On the Saturday before the Ascension, Fr Paul reads from John’s Gospel (16: 23-28), in which Jesus says to his disciples ‘anything you ask for from the Father he will grant in my name’. This discourse in John Chapter 16, that we’ve been reading, is about to come to a close and, [...]
Today we celebrate the feast of St Matthias. After Fr Paul reads from John’s Gospel (15: 9-17), he shares a bit more about Matthias. Fr Paul says, Matthias was not one of the original twelve disciples. After the treachery and death of Judas Iscariot, someone had to take his place. We know from [...]
On the Thursday before the Ascension, Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of John (16: 16-20) in which Jesus explains to the disciples, ‘In a short time you will no longer see me. Then a short time later, you will see me again.’ What is very evident in our Gospel today, Fr [...]
Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of John (16: 12-15) in which Jesus promises that when the Spirit of truth comes, the disciples will be guided to the truth. Fr Paul says, it is probably true that every generation has a slightly different mentality; a slightly different way of thinking; has a [...]
Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of John (16: 5-11) in which Jesus tells his disciples ‘Unless I go, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.’ Fr Paul says, today’s Gospel is a classic good news/bad news Gospel. The bad news is the [...]
Fr Paul reads from John’s Gospel (15:26 - 16:4) in which Jesus says when the Holy Spirit comes, he will be my witness and you, too, will be my witnesses. Fr Paul says, as happened all last week, Jesus is speaking to his disciples. He is preparing them for taking over the [...]
Fr Paul reads from John’s Gospel (15:18-21) in which Jesus tells his disciples, ‘If the world hates you, remember that it hated me before it hated you’. At the conclusion of his reflection, aware that this weekend (9 May) is Mother’s Day here in Australia, Fr Paul offers a special blessing for [...]
Fr Paul reads from John’s Gospel (15: 12-17) in which Jesus tells his disciples, ‘A man can have no greater love than to lay down his life for his friends’. Today’s reading says Fr Paul, adds more dimensions to the love shared by Jesus and his Father; and the love shared by [...]
Fr Paul reads from John’s Gospel (15: 9-11) in which Jesus tells his disciples, ‘I have told you this so that my joy may be in you, and your joy be complete. In the case of God’s commandments, a commandment is understood to be a gift. It indicates the way in which [...]
Fr Paul reads from John’s Gospel (15: 1-8) in which Jesus tells his disciples, ‘I am the True Vine’ and invites them to make their home in him, as ‘I make mine in you’. The vine was a long and loved symbol of Israel. It has been used right throughout the scriptures [...]