Reflections & Homilies

Ahead of the day that countries in the Middle East celebrate Mother's Day, 21 March, a week after the UK marked the occasion, Bishop Jim Curry has reiterated Pope Leo's call that "paths of dialogue be reopened" and that the people of the Middle East can be spared the ongoing "atrocious violence of war." In particular, Bishop Curry, Lead Bishop for the Holy Land for the Bishops' Conference, urged C... Read More

Archbishop Eamon Martin, Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland writes: "Our country and our troubled world need us to be like Saint Patrick, strong and active witnesses of Peace, Faith, Hope and Love" Saint Patrick tells us that he was only fifteen or sixteen years of age when he was trafficked into Ireland as a slave. Even though he had been raised in a Christian home and family, he de... Read More

Professor Todd Walatka, Assistant Chair for Graduate Studies at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, USA gave the following reflection at the St Oscar Romero ecumenical service held in St Martin in the Fields, Trafalgar Square today. The theme was: Inspiration and Hope in Hard Times. Romans 12 is one of those passages from St Paul that is both beautiful and, if we are honest, rather overwhelm... Read More

In a world marked by divisions and tensions, the Church unites her members through their faith in Christ and His love and therefore has the mission to reach out to everyone, Pope Leo XIV said during the General Audience today in St Peter's Square. "Unified in Christ, Lord and Saviour of every man and woman, the Church can never turn inwards on herself, but is open to everyone and is for everyone,"... Read More

Third Sunday of Lent The true Place of the Woman at the Well Let us begin our reflection by letting the woman of Sychar unsettle us for a good cause, challenging our own preconceptions about the company Jesus kept, to help us place this Samaritan woman not only as a key figure but a primary witness in John's Gospel. This is a form of recovery, rebalancing ourselves if you like, by letting the fact... Read More

Conflicts and tensions exist that threaten people's lives and their ability to live together. Some can drag on for years if the path of dialogue and reconciliation has not been chosen. This is particularly concerning for the most vulnerable and for future generations. In his prayer intention for March, Pope Leo invites us to pray that nations lay down their weapons, adopt diplomacy and justice, an... Read More

This week, Pray As You Go, the free prayer app from the Jesuits in Britain, celebrates 20 years of helping Catholics and seekers alike find space for daily prayer and reflection. What began in March 2006 as a Lenten experiment by Fr Peter Scally SJ, a British Jesuit priest who recorded short podcasts for commuters using Ignatian prayer, has grown into a global ministry. Today, Pray As You Go serve... Read More

Second Sunday of Lent Saint David of Wales whose feast is normally kept on March 1st shares with us a pithy saying: 'Gwnewch y pethau bychain' : in English 'Do the little things'! If we are puzzled at this phrase its only because it has a stark and direct simplicity, but also a graciousness which make important those small and considerate things we do for others. It might at first seem at odds wit... Read More

Pope Leo XIV met today with Spanish seminarians attending the seminaries of Alcalá de Henares, Toledo, Cartagena, and the Interdiocesan Seminary of Catalonia. In his address, the Pope invited them to read his letter to the Archdiocesan Major Seminary of Trujilloi n Peru saying it covers the essential aspects of priestly formation. "But today," he told the seminarians, "I would like to focus on s... Read More

During his Angelus address on this first Sunday of Lent, today, Pope told pilgrims gathered in St Pete's Square: "Let the Lord cleanse you, purify you and transform you into a unique masterpiece." Recalling the day's Gospel reading according to St Matthew, in which Jesus enters the desert and is tempted by the devil (cf. Mt 4:1-11), after fasting for forty days, the Pope noted that physically, th... Read More

Archbishop Richard Moth gave this homily today at the Rite of Election and Call to Continuing Conversion at Westminster Cathedral. Dear Catechumens and all those responding to the Call to continuing conversion, dear brothers and sisters, Catechumens, as you prepared for this Rite of Election, you wrote your names for the list of the Elect. Today all your names are gathered in the Book of the Elect... Read More

First Sunday of Lent 1. Genesis In our first reading from Genesis this Sunday, we are given a poetic and artistic snapshot of the awakening conscience of humanity. The innocent status of human life exemplified in Adam and Eve, is compromised and changed by the testing choice between knowledge of good and evil, in which they choose evil but in sorrow desire forgiveness! And yet stark though the im... Read More

Perhaps Lent is a good time to share the All Kinds of Catholic podcast with someone who hasn't found it yet. For those wondering 'what to do for Lent', maybe listening to these conversations will inspire fresh awareness and appreciation of God's presence in our lives. Subscribing here is the best way to keep in touch with the pod community but the podcast is on the usual podcast platforms so it's ... Read More

Around 70 Christians gathered outside the Ministry of Defence in Central London today, to take part in the annual Ash Wednesday procession and prayer vigil. This was the 44th year Christians undertook this witness to, "the belief that it is better to risk living by the code of nonviolence, than to live a half-life hiding behind the false security of war and war preparations of all kinds." They rep... Read More