Archbishop Stephen Brislin offers his prayer and reflection for the people of the Archdiocese of Cape Town for today, Wednesday 29 September 2021, during this time of the coronavirus pandemic. It is also available on the Archdiocese of Cape Town’s Facebook page and YouTube channel. Please also see below the text of his reflection, primarily for the deaf.

Today we celebrate the wonderful feast of the three archangels, namely Michael, Gabriel and Raphael. All three are named in the Bible and their special roles are made known to us. They remind us of God’s love and care for us. But let us begin by praying for peace in Southern Africa:

O God of justice and love, bless us, the people of Southern Africa, and help us to
live in your peace.
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury; let me sow pardon;
Where there is discord, let me sow harmony.
Divine Master, grant that I may not so much
Seek to be understood, as to understand;
To be loved, as to love;
To receive sympathy, as to give it;
For it is in giving that we shall receive,
In pardoning that we shall be pardoned,
In forgetting ourselves that we shall find
Unending peace with others. We ask this through Christ Our Lord, Amen.

The Scripture verses are from the Responsorial Psalm (Psalm 138) of today’s Mass:

I thank you, Lord, with all my heart; you have heard the words of my mouth. In the presence of the angels I praise you. I bow down towards your holy temple.

What is an angel and why do we believe in them? This is what the Catechism of the Catholic Church says: The existence of the spiritual, non-corporeal beings that Sacred Scripture usually calls “angels” is a truth of faith. The witness of Scripture is as clear as the unanimity of Tradition (328). Also, the Catechism says that, As purely spiritual creatures angels have intelligence and will: they are personal and immortal creatures, surpassing in per­fection all visible creatures, as the splendor of their glory bears witness (330). Angels always behold the face of God, they were created before the rest of creation as we know it. There are different groupings of angels, such as the seraphim, cherubim and thrones – there are considered to be nine groupings all together. The word “angel” does not refer to their nature. Their nature is “spirit”. Rather the word “angel” refers to what they do, their office – they are servants and messengers of God. There were, as we know, some angels that rebelled against God; they had the free will to do so. Because they rebelled they were cast out of the presence of God. There are some passages of Scripture that refer to this, for example in the Second Letter of St Peter we read, for if God did not spare the angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell…(2 Peter 3:4), and in the Letter of St Jude, And the angels that did not keep their own position, but left their proper dwelling have been kept by him in eternal chains in the deepest darkness until the judgement of the great day(v.6).

Angels are in the presence of God, praising and worshipping him (cf. Matt 18:10; Rev 5:11). They are also messengers of God – an example we all know well is that of the Archangel Gabriel who announced to Mary God’s desire that she will bear his incarnate Son. They are also our protectors (e.g. Tob 12:12), as is stated in the Catechism, From infancy to death human life is surrounded by their watchful care and intercession (336). For these reasons we have a special memorial dedicated to the Guardian Angels on the 2^nd October.

Among all the angels, there are three that are well known to us by name – Michael, Gabriel and Raphael. They are called archangels because of their special and very important part in God’s plan for the salvation of the world. The meaning of “Michael” is, he who is like God. He is mentioned five times in the Bible, in the Book of Daniel (three times) and in the Letter of St Jude and the Book of Revelation. He is the defender of the Church and the chief warrior in the fight against Satan and evil. Many parishes in our Archdiocese pray the Prayer to St Michael at the end of Mass, a prayer that was given to the Church by Pope Leo XIII in 1886 and was recommended for use by St Pope John Paul II. “Gabriel” means strength of God. Gabriel also appeared to Daniel in the Old Testament but is, of course, best known to us as the messenger who appeared to the Virgin Mary. “Raphael” means Remedy of God, for he healed the eyes of Tobit in that Book of the Old Testament. He also led Tobit’s son, Tobias, through a number of adventures, eventually brining the family together once more and restoring them to happiness.

Angels and Archangels are given to God’s people to minister to them. But we can also learn from them because they manifest God’s will and what he desires for his people, and so we can also participate in God’s plan for salvation by following their example.. Like Michael, we should be defenders of the faith and of the Church, not afraid to denounce evil and injustice in the world and to denounce all that does harm to people. Like Gabriel, we should show strength in our faith by strengthening others, and announcing the Good News of salvation, bringing joy to the hearts of people. Like Raphael, we should become healers, healers of broken relationships – especially in our families – healers of broken hearts, healers of those who mourn and weep, healers of a broken world. These are all things that God desires for his people and has designated his angels and archangels to do. We, too, can work together to achieve God’s plan and desire. With all our hearts let us thank God for his angels!

Let us now pray for God’s blessing:

The Lord be with you R/ And with your Spirit

Bow down for the blessing:

Merciful Father, in you love and compassion, you send your holy angels to minister to your people. Through their ministration we beseech you, Lord, to protect, strengthen and heal them. Through Christ, our Lord, amen. May Almighty God bless you, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Auxiliary Bishop Sylvester David offers his prayer and reflection for the people of the Archdiocese of Cape Town for today, Friday 24 September 2021, during this time of the Coronavirus pandemic. It is also available on the Archdiocese of Cape Town’s Facebook page and YouTube channel. Please also see below the text of his reflection, primarily for the deaf.

Friday 24 September 2021. 

Let us start by praying for the fruitfulness of the upcoming Synod.

We stand before You, Holy Spirit,
as we gather together in Your name. 

With You alone to guide us,
make Yourself at home in our hearts; 

Teach us the way we must go
and how we are to pursue it. 

We are weak and sinful;
do not let us promote disorder.

Do not let ignorance lead us down the wrong path nor partiality influence our actions. 

Let us find in You our unity
so that we may journey together to eternal life and not stray from the way of truth
and what is right. 

All this we ask of You,
who are at work in every place and time,
in the communion of the Father and the Son, forever and ever. Amen. 

Reflection: Take Courage! The Lord is with us. Haggai 1:15 – 2:9

Our reflection for today is based on one of the lesser known books of the Bible. Although not as famous as the major prophets, Haggai appeared at a strategic time in the life of the nation. Just to mention some of the background; after the return from the Exile with the intention of rebuilding the Temple (cf. Ezr 1:1-4), the people of God experienced interference from their neighbours who were opposed to their reestablishment. As a result many of the chosen people gave up on their faith. They started to experience a sense of hopelessness and lacked energy for their project of rebuilding the Temple. All this led to a delay of about twenty years in the rebuilding. 

The prophet of God is never far away when God’s people experience despair and Haggai appears on the scene speaking words of hope with such conviction that within five years the Temple was rebuilt. In all this, through the careful use of rhetoric, the first reading for today’s Mass shows that God is in charge. Count the number of times in a text of a mere ten verses how many references there are to the Lord speaking. We know from our reading of Scripture that God’s word has power – it brings about what it signifies. The attentive Bible reader will be alert to this. God is on a rescue mission.

Another significant repetition is “take courage” – used three times in one verse (Hg 2:4). This is translated from “be strong” in the original and conveys the notion of prevailing and of being firm. Notice it is not to ACT strongly but to BE strong. This is the type of strength which comes from within. It is not a decorative or a superficial quality which one acquires though the use of protein supplements, but an essential component of someone believing in God. It refers to inner strength (cf. Eph 3:16). The reason for the strength according to the prophet is simply because God is with his people (Hg 2:4). God is described in the text as the God of hosts – meaning of armies. This is a literal reference to the struggles they faced with their neighbours and when read with the next verse (Hg 2:5) would have called to mind the way in which the Egyptian army was rendered powerless.

This text can strengthen us during our moments of crisis with the Pandemic having stripped us of our security and our energy. We have to face despair and hopelessness. Uncertainty can certainly undermine our wellbeing. The message is that no matter how hopeless the experience of alienation is, there will be a new beginning. We will pick up the pieces and reconstruct our lives. But the trick is never to give up. We are called to hold firm simply because we are people of faith. We must never give up on Christ as he will never give up on us. 

The text calls us not to fear (Hg 2:5). This reminds us of a prayer we say fairly often in the liturgy – normally as a responsorial psalm during times of sorrow and alienation. This prayer is the much read and revered 23^rd psalm which came out of King David’s experience of deep sorrow and alienation. “The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want…” The syntax of the original indicates that because the Lord is my shepherd I shall not want. The fourth verse of the psalm refers to a journey through a dark valley (Ps 23:4). The word for “dark” in the original indicates the deepest darkness the human heart can ever know. Even there God is with us. And should we not feel his presence as strongly as we would like to, let us call to mind the abandonment Jesus felt when he was on the Cross, asking in effect: “My God, my God why have you forsaken me?” (Mk 15:34). The alienation which we feel can be a means of union with Christ. The voice of faith reminds us that in our feelings of alienation God is still in the same place he occupied when his Son was on the Cross.

Our first reading encourages us to “be strong” and to listen to the voice of faith. Having faith is one thing. Allowing the faith to work in us is something else altogether and for that to happen we have no choice but to stand firm, be strong, and take heart (cf. Dt 31:6, Jos 1:9, Ps 27:14, 1 Cor 16:13). Our first reading from the prophet Haggai speaks meaningfully during our time of distress.

Let us pray: Father give us the grace to stand firmly in our faith tradition when life becomes difficult. With faith help us to cope and also to help others who are in distress. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Bishop Sylvester David OMI 

VG/Auxiliary Bishop: Cape Town

Archbishop Stephen Brislin offers his prayer and reflection for the people of the Archdiocese of Cape Town for today, Wednesday 22 September 2021, during this time of the coronavirus pandemic. It is also available on the Archdiocese of Cape Town’s Facebook page and YouTube channel. Please also see below the text of his reflection, primarily for the deaf.

Blessings and peace on all who are joining me for this reflection. May God continue to be with us as we face the difficulties of our time. Let us pray for peace in Southern Africa:

O God of justice and love, bless us, the people of Southern Africa, and help us to
live in your peace.
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury; let me sow pardon;
Where there is discord, let me sow harmony.
Divine Master, grant that I may not so much
Seek to be understood, as to understand;
To be loved, as to love;
To receive sympathy, as to give it;
For it is in giving that we shall receive,
In pardoning that we shall be pardoned,
In forgetting ourselves that we shall find
Unending peace with others. We ask this through Christ Our Lord, Amen.

I have taken the Scripture verses from the First Reading of today’s Mass, from the Book of Ezra (9:5-9).

Oh my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift my face to you, my God, for our iniquities have risen higher than our heads, and our guilt has mounted up to the heavens.

Ezra was a priest and scribe, skilled in the law, and was a great leader of the Jewish people at the time of the great Babylonian exile which lasted 70 years. He was an intercessor for the people of Israel, imploring God’s mercy for his people. Furthermore, he called on the people to return to the Law, the Torah, and so do what is pleasing to God. The exile ended when the king of Persia, Cyrus, not only allowed the Jews to return to Israel and re-build the Temple, but also encouraged others to donate and facilitate the project. God had moved the heart of Cyrus to look kindly on his people, and the Jews recognized in this the mercy of God who finally brought to an end their period of enslavement. The exile had resulted from and as a consequence of their sinfulness and that of their forefathers who had disobeyed God’s law and gone after idols.

We too are subject to a type of slavery – the slavery of sin. Each and every one of “falls short of the glory of God” (cf. Romans 3:23) and, in our human weakness, we separate ourselves from God. We try to be faithful to the law of God, but fail in many respects to “love God with all our heart, and soul and mind, and to love our neighbour as ourselves” (Matthew 22:37-39). To have a sense of our sinfulness, a sense which needs to deepen as we deepen our Christian life, should never result in any sense of self-hatred, despair or abandonment of being willing to try again. While we may kick ourselves when we fail again, in one aspect or another, and while we may get annoyed because of our weakness and failure, we rejoice in the fact that it is precisely because we are incapable of saving ourselves that Christ became incarnate and took on our flesh. He continually opens before us the possibility of conversion and re-establishing our relationship with him, through his grace and mercy. For that reason we do not give up on ourselves (because Christ has not given up on us), nor do we give up on striving to do better in the future. The appropriate response, when we have fallen into sin, is to repent, call on God’s mercy and forgiveness, and pick ourselves up, yet again, with the firm resolution that we are going to fight off the temptations that will come our way in the future. We assimilate penance into our lives, doing regular penance through prayer, fasting (if we are sufficiently healthy), abstaining and by sacrificial acts of love towards others.

It is Jesus’ sacrificial death and resurrection that gives us hope, and thus to give in to despair is the worst thing we can do, since it means that we have no hope in the gratuitous gift that Jesus offers us, the gift of salvation. There are many Biblical texts that encourage us in our fight against sin – think of St Paul’s saying: where sin increased grace abounded even more (cf. Romans 5:20), and, God will not allow us to be tempted beyond our ability and will provide a way of escape that we may endure (cf. 1 Corinthians 10:13)

The Gospel reading of today’s Mass also enlightens us in this regard. The disciples were sent out to proclaim the Kingdom of God, but they are to take neither staff nor haversack, nor bread, nor money, and no spare tunic (Luke 9:1-6). In other words, they are to depend entirely on God’s providence, his grace and mercy, mediated to them through others who would provide for their needs – just as God returned the Jewish exiles to Israel through the king Cyrus. It is this attitude of complete dependence on God which helps us overcome sin, and helps us come to terms with our sinfulness. It reminds us that we have to continually plead with God for his mercy, forgiveness and help, to pray continuously and to express our dependence on his love.

How blessed we are, as Catholics, to have the Sacrament of Confession. It enable us to humbly approach God and vocalize our confession to him through the person of the priest. Genuine humility will reflect our genuine repentance, our desire to change and grow more in the likeness of God, our willingness to make amends, as far as possible, for the wrongs we have done, and to accept a penance in reparation to God. It is a joyful and life-giving Sacrament, re-building our relationship with God, showering us with his grace and pouring his love into our hearts. Let us just take a moment to express our deep thankfulness to God for his forgiveness and for the Sacrament of forgiveness, Confession…….

Let us now pray for God’s blessing:

The Lord be with you R/ And with your Spirit

Bow down for the blessing:

Heavenly and gracious Father, we thank you for the love you have always shown us. We are sorry for the times we have sinned against you and against our neighbour. With the help of your grace we will sin no more. Through Jesus Christ, our Lord, amen. May Almighty God bless you, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Auxiliary Bishop Sylvester David offers his prayer and reflection for the people of the Archdiocese of Cape Town for today, Friday 17 September 2021, during this time of the Coronavirus pandemic. It is also available on the Archdiocese of Cape Town’s Facebook page and YouTube channel. Please also see below the text of his reflection, primarily for the deaf.

Let us start by praying for the fruitfulness of the upcoming Synod.

We stand before You, Holy Spirit,
as we gather together in Your name. 

With You alone to guide us,
make Yourself at home in our hearts; 

Teach us the way we must go
and how we are to pursue it. 

We are weak and sinful;
do not let us promote disorder.

Do not let ignorance lead us down the wrong path nor partiality influence our actions. 

Let us find in You our unity
so that we may journey together to eternal life and not stray from the way of truth
and what is right. 

All this we ask of You,
who are at work in every place and time,
in the communion of the Father and the Son, forever and ever. Amen. 

The emptiness of seeking earthly gain. 2 Timothy 6:2-12 

Our current pandemic, with all the uncertainties it has ushered in, ought to have taught us a few lessons about what is important and what is normal. The lifestyles we took for granted are no longer possible under the restrictive conditions we have to cope with. People often ask: “when are things going to get back to normal?” They have a longing for the way things used to be. Perhaps a more important question is to examine how we have lived and to ask to what extent has that been normal. 

For example, people in the cities are used to having Mass in their Parishes on a daily basis and find it difficult to cope with present situation. People living in rural areas on the other hand have Mass once a month and many others have the Eucharist far less frequently than that. And yet they celebrate the Sabbath faithfully every week. They nourish their faith by sharing on the liturgy of the Word and by praying. Normally these communities have a Catechist and the people themselves take care of preparations for Baptisms, Confirmations, First Holy Communion, etc. Most belong to sodalities and these organisations take care of such things as home-based care for the aged, feeding the poor, and bandaging the wounded. Their entire life is Christianity in action simply because it is characterised by sharing and caring. 

In terms of the Christian message which is more normal – our isolated lifestyle or their communitarian lifestyle? Covid-19 has pressed the reset button and has forced us to be the Body of Christ in the home. We have become less independent and a lot more inter-dependent. We have come to realise that we are our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers and also that they are our keepers. In 2013 prior to becoming Pope Francis, Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio SJ referred to the serious sin of self referentiality and called it a “theological narcissism”. Self referentiality is a technical term referring to an extreme form of independence which screams out that we need nobody and that no one can teach us anything. Well, Covid-19 has rearranged that. The very fact that we expect others to wear masks and to be vaccinated so that we too may be safe, illustrates that we are dependent on the goodwill of others.

The sharing of resources so that the poor were fed when the pandemic first hit our shores was a meaningful exercise in Christian living. Many in the Archdiocese of Cape Town responded in true Christian fashion. I pray that that kind of “being normal” never ends. Nowadays we have other agencies such as Caritas Cape Town, SVP, and other parish based organisations attending to that work of mercy and it must never end. This is where our first reading of today’s Mass is so informative. It teaches us what we ought to have known by instinct but choose to forget – that we came into this world with nothing and that we will leave with nothing (2 Timothy 6:7). In the previous verse St Paul laments the fact that many see religion as a means of making a profit (2 Timothy 6:6). I was watching the News on the morning after the President announced the change in Lockdown Levels and the interviewer asked one of the leaders of a so called “mega church” how the new lockdown levels affected the “church industry”. A slip of the tongue perhaps, but it does betray how people see these kinds of religious operations. Over and above this, St Paul – and this is clearly spelt out in the original text, encourages the servants of the Word to serve even more authentically so as to benefit the community of believers and not themselves.

The passage ends with a special appeal to those who hold office in the Church to be true to the promises (or vows) which were made in public. This is a passage which calls for greater accountability. Accountability according to this passage is not an optional extra – it is an essential dimension of the life of those called to serve – whether as lay leaders, ordained clergy, leaders of government, leaders on sports fields, leaders at schools, in workplaces or any other forum. For the Christian there is only one template and that is “Christ-like” service. In this regard the teaching in Mark 10:45 is most appropriate.

Let us pray: Father, give us the grace of humility so that we may serve as Christ did. We ask this through him who is Lord forever and ever. Amen.

Archbishop Stephen Brislin offers his prayer and reflection for the people of the Archdiocese of Cape Town for today, Wednesday 15 September 2021, during this time of the coronavirus pandemic. It is also available on the Archdiocese of Cape Town’s Facebook page and YouTube channel. Please also see below the text of his reflection, primarily for the deaf.

Yesterday we celebrated the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross, and today we remember the suffering of Mary, the mother of Jesus, as she stood at the foot of the Cross. Today’s feast is rightly called “Our Lady of Sorrows”. Welcome to this reflection, and we will begin by praying for peace in Southern Africa.

O God of justice and love, bless us, the people of Southern Africa,
and help us to live in your peace.

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury; let me sow pardon;
Where there is discord, let me sow harmony.

Divine Master, grant that I may not so much
Seek to be understood, as to understand;
To be loved, as to love;
To receive sympathy, as to give it;
For it is in giving that we shall receive,
In pardoning that we shall be pardoned,
In forgetting ourselves that we shall find
Unending peace with others. 

We ask this through Christ Our Lord, Amen.

I have chosen a couple of verses from the alternative Gospel of today’s Mass (John 19:25b-27):

When Jesus saw his mother, and the disciple whom he loved standing near, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold your son!” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” And from that hour the disciple took her into his own home. 

Jesus was a humble man. His humility was manifest in the way in which he spoke to others, in his compassionate actions and his openness to sinners in their weakness. This good man died a humiliating death. Raw and brutal power not only sought to kill him, but to ensure that it was degrading death and that he be stripped of all human dignity. Yet he suffered that humiliation willingly and patiently for he knew it was necessary for the salvation of the world.

There is a difference between humility and humiliation, although the two are related. Humility is a virtue that a person chooses to live by. It is expressed through an honest self-appraisal of oneself, neither exaggerating or devaluing one’s gifts nor one’s faults. It is always appreciative of the worth of others and would never “bruise the broken reed or seek to extinguish the wavering candle¹”. As a virtue, it is something that grows within us through conscious effort and perseverance. Humiliation, on the other hand, is something imposed on a person over which he or she has little or no control. It is intended to strip the person of his or her dignity, to shame them and to cause them pain. Of course, on occasion we can be our own worst enemy and humiliate ourselves, but that is something for another occasion.

Mary, who shared in the pain of witnessing her Son’s torture and cruel death on the Cross, shared also in his humiliation. In a human sense, she was powerless to do anything to help and was undoubtedly acutely aware of the gloating eyes and enjoyment of some of those gathered to look upon the suffering one. She stood her ground, she endured the painfulness of the situation and bore it patiently, without losing hope or faith. I think it is fair to say that even as she, Our Lady of Sorrows, witnessed the blood and destruction of her Beloved, she was able to see beyond it, in some way, to the light and glory of the Resurrection.

We have all experienced humiliation at some time in our life. It can be very hard to get over such times, and they can haunt us for many years. Mary shows us another way of dealing with the pain and indignity of humiliation. Patiently, humbly and in fidelity, she was able to unite her suffering with the suffering of Jesus on the Cross, without anger, self-pity or despair. She absorbed the suffering and transformed it into hope. Many saints deliberately sought humiliation for two reasons – to unite themselves more fully with Christ’s passion and death, and in order to help them grow in humility.

We are not able to avoid humiliation at some point of our lives. You have only to pause and look around in a busy supermarket, for example, to see how people “look through” the elderly as if they did not exist, how annoyed people can become with them because they are a bit slow, how they are treated as if they have lost their faculties. Old age brings with it a certain humiliation. Again, when sickness strikes, we may lose control over our body which, in itself, is humiliating. Again, we have only to think of the mentally or physically challenged and how they are at times treated as “non-persons” or a drain on society, to realise how common humiliation is and how many people live with humiliation.

Recognizing humiliations as being part of life is important for two reasons. Firstly, we have to ask ourselves whether we have the resilience and the inner resources to deal with it in a way that does not destroy us. Do we have the depth of spirituality to be able to unite our pain of humiliation with the Passion and Cross of Jesus in a way that seeks to allow our suffering to “complete what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ²”? Can we endure it with patience and hope, absorbing it and allowing it to help us grow in humility and in the depth of our relationship with God. Secondly, and very importantly, do we have the courage and compassion to stand with those who are suffering humiliation for whatever reason? It may be the humiliation of poverty or discrimination, the humiliation of dependence in sickness or old age, or the humiliation of those who are scorned because they are different in some way. In short, are we able to be like Mary who stood at the foot of the Cross supporting her Son and in solidarity with him in his suffering? Ultimately, we should not see humiliation only as an inevitable aspect of human reality, but also part and parcel of our spiritual life as an aid in growing closer to Christ.

Let us now praise for God’s blessing:

The Lord be with you R/ And with your Spirit

Bow down for the blessing:

God our Father, you willed that Mary, Virgin and Mother, should stand close to the Cross and share in the suffering of her Son, Jesus. In honouring her today, may we too complete in ourselves, for the Church’s sake, what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ³. Through the same Jesus Christ, Our Lord, amen. May Almighty God bless you, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

1 cf. Isaiah 42:3

2 cf. Colossians 1:24

3 Based on the Collect and Prayer after Communion of today’s Mass

Auxiliary Bishop Sylvester David offers his prayer and reflection for the people of the Archdiocese of Cape Town for today, Friday 10 September 2021, during this time of the Coronavirus pandemic. It is also available on the Archdiocese of Cape Town’s Facebook page and YouTube channel. Please also see below the text of his reflection, primarily for the deaf.

10 September 2021. Our union with God.

Recently we have been praying for peace in Southern Africa. We must continue to do that but at this time I wish to pray for the fruitfulness of the upcoming Synod.

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful.
And kindle in them the fire of your love.
Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created.
And you will renew the face of the earth.

Father, pour out your Spirit upon our your Church
And grant us a new vision of your glory,
A new experience of your power,
A new faithfulness to your Word,
And a new consecration to your service
So that your love may grow among us,
And your kingdom come.

Through Christ our Lord. 
Amen.

Our union with God

Our hymn for morning prayer a few days ago concluded with this stanza:

“Blest Trinity we praise you
In whom our quest will cease;
Keep us with you for ever
In happiness and peace.”

These words stayed with me for a few days and I kept repeating them. “Blest Trinity we praise you in whom our quest will cease;…” These words speak of union with God. Our quest will cease when we are enveloped by the Divinity. Imagine that – being enfolded by the arms of God himself. St Augustine noted that are hearts are restless until they rest in God. St Eugene de Mazenod, the Founder of the Oblates expressed a similar notion. The saints had a deep awareness that God is the destiny of every faith journey.

The Trinity whom the hymn addresses embodies the deepest meaning of union – and this union is never self-centred. There is a continuous openness to the others. The Holy Spirit will always recall the words of Jesus for us (Jn 14:26), Jesus continually invites us to have intimacy with the Father (Jn 17:3; 17:21 and Mt 11:27), and the Father will breathe the Spirit on us (Job 32:8; Ezek 37:5-6)). This is what the divine union is all about – each person of the Trinity pointing to the others. This is the model for all our unions and for all true intimacy – and this is the reality “in whom our quest will cease”. This is when completion is at its most satisfying.

If we examine the liturgy and other forms of prayer in the Church we will note that all our prayers are intended to achieve union with the divine. Jesus’ teaching on prayer moves in this direction. Prayer is more than saying many words in public. It is more about listening intimately to the Father in private (Mt 6:5-6). Jesus himself practiced this type of prayer often (Lk 9:18; Mk 1:35; Mk 14:32-42). In this last reference to his prayer at Gethsemane, he also encourages his disciples to pray. So we see prayer, both liturgical prayer and private prayer, featuring prominently in the life of Jesus. The Gospel of John recounts the several trips Jesus made to the Temple for the liturgical celebrations (Jn 2:14; 5:14; 8:2; 10:23; 18:20). Lk 4:16 tells us that his presence in the synagogue on the Sabbath was his custom. Jesus practiced both liturgical prayer and private prayer. If we are to follow him, then we must pray as he did. He did, after all, want followers and not admirers.

But back to the notion of union with God. What is so astounding and incomprehensible is that God desires union with us even though we are broken and incomplete. It is this union with God that will actually bring wholeness and completeness. All we can do is make ourselves available. I wish you joy as you deepen your union with the Divine. Do not be afraid of this notion of becoming one with the Divine. This does not mean that we reduce the status of the Divine – it actually enhances our status as believers. Remember the words said when the priest or deacon adds water to the wine at Mass “By the mystery of this water and wine may we come to share in the divinity of Christ who humbled himself to share in our humanity”. We are made for union with God. And so to conclude: “Blest Trinity we praise you, in whom our quest will cease;…”

Let us pray: Father you constantly invite us into deeper union with you. Help us to make ourselves available so that where you are, we may also be. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Bishop Sylvester David OMI 
VG/Auxiliary Bishop: Cape Town

Archbishop Stephen Brislin offers his prayer and reflection for the people of the Archdiocese of Cape Town for today, Wednesday 8 September 2021, during this time of the coronavirus pandemic. It is also available on the Archdiocese of Cape Town’s Facebook page and YouTube channel. Please also see below the text of his reflection, primarily for the deaf.

Today we celebrate the birthday of Our Lady. In doing so, we remember that each and every person is willed by God, and that our births are not accidents. Welcome to today’s reflection and let us begin by praying for peace in Southern Africa:

O God of justice and love, bless us, the people of Southern Africa,
and help us to live in your peace.
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury; let me sow pardon;
Where there is discord, let me sow harmony.
Divine Master, grant that I may not so much
Seek to be understood, as to understand;
To be loved, as to love;
To receive sympathy, as to give it;
For it is in giving that we shall receive,
In pardoning that we shall be pardoned,
In forgetting ourselves that we shall find
Unending peace with others. 
We ask this through Christ Our Lord, Amen.

The reading is an excerpt from the alternative Second Reading of today’s Mass (Romans 8:28-30):

We know that by turning everything to their good, God co-operates with all those who love him, with all those he has called according to his purpose. They are the ones he chose specially long ago and intended to become true images of his Son…¹

Fundamentally, we believe that God has love for each and every person and is willing to co-operate with anyone. Sadly, it is not everyone who has love for God and thus he is rebuffed and rejected, a blockade is erected in their lives to prevent his grace from entering in and so conversion is resisted. It is worth noting at this point that love of God is achieved primarily when we know him, have encountered him and are able to respond to him by seeking greater communion with him and by serving him through good works. However, there have been many instances of God working through those who do not know him but who, nonetheless, are people who seek to do good and have chosen to live their lives according to values which correspond to the values of God’s Kingdom. For example, Cyrus in the Bible, was a pagan king and yet allowed the Jews to return to Israel and facilitated the re-building of the Temple. Another is the widow of Zarephath or Sidon who offered shelter and the last of her food to the prophet Elijah. Today such people are what the famous theologian, Karl Rahner, would refer to as “anonymous Christians”. This is why it is beyond our competence to put boundaries on God’s grace or to decide who he will work through or who he will save. We cannot dictate where God’s Spirit will blow.

God has given us life through his love and, from the time of creation, has entrusted humankind with the responsibility of caring for all he created. Furthermore, at the time of his Ascension, Jesus extended the trust that God has in us, by giving us – his disciples, the followers of Jesus – a share in his mission of salvation and restoration of Creation. He invites us to embrace our first innocence, the innocence of Adam and Eve before the fall, and, in so doing, to allow Christ to draw people to himself for the sake of their salvation. The mission of the Church, in which we the baptized all share, is to proclaim the good news of the Gospel. The good news that, not only our sins are forgiven through the sacrifice of Christ, but that Creation is restored to what it was intended to be from the beginning.

This is the common purpose we have as the baptized – to humbly serve God’s Kingdom of love, unity, inclusion, peace, harmony and justice. The evangelical mission of the Church is not simply to tell others about Christ or to instruct them – it is about living the Gospel ourselves. It is when we live in love of God and neighbour, that the goodness of Christ becomes manifest to others and, working through us, Jesus will draw people to himself². There are certain requirements on our part. Firstly, we commit ourselves to submit to God’s will in all things. We respond, with Mary, saying “Be it done according to your word”. Secondly, while we know our relationship with God is very personal, it is also communal. We belong to the Church, the community established by Christ, and so there is no room for egotistical behaviour. We work together as one. Thirdly, there will always be differences of opinions and perceptions – wherever people gather that will be the case and we have to accept it. The consequence is that we always have to be a listening community in order to understand the differences of perception. Above all, we have to discern and listen to what God is asking of us and where he is leading us, and not allow ourselves to become entrenched in any obstinate or fundamentalist ideology. Fourthly, it entails opening our hearts to God’s Holy Spirit through prayer and by keeping God’s commandments, not simply the letter of the law but the spirit of the law.

Mary’s birthday reminds us of the meaning and purpose of our own lives. As we rejoice in the birth of the new Eve who, in submission to and by the grace of the new Adam, co-operated with him in restoring creation to its first innocence, may we too seek that innocence in the complexity of life, and give ourselves wholly to God living for him in service of his Kingdom.

Let us now praise for God’s blessing: The Lord be with you R/ And with your Spirit

Bow down for the blessing:

Loving Father, we thank you for the gift of life, and most especially today we thank you for the gift of Mary, the Mother of the Church. Through her intercession, may our hearts always burn with love of you and our neighbour, that through us you will draw all people to yourself. Through Christ our Lord, amen. May Almighty God bless you, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

1 Jerusalem Bible translation

2 John 12:32

Auxiliary Bishop Sylvester David offers his prayer and reflection for the people of the Archdiocese of Cape Town for today, Friday 3 September 2021, during this time of the Coronavirus pandemic. It is also available on the Archdiocese of Cape Town’s Facebook page and YouTube channel. Please also see below the text of his reflection, primarily for the deaf.

Reflection for Friday 3 September 2021.

I once again wish to start by saying the prayer for peace in Southern Africa:

O God of justice and love, bless us, the people of Southern Africa,
and help us to live in your peace. 

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury; let me sow pardon;
Where there is discord, let me sow harmony.

Divine Master, grant that I may not so much
Seek to be understood, as to understand;
To be loved, as to love;
To receive sympathy, as to give it;

For it is in giving that we shall receive,
In pardoning that we shall be pardoned,
In forgetting ourselves that we shall find
Unending peace with others.

We ask this through Christ Our Lord. Amen.

Some thoughts on the Good NEWS and on reflective prayer: Lk 5:33-39

In our Gospel passage for today’s Mass, Jesus says: “…nobody puts new wine into old skins; if he does, the new wine will burst the skins and then run out, and the skins will be lost. No; new wine must be put into fresh skins”. This means that we have to treat the Good News as simply that – something new and not some old hat. God is after all breaking into our lives afresh each day and we are called to be attentive to that.

Some years ago Fr Albert Nolan OP made it abundantly clear is his very-easy-to-read book entitled “God in South Africa” that the good news must be treated as news i.e. as something new. In “Evangelii Gaudium” Pope Francis speaks along the same lines encouraging Christians who are supposed to proclaim the Good News not to look like they have just returned from a funeral. This is why knowing the love of God is so important. It is the basis of Christian belief and helps us overcome our trials and to proclaim the good news. 

What is needed is an attitude which approaches the Gospel with fresh eyes. Easy to say – but hard to do as we have many presuppositions and these tend to clutter our prayer lives and our reading of Sacred Scripture, not to mention our relationships. One example is the attitudes we tend to develop when seeing others. This can be none other than the justification of our own prejudices. In South Africa, it was one of the “gifts” showered on the nation by the fallacy of apartheid. It helped people to tie up entire cultures into neat little bundles which they could manipulate. What happens then is that the vital ingredient of otherness is thrown out and I encounter not a brother or a sister that I can dialogue with – but someone whose motivations I think I know and am closed to the newness which every authentic human encounter can bring. 

The example of Jesus has truly been lost on many people. Jesus demolished artificial boundaries when he healed the foreigners (Syro-Phoenicians, Samaritans and other traditional enemies of the outwardly holy Pharisees such as the untouchables like the blind, the lame and the outcasts). He smashed the gender boundaries when he had a conversation with the Woman of Samaria. A close reading of the text of Jn 4 shows just how revolutionary that was. 

To cut a long story short; what we need is a little newness in our lives. It is only a genuine prayer life – one that seeks a genuine union with God that can help us to achieve this. This calls for availability and a total openness to God and not some perceived personal cleverness that works out our own solutions as that will keep us filling new wine into our old wineskins. This calls for discipline and a generous heart – the two most vital ingredients in authentic prayer. I wish you well in all this. I know from my own personal experience how difficult it can be to sit in inner silence and wait for God – but it does result in a meaningful encounter that can only be described as Real Presence and it is all God’s doing. All I can do is to make myself, my real self, available to God where I do not have to prove any points about how good I am, how clever I am, or even how right I have been all along. 

All our relationships vacillate between concealment and disclosure e.g. I will not say to a casual acquaintance what I say to my Spiritual Director. The one area in which I can truly be most fully myself is in my relationship with God – “and the Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you” (Mt 6:4, 6, 18). I am reminded of Archbishop Brislin’s faith reflection based on Ps 138 in which he points out God’s intimate knowledge of each of us (cf. ADCT webpage for the reflection on 25^th August 2021).

For us priests and religious an hour a day is what is needed. For others who might be new to this kind of life; go easy at first. Try 15 minutes, then 20, 30, etc. But do not give up. If you experience difficulty, start again at the beginning. My own prayer life is nothing else but a constant return to the basics and then with the help of my Spiritual Director and my close friends I see meaning in all this. All the while the relationship with God is deepened – and it is all God’s doing.

Let us pray: Lord teach us to pray. Help us to see that the more we disclose our true selves to you, the more we get to know who we are. Give us the courage to surrender to you the brokenness we experience and to wait in hope for the newness which you bring. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Bishop Sylvester David OMI

VG/Auxiliary Bishop; Cape Town

Archbishop Stephen Brislin offers his prayer and reflection for the people of the Archdiocese of Cape Town for today, Wednesday 1 September 2021, during this time of the coronavirus pandemic. It is also available on the Archdiocese of Cape Town’s Facebook page and YouTube channel. Please also see below the text of his reflection, primarily for the deaf.

Blessings and welcome to this reflection. Today, the 1^st September, is the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation, and so I will open with the special prayer for creation:

All powerful God, 
you are present in the universe and in the smallest of your creatures. 
You embrace with your tenderness all that exists. 
Pour out upon us the power of your love, that we may protect life and beauty. 
Fill us with your peace, that we may live as brothers and sisters, harming no one. 
O God of the poor, help us to rescue the abandoned and forgotten of this earth, so precious in your eyes. 
Bring healing to our lives, that we may protect the world and not prey on it, that we may sow beauty, not pollution and destruction. 
Touch the hearts of those who look only for gain at the expense of the poor and the earth. 
Teach us to discover the worth of each thing, to be filled with awe and contemplation, to recognize that we are profoundly united with every creature as we journey towards your infinite light. 
We thank you for being with us each day. 
Encourage us, we pray, in our struggle, for justice, love and peace. 

In the Responsorial Psalm of today’s Mass (Ps 51: 10-11) we hear these words;

I am like a growing olive tree
in the house of God.
I trust in the goodness of God
for ever and ever.

Olives and olive trees are mentioned many times in the Bible. One of the best known references is in the Book of Genesis where we are told that Noah released a dove from the ark and it returned bringing a freshly picked olive leaf (Genesis 8:11). In the Book of Judges a story is told of the trees looking for a king to rule them. First and foremost they requested the olive tree to be their king, but the olive tree responded, must I forego my oil which gives honour to gods and men, to stand and sway over the trees? (Judges 9:8-9). God refers to his chosen people Israel as a Green olive-tree covered in fine fruit (Jeremiah 11:16). St Paul uses similar imagery in his letter to the Romans where he refers to the wild olive being grafted on to the cultivated olive to share its “rich sap” (Romans 11:17). We know that Jesus frequented the “Mount of Olives” and and went to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray before his betrayal. “Gethsemane”means an “olive press”, and Jesus was indeed to be go through the press and be crushed in his torture and death, the fruit of which is redemption.

The olive tree was an essential part of the life and economy of Israel, as in a number of other countries. But more that this, it became a symbol of peace and reconciliation, renewal and revival. It is a symbol of beauty and abundance. It is also a symbol of the righteous person, as we heard in today’s psalm. It is a symbol of life and blessing (Your children round your table like shoots of an olive tree – Psalm 128:3). Oil symbolises healing (Any one of you who is ill should send for the elders of the church, and they must anoint the sick person with oil in the name of the Lord and pray over him – James 5:14), of being chosen and consecrated (Aaron and his sons were anointed with oil and were consecrated priests – Exodus 30:30). It also symbolises light since oil was used for lamps, such as those of the ten virgins. The olive tree is a sturdy, hardy tree that takes a number of years to grow and bear fruit. Reputedly an olive tree can live for 1,500 years and the average life span is 500 years. Thus it is also a sign of permanence and rootedness.

We can readily see the depth of the imagery of the olive tree, not only for the life of Israel but also for our own Christian discipleship. It is interesting to note that the use of olive oil is still prevalent in the Church and that the three holy oils are blessed every year at the Chrism Mass, namely the oil of Chrism (used in baptism, confirmation and the ordinations of priests and bishops), catechumens (used for those entering into the Christian faith as a protection against evil and the oil of the sick used as the sacrament of God’s healing. 

As with the olive tree we Christians are meant to have deep roots in faith, to be resilient in our belief in God and living a Christian life even in the face of adversity, to be able to weather the storm and persevere our whole life through. We have been sealed by the Holy Spirit and his mark of ownership was placed on us in Confirmation when we were anointed with Chrism. We are meant to bear fruit – for the benefit of others, not our own – and to gladden their hearts and bring them joy, to be healers and bearers of the light, reconcilers and peace-makers, to help others recognize the beauty of what God has given us, and to be upright and righteous people, drawing from the “rich sap” which is God’s grace.

An olive tree is not much to look at, but the richness and benefits it brings, and what it symbolises, are profound and abundant. I may not feel that I am up to much and that I’m rather ordinary, but the olive tree tells us that no matter how ordinary we may look or feel, it is within our power to bring richness and goodness into the world through the grace and mercy of God.

Furthermore, the olive tree serves as a reminder to us of the richness God has blessed us with through his creation. God created what is good for the benefit of mankind. He has entrusted creation to us. Sadly we have failed dismally to care for creation and to use it wisely. We have given way to exploitation, greed and selfishness and through our own fault this has resulted in a threat to our very survival, since our earthly life is dependent on the earth and creation. We have destroyed so much over the centuries. The question is now urgent: what can I do to reverse these destructive attitudes towards the environment – how must I change and what can I do to bring about understanding and change in others? 

Let us now pray for God’s blessing:

The Lord be with you R/ And with your Spirit

Bow down for the blessing:

O God, from the very beginning of time you commanded the earth to bring forth vegetation and fruit of every kind. You provide the sower with seed and give bread to the hungry to eat. Grant your people, enriched by the gifts of your goodness, to use these gifts wisely and praise you unceasingly now and for all ages unending. Through Christ our Lord, amen

May Almighty God bless you, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, amen.

Spirit of Contrition, spirit of humility, spirit of charity and a spirit of joy is what gives people happiness and peace within themselves – St Francis.