Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Mark (4: 21-25) where Jesus speaks of two parables, The Lamp on the Stand and The Measure, which illustrate the way in which you bring Christ into your life.

Fr Paul explains the Gospel today consists of two parables and commentaries. In the parable of The Lamp we have to imagine a single wick floating in a jug or saucer of olive oil. If you put this under a tub or a bed it will simply cause a fire. Fr Paul says, the whole purpose of the lamp is to bring light and Jesus is referring to this in His message. But as we hear in the Gospel, Fr Paul says, Jesus is also aware that His message was not able to be understood immediately. Again, and again He teaches us that they will not fully understand this message until He has suffered and risen from the dead.

In the second parable, The Measure, it is said to be like a golden rule, “you would not do to another, what you would not want done to yourself”. Fr Paul says, this may mean if you have enough good will to understand, you will make progress, if not, then there does not seem to be any hope.

For the reflection today, Fr Paul invites us to ask ourselves this question, ‘do I let the message of Christ shine in to my life and into the lives of others?’