EASTER POEM FROM OUR RESIDENT POET

 Christus Vincit

This Easter creeps in,

Alike only in name

From the thousands of joyous occasions

Which have preceded it.

Who would have believed

That this year's preparations,

For "The Jewel in our Crown",

Would bear little resemblance

To our loved, sometimes austere, rituals?

How fortunate our flock has been,

Under the aegis of Our Blessed Lady,

Whose mantle tenderly enfolds

Our perpetually motivated, loving Shepherd!

Despite innumerable, recent traumas,

With dedication, affection and humour,

He has kept our flock

Interested, aware and hopeful,

Along the tortuous path

Which leads to

The Wonder and Glory of the Resurrection.

Eileen Murray © April 2021

REDEMPTORISTS IN ZIMBABWE

“Family mission” series is a part of the ForWorld project, led by the Redemptorists and their lay co-workers.  In this episode Brother Benjamin Temba speaks about the work of the Redemptorists in Zimbabwe

LIGHT IN THE DARKNESS

If you missed the online talk from the Rev Dr John Bell, you can watch it on Youtube

A POEM INSPIRED BY CAPTAIN SIR THOMAS MORE RIP

"To Thine Own Self Be True"

Greatness lies not in

Appearance,  stature,

Deeds of derring-do.

Neither in flamboyance

Nor self-seeking public acclaim.

Unsurprisingly, it is in traumatic times

When all the world

Seems alien and bent on

Catastrophic destruction -

Which we are powerless to prevent -

That, as if by sleight of hand,

The impenetrable void is pierced

By shaft of incandescent light.

One soon-to-be centenarian,

Against all odds,

Inspires the locked-down, depressed population.

His simple but arduous project,

In gratitude for dedicated medical care,

Moves our communities

To an inconceivable outcome.

We are inspired!

Here in our midst, a miracle unfolds.

The rest is history.

Thank you Dear Captain Sir Tom Moore.

Your simple love and dedication

Will live on in our memories.

Walk on, in Glory!

Eileen Murray © 2 February 2021

YOUTH J&P GROUP AND NUGENT

Once again our young people have shown what stars they are, they have clubbed together to donate lots of items to Nugent's hamper appeal

A socially distanced handover

In Thrall

As our treasured Earth,

Hypnotically magnetic,

Orbits our life-sustaining Sun,

We, like trillions who have gone before,

Mark our brief passage through Life.

We create momentous occasions,

Sad or joyous,

With ceremonies which, with tradition,

Become a part of our existence.

In Nature, Season follows Season -

Sometimes unpredictable.

Little did we suspect that in 2020

Our lives would be so drastically affected.

Month upon weary month

Of separation and isolation.

For many, Christmas will never be the same again.

Hopefully, treasured memories

Of past happy times together

Will help assuage the absence of loved ones.

Ironically, if we look back

To the very first Christmas,

Mary and Joseph, fearful and unwelcome

In an alien environment,

Bravely bore all the discomforts,

Worries and their uncertain future,

And brought light, hope and love

Into our troubled world,

Which in 2020 will recall -

Certainly in a different way -

The birth of their Special Son,

Still the Light of our World.

Oh for the gift of prescience -

Perhaps not!

Eileen Murray © December 2020

ARCHBISHOP MALCOM'S EASTER MESSAGE

To read Archbishop Malcolm's Easter Message for 2024 click here.

CHRISM MASS HOMILY

The text of Archbishop Malcolm's homily at the Mass of Chrism on Wednesday 13 April is available here and also in the news section of the archdiocesan website.

A POEM FROM OUR RESIDENT POET

SWEET MEG (FOR SHEILA AND KEN)

How many times have we walked

Along these familiar paths,

Throughout the passing years?

Every day, despite the vagaries

Of each season,

We three have set off resolutely -

Suitably attired, of course!

We met familiars, human and canine,

Exchanging greetings - ours more staid

Than our faithful, four-legged  companions.

You were never a one

To frolic joyfully in abandonment

Of the daily restrictions of domesticity.

A mysterious, shadowed early life,

In a different environment,

Had created parameters which influenced you,

Until you settled comfortably

Into our lives.

What rewards were bestowed, bilaterally!

You, with a gourmet appetite,

Us, with healthy exercise and multifarious friendships.

As we adjust to our different lifestyle,

Perhaps, eventually treading familiar footfall,

We will recall and see in distant vistas

A gentle, docile, loving image

Trotting obediently alongside

Two affectionate, committed owners,

Come rain or shine.

Perhaps you were anticipating

All the gustatory pleasures

Awaiting you at home!

Sweet Meg,

Little Lady Blue Roan Cocker Spaniel,

Our memories shall remain evergreen.

Eileen Murray © January 2021

POEM FROM OUR RESIDENT POET

An Inspiration

How many times have you clicked

On one of the countless e-mails

(Waiting to be opened)

Entitled - "A Poem"!

For over twenty years,

Messages have been been exchanged,

Cut, pasted, formatted,

Until the compiler, along with the erudite Team,

Was totally satisfied,

And then, all suggestions and drafts

Magically became print.

BE Alive - The Latest Edition!

No matter what hat you were wearing,

You were there working away,

Visible or invisible.

Your commitment and zest

Helped to keep parochial lifeblood flowing.

And even Covid's stranglehold,

On our everyday life,

Was often thwarted.

Today, affectionate, familiars gather

 In an appropriate trinity of celebrations -

A Birthday, a Wedding Anniversary,

Under the aegis of your beloved St Alphonsus.

Fairy Tales do happen!

Dear Kris,

Thank you for the unstinting service you have given us

Over the nascent years.

Eileen Murray © 1 August 2022