Peter Blog a few random thoughts

A number of years ago I worked in Oxford Street in Top shop. I was working in the exchange and refund department. I was suprized by the amount of people that used fashion to hide who they really were. The one thing that they would say quite a lot was that they shopped and brought clothes to make them selves feel better. Now this is not a homily against retail therapy or against fashion shops but I have to say I met a lot of people that used this and other things to get over the pain that they did not either like themselves and therefore feel love of another person.  It is true to say that there are many times in our lives where we are afraid to be our true authentic selves. We hide behind the masks that we portray. We are one thing to one person and another to someone else. We try our best and hardest to try and please everyone where we almost become like a camelion. I suppose the question I have is why do we do this. Why do we waste so much energy trying to be all things to a...

The Body and Blood of Christ Todays Gospel comes from John Chapter 6. It is the great Eucharistic discourse. It reminds us who are listening what actually is happening when we receive communion at Mass. For what we do is fulfil the command that Jesus himself gave us at the last supper that we take and eat and take and drink. “Do this in memory of me” When we listen to the language of the Gospel we get clues to what actually is happening. Jesus uses the words “I AM” if you remember this comes from the book of Exodus where Moses asks the voice at the burning bush who is speaking to him. “I AM who I AM” it is God himself that we are receiving therefore. It is the miracle of the Mass that on this altar God himself is present.  Taking all this into account it is something that is quite amazing. It is something that we should take into consideration when we come into the Church or at mass that we are in the presence of God in a very real way. So what we do in the Church ...

What struck me the most about the feast of Pentecost this year was that the Disciples changed when they were given the gift of the Holy Spirit. They were practically scared of everything even their own shadow. They had witnessed such dramatic events that they maybe could not fully comprehend them. They had seen the death and resurrection of the person that they were going to follow they had been promised that he would remain with them always just to be told that he was going back to his Father. What was this gift? What would it do? How would it affect them? We can see from the readings that it did a lot they were no longer scared the shackles of fear had been broken and they were able to proclaim Jesus to all those who had gathered for the feast of Pentecost. The disciples were changed they are able to proclaim Christ they were no longer scared of the past or the future and were able to tell others about it. The change in them was the gift of the Holy Spirit. They were able to see a ...