Message of Abbot Paul - Tuesday 7th December
It’s been many things since it was built in the 1850s, latterly a chapel for guests. It has the advantage of having no steps, it’s peaceful and has immediate access to the outdoors. It’s below my bedroom windows.

Message from Fr Paul for Tuesday, 7th December 2021
This morning dear Toby is undergoing surgery for a fractured back leg. I hope and pray that all will go well and that, after recovery, he can return to the normal, active life of a ten-year-old border collie. He’s been amazingly patient in the run up to the operation. How easily he has got accustomed to his new living quarters, smartly renamed the Canisterium. He’s also been excellent in reducing his exercise pattern to a bare minimum so as not to aggravate the injury. I never cease to be amazed at his intelligence and perception.
Today’s Gospel takes us back to Matthew, (Mt 18: 12-14), and his version, short as it is, of the Parable of the Lost Sheep. Chapter 18 focuses on the life of the Christian community and how its members should relate to one another. This means learning to deal with those problems that invariably arise in any family or group of people, such as a church or a village. Jesus says to his disciples, “Tell me. Suppose a man has a hundred sheep and one of them strays; will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hillside and go in search of the stray? I tell you solemnly, if he finds it, it gives him more joy than do the ninety-nine that did not stray at all. Similarly, it is never the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost.’ This is quite different to the version in Luke and is found in an entirely different context. Jesus concludes by insisting that, in the Christian community, we have a duty to protect the weakest and most vulnerable, especially those whose faith does not run deep. The way we behave can influence others for good or for bad: we can encourage or discourage them. Hence the need for leaders and shepherds (pastors) to go in search of those who are lost or have gone astray. Just as Jesus came to call sinners, so our church congregations should have a special care for the lapsed, the indifferent and those who live on the margins, the periphery of Church life.
Thinking of the Synod, what can I do, what can you do, to reinvigorate the life of the Church and welcome back those who are no longer active in its life and mission?
