Readings
The longest darkness
The longest darkness holds the shortest day
In the clasp of our future illumination
A necessary settling into the winter of becoming
Into a time of remembering
We welcome you into our winter heart
With the mist of your breath
And any snow soon to begin
Even the storms
We rest here on the shortest
These lengthening days of darkness
A lengthening darkness eases us towards the perfection of the shortest day
Lengthening darkness for some brings agitation – almost dismay
Lengthening darkness is everywhere preparation
The lengthening darkness is the adornment of All That Is
The shedded leaf
The burrowed hole
The future relief
For each humbled soul
Be humble as each day shortens and darkness broadens across
Sunrise on a harvest moon shore 2
Sunrise on a harvest moon shore, is gratitude.
With the darkness and light of all that we are.
May a sun rise on a harvest moon shore .
Let every breath in be the beginning of our own life giving star.
Let this breath simply give on each exhale.
As does a sunrise on a harvest moon shore.
Not of this world
This reflection first appeared in The Inquirer, 8033, April 2022
My kingdom is not of this world – John 18: 36
As we remember Jesus on this commemoration of his death we recognise that he stood for all of us and especially for those who have been unjustly killed, all who have died as martyrs for
Bearing witness matters
This reading first appeared in The Inquirer, Issue 8033, April 2022
On the evening of Holy Thursday, Jesus leads his disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane. (Mark 14:34) Jesus says: ‘My soul is sorrowful, even unto death, stay awake and keep watch with me.’ Like the (above) Sufi call to witness and be fully aware of
What does church mean to me?
I was brought up going to church. I was taken every Sunday, week by week, sometimes once, sometimes twice a day. I never liked it. For some reason it was just the Sunday services. I don’t know why I was never sent to Sunday School, maybe the bus times didn’t work out. I couldn’t sing.
Winter solstice meditation
We pause as the path of the sun reverses, seemingly holding its place for a moment of turning. Let us delve into the gifts of darkness at the winter solstice. We follow curiosity and contemplation down into the cold earth, taking a journey to the world below the surface. Here we find acorns, cached by
Summer is a joyous time
Summer is a joyous time.
The promise of spring has been fulfilled in the lengthened days and the warmth of the sun.
In this time of happiness, it is good to think of the past winter, and to remember the broken saplings and the trodden flowers – plants, animals, people who have been taken from us, always too early. We think