Message of Abbot Paul - Wednesday 6th September 2023

It was a great joy to visit my mother yesterday and to enjoy our time together over two lovely meals, although it was far too hot to sit in the garden together as we sometimes do. Even my trip to the beach with Toby was much shorter than usual. The heat was stifling and Toby found it was more than he could take. The sea was far out and there was no breeze. For the first time this year we saw a number of people sunbathing, but no one was in the sea swimming and, because of the heat, there were no dogs playing on the sands with their owners. We were both glad to get back home to the cool and peace of the kitchen and sitting room.

 

​Also yesterday, Fr Alex, the Prior of our monastery in Peru, arrived from Lima for his first visit since Covid and Lockdown. What a joy and a pleasure to have him among us at Belmont. During his visit he will be leading two icon courses. Our brethren in Peru still need a lot of support. If there is anything you could do to help them in anyway, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. Fr Alex would be delighted to meet with you.

 

​Our Gospel reading today carries on where we left off yesterday with Jesus in. the synagogue at Capernaum, (Lk 4: 38-44). “Leaving the synagogue, Jesus went to Simon’s house. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever and they asked him to do something for her. Leaning over her he rebuked the fever and it left her. And she immediately got up and began to wait on them.” Here we have an insight into the life of the early disciples of Jesus. We meet Peter’s mother-in-law, but we don’t meet his wife and children, nevertheless it’s the family who ask Jesus to do something about her fever. Once healed, she’s up and about immediately, serving a meal and waiting on her guests. Jesus seems to have used this family home as his headquarters in Capernaum, for it is here, after supper, that neighbours bring their friends to be healed. “At sunset all those who had friends suffering from diseases of one kind or another brought them to him, and laying his hands on each he cured them. Devils too came out of many people, howling, ‘You are the Son of God.’ But he rebuked them and would not allow them to speak because they knew that he was the Christ.” Yet again it’s the unclean spirits who recognise Jesus as the Son of God and they do so from the very beginning of his ministry.

 

​Did this ministry of healing go on all through the night, or was there time for rest? We are not told, however, when daylight comes, Jesus leaves the house alone and makes for a lonely place, where he can be alone in prayer with his heavenly father, but in primitive villages there are no secrets and a crowd soon finds his whereabouts and tries to prevent his leaving them, but Jesus says, “I must proclaim the Good News of the kingdom of God to the other towns too, because that is what I was sent to do.” In reality, we could say that Jesus is sharing with them his mission plan. Ultimately, with the help of his apostles, and today with our help, he is to proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom throughout the world and to all peoples. The question for us is whether we are prepared accept Jesus’ invitation to join him in his mission.