I was a curate (parochial vicar) in the Church of England in the late 80s when an older priest introduced me to the Isle of Wight. The island is a beautiful, little known corner of England that is delightfully behind the times. Opposite the port of Portsmouth, just off the Southern coast of the English mainland, [...]
To be led by God's patient love into this attitude of unconditional self surrender is painful, but there is no avoiding it for anyone who seriously wants to pray. It requires no special conditions or peculiar way of life. The ordinary experience of work, daily hardships and living with people is the field of obedience to [...]
Life is a casting off... What is it in me that likes the difficult sayings of Jesus more than the easy sayings? Everybody loves Jesus who says, "Let the little children come to me" and "Neither do I condemn you" But have you read the gospels lately? Jesus' teaching is much more forceful and [...]
Someone said recently that I have firmly declared myself to be a conservative. Indeed someone from New Jersey once said I am an "arch conservative." I am happy to take that label. I'm happy to take all the other labels too. To see what I mean go to this post: Call Me an Evangelical, Charismatic, Liberal, [...]
Powerful St Patrick Some time ago I had a dream in which I saw a young boy swimming in a river. As he was swimming happily downstream I saw that around the bend was a large crocodile. I watched in terror as the boy swept past the crocodile and the beast slipped out from [...]
My brother lives at the beach, and he was out walking the dog late one afternoon when he spotted an unusual fellow walking along the beach. He was wearing a kind of Franciscan habit, sandals and was carrying a walking stick and a big Bible. My brother engaged him in conversation. It seems the man was [...]