Dear friends, 1. St Augustine
We all engage in prayer of petition, out of faith and often desperation. Sometimes we wonder why. Perhaps the comment by St Augustine is the wisest:
Why he should ask us to pray, when he knows what we need before we ask him, may perplex us if we do not realise that our Lord and God does not want to know what we want (for he cannot fail to know it), but wants us rather to exercise our desire through our prayers, so that we may be able to receive what he is preparing to give us. His gift is very great indeed, but our capacity is too small and limited to receive it. That is why we are told: Enlarge your desires! Letter of St Augustine to Prob If you would like to know more about the helpful Letter to Proba and read the full text, click here.
2. Advent programmes for parishes and deaneries You may like to arrange a short series of talks for Advent 2019. Here are some examples.
(a) The Advent readings for prayer and reflection
This series looks at the readings of the following Sunday, opening them up for prayer and exploration.
(b) Meeting Jesus again today
This series will look at faith in Jesus in today’s time and culture, working from a biblical base to present the faith today.
(c) Christmas for Grown-ups
This series will explore Matthew 1-2 in four parts: the birth stories: birth, Magi, Flight in Egypt, return.
3. Sunday 20 October 2019 (29C19) Complete notes (PDF)
Gospel notes only (audio)
Gospel notes only (Portable)
4. "O Lord, hear my prayer"
The lovely setting used in the Taizé community.
5. Hearers of the Word
Alert readers will have noticed that the title page of these notes has been changed to "Hearers of the Word." The change marks the publication of a new book entitled Hearers of the Word. Praying & Exploring the Readings for Advent & Christmas: Year A. The period covered runs from the first Sunday of Advent (01.12.2019) until the Sunday after the Baptism (19.01.2020), including full commentaries on all four sets of readings for Christmas Day.
The book is available from Messenger Publications by clicking on the link above. It is also available from Book Depository and from Amazon.co.uk.
Wishing you every blessing for the week ahead,
Kieran |
|
