Message of Abbot Paul - Monday 2nd May
Abbot Paul • May 1, 2022
Message from Fr Paul for Monday, 2nd May 2022
Is this what they call the Spring Bank Holiday? I still find the new system of these national holidays hard to follow and they always take me by surprise. A holiday with nothing to celebrate seems hollow to me.Yesterday I had the joy to go over to Broxwood Court, where in the old days I often celebrated Mass at the church of the Holy Family, now a private home. Fr Stephen and Fr Joseph came with me for the celebration of Fr Simon’s Golden Jubilee of Priesthood. It was magnificently arranged by parishioners of Weobley and Kington. The food and drink were superb and the company amenable. The actual date of the Jubilee is Wednesday, 4th May, when Fr Simon will celebrate the Conventual Mass at Belmont at 8am. You would be more than welcome to join us.
Our Gospel passage today comes from John, (Jn 6: 22-29), and links the Discourse of Jesus on the Bread of Life, given at Capernaum, with the feeding of the five thousand and his walking on water. It begins with a certain confusion among those he had fed as to his whereabouts. They go searching for him and eventually track him down in Capernaum. They don’t quite know what to ask him, so they begin with a fairly innocent question, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” His reply is not what they expect.
“I tell you most solemnly,
you are not looking for me because you have seen the signs
but because you had all the bread you wanted to eat.
Do not work for food that cannot last,
but work for food that endures to eternal life,
the kind of food the Son of Man is offering you,
for on him the Father, God himself, has set his seal.”
The crowds do not understand that the multiplication of the loaves and fish was a sign pointing to a deeper reality. All they could see, and now want repeated, was a miracle by which they were given food to eat without charge or labour. Jesus invites them to work for the food that lasts forever. He invites them as he invites us each day to move to a higher plane of living and of understanding. We are to work for the food that lasts forever, enduring into eternal life. Jesus offers us himself. Confused, they ask, “What must we do if we are to do the works that God wants?” To this question, Jesus replies, “This is working for God: you must believe in the one he has sent.”
Lord Jesus, help us to believe that you were sent by the Father to reconcile us to himself and to one another. Let only love, God’s love, fill our hearts and move our lives. May we work constantly each day for this food that endures into eternal life. Amen.
Pope Francis RIP Pope 2013-2025 Born 1936, Died 2025 We are deeply saddened at the passing of Pope Francis. As the successor of St Peter he has been a spiritual father and shepherd to the church in our day, challenging us, and calling as to reach out to those on the peripheries. He was the first Jesuit Pope, but took the name Francis after the Poor Man of Assisi who modelled for him a closeness to the poor, a concern for those on the margins of society and a care for all of creation In his preaching Pope Francis always spoke of the joy of the Gospel and encouraged us to reflect the joy of our faith in our lives. He showed the compassion of Jesus to everyone. He worked tirelessly for the unity of the church and travelled even to non-Christian countries promoting a message of peace. He has left a great legacy. With the presence of the Apostolic Nuncio with the community over Easter we were able to express our closeness to the Holy Father in his final suffering. There will be a special Mass at Belmont this Thursday 24th April at 11am to pray for Pope Francis as he makes his final journey to the house of the Father. On the day of his funeral, the Office of the Dead will be sung, and Mass that day will be a Requiem. May the angels lead him into paradise; may the martyrs receive him at his arrival and lead him to the holy city Jerusalem. May choirs of angels receive him and with Lazarus, the poor man grant him eternal rest." (The In Paradisum, words from the Funeral Liturgy)
We were were honoured and delighted to be joined by the Apostolic Nuncio to celebrate Easter. His Excellency Archbishop Miguel Maury Buendía is the representative of the Holy See in Great Britain, and therefore of the Holy Father. His presence on Easter Sunday morning brought us more consciously in communion with Pope Francis, the successor of St Peter, as we heard the Gospel story of Peter running to the tomb. His patron saint is St Michael, so afterwards, at a festive lunch we were able to present him with some Belmont cufflinks with the monastery coat of arms - very similar to his as Archbishop. We were able to pray for him and his work in this country.
