Andrew’s Blog

Hearing Jesus’ words of warning regarding the ‘narrow gate that leads to salvation’ when in Jerusalem, helps you picture what He meant more vividly. The Old City has 7 open gates around its walls. After being here so many times I take for granted what many first time visitors may find confusing, finding the right gate. However after a few days most of people become familiar with the city and the names of the gates become easier to identify. This does not seem to be so with the gate that leads to eternal life. The Lord does warn that it is small and the road narrow “and only a few find it” (Matt 7:14).

These sobering words were read during Mass a few days ago. In a sense, the true disciple of Jesus has limited choices when it comes to the way he/she live their lives in a world of unlimited options. A few verses down Jesus tells us what the choice involves:

Not everyone who says ‘Lord, Lord will enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father’
Matt 7: 21

So the choice we have is clear: the will of God the Father which the Word of God describes as ‘good, pleasing and perfect’ (Rom 12:2). Yes, the narrow road is as narrow as the beam of the cross which Jesus tells us to carry everyday. This means saying no to selfish self-love and sin in all its forms and yes to the love of God and others. It leads into a quality of life which keeps us in communion with God and which overflows into eternity. It means submitting our life and our plans to Him.

Walking the narrow streets of Jerusalem always reminds me of the extent of the love of God who carried the cruel cross to Calvary where today we find the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.  As Pope Benedict says, there the Son of God ‘took it against Himself’ and accepted to be burdened with our sins. Usually one visits a tomb to come as close as possible to the human remains of a loved one. Yet here in Jerusalem we visit an empty tomb because Jesus is alive. He rose again and gives me a new life of hope and purpose.

Seeing the endless queue of people entering the narrow opening into the empty tomb in the Church makes you stop and wonder whether we Christians always realise that the Easter story is not  a happy ending to a sad story. It is a real invitation to live a new life which requires our co-operation. The Christian life is not lived casually but as the verse from Matthew 7 says, it requires that we make ‘every effort’. A disciplined and holy life means that by God’s grace we need to say no to many of the ‘unlimited-choices-with-no-consequence’ the world and the devil put before us.  When we fall or stray we need to get up immediately. Following Jesus does limit our choices which a world of moral relativism puts before us.  Yet this holds out to us the real hope of heaven where we will be able to go ‘through the gates into the (eternal) city…. (where) there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain (Rev. 21: 4, 22:14).

Many of us may have played Pictionary. Trying to guess the word from what your team mate is drawing is indeed a daunting task if his or her artistic capabilities are as dismal as mine. On the other hand when a person on your team’s illustrations are excellent, figuring out the word is so much easier. Through His Creation, God is speaking to us all the time. His pictures are perfect and guessing the ‘word’ should not be so hard.

Whilst not all people actually read the Scripture, everyone can interpret the ‘book of the created world’. The Word of God itself tells us that even though the vast expanse of the universe around us does not use speech, ‘the heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands’ (Ps 19:1). God’s ‘pictionary’ is everywhere and for those who care to listen, His ‘word’ is discernible in all of His creation. No wonder the Bible does not speak of ‘nature’ but of ‘creation’ and ‘creatures’ because they all point to a Creator.

What is their message? The presence of the artistic beauty around us cries out ‘I exist’. God the Creator, awesome, powerful, omniscient and omnipotent is seen in the work of His hands: the rugged mountains, the sea and the skies, the hundreds of billions of galaxies whose number he has determined and which he calls all by name (Ps 147:4). They tell of His magnificence and splendour. No wonder St Paul says that the atheist isn’t excused:

For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities — his eternal power and divine nature — have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.
Rom. 1:20

And what word do the bouncing penguins, the ridiculous looking platypus, the playful kitten chasing its tail, the knowing look on a dog’s face and the hilarious hippo tell us? Someone’s got a sense of humour to be sure. He is not this boring grandfather sitting on a cloud in heaven but the Awesome Craftsman of the Universe. What about the work ethic of the bees and the ants and the colourful beauty of tropical fish and wild flowers? And in all this it is good to remember what God says

‘I know every bird in the mountains, and the creatures of the field are mine’
Psa. 50:11

Yet nothing compares to the crowning achievement of God ‘s creation, man and woman. It is hard for us to fathom just how much God’s loves us. Made in His very image, we are as David says, ‘fearfully and wonderfully made’ (Ps 139:14). How awesome are the Spirit-inspired words of the author of the book wisdom: you love everything that exists, and nothing that you have made disgusts you, since, if you had hated something, you would not have made it. And how could a thing subsist, had you not willed it? Or how be preserved, if not called forth by you?  No, you spare all, since all is yours, Lord, lover of souls!  (Wis. 11:24-26) God loves us immensely. No matter how disfigured we become because of sin, He calls us back: ‘I do not make rubbish. I created you. Only in me will you find life and purpose’.

But when God wanted to proclaim His final Word which sums up all that He is and all that He desires, He became one of His own creatures – Jesus, perfect God, perfect man, perfect Word. He has nothing to add for ‘there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved’  (Acts 4:12). To know Him is eternal life. We are called to prayerfully meet Him in the Living Word, the Scriptures as well as many other ways. In Him the guessing is over. The Word is loud and clear. God has spoken. He wants to give us His very self. He awaits our response every day. You can’t lose.

In just a few weeks I will be staying in a hostel by the Sea of Galilee. Like I’ve done on many occasions before, I hope to spend some time sitting by this beautiful and tranquil lake, thinking and praying. I intend to take time to meditate on the various Gospel passages related to Jesus’ ministry along its shores. Amongst others, part of my reading will surely include the episodes recounting the sudden storms found in Matthew and Mark.

Storms are part of our lives. Some are sudden and unexpected. Others would have been brewing for a while. Whether personal, familial or social, none are pleasant in themselves. Their ‘waves’ seem to threaten to swamp our ‘boat’.  So as I prepare myself to pray through these passages, I remind myself that these stories contain surprising details written not for our entertainment but for our edification.

The first passage (Mark 6:47-51) tells of the occasion where Jesus was catching up with some lost sleep in the midst of a ‘perfect storm’. The poor disciples felt overwhelmed by the squall and somewhat taken aback at Jesus’ apparent indifference, as He lay there comfortably asleep ‘on a cushion’.  But had the disciples forgetten that Jesus was also on the same boat? If it went down, He would have gone down with them. Do we forget that the Lord of compassion, of love and of power is sailing with us in our life? Sometimes we do. Yet nothing takes Him by surprise. That is why the first and most essential aspect of relationship with Jesus is faith, our wholehearted personal trust in Him. He tells us ‘Be still and know I am God’ (Ps 46:10). He is still in control in the midst of the storms and upheavals raging within and outside us.

The second account (Matthew 14:23-33) is similar but this time Jesus is outside the boat.  The Jews considered the sea to be an abyss, a place of unknown depth, evil and darkness in which people perished and drowned. To illustrate the peace that awaits us in the ‘heavenly Jerusalem’,  in the book of Revelation John states that ‘there was no longer any sea’ (Rev. 21:1).

But why does Jesus walk on the water? Showmanship? Did He stroll by on the swelling waters, whistling softly and waving at them: ‘Good to see you guys, hope you make it back safely’. Was it to frighten His hapless flock out of their minds? The passage tells us that when the disciples saw this ‘ghost’ riding the waves they were terrified … and what made it worse the ghost was steadily making his way towards them.

Jesus is not a terrifying ghost. He is the faithful, holy, patient and powerful Saviour who spares not His followers from learning difficult but fruitful lessons. Faith in us grows not just by knowing certain truths and principles but through experience. Peter learned that quickly. Assured it was no spook, he seemed to understand that by walking on the water Jesus was making a statement of enormous significance: ‘I am the Lord of the sea, of all you consider dark, bleak and hopeless.’ So Peter walks on the water too, perhaps at first looking back at the rest with a smug feeling: ‘Losers. Stay in the boat if you like. Just look at me’. Yet his confidence soon sinks with him. He looks at the waves,  panics and unceremoniously starts going down, crying out ‘Lord save me’. Do we sometimes see ourselves here?

And Jesus, the gentle, compassionate, loving God? No angry words. Just an outstretched hand and a gentle rebuke ‘You of little faith, why did you doubt. And when they climbed into the boat the wind died down’ (Matt 14:32). Beholding such power and holiness, the disciples’ obvious response was to bow down and worship him, an act reserved only for God.

Are you facing personal, familial, relational, emotional and spritual difficulties? Have you felt like you’re drowning lately? Do the challenges inside and outside you, tempt you to lose heart? Have you got out of the boat in obedience to the Lord only to feel overwhelmed? Have you looked at the waves and begun to feel you are sinking? Have you doubted God’s care? Are you discouraged because of what you see happening around you? Courage. Call out to the Lord again and again in spirit and truth remembering that the Word of God says ‘You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you’  (Is. 26:3). Yes meeting Jesus in prayer, the Eucharist, the scripture and the christian community we can still find ‘perfect peace’ even in a storm. It’s true!

PS  This will be the theme of our Youth Fellowship meeting on Saturday 6th August

When I was younger I had my fair share of culinary dislikes. With particular aversion, any sight of ‘brungil’ (eggplant) would be met with an all out refusal to eat. Alternatively if they were buried between the layers of imqarrun (baked macaroni), one of my favorite dishes, I would painstakingly hunt them out and remove the offending vegetable piece by piece. My mother would always protest my actions with the words: Did you taste them? If not how can you say you don’t like them?

The Scripture clearly says

Taste and see that the Lord is good
Psalm 34:8

In other words open yourself to experience God in a real and personal way. Otherwise its impossible to really speak about Him. God reveals Himself to those who really seek Him which mine and the testimony of countless people can vouch for:

You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.
Jer. 29:13

Love is often a hot topic for conversation but everyone would much rather know and experience it rather than speak and philosophise about it. This is true of religion and spirituality. So many speak about God, Jesus, the Holy Spirt, even calling themselves Catholics, but far fewer know the Lord in the real Biblical and experiential sense of the word.

If we do not ‘taste and see that the Lord is good’, before long we will create a god in our own image (a bit like the greek gods) who do not make any real demands of us or if they do, with the most selfish of motives. We then live by a custom-made spirituality (we may even call it Catholic) which bears little resemblance to the Gospel. We perpetuate Adam and Eve’s sin, determining ourselves what the ‘good’ really is. Just as I couldn’t understand why my mother would say ‘minestra’ (vegetable soup) is good for you’, we are ever suspicious of whatever God says is really ‘good’ for us.

Yet Jesus tells us that if we go to Him we will find that his ‘burden is light’, an apparent oxymoron (Matthew 11:28). When the Lord tells us to ‘eat our spiritual veg’ it is for our good and our salvation. Yet if we do not seek God in a personal and incessant way, we will be left with the ‘law’ but not the ‘Lord’. We will then ‘move on’ and start giving heed to a new ‘secular religion’ with its vast array of texts, prophets, moralists and rituals. We would have sadly exchanged the Good News of salvation for the sad news of perdition.

Yet it is never too late. Even now the Lord is knocking on the door of many hearts:Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me (Rev. 3:20) When we ‘eat’ with Him we will then really be able to taste and see that the Lord is good. The Church desperately needs ‘waiters’ who know their food and with love and respect recommend it to all those we meet. This is the essence of the Gospel.

When I was young I loved the story of how the Greeks entered the city of Troy by hiding their men in a gigantic wooden horse. Despite a ten year siege they had not been able to take Troy until then.  The Greeks then pretended to abandon their attack and to sail away. The Trojans pulled in the wooden horse the Greeks had left behind as trophy of their victory. Unwittingly they had actually welcomed the enemy within their gates with disastrous results.

In the current debate on divorce much is said about the sad situation of marriages where, for example, one of the spouses is abused by the other. No doubt about it, this indeed is aweful and solutions need to be found. However not a few people are therefore reasoning that even though they may not agree with divorce, why should they impose their views on others who may need it. The simple answer is: because whether we like it or not, we live in a society and things cannot only be seen from an individualistic point of view important as that may be. Take the recent ban on smoking inside public places. Even though a number of people complained that it would ruin their business or that their right to smoke where they wanted was being curbed, the good of society and innocent passive smokers prevailed.

And the issue of divorce being introduced in the country?  Are we in danger of letting in a Trojan horse? Maybe. True that many people want to vote in favour of introducing divorce to alleviate the suffering of others. Without wanting however they may be about to cause the suffering of many more.  This is far from their intention. Yet human weakness is what it is. If we can take the short cut or the easier way out many of us will. If divorce becomes available, a ‘divorce mentality’ is bound to set in. The understanding of marriage will be robbed of one of its essentials – permanence. Then if things get strained in a marriage an ‘easier’ solution is at hand: end it – rather rather than strive to save it even after many many years of marriage. Legalising divorce may end up producing more victims than it purportedly seeks to save. A Trojan horse will be let in and a good number of people in the ‘city’ will reap the consequences.

A number of other ‘divorces’ are also already thriving causing the entry of Trojan horses in the lives of many people. The dualism mentality which separates faith from everyday life, love from truth and truth from love, sex from marriage, permanence from marriage, integrity from speech, body and soul, personal rights from the common good, the Bible from the Church – the list can go on and on. These are resulting in great confusion in people’s reasoning.

Yet of one thing I am convinced. We cannot separate God’s love from His truth for as the Word of God tells us ‘grace and truth came through Jesus Christ’ (John 1:17) We would do well to listen to Him and what He is telling us through the teaching of the Church passed down to us for the past two thousand years. It is rooted in His love for us and in what is true. Even when this ‘offends’ my natural way of feeling and thinking, I have experienced what Scripture says ‘Let God be true, and every man a liar’ (Romans 3:4). If God wants us to keep out the Trojan Horse it is because He loves us and He sees the full picture we often cannot see, but must take His word for it.

What weekend of contrasts it was! A Royal Union, a Holy Beatification and a Terrorist Liquidation. And they all resulted in celebrations. Thousands celebrated the new life of a couple, thousands the life of a saint and thousands the death of mass murderer. What does each one of these momentous events happening on the world stage tell me?

The Royal Wedding reminds me that people still believe in marriage at least in theory. Men and women alike are thrilled with a fairy tale wedding and instinctively saddened when a marriage fails. The sense of the permanence of marriage is rooted deep inside of us. No one celebrating the royal wedding wished the happy couple ‘only some happy years’. So ‘Yes to Marriage and Yes to Divorce’ is in my view a contradiction in terms. Just because a considerable number of marriages do end up badly does not give us the option of redefining marriage and taking out one of it’s essential components.

The Beatification of Pope John Paul II is not meant to make me concentrate unduly on the ‘work of art’ as much as on the Artist. No doubt the late Pope was a great man, but what made him great was holiness. And ‘holy’ is not what someone becomes when he is canonized (after beatification). The Pope was holy here on earth because he lived, and moved and had his being in the One who makes us holy, Jesus Christ. St Paul reminds us that ‘we are all God workmanship (work of art) created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do’ (Ephesians 2:10). When one of God’s ‘choice works’ and that person’s ‘good works’ are held out for us to see, it is so we might marvel  first and foremost at the ‘Heavenly Workman’. We are then inspired to likewise grow in trust, faith, hope and love. With our free co-operation, He will do the same in us and through us. But He will splash his colours on the ‘unique canvas’ of our own lives, personality, state in life and vocation.

The liquidation of Bin Laden reminds me that man’s heart apart from God the Father of Jesus Christ can become very dark indeed and self-deceived. The Moslem Salafi Jihadists  ironically claim they act for God. Yet Bin Laden will have to answer before God for what he did ‘for we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad  (2Cor. 5:10). But note the word ‘all’. Everyone must give account not only those who have committed blatantly despicable acts.  Nor must I forget that the ‘arch terrorist’ of my soul is the ‘enemy the devil (who) prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour’ (1Pet. 5:8). Saying that he doesn’t exist or treating him like a harmless kitten will not help. I cannot ‘liquidate’ him but I can ‘resist him, standing firm in the faith’ (1 Peter 5:9). Prayer and a sincere walk with Jesus are vital.

So apart from inconsequential questions like ‘where will Prince William and Princess Kate go for their honeymoon?’, ‘how many years will it be before they canonize Pope John Paul II?’ and ‘why did they bury Bin Laden at sea?’, last weekend’s contrasting events provoke me to ask a more penetrating question: what do my lifestyle and my choices show that I am really celebrating?

The Royal Wedding. It is impossible for anyone living on this planet not to be aware of the marriage between Prince William and Kate Middleton. Even I found myself watching the service on TV for a few minutes. Yet it was not just the pomp and pageantry that gave us glimpses into the ancient traditions of the royal family. The words of the presiding officiating Anglican ministers reminded anyone who cared to listen of the nuptial dicta that have been integral in the Christian tradition from time immemorial: ‘for better or for worse’, ‘till death do us part’ and ‘what God has joined together let no man put asunder’.

Closer to home here in Malta the divorce debate rages on. These key elements of marriage are wittingly (or unwittingly) being sidelined in favour of a modernised philosophy: ‘for better but not for worse’, ‘till serious circumstances do us part’ and ‘what God has put together man now has a right in certain situations to put asunder’. Living as we do in the 21st century, even God has to update his eternal truths.

Certainly those who do not profess to follow Jesus need not take these words seriously. However a number of people who call themselves catholic are in the same breath contradicting their own ‘body of beliefs’ by supporting the introduction of divorce in Malta, a position which a Catholic who believes in Jesus’ Words on the permanence of marriage should find difficulty in upholding. However we walk delicate ground here: no sooner does someone speak in the name of faith the accusation of ‘crusades’ is launched, to be sure itself a counter-crusade of sorts but a ‘crusade’ nevertheless. Indeed the very people who advocate tolerance of all individual’s views and personal rights (including to get a divorce) find themselves in the very place they are objecting to since some of them lose their tolerance, becoming very ‘intolerant’ of the so-called ‘intolerant’.

At the end of the day, in my view it boils down to one thing. Certainly each person is free to hold the opinion he wishes to hold, to vote as he wishes to vote. But if you want to design a car without wheels, be honest and don’t call it a car. If you want to build a chair for people to sit on but which has one leg missing, be honest and don’t call it a chair (perhaps a stool). Moreover gently but uncompromisingly warn  of the consequences of placing all your weight on it. In other words, if you want to take ‘permanence’ out of marriage (albeit for what many consider “good” reasons) be honest and don’t call it a Christian marriage. Call it something else. And do not get married in the Church.

And once we’re at it. If you want to shoot some species of birds and still be part of the Society for the Protection of Birds, be honest and recognise the contradiction. You can’t advocate for them both. A Catholic Christian is first and foremost a disciple, that is one who follows Jesus as Lord. You can’t have one without the other. And this Lord’s pathway, whether I like it or not (and I sometimes do not) passes through the cross to get to the resurrection. Following Him on the narrow path to eternal life is tough, there is no two ways about it. I find these words very challenging: And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple (Luke 14:27). Yet what the Papal Preacher Fr Cantalamessa said in his Good Friday sermon recently applies to every form of suffering, marital or otherwise. I have found it to be true in my life and in the lives of many people:

“What do you do to reassure someone that a particular drink contains no poison? You drink it yourself first, in front of him. This is what God has done for humanity: he has drunk the bitter cup of the passion. So, human suffering cannot be a poisoned chalice, it must be more than negativity, loss, absurdity, if God himself has chosen to savor it. “At the bottom of the chalice, there must be a pearl. We know the name of that pearl: resurrection!”
Fr.Cantalamessa – April 22nd, 2011

As I watched the Royal Wedding at Westeminster Abbey on TV I was struck by these words at the beginning of the ceremony: ‘Dearly beloved, we are gathered here in the sight of God and in the face of this congregation to join together this man and this woman in holy matrimony, which is an honorable estate instituted of God himself signifying unto us the mystical union that is betwixt Christ and his Church ..’

Whether the Royals have been an example of loyalty is another question. Yet royalty or not we are all called to live a sublime loyalty in marriage. Only the disciple through the grace of God can somehow grasp this reality: Marriage is not just a metaphor of God’s love for His people, it a sacrament. In other words, it is meant to somehow reflect and make present this love to us here on earth, most importantly to the children. No wonder another ‘bride’ of a different ‘spiritual royal wedding’ to be celebrated next Sunday famously wrote  ‘As the family goes, so goes the whole world we live in’ (John Paul II). Our world is so much in need of the type of committed, self-sacrificing and joyful love that marriage is meant to reflect. Impossible? No. Difficult? Yes … especially if these essential aspects threaten to be eliminated from what we understand, and most importantly, God always intended by marriage.

What is so holy about holy week?  After all when you come to think of it the events of the passion were most unholy.  The envious Pharisees planned and pressed for the death of Jesus and the cowardly Pilate ordered the crucifixion even though he knew Jesus was innocent. A desperate Judas betrayed the Lord and then hung himself whilst Peter denied Jesus three times and then quickly locked himself up in a room with the the rest of the disciples who had abandoned their Messiah at this most crucial of moments.  The Son of God himself carried the cross through the narrow streets of Jerusalem, was nailed to it at Golgotha and died a most cruel tortuous death. Where is the holy in all this? Certainly not in the actions of any of these people.

Yet that fateful week nearly two thousand years was indeed a holy week. When I was about 8 years old I clearly remember asking my mum why Jesus didn’t come down from the cross to show them all that He was truly God. My young mind didn’t really grasp that the Cross was God’s plan to save the world, to save me and you personally. The film the Passion of the Christ clearly portrays what the Lord meant when He said ‘No one takes (my life) from me, but I lay it down of my own accord’ (John 10:18). The Cross of Jesus, the most holy event in history, was the Lord’s perfect ‘yes’ of love to the Father:

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
John 3:16

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed
1Pet. 2:24.

The Resurrection was then the Father’s complete ‘yes’ to His Son and through Him all those who believe have access to God in a new and intimate way.  Through the outpouring of the Holy Spirit a new power over sin and brokeness has also been given. We can interiorly live new lives which overflow into our behaviour, our choices and our relationships. We can grow in holiness so that it becomes possible to live in communion and friendship with God. This is what the 40 days of repentance and seeking God in Lent is all about.

Sadly the week can still be unholy because it is our choices which matter. We can still choose to be a Judas not a Peter, a Caiphas not a Nicodemus, a bad thief not a good thief. But if we choose to follow him to the Cross like Mary did, to get up again when we fall as Peter did, to pray and persevere till the end like the disciples did, we are heading not just for a holy week, but a holy life and finally a holy eternity. Bathed in the light of God’s love we will live with Him in heaven where He ‘will wipe every tear from (our) eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.’  Rev. 21:4

Wishing you a most blessed Easter

Recently I was rummaging through some old folders and I came across the newspaper cutting of my graduation way back in 1988. Although I was present at the ceremony to receive my LL.D certificate, I did not intend to practice the legal profession. Till today my Law Code books still lie on my upper shelf gathering dust, much as another Book I had since I was a child had done for many years before.

The Bible had been saved from the dust in 1982 when my spiritual life had come alive.  The thirst for Scripture was one of the immediate consequences of my fresh encounter with Jesus. My view of God until then had very much been of a distant Divine Lawgiver who was to be obeyed at all costs. He could have well written the Law Code books himself. However when my eyes were opened by His intervention, I experienced both His love and His truth in a new and deeper way and the Scriptures were the place where I encountered them both.

I could now see that rather than just a mere set of rules and laws to regulate behaviour, the Bible was a ‘live broadcast’ which contains words of life which transform the heart, mind and behaviour of anyone who chooses to entrust him or herself to God.  This Book of historical accounts, poems, stories and parables is indeed a collection of books which reveal God’s passionate love for us and the eternal truths which sets us free. This freedom from the sadness of selfishness and sin to the joy of freedom and holiness is indeed a process which I found difficult at times. Yet the very same Word which contains God’s promises assures me that ‘he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus’  Phil. 1:6

So for me ‘facing the book’ meant facing reality, the reality about who God really is, His loving purposes and His plan of salvation, His power to enable us to live righteously.  It meant also facing the reality of who I was, my sinfulness and my brokeness, yet possessing the immense dignity of being God’s son. It presented me with the truth of the amazing destiny God has for me and the need to persevere in it at all costs.

Choosing the theme for this year’s Ezercizzi therefore was not too difficult. When we turn to God and allow his Spirit to touch us, we will begin to recognise that rather than being an antiquated, irrelevant, legislative, dull and boring book, the Scriptures are a ‘love thesis’ addressed to me personally, that ‘the word of God is living and active’ (Heb 4:12) and indeed ‘happy are those who hear the word of God and put it into practice’ (luke 11:28).

Hope you will join us!