Message of Abbot Paul - Thursday 17th March

Message from Fr Paul for Thursday, 17th March 2022

 I needn’t remind you that today is the feast of St Patrick, so our thoughts and prayers are with Ireland and Irish people and those of Irish descent all over the world. May St Patrick guide us all to Christ, by his example and prayers, whether we’re Irish or not. There can be no strict nationalism in Christianity. We are all God’s children and all his saints are our saints. St Patrick was certainly the Apostle of Ireland and so became Irish by adoption, but then evangelisation almost always involves leaving the comfort of your own home and homeland to take the message of the Gospel where it needs to be heard and accepted for the glory of God and the salvation of the children he created. Today, then, we give thanks to God for the remarkable missionary activity of St Patrick and of all those who followed in his footsteps right up to the present day. The Irish Church has been one of the most active in missionary endeavour and that remarkable work goes on today. St Patrick pray for us and bless us all. 

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 The Gospel passage chosen for the feast of St Patrick in England comes from Luke, (Lk 10: 1-12; 17-20), and is the account of the sending out of the seventy two other disciples or apostles by Jesus to proclaim the coming of the kingdom of God in the person of Jesus Christ. These are symbolic of the millions of missionaries who would be sent forth by the Church in every age to new areas of mission, bearing in mind that today there is a mission on our very doorsteps that we have not taken up. Think of the unevangelised living in your village, street or part of town. Consider the members of your family or the people among whom you live and work. There is a mission for each one of us, if only we would open our eyes, ears and hearts to the work that Christ is calling and sending us to do. Sadly, I suspect that we have lost all sense of mission and few of us have any desire to take it up. Little wonder Jesus says to the seventy two, “The harvest is rich but the labourers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to send labourers to his harvest. Start off now, but remember, I am sending you out like lambs among wolves.” It strikes me that the harvest has never been so rich or the labourers so few than today and in our own land. What do you think? And what should we do about it? St Patrick, show us the way. Amen.