Peter Blog a few random thoughts

Pope Benedict XVI  Angelus of 24/08/08 (© Libreria Editrice Vaticana)  "Upon this rock I will build my Church"   The Lord directly questioned the Twelve: "But who do you say that I am?". Peter spoke enthusiastically and authoritatively on behalf of them all: "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God". This solemn profession of faith the Church continues to repeat since then. Today too, we long to proclaim with an innermost conviction: "Yes, Jesus, you are the Christ, the Son of the living God!". Let us do so in the awareness that Christ is the true "treasure" (Mt 13,44) for whom it is worth sacrificing everything; he is the friend who never abandons us for he knows the most intimate expectations of our hearts. Jesus is the "Son of the living God", the promised Messiah who came down to earth to offer humanity salvation and to satisfy the thirst for life and love that dwells in every human being. What an advantage hu

This will be my last post for a few weeks as I am on holiday from Monday The twenty first Sunday of the Year I remember when I was going to Rome in May one of the things that struck me more than anything is the magnificence of the Vatican especially the Church of St Peter. I was struck by its beauty and grandeur. As I wondered around the Church I began to get the idea that I belonged to a Church that was way bigger than the Church we have here in Bognor. We profess in the creed that we belong to the “One Holy Catholic Church”:   A Church that is not a democracy, and has Benedict at his head as the Chief shepherd of the Church here on earth.   It is a church that has stead the test of time and has gone through many different changes and has tried to answer the question “Who do people say the son of Man is?”    And because the Church is made up of broken individuals it has got it wrong sometimes both in it treatment of people and groups. The abuse of power has been something that b

The Assumption The Gospel we have heard today is one that the Church Sings and Praises every day in its evening prayer. It is probably one of the most recognizable pieces of scripture but what is at the heart of the Gospel. It is one of Mary’s proclamations of faith.   How does she do this? She does this with the whole essence of her being. Her Soul Praises God and her Spirit rejoices.   She recognizes that the Lord has done great things for her and through the words of the Gospel writer we see the whole salvation history proclaimed as Elizabeth listened.   There must have been much excitement between these two women because here was Elizabeth who we know to be barren and her Baby soon to be John the Baptist leapt in her womb and Mary probably a young girl of 14 had been given a great gift of life too. But also there must have been great bewilderment and anxiety about the future. And maybe this is why they met up. Both these women were out casts of society Elizabeth had to live in a c

National Calendar for England Feasts The bishops have received the  recognitio  of the Holy See for their decision to raise to the rank of feast: The English Martyrs — 4 May St Augustine of Canterbury — 27 May St Gregory the Great — 3 September St Thomas Becket — 29 December

The 19 th Sunday of Ordinary Time A For some reason when I read this Gospel these words came to me: When you walk through a storm Hold your head up high And don't be afraid of the dark. At the end of the storm There's a golden sky And the sweet silver Song of a lark. For the most astute of you and football fans you will know that this is the Anthem of Liverpool football club. But, it makes a good point about today’s Gospel. Peter focus is on Jesus and looks at him. Without thinking putting his faith in Jesus he walks on the water and heads towards the boat. At this point because he has put his faith in Jesus he has not recognized the storm that is around him. As soon as he noticed that there was a storm around him he realised what he was doing and Jesus helped him out. I have not meant many people who have walked on water but there is a parallel with our own lives. We can often be walking over many storms of life and the sea devours us if we are not careful but, we