plan, writes Silas Henderson SDS. I have to admit ...
Musings on the Ascension
Bernard Robinson discusses a few different ways of viewing the Feast of the Ascension by way of aids to meditating, praying and preaching. The ...
Pentecost then and now
Gerald O’Collins SJ looks at how contemplating the Holy Spirit in poetry, liturgy and Scripture can help us appreciate Pentecost. In a poem on ...
Resources for MinistryChristian persecution today
Christians in many countries encounter appalling persecution, with women and girls facing a double jeopardy of injustice. Neville Kyrke-Smith writes ...
Breaking The Word
Weekdays in April/May/June 2022
Friday 1 April
Wisdom 2.1,12–22
Numbers 6.22–27
Psalm 33
John 7.1–2,10,25–30
The background of John 7–10 is the Feast of Sukkoth (Tabernacles) and its aftermath in Jerusalem. By the first century CE, this had become not merely the memorial of the wandering in the wilderness and the autumn harvest festival but also the major eschatological feast. John is subtly pointing out that Jesus is the fulfillment of this major feast. As usual in John, the conversation between Jesus and his opposition forms the dramatic element. The hatred towards Jesus has grown, but he still speaks openly and freely. Importantly, the theological motif ...
The next three months reveal the Church as focused totally on the Paschal Mystery and its consequences as celebrated in her Liturgy. This period comprises the final weeks of the season of Lent which invites the faithful to prepare themselves and their communities to celebrate Holy Week, Holy Week itself, and the whole season of Eastertide and the associated great feasts of the Lord.
Robert Draper is a parish priest in Dorset.
Sunday 3 April
Fifth Sunday of Lent
Psalm 125
Philippians 3.8–14
John 8.1–11
The recollection of the Exodus and particularly the passage through the Red Sea is referred to frequently in the Hebrew scriptures as the great act of God ...