I Am Said I (Huruma)

i We have shed our skin The old and fearsome Hardness that was on us Not knowing what We will become The outer layer That will grow to cover The bleeding rawness In which we now Exist Salted by stranger And those of our own Household alike Despoiled Despised ii The heart is torn Apart from west to east Eden to eternity I am listening to God In Genesis and now God and man Parent and the child Who will not go But must be sent For good reasons The love that dares To say no iii I hold the fledgling Lamb against my breast Feel its trembling Heart beating Upon my palm Caressing its frailty And every pain Desire and stifled hope The love that dared not Show its face or Speak its name That shouts aloud its need To be fulfilled Demands its right All other voices Silenced iv There is One only Who can hold all these And heal And cause us all To come to that tender Repentance Which Mercy only Can achieve

HOLY THURSDAY MASS OF THE LORD’S SUPPER In the Gospel of yesterday's Mass Jesus says, "It is at your house that I am keeping Passover" and when I hear these words it strikes me that there is a very personal dimension to it, like Jesus is saying it directly to you and to me, that my soul is the house and my heart the table of His Passover; that He speaks directly to you saying, "this is my Body broken for you...this is my Blood poured out for you. In this we are invited inward to share this mystery in a profoundly personal way and it means that He does not want us to remain outside or that the mystery of the Eucharist should be something external to us. At the Chrism Mass this morning in the Pro-Cathedral Archbishop Diarmuid Martin asked us to bring home his good wishes to all the people in our parishes and in his homily he spoke a lot about the theme of Mercy which is so prominent in the life, teaching and action of Pope Francis - Mercy that crosses a...

St. Teresa of Avila has been one of the most significant guides of my spiritual life since I was 17 years old. I began reading her very early in my life as a Pallottine and there are two moments – a dream and a time in prayer - that have connected me to her. In the dream I walked into an old unfamiliar church where I met my father who was already dead at the time. He pointed me to a side altar at the top left-hand side. When I went there I saw St. Teresa’s tomb in front of the altar. It was like the Italian ones with the shape of the body carved in marble; she was sleeping covered with a blanket. Then she stirred and woke up, telling me to stand between her and the altar. “Stay here” she said “and I will take care of you.” The second happened during a charismatic retreat when I was resting in the Spirit, in a state of quiet. A rope ladder came down from heaven and standing beside it was St. Teresa who pointed to the ladder and said to me, “I have given you the means to ascen...