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Nicodemus at Night

Nicodemus at Night Trinity Sunday John 3:1-17 Then Nicodemus came by night – a man of law-trained, literal mind replete with Scripture he could cite. He knew his peers would be unkind, so sure of ways they thought were right, but he must see what he would find. Perhaps this Jesus came from God –Continue reading “Nicodemus at Night”

Pentecost

Pentecost Acts 2:1-21 (written 2005) The flames still strike, though the walls we hide behind for fear of fear and fire are more opaque, the cracks papered over with copies of The Times, The Age, The Advertiser, and Sunday Mail. It’s hard to speak an unknown tongue in such a spate of foreign news. TheContinue reading “Pentecost”

From Autumn to Winter

From Autumn to Winter In middle May the seasons shift and winter looms in one bleak week while leaves still fall and twirl and drift. The south wind chills my wrinkled cheek and stirs the leaves to swirl and lift. I stand to watch them sifting down: some join the scatter on the ground, theirContinue reading “From Autumn to Winter”

Destined to be lost – and found?

Destined to be lost – and found? John 17:12, Acts 1:15-17,21-26, Matthew 27:3-10, Easter 7 If one or some are destined to be lost in order that your word might be fulfilled, are they not also yours, O Lord? What cost to Judas when his desperate hope was tossed upon the temple floor with silverContinue reading “Destined to be lost – and found?”

Joy in Love of Birds

I fell in love with cockatoos – head over heels, too moved to choose. A chord was struck, connections made: it felt as though a duet played. For several weeks I saw the blacks’ impressive wings and arrow backs, the stripe of gold beneath the tail. Their flight would snare my soul to sail. MyContinue reading “Joy in Love of Birds”

Joy after Pain

Joy after Pain Easter 6, John 16:16-24, John 13 – 17 They didn’t know that supper was the last. He washed their feet, a sign they had arrived from those shared journeys that he knew were past. He taught in hopes his loving words survived. He spoke of joy that follows after pain, as whenContinue reading “Joy after Pain”

God is love

God is love (Easter 5 John 15:1-8, 1 John 4:7-21) All people who use language are second-hand word-mongers: we mangle words or varnish by buying into meanings to suit rival agendas. We fumble in our juggling, and truth becomes entangled with hurts to which we’re subject, and what one hears, another would never have imagined.Continue reading “God is love”

Anzac Day Sonnet

Anzac Day Sonnet for Sunday 25 April, Micah 4:1-4, John 15:9-17 To act in love entails some sacrifice when others’ needs outweigh our hopes for self. Then we may feel we’ve paid a heavy price, and seen what we could be put on a shelf. To act in nations’ conflict may require the risk ofContinue reading “Anzac Day Sonnet”

Jesus Appears to his Disciples

Jesus Appears to his Disciples Luke 36b-48, Easter 3 They felt a surge of joy to see him there,but they were disbelieving, wondering still.What contradictory creatures humans are!We dare not enter fully into joyfor fear of the relapse, the dismal clunkthat brings us back to earth and dust to dust.We’d rather shrink to temper joyContinue reading “Jesus Appears to his Disciples”

2 Sonnets for Easter 2

The Need for Personal Experience John 20:19-31, Easter 2 “I won’t believe unless I see and touch,” says Thomas and the sceptics of today. No insight counts as real, no vision stirs: without the proof of facts, they turn away. Like Thomas, are they blinded by despair, and choose to grieve apart while others meet?Continue reading “2 Sonnets for Easter 2”