Lent - week 3 (Year C) - Exodus 3:1-16

During Lent we travel with specific characters. In the first week we have journeyed into the wilderness with Israel as they pondered their past and looked toward their future in the promised land - and then stayed in the wilderness with Jesus as he spent 40 days facing 'the satan.' Last week we looked at the faith of Abraham cutting a covenant with God, and then the glory of Jesus as he was revealed (with Moses and Elijah) before the disciples on the heights of a mountain. Now, we focus on one of those witnesses and we observe Moses as he encounters the Lord in the burning bush on the side of another mountain - Horeb/Sinai. Moses has been in the wilderness for some years after fleeing the household of the Pharaoh and lived with a priest of Midian. So he was familiar with the area and with the worship of the local gods. So when he comes across this bush that is ablaze - yet not being annihilated or destroyed - he must wonder which of the gods is responsible. So he moves forward to investigate and instead encounters the one that the Rabbis will only ever refer to as the Sacred Tetragrammaton - the one who knows him by name, who knows his ancestors and has seen the affliction of his people; he has heard their cry; he knows of their suffering. So what might happen when we encounter the one who identifies himself as 'yo he va he'?

Recorded at St Michael's 6pm (11'25")

Each year on the second Sunday of Lent we are taken from the wilderness temptations to the heights of the mountain top experience in the transfiguration of Jesus. But in Year C the Church combines the transfiguration with the story of the Lord cutting the covenant with Abraham from Genesis 15. We shall see that there are a number of parallels between both stories that invite us also to join Abraham, Moses, Elijah and Peter to trust the Lord and join him in the great adventure of faith and living in the fullness of life.

Recorded at St Michael's 9.30am (11'56") using a new Zoom H2 recorder.

First Sunday in Lent - temptations in the desert. Deut 26; Rom 10; Luke 4

We begin the forty days of Lent by journeying with Moses and Jesus into our shared history, so that we have time away from all the distractions that we so often fill our lives with, to reflect on those questions that are actually at the heart of everything that there is. Questions like 'who am I?' and 'who is God?' Questions that resonate with the majestic reading from St Paul to the Romans (chapter 10) that the word is very near to us, and if we confess with our lips and believe in our hearts that Jesus is Lord we will be saved.

It is this spirit of laying aside our distractions that we can join with Jesus in the desert, to confront the accuser, the Satan and address these three temptations. The first, in changing stone into bread, addresses our desires to use sensual pleasures to answer our deepest needs; the second is the desire for power and control; the third is making the ego the centre of the whole world. Jesus addresses each temptation directly through the power of God's word - reminding us that when we take time to be alone with God, we will have the same power to address the most central and pressing questions of our own hearts and respond to the Lord in the same way.

Recorded at Sacred Heart (11'26')

6th Sunday in the Season of the Year (C) - Jer 17:5-8; ICor 15; Luke 6:17-26. St Valentine's Day.

The question that lies at the heart of our readings today is - where do you place your ultimate trust / faith / hope? Jeremiah rather starkly tells us that if it is in the world of people and things than we are cursed. In a similar way, the 'beatitudes' as given by St Luke in the Sermon on the Plain are in series of blessings and curses which are much more stark and confronting than the equivalent in the Gospel of Matthew.

In Luke, Jesus tells us that those who are poor, hungry, weeping and persecuted are blessed. So what on earth is Jesus getting at in this sermon? How can it be a good thing to be poor or hungry? When is it good to weep or be persecuted?

Recorded at St Michael's, 9.30am (12'33")

On this fifth Sunday we hear the call of three central biblical characters - Isaiah, Paul and Simon-Peter. The first reading (from Isaiah 6) and the Gospel (from Luke 5) offer many insights into the nature of biblical Christianity and the primacy of grace in the life of all who are called to be disciples of Jesus. Isaiah begins with the sense that he was just minding his own business, quietly praying in the temple of Solomon, when SUDDENLY the Lord himself appears in all his glory, his throne surrounded by fiery Seraphim in an ecstasy of  praise and worship declaring the holiness of the Lord. The very foundations of the temple begin to shake and everything (other than God) is shrouded in cloud. It is probably no wonder that Isaiah attempts to intervene and remind the Lord that he is a sinner and unworthy of such attention.

When Simon is likewise minding his own business on the shore of Lake Galilee, washing his nets after a long and fruitless night of fishing, no doubt he is somewhat surprised and taken aback when this Rabbi takes a break from preaching to invite him to push out into the deep - in broad daylight - and pay out the nets for a catch. When the nets are soon so full of fish that it takes two boats to begin to haul them in, it is no wonder that Simon reacts the same way as Isaiah - 'leave me Lord, I am sinful.' But the Lord knows this and only wants to heal and forgive so that he can commission Isaiah and Peter. He wants us to make the same response - "Here I am - send me."

Recorded at St Michael's, 9.30am (10'00")

When we were baptised we were Christened - that is, we were anointed with Chrism and the priest prayed, "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 members of his body, sharing everlasting life." We are reminded of our call as prophets in the readings today, when Jeremiah is called to be a prophet to the nations.

Recorded at Sacred Heart, 9.30am

Third Sunday (Year C). When adults attempt to teach young children how to ride a bike, they sometimes cry out decidedly unhelpful comments like - 'just keep pedaling' or 'ride straight' or 'don't crash into that parked car.' When we think back on our first attempts at riding a bike, we may have very vivid memories of scrapped knees or worse. Chances are the comments that are shouted at us are also not all that helpful in actually mastering the art at hand. What is interesting is that at some point we do actually begin to master the art, and all of the instructions begin to be internalised. At some level, the words that we have heard simply become part of our lives. Perhaps it is something like what we read at the beginning of John's Gospel ('And the word became flesh' - John 1:14)

In the first reading from Nehemiah, something similar is happening. The Israelites who are returning from Exile in Babylon and are attempting to reestablish life in the once great city of Jerusalem. The temple has been rebuilt (515 BCE) and the walls are now finally rebuilt (445 BCE) but Ezra realises that more is needed - and that is a re-commitment to the law of the Lord. So Ezra gathers the whole people and reads the book of the law to them so that they know what it is that they believe. This is the first step to their internalising the word so they can live it out within their renewed understanding of their commitment.

Recorded at NET training (Iona College campsite, Peregian, QLD)

Second Sunday (Year C) - John 2 captures the prophetic sense of the new life that is missing from the experience of Israel's life. The 6 stone water jars represent the very best of life that humans can accomplish. What is missing is the joy and vitality of life - and that is why Mary comes to Jesus to say that the wedding guests have run out of wine - that extra dimension that the Spirit of God provides to transform ordinary human experience into something extraordinary.

Recorded at Zero Gravity youth camp (Yandina, Qld)

As we look back over the past year and then look forward to the year and decade ahead, we are invited to reflect upon what difference our own baptism has made on our life - particularly as we look at the teaching of Paul to his fellow missionary Titus in this brilliant extract from his letter.

Recorded at St Michael's, 8am (10'45")

The Epiphany of the Lord provides us with the opportunity to reflect upon the nature of Christ's kingship and what it meant for the Magi who travelled to adore the Lord, and what it means for subsequent generations as well.

Recorded at Sacred Heart, 9.30am (12'36")

Feast of the Holy Family.

In the lives of the saints we are presented with different models of how to live a live dedicated to the Lord. Perhaps this is because there is in fact no one way to be holy - all that we can do is to look at the lives of people - and in our feast today of families - and take inspiration from them in our own pursuit of holiness.

Christmas 2009 – a revolutionary Christmas
Christmas often brings out the very best in us; but of course it can also bring out the very worst. If we are honest, we can probably admit that at times all we want to do is gag at the very mention of it. Sometimes we tell the story of Christmas in a way that is absolutely detached: we talk about all the cute little animals, and eggnog, Santa, snow, reindeer, drummer boys and perfect babies that never cry or soil their nappies. 
Luke’s Gospel tells us that “Caesar Augustus issued a decree for a census of the whole world to be taken.” (Luke 2:1)

Recorded in St Michael's Hall (9.30am) - apologies for the static - the new sound system obviously needs work! (16'00")

4th Sunday of Advent - Year C.

In a survey published in the Sydney Morning Herald this weekend it seems that around 68% of Australians still believe in God, but only 27% believe that the Bible is literally true. Which may not be a bad thing, if by literally true we think that reading the bible is like reading a history text book or a science journal. The original authors of scripture never intended us to read it this way. They want us to read it like we read any other story - which is more like reading poetry or listening to music. For when we listen to a song, we are usually aware of the emotional content and of echoes of other songs and other times that we heard this song and what was happening in our life back then. Powerful stuff. To gain access to this story of the visitation of Elizabeth by Mary, and to work out the significance of Bethlehem Ephrathah, and how they both connect with the anointing of a shepherd boy, the Ark of the Covenant and the call to worship - to leap with joy.

Recorded at Sacred Heart (12'23")

Third Sunday of Advent (C) - Luke 3:10-18.

When you look through the teachings of Jesus, a number of themes emerge - love, prayer, money and faith. But as you consider the teachings of Jesus according to these categories, it quickly becomes apparent that Jesus talks about money and possessions far more than he talks about any thing else - in fact he talks about money 3 times more than he talks even about love (which conquers all); 7 times more than he talks about prayer; and 8 times more than he talks about faith and belief.

So it should come as no surprise to us when we continue with the teaching ministry of John, son of Zechariah, that he too should talk about money and possessions. You may recall that last week, after almost 490 years of silence - the word of the Lord was once again addressed to one of his prophets. And when John began to preach, he proclaimed that what was needed was repentance and baptism to cleanse us from our sins. Now as people come to him, they ask a single question - 'what must we do?'

Recorded at St Michael's, 9.30am (10'54")

Second Sunday of Advent (C) - Baruch 5:1-9; Phil 1:3-11; Luke 3:1-6. Luke begins the account of the ministry of John the Baptist with a list of strange names - what is he doing and why is he doing it and how does it relate to the splendour and integrity of a people lost in a foreign land? Recorded at Sacred Heart, 9.30am (10'34")

First Sunday of Advent - Jeremiah 33:14-16; 1 Thes 3:12-4:2; Luke 21: 25-28;34-36.

Happy New Year! As we begin this new season of Advent, you might imagine that we would have readings that speak of preparing for the birth of Jesus, or that would take us back to the very beginning of creation. But no, the readings instead take us to the end of all things in the second coming of Jesus. We explore the different meanings of the coming of Jesus.

Recorded at St Michael's, 9.30am (10'47")

Sunday 34 in the Season of the Year - Feast of Christ the King (B)

Sometimes, especially when we live in a Constitutional Monarchy like we do in Australia, and we have strong democratic beliefs - and perhaps even more so if we are republicans - the idea of celebrating Christ as King can seem quaint and antiquated. When the King or Queen are distant and essentially irrelevant to our lives, how do we make sense of this feast and idea of Christ as King? If Christ is the king, then we must be part of some kingdom. Perhaps we are also confused by what exactly what this kingdom is all about. Sometimes we might think (if we do at all) that the kingdom has probably something to do with the death and resurrection of Jesus. We know that through the Cross our sins have been forgiven and we are able to have the promise of another place which we call heaven after we die. But is that actually what Jesus was on about? We have been reading through the Gospel of Mark this year, and you might just remember how when we began at the start of the year in Mark chapter one, we heard Jesus begin his public ministry by proclaiming that the 'kingdom of God' was near, and we should repent and believe. And then he began to call and invite people into the kingdom. Yet all of this was happening two to three years before the events of his death and resurrection. So if that is what the kingdom is all about, what were they doing during those years? Perhaps we need to think about how to live in the kingdom and how it might fit with the whole story of God and God's people. How does this fit with the story of creation, sin, confusion, darkness and so forth. And how do public toilets fit into this story? Listen to find out more...

Recorded at Sacred Heart, 9.30am (10'17")

Week 33 - Season of the Year B
Mark 13:24-32

Often when we are presented with a passage like the Gospel that we have just read, we are left scratching our heads and wondering what on earth (or heaven) is going on. Of course there is a fascination in our world (like theirs) about the end of the world. Movies like 2012 - released this week - or other Hollywood blockbusters like Knowing, Independence Day, the Day After Tomorrow all attest to our interest and fascination with the subject, as do bookshelves full of prophecies from Nostradamus or the Mayan empire - or indeed of course from our own Scriptures.

Full text at blog.

Mark 12:38-44 and I Kings 17:8-16. The gift of the widow who has nothing to give.

Recorded at St Michael's Nowra 9.30am (14'30")

All Saints Day (Matthew 4:25-5:12) /

The gospel passage that we usually call the Beatitudes seems to be one of those passages that is 'trotted out' for almost any occasion - from weddings to funerals to commitments of ordination and religious profession. But what on earth is it about? What does it mean to say that someone who is mourning is to be declared happy or blessed? Is it telling us that we have to be poor in spirit to be part of the kingdom? That we need to mourn and be meek? Is this a series of yet more commandments that we need to fulfill? Or a new list of ways that we will be judged? Or are these statements something else entirely? Perhaps in these statements from Jesus - addressed to this strange crowd of people from the backwaters of Galilee to the more sophisticated citizens of Judea and Jerusalem, as well as the pagans and gentiles from the Decapolis - we actually meet what is truly good news. An announcement of Jesus that we can indeed be part of the kingdom of God - or maybe that we already are precisely because we are somewhat scattered or simply somewhat ordinary? /

Recorded at St Michael's 6pm (13'40" - including final blessing)