01/06/2025

Seventh Sunday of Easter

“that they may become perfectly one”

Pope Leo XIV short homily at his inauguration mass stated that “we want to be a small leaven of unity, communion, and fraternity within the world. We want to say to the world, with humility and joy: Look to Christ! Come closer to him! Welcome his word that

enlightens and consoles!

Build bridges.

Unite people no matter what their gender, race and faith. Broaden the umbrella of your love to include the unlovely, the tattooed, the pierced, the noisy and untidy.

Look below the surface and recognise the presence of God in that body. (Mt 25,40)

Pray for peace around the world but work for peace in your neighbourhood and family.

Mercy and forgiveness unite people.

Listening – mutual listening – not just to the words but the thoughts and feeling behind those words is an effective way of generating- and developing unity.

An attitude of ‘trying to find ways of uniting people’ can work wonders. Remember how Nelson Mandela worked to remove the horrors of apartheid in South Africa?

London is rather fragmented. People rarely look anyone else in the eye – and even less frequently offer a smile when someone does look at them - is something I try to improve, and bring a feeling of a village or small town into the area where I move.

Here, at Kensington Square, we are blessed with the Sunday Coffee Klatch, for which I thank God. It enriches my life.