On the Saturday before the Ascension, Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of John (16: 23-28) in which Jesus tells the disciples, ‘Anything you ask for from the Father, He will grant in my name’. Fr Paul says, today in the Gospel (like yesterday), we hear Jesus referring to the fact that he is [...]
On the Friday before the Ascension, Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of John (16: 20-23) in which Jesus tells the disciples, ‘You are sad now, but I shall see you again and your hearts will be full of joy and that joy no one shall take from you’. Today as we approach the [...]
Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of John (16:16-20) in which Jesus tells the disciples, ‘You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy.’ Afterwards, Fr Paul shares a little about the life of St Philip Neri, whose memorial we celebrate today.Philip was born in Florence in 1515. At the age [...]
Today Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of John (16: 12-15) in which Jesus said to his disciples, ‘I still have many things to say to you, but they would be too much for you now but when the Spirit of truth comes, he will lead you to the complete truth’. Fr Paul says [...]
Today Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Luke (8: 19-21) in which Jesus’ mother and brothers came to see him, but they were not able to get near him because of the crowd. Fr Paul says today, especially for Australia, we celebrate a very special feast, the Feast of Our Lady Help of [...]
Fr Paul reads from John’s Gospel (15:26-16:4) in which Jesus says when Holy Spirit comes, ‘he will be my witness and you, too, will be my witnesses’.Like Saturday’s reflection, Fr Paul says, the theme of persecution is in today’s reading but at the same time there is now the promise of the Holy [...]
In this passage from John’s Gospel (15: 18-21), Jesus says to the disciples, ‘If the world hates you, remember that it hated me before you. If you belonged to the world, the world would love you as its own’.Fr Paul says at this point in his life, Jesus knew that his time was [...]
As Fr Paul is away this week for the Annual Clergy Retreat, we are revisiting his Gospel readings and reflections for the 5th Week of Easter last year. The 50 days of the Easter season are so important that the Church uses the same readings each year for this period (unless it is [...]
Fr Paul reads from John’s Gospel (15: 9-11) in which Jesus tells his disciples, ‘As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. [...]
Fr Paul reads from John’s Gospel (15: 1-8) in which Jesus says ‘I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever remains in me, with me in them, bears fruit in plenty; for cut off from me you can do nothing’.The vine was a long and loved symbol of Israel. It has been [...]