“Don’t forget the poor.” That is what one of the Cardinals said to Pope Francis as soon as he was elected. And he hasn’t. Over and over again he has reminded us that the poor are not on the edge of Christian life. Jesus put them at the centre. So must we. When St Matthew […]
Sermons
The Justice of God (Week of Prayer for Unity Talk)
The Justice of God – a talk given in the Week of Prayer for Unity I am a child of the Sixties – that wonderful decade when we thought we could reinvent the world. Justice, freedom, peace were the battle cries of the day. I grew up in what was then Rhodesia and we protested […]
Br Marc’s Companions Letter – January 2019
Greetings and a very happy new year to all our friends! I feel as though I am finally beginning to settle back into something resembling normal again after my three months in Trier. I have spent time completing a German course there and living alongside the brothers of St. Matthias’ abbey with whom we have […]
Water become wine
“When the steward of the feast tasted the water now become wine he said to the bridegroom…..you have kept the best wine until last.” This miracle is close to many of our hearts. You could say it is not that unusual: every year, all over the world water, grapes, sunshine and some human skill produce […]
Companion’s Letter – January 2019
Dear Friends and Companions, I hope that you have all enjoyed a Christmas full of blessings and that the New Year will bring joy to you and through you to everyone that you know.I am using this chaplain’s letter to flag up reminders of a few of the many super events that will take place […]
Epiphany 2019
Through my own fault I missed the quiz at recreation on St Stephen’s day, so let me take this opportunity to create another quiz. The first question is: where will you find a horse that has a connection with the burial of Jesus, wearing high-heeled shoes? And then, three short extracts from sermons preached on […]
Sam. 2: 18-20, 26; Ps. 148; Col. 3: 12-17; Luke 2: 41-end
His mother said, “… your Father and I have been searching for you in great anxiety.” Jesus said to them, “Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?”’ This morning we meet the boy Jesus in the temple following his parents’ anxious search for him […]
Companion’s Letter – St Nicolas Day 2018
Dear Companions and friends, I begin my chaplain’s letter on the feast of St Nicolas – 6th December. This is one of those early warning signals that the great Feast of the Incarnation on 25th is on its way. By then Nicolas will have combed his beard, donned his red robe and hitched up the […]
“Are you the King of the Jews?”
Here we come to the endings of the church’s year, having been led by a circuitous route through the Gospel of Mark and, as today, parts of the Gospel of John. Our OT reading at Mattins from Daniel, and the epistle reading just now from the beginning of the Apocalypse offer epic scenes. This is […]
Sermon preached at St. Paul’s Parish, K Street, Washington
“Day after day the priest offers the same sacrifices which can never take away sins.” So writes the author of Hebrews in today’s epistle. The Jewish people in the time of Jesus knew they were sinners; if they were good Jews they offered sacrifices in the temple to have their sins forgiven. Yet, as the […]