Message of Abbot Paul - Thursday - 8th February 2024
Abbot Paul • February 7, 2024
Although it was a bit colder yesterday than Tuesday and some parts of the country are threatened with snow and ice, nevertheless it was a beautiful day which began, as always, with Toby’s early morning walk, his favourite and mine. At the moment he is pursued by an army of robins, all singing at the top of their voices, avian war songs, I should imagine, but he’s such a gentle giant!
Our Gospel passage from Mark, (Mk 7: 24-30), sees Jesus moving from Galilee to Tyre, a pagan region. “Jesus left Gennesaret and set out for the territory of Tyre. There he went into a house and did not want anyone to know he was there, but he could not pass unrecognised.” Why did he go there and why didn’t he want people to know? He was probably exhausted by all the work he had been doing in the Jewish provinces, healing the sick, casting out evil spirits, teaching, dealing with large crowds and entering constantly into argument with the scribes and Pharisees. It’s quite probable that he just wanted a rest, some quiet time. We’ve all had that experience. But things weren’t quite so easy. Word travels, and travel it did long before the Internet and modern mass media.
“A woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit heard about him straightaway and came and fell at his feet. Now the woman was a pagan, by birth a Syrophoenician, and she begged him to cast the devil out of her daughter.” Poor woman, she has everything against her. Uninvited, she enters the house and throws herself at Jesus’ feet. She knows that she has no right to do this but she has nothing to lose. She’s a pagan and a woman, her daughter has an unclean spirit and so is regarded as unclean herself, yet here she is approaching a Jewish rabbi. The Greek form of the verb to beg used by Mark means to keep on begging. At first Jesus appears to be unmoved. “And he said to her, ‘The children should be fed first, because it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the house-dogs.’ But she spoke up: ‘Ah yes, sir,’ she replied ‘but the house-dogs under the table can eat the children’s scraps.’“ His words seem harsh and unkind, but she takes no notice and keeps on begging, even answering him back; even dogs eat the scraps that fall from children’s plates. She’s only asking for scraps for her own child. Although Jesus doesn’t say as much, her words show humility and perseverance, the two requisites necessary for true prayer and genuine faith. Little wonder he says to her, “For saying this, you may go home happy: the devil has gone out of your daughter.” She takes Jesus at his word and asks for nothing more. The healing of her daughter means more to her than anything else. “So she went off to her home and found the child lying on the bed and the devil gone.”
There is much to be learned from this episode in the life of Jesus. To begin with, that only God can judge the faith of a person. Only he can see what is in a person’s heart. At times people outside the household of the faith have more faith than those within it. Secondly, her humility in prayer. She is not praying, “Lord, give me what I deserve on the basis of my goodness.” Rather she is saying, “Give me what I don’t deserve on the basis of your goodness.” She recognises the primacy of God’s loving kindness and mercy over our own goodness. Healing is not a right but a grace freely given. Thirdly, God does answer our prayers and the prayers of all those who approach him with a sincere heart.
We are delighted that the acclaimed Cistercian writer, Fr Michael Casey will be with us in December.
We are pleased to announce our first Advent retreat in our newly opened guesthouse
Good Shepherd, Good Priest “I will seek the lost and bring back the strayed; I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak.” Those words, spoken by the Lord God through the prophet Ezekiel, describe the heart of God, the Good Shepherd — but they also describe the life and ministry of a good monk and priest. They could well be written of Fr Stephen’s years of service as a pastor in Abergavenny, Swansea, Hereford, and Weobley. In each of those places, he shared in the Shepherd’s work: seeking out the lost, binding up the wounded, strengthening the weary, and leading God’s people with quiet faithfulness. And like Jesus, the Good Shepherd, who came close to his people, Fr Stephen did not serve from a distance. He knew his people; he was among them. He shared their sorrows and their joys, their hopes and their disappointments. He bore their burdens with prayer and patience he brought the joy of the Gospel and the grace of the Sacraments. His mission amongst us is complete. He has served God’s good purpose. So today we ask Christ the Good Shepherd to take Stephen on his sacred shoulders and carry him home to the house of the Father. Bind up his wounds, give him eternal rest and lead him at last to the green pastures and still waters of eternal life.
Br Meinrad and Br Gildas attend a special service with the Benedictine community of St Paul's Outside the Walls with King Charles and Queen Camilla.
Honesty and Love Before God: Pharisee and Tax Collector; Pope and King - a homily by Abbot Brendan for the 30th Sunday of the Year.
We are sad to announce that Fr Stephen died on Monday 21st October 2055. He was 94. He died peacefully in hospital, having recently fractured his shoulder. He was a beloved member of the monastic community, who had settled back at Belmont after many years on Belmont parishes, including in Abergavenny, Swansea, Hereford and Weobley. He will be much missed. His Requiem Mass will be at Belmont on Wednesday, 5th November at 11.30am followed by burial in the monastic cemetery. The Reception of his Body into the Abbey Church will take place on Tuesday, 4th November, at 5.45pm.
With honoured guests we were delighted to open our doors again of our new guesthouse and conference centre: The Chapterhouse.
"A hymn to the human body." Abbot Brendan's Homily at the annual Mass celebrated at Rotherwas Chapel in Hereford that dates from the 1580s on the feast of the Assumption.
From Francis to Leo: A special event with Christopher Lamb of CNN in conversation with Austin Ivereigh who commentated for the BBC on the transition from Pope Francis to Pope Leo.