SCRIPTURE READINGS (A)
Acts
1:12 -14
Psalm
26
1
Peter 4:13-16
John
17:1-11
WHAT
IS A PRAYER?
Today
we consider the place of prayer in our lives and in our
relationship with God. St John's Gospel tells us that
Jesus prays for us; he has already given his disciples
the Our Father to use as prayer when they asked to be
taught how to pray.
Over
the centuries, the Church has given us many ways of praying,
and indeed these ways were already present even if only
in rudimentary form from the Church's beginning.
What
is vital to our prayer is that we mean it; that it comes
from the heart. It is not a question of reciting this
or that set of prayers as a matter of course or of long
wordy passages of formulas, written by others, which we
repeat without thinking.
Who
would think of speaking to a loved one using a formula
or using someone else's words? The person uttering them
would feel false and the one receiving would feel that
the other was not really communicating with them, and
both would be correct.
St
Ignatius Loyola understood this very well. He never laid
down particular forms of prayer which must be used in
each and every occasion. On the contrary, he encouraged
people to try different ways of praying and to move in
and out of the various forms as they felt they needed
to.
What
are these ways of praying then? One of his favourite ways
was to go out and look at the stars in the night sky.
Just the gaze of such an awesome sight filled his heart
and mind with a real sense of wonder: who made all this;
why it is there and, more importantly, why am I
able to see this wonder. There is a prayer:
the simple gaze of wonder at the night sky and the contemplating
of its and my existence.
He
also encouraged people to use their imagination. So often
we hear the stories in the Gospels about Jesus doing this
or that with people. But do we ever imagine what it would
be like to be in his shoes or in the place of those to
whom he was speaking? Well, we can imagine a scene from
one of these stories as a film we are watching, except
we can jump into the film and take an active part in it,
speaking to Jesus or anyone else about how we feel and
what we perceive. Here we can come to realize more of
the personalities involved in such scenes and gain insight
into our own relationship with them. Considering in detail
Jesus' responses; his cleverness, his refusal to be intimidated,
his command of himself, his choosing to be silent and
so on can give us that strength of character when we consider
how Our Lord was in human form and how therefore we can
be now.
Yet
another is that of gazing upon a work of art, sacred or
secular, which moves us, which touches something within
us. Nothing has to be done, just the acceptance of its
power and its presence to us. We gain here an insight
beyond words; something touches our hearts and leaves
its imprint.
This
prayer of and from the heart has a long history in the
life of the Church. Its true root lies in our praying
about events in our own lives: people and things which
have touched us deeply, which have made us the people
we are. Why not bring them to mind and ask God to show
us what they really were all about? Prayer has many faces
and forms; let us use all of them to help and not hinder
us.
James Campbell,
S.J.
Parish
Secretary and Administrative Assistant
Applications
are invited for a new part-time post assisting the Parish
Priest in the many operational and administrative aspects
of this Jesuit parish in the centre of London
. A wide range of skills and experience is needed to support
or work alongside the many (and growing) activities of
a pastoral, administrative and religious nature. You will
need to be an excellent communicator with IT and secretarial
skills, coupled with flexibility, a willingness to learn
and the ability to support and co-operate with other groups
or projects in the parish. This post is initially for
3 half-days a week (with some flexibility). Salary
is negotiable.
Please
e-mail your CV to philipobrien@usa.net
with a copy to farmstreet@rcdow.org.uk
by the closing date of
Wed
12 May 2005 .
THE
MYSTERY OF JESUS CHRIST -
TRUE
GOD AND TRUE MAN
Six
2-hour sessions led by Brian Purfield, STL , MA , a full-time
member of the Mount Street Jesuit Centre, will offer a
complete introduction to Christology – the study of Christ.
The evenings begin on May 18 th with “The Mystery of Christ”;
then “Jesus' Life and Ministry”, “Jesus' Passion, Death
and Resurrection”, “Jesus Christ in History and Tradition”,
“Jesus Christ Today”, and finally “Christology for the
Third Millennium”. The venue is 114 Mount Street . There
is a £25 feefor the course (concessions). For information
and booking:
brianpurfield@hotmail.com
tel
020 7495 1673
MAY
IS MARY'S MONTH
Why
not join the Rosary group in the church following the
1.05 Mass every day? Or contribute some flowers to one
of the many places around the church where she is honoured?
Many thanks to Stasha for faithfully keeping the flowers
in good order throughout the year!
The
Church Team
Fr
William Pearsall SJ (Parish Priest)
Fr
James Campbell SJ (Asst Priest)
Fr
Anthony Meredith SJ (Asst Priest)
Philip
O'Brien (Parish Council Chairman)
David
Graham (Director of Music)
Patrick
Mallon (Sacristan)
Fr
Hugh Duffy SJ ( Superior
of the Jesuit
Community)
NOTE: Fr William
will be in the USA until June 4th.
All business to Fr James, please.
EVENTS
CALENDAR
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