IN the final novel written by Leo Tolstoy – entitled Resurrection – there is a striking description of one of the central characters. ‘In Nekhlyudov, as in all of us, there were two men. One was the spiritual being, seeking for himself only the kind of happiness that meant happiness for other people too; but there was also the animal ... Read More »
“DO you ever get bored?” It is a common question posed by the young men who occasionally come to visit the priory, as part of the process they undertake to help discern their vocation in life. My response is often simply to pass on a great piece of advice that a very wise friar once gave me. “The great secret, ... Read More »
ON Boxing Day last year I went for a hike up Mount Lofty. It is a relatively short drive from the Adelaide city centre and provided a wonderful vista of the surrounds, as well as the opportunity for me to clear my head of the Christmas carols I had been singing over and over again at every Mass during the ... Read More »
E.M. Forster is not generally considered an author of high comedy, but I do recall one particular line from A Passage to India that caused me to laugh out loud when first I read it. In describing the attitude of a certain character toward questions of faith, Forster wrote, “Ronny approved of religion as long as it endorsed the national ... Read More »
WHEN a former Governor General was baptised at the age of 85 last year – a man who had previously been an avowed atheist – I was interested to hear not only what had drawn him to the Church, but also what had driven him away from her in the first place. He mentioned in an interview that he had ... Read More »
A FEW years ago, while I was visiting some family members on the Gold Coast, one of the household had turned on the television and was deeply engaged in that favourite past-time of so many people; providing a running commentary on the program being viewed for the benefit of those around them. In this instance, the show in question was ... Read More »
IF, as a result of the vagaries of the academic timetable at the theological college, I am unable to cycle back to the priory in time to attend the daily Conventual Mass, I instead stroll down the few blocks that separate our university campus from St Patrick’s Cathedral and attend Mass there. On certain days of the week, I am ... Read More »
“SOME people who have no faith are more Christian than Christians.” These were the interesting words of a parishioner who was a regular attendee at the Lectio Divina groups a friend and I were organising in our local parish. They are expressive of a thought that is often bandied about; the idea that a “good person” who performs a many ... Read More »
EVERY Friday night during my novitiate in Hong Kong we would gather to discuss the readings from scripture that would be proclaimed at Mass on the following Sunday. We were expected to have prayed with the Word of God, contemplated the meaning conveyed by the scriptures, perhaps read a biblical commentary or two and – if we were able – ... Read More »
The Catholic Leader Keeping Faith with You
