And - CathNews New Zealand https://cathnews.co.nz Catholic News New Zealand Wed, 17 Oct 2018 00:02:23 +0000 en-NZ hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.7.1 https://cathnews.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/cropped-cathnewsfavicon-32x32.jpg And - CathNews New Zealand https://cathnews.co.nz 32 32 70145804 The joining word https://cathnews.co.nz/2018/10/25/the-joining-word/ Thu, 25 Oct 2018 07:10:28 +0000 https://cathnews.co.nz/?p=110059 love and fear

We prepare for Mass, gathering together in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Amen. So let's look at that sentence and ask ourselves, which word is the most important? Is it the aspect of God that feels closest to our heart? What about God the creator of all that Read more

The joining word... Read more]]> and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Remember those early school days when we are told that and is a joining word? Let's take that little word into a moment of prayer. It is and that reminds us that the Trinity is three in one. ‘And ‘is about connection, about relationship. That little three letter word cements our understanding of families, communities, nations. Where and is missing in the world, there is often a breakdown in communication.. In our prayer, we can reflect on all the ways and operates in our lives. In quiet simplicity, and is present to kindness, cooperation, laughter, growth, love. Each time we remember an act of loving-kindness, we will find and somewhere in the middle. We give thanks for all the times that separation through misunderstanding has been healed, a gap replaced by and. Then there are all those aspects of life experience that increase the knowing of God. These learnings have not been incidental. They are part of God's ongoing plan for us. We understand that when we link them all with and. Again, we give thanks. When we look at Jesus' life, we see it is all about connection. We can go through the gospels making a list of Jesus and… But that list would be never ending. So instead we sit in stillness with Jesus, feeling the peace of his presence. We have come to the final connection in this time of prayer with the little important word. To Jesus we say "You." Then we say, "and." Then we say. "me." Amen.
  • Joy Cowley is a wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and retreat facilitator.
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