Message of Abbot Paul - Tuesday 20th June 2023
Abbot Paul • June 20, 2023
I was so pleased to go back to the beach yesterday with Toby, as we set apart a free day in order to visit my mother. Being already the second half of June and considering the long heatwave we’ve been suffering, I was wondering how my beloved wild orchids were faring, the orchids I’ve been so attached to since I was a small boy. I would spent hours in the marshland between the extensive sand dunes and the railway lines, where, with my friends, we’d dodge the trains, especially the fast London to Swansea expresses. Those were the days when children were free to explore and were safe to roam and discover the treasures our world had to offer. Among these treasures was the most amazing collection of plants and flowers, of which my favourites were the local wild orchids. This year, for lack of rain, they were rather small, but nevertheless outstanding for their colour and shape. I know there are similar ones in Herefordshire and have seen them at Ullingswick, for example.
Our Gospel today continues following the teaching of Jesus to his disciples in the Sermon on the Mount, (Mt 5: 43-48), where Our Lord expounds on love of neighbour and enemy alike. “You have learnt how it was said: You must love your neighbour and hate your enemy. But I say this to you: love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you; in this way you will be sons of your Father in heaven, for he causes his sun to rise on bad men as well as good, and his rain to fall on honest and dishonest men alike. For if you love those who love you, what right have you to claim any credit? Even the tax collectors do as much, do they not? And if you save your greetings for your brothers, are you doing anything exceptional? Even the pagans do as much, do they not? You must therefore be perfect just as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
Jesus has said repeatedly, “You have heard it said….but I say….” He wants us to be sure that we know what it means to follow God faithfully and fully. At the end of today’s passage, Jesus drops a bombshell of a statement to describe how we much follow God. How come? Taught by the interpreters of the Law, the people had lost sight of what God originally meant by the command to “Love your neighbour as yourself.” The phrase, “hate your enemy,” is not even in the Old Testament Law. You can look in the teachings of Moses and the Prophets, but you won’t find those words. The experts had changed the teaching of the Law until it got to the point that it was no longer what it had originally meant. This should be a warning to us that we do not take a command of God and change it into something that we want it to be rather than what God really meant. We must be very careful not to distort the word of God. Jesus, in the Sermon on the Mount, seeks to bring clarity to what God meant and show the fuller meaning and the heart of the commandment. Jesus wants us to love all people, friend or foe, good or evil, and he also wants us to pray for them. As the war rages in Ukraine, for example, it is important to pray for both sides, for only through prayer and reconciliation, will true justice and peace come about.
Abbot Brendan Reflects on Pope Leo's words to the Benedictines worldwide
July and August 2026: 3 workshops let by Fr Alex Echeandia, Prior of the Monastery of Lurin
9th to 11th January 2026 A weekend for young men to experience the monastic life and join in the prayer and life of the community.
28th November at 6.45pm You are welcome to join an informal service for healing prayer on the last Friday of November. No need to book.
Sat 13th December, 10.00am-12.30am We are delighted that the acclaimed Cistercian writer, Fr Michael Casey will be with us in December.
Monday 1st to Thursday 4th December 2025. 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.