GOD IS OUR REFUGE AND STRENGTH

PRESIDENT READS PSALM 46

President Obama reads Psalm 46 at the the 9/11 rememberance ceremony

in New York city today.

THE GOOD DOCTOR

DR. MARTYN LLOYD - JONES

One of the most compelling and precise teachers of the Scriptures that I have heard. Leaving his Harley Street medical practise for the pulpit many of his colleagues at the time were at a loss to explain this unusual move. Lyod Jones took this radical step after becoming convinced that this was the road God was directing him to take. Time proved that God’s wisdom is superior to eartly wisdom and the fruit that followed his ministry became a powerful vindication of that early decision. ~GOSh.~

KATHLEEN O'SHEA 14th Anniversary

Today is the 14 th Anniversary of my Mams death.

Here she is pictured in the front porch of Ardhu with

her loyal companion 'Judy'.

LAST DAYS

Towards the end
I was like a guide-dog
Leading my mother
Through the hazards of shopping centres
And crossing roads
As her eyes dimmed with age.

She bore it all bravely
And kept the tears
Till we were gone,
Then - in a flash of time
A light dawned
That spirited her away
From all our care and ken.

She had simply had enough,
And at the end
Sat back in her chair
And didn’t even wave goodbye.

Now her eyes are wide open
And she is seeing things
We can only dream of.

Gerard O'Shea

KEEPING YOUR HEAD

PRAYER FOR TODAY

Today is going to be a struggle, Lord.
The act of rising, journeying,
conversation, bustling crowds,
people I work with,
people I meet.

Be my confidence,
my assurance,
in the words that I speak.
Be my freedom,
my guidance,
as I walk through these streets.

Today is going to be a struggle, Lord.
Keep my head above water,
keep my eyes fixed on you.

This prayer written in the Celtic tradition by John Birch who has a delightful site of prayer and worship resources at http://www.faithandworship.com/index.htm

KENNY ON 'CLOYNE REPORT'

Taoiseach Enda Kenny gave this landmark speech in the Dail in response to ‘The Cloyne Report’ on the clerical cover-up of sexual and physical abuse of children in their care. Above is the full speech with an abridged version in print below…

THE CURSE OF CLERICALISM

THE REVELATIONS of the Cloyne report have brought the Government, Irish Catholics and the Vatican to an unprecedented juncture. It’s fair to say that after the Ryan and Murphy reports Ireland is, perhaps, unshockable when it comes to the abuse of children.
But Cloyne has proved to be of a different order.
Because for the first time in Ireland, a report into child sexual abuse exposes an attempt by the Holy See, to frustrate an inquiry in a sovereign, democratic republic – as little as three years ago, not three decades ago.
And in doing so, the Cloyne report excavates the dysfunction, disconnection, elitism – the narcissism – that dominate the culture of the Vatican to this day. The rape and torture of children were downplayed or “managed” to uphold instead, the primacy of the institution, its power, standing and “reputation”.
Far from listening to evidence of humiliation and betrayal with St Benedict’s “ear of the heart”, the Vatican’s reaction was to parse and analyse it with the gimlet eye of a canon lawyer. This calculated, withering position being the polar opposite of the radicalism, humility and compassion upon which the Roman Church was founded.
The radicalism, humility and compassion which are the very essence of its foundation and purpose. The behaviour being a case of Roma locuta est: causa finita est.
Except in this instance, nothing could be further from the truth.
Cloyne’s revelations are heart-breaking. It describes how many victims continued to live in the small towns and parishes in which they were reared and in which they were abused. Their abuser often still in the area and still held in high regard by their families and the community. The abusers continued to officiate at family weddings and funerals. In one case, the abuser even officiated at the victim’s own wedding.
There is little I or anyone else in this House can say to comfort that victim or others, however much we want to. But we can and do recognise the bravery of all of the victims who told their stories to the commission.
While it will take a long time for Cloyne to recover from the horrors uncovered, it could take the victims and their families a lifetime to pick up the pieces of their shattered existence…

Clericalism has rendered some of Ireland’s brightest, most privileged and powerful men, either unwilling or unable to address the horrors cited in the Ryan and Murphy reports.
This Roman clericalism must be devastating for good priests, some of them old; others struggling to keep their humanity, even their sanity, as they work so hard to be the keepers of the church’s light and goodness within their parishes, [their] communities [and within] the human heart.
But thankfully for them, and for us, this is not Rome.
Nor is it industrial-school or Magdalene Ireland, where the swish of a soutane smothered conscience and humanity and the swing of a thurible ruled the Irish-Catholic world.
This is the Republic of Ireland 2011.
A republic of laws, of rights and responsibilities; of proper civic order; where the delinquency and arrogance of a particular version, of a particular kind of “morality”, will no longer be tolerated or ignored.
As a practising Catholic, I don’t say any of this easily.
Growing up, many of us in here learned we were part of a pilgrim church. Today, that church needs to be a penitent church. A church, truly and deeply penitent for the horrors it perpetrated, hid and denied. In the name of God. But for the good of the institution…

Cardinal Josef Ratzinger [the current Pope Benedict] said: “Standards of conduct appropriate to civil society or the workings of a democracy cannot be purely and simply applied to the church.”

As the Holy See prepares its considered response to the Cloyne report, as Taoiseach, I am making it absolutely clear, that when it comes to the protection of the children of this State, the standards of conduct which the church deems appropriate to itself, cannot and will not, be applied to the workings of democracy and civil society in this republic.

IT'S THE LITTLE THINGS

Many of the phrases and sayings that are commonplace in our veryday speech come from the Bible. This ancient text is not just a repository of spiritual wisdom but in its many translations has entered words and phrases into our language that still resonate today. Here is one…

A FLY IN THE OINTMENT

The word ‘ointment’ comes directly from biblical times when kings were ritually anointed with fragrant creams or unguents.

In Ecclesiastes 10 verse 1 (King James Versioin) we read,

“ Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savour: so doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honour.”

Today we use the phrase to describe any minor irritation that spoils everything

STAYING IN TOUCH

IT'S FOR YOU !

I wonder what would happen if we treated our Bible like we treat our
mobilel phones?

What if we carried it around in our purses or pockets?

What if we turned back to go get it if we forgot it?

What if we flipped through it several times a day?

What if we used it to receive messages?

What if we treated it like we couldn't live without it?

What if we gave it to children as gifts?

What if we used it as we travelled?

What if we used it in case of an emergency?

What if we upgraded it to get the latest version?

Oh, and one more thing. Unlike our mobiles, we don’t ever have to worry
about our bible being disconnected because Jesus already paid the bill!