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Thoughts matter; yes, they do. “Saying” matters and so does the time we “say it”. The wisdom of the desert fathers distinguishes various stages of our thought-process. First of all, a simple suggestion, an innocent thought. When this thought ‘enters’ our heart, it goes ‘deeper’ within and I find myself ‘in dialogue’ with this thought. […]

Why should I “say it”?Why should I risk and speak out?What is the point of opening myself?Very simple: when we “say it”, we “see it”. Thoughts kept secret and hidden can take hold of us and lead usaway from reality. Slowly, slowly our interpretation of reality‘takes the place’ of reality. We need assistance, we needguidance. […]

“When I was a young monk, I used to live with my Abbot. During lunch I used to hide a piece of bread in the folds of my habit which I would eat secretly later without him knowing it. I kept doing this for a long time and even if my conscience would accuse me, I was […]

Have you spotted the difference? In the London Underground we hear “See it. Say it. Sorted.” In the ‘underground’ of our spiritual life things are different. We ‘see’, we gain discernment and wisdom only when we ‘say’ our thoughts, the inner movements of our heart, to an elder in the faith (a catechist, a Spiritual […]

The first Sunday of July – today! – was formerly marked by the devotion to the Most Precious Blood of Christ. In fact, during the month of July Christian piety turns in a special way to the Blood of Christ. God chose the sign of blood, because no other sign is so eloquent to express […]

Peter and Paul, two men, two different names, one Church.The name Peter, ‘Kephas’ in Aramaic and in Greek, has threemeanings: strong and solid ‘rock’, reliable ‘building stone’, small and tiny ‘pebble-stone’. The name Paul, ‘Paulus’ in Latin, means small, little, notsimply in terms of size or age, but also in a figurativesense meaning ‘last’ and […]

T.S. Eliot, in writing about martyrs, said: “Christian martyrdom is never an accident, for saints are not made by accident. A martyrdom is always the design of God for His love of men, to warn them and to lead them, to bring them back to his ways.” Yesterday, 22nd June, we kept the Feast of […]

Last month, Pope Francis spoke of a real “storm” threatening the Christian family and its mission as ‘domestic Church’ where the love of Christ, the fidelity of the Father and the bond of unity of the Holy Spirit finds a real home. The Pope was speaking to the leaders of the Équipes Notre-Dame, a Movement […]

Word of God, Holy Mass, Prayers and Silence, signs and body gestures, sacred spaces, images, Beauty… our ‘Liturgy’ is like a ladder where earth and heaven ascend and descend, a space and a time where the human and the divine mingle. And of course, music; and within music, Latin hymns have a place of honour. […]

At the National Gallery of Umbria, in Perugia, is currentlybeing held a unique exhibition on the so-called ‘Master of SaintFrancis’, one of the most important artists of the thirteenthcentury to have worked in Central Italy. Amongst the manywonderful masterpieces is a monumental Crucifix, painted intempera and gold on wood, depicting Saint Francis kneeling atChrist’s feet. […]