Pastoral

Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Matthew (25: 14-30) in which Jesus, who tells a parable about the Master who entrusts his wealth to his servants while he is away, concludes by saying, ‘To everyone who has will be given more, and they will have more than enough.  But from the person [...]

Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Matthew (25: 1-13) in which Jesus tells the parable about the sensible and foolish bridesmaids waiting for the bridegroom to arrive. Fr Paul says like any good parable, this parable of the ten bridesmaids has layers of meaning. At its heart it is about waiting and [...]

Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Matthew (23: 27-32) in which Jesus draws attention to the double standards of the scribes and Pharisees, saying ‘Alas for you, you hypocrites!’ Fr Paul says in this Gospel we hear the last two of the seven ‘Woes!’ or ‘alas’ and they take on a darker [...]

Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Mark (6: 17-29) in which tells how John the Baptist came to be killed by Herod. Today, as we remember the Beheading of John the Baptist, Fr Paul shares a little about him and the feasts we celebrate in his honour. Fr Paul says Saint John [...]

Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Matthew (23: 13-22) in which Jesus says, ‘Alas for you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You, who shut up the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces, neither going in yourselves nor allowing others to go in who want to’. Afterwards, Fr Paul shares a little about [...]

Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Matthew (23: 1-12) in which Jesus tells his followers to listen to the teachers of the law and the Pharisees and do what they say, but Jesus also notes, ‘do not be guided by what they do, since they do not practice what they preach’. Fr [...]

Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Matthew (22:34-40) in which Jesus, when asked, which is the greatest commandment, says, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second resembles it: ‘You [...]

Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of John (1: 45-51) in which Philip tells Nathanael about Jesus and invites to come with him to see Jesus. Afterwards, Fr Paul shares a little about the apostle St Bartholomew whose feast we celebrate today. Fr Paul says Bartholomew was born at Cana and was brought [...]

Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Matthew (20: 1-6) in which Jesus tells the story of how the owner of the vineyard takes on workers at various times throughout the day so some work more hours than others. Fr Paul says the parable of the labourers in the vineyard in today’s Gospel [...]