Some thoughts for the Fourth Sunday of Easter
Today we pray for more vocations to the priesthood. We do so because Jesus told us to – “Pray the Lord of the harvest to send labourers to His harvest” (Matthew 9:38). Why? Because “the harvest is great, but the labourers are few” (Matthew 9:37). Yes, the harvest is great. It is great because so many people do not know Jesus Christ. They haven’t had the opportunity of meeting the real Lord Jesus. Some are afraid that faith in Jesus will somehow diminish their lives. But the truth is exactly the opposite.
In the Gospel today Jesus tells us clearly His purpose in becoming man: “I have come so that they may have life and have it to the full.” There is nothing diminishing about a relationship with Jesus. He wishes to embrace and fulfil every aspect of our lives. Indeed, He wants to remove from our lives anything that really does diminish us. Our society has so much good in it. However, it does suffer from a tendency to reduce human beings to being one thing. Some see us as just physical beings, with no spiritual aspect. Others see us as consumers or just as units which make up the economy. Others see society as fundamentally political, about a play for power, and see human relationships within that framework. Others believe that we are just individuals who owe nothing to the past and who can make up our own truth about who we are and who we want to be.
However, this lockdown poses important questions to everyone and makes us face ourselves without any of the normal props or distractions which are part of daily life. It shows us that we are relational – we need others, we need each other. We are not just individuals – we are persons in relationships always. We are persons who have received existence from others and who help to form a whole network of society, passing on to others what we have received. We cannot just make up our own truth. We are more than consumers – we are only allowed to shop once a week and we discover that there is more to life than buying and selling. We are more than just units of the economy since we are being asked to put care for others ahead of the immediate demands of the economy – and this means that we know that life is about more than politics and having power. We are more than just physical beings because we find that there is a yearning within us for relationship and we find that material things are not the absolute necessity we thought they were – they are important but our lives are not fulfilled just by just having things.
Any tendency to reduce us to any of these things ends up limiting us. The beautiful thing about the Gospel of Jesus Christ is that He does not scorn any of these things: rather, He embraces them, and He puts them into their true perspective. He shows us how we can live a life which is free from being reduced to any of these views, of being limited by them. He reveals that the horizon of human life is the beautiful life of God Himself who called us into existence so that we could make our way to the rich pastures of eternity. Reducing life to any of these other perspectives ends up devaluing the grandeur of the human person. It sends us down a cul-de-sac instead of discovering the upland horizons of living by God’s grace.
Yes, Jesus has come to give us life to the full. In the Gospel today, He reveals Himself as the Gate and also the Shepherd who will lead us, the sheep, out of the limits of our enclosure to find good pasture. He promises us real freedom. He wants us to bring all the elements of our lives to Him – our social life, our family life, our relationships, our work, our leisure, our economy, our society – everything. Like a giant jigsaw, He will make sure that everything is in its right place: no piece will be lost; no piece will dominate the others. After all, as St Paul says, “all things were made through Him and for Him. He is before all things and in Him all things hold together.” (Colossians 1:16-17)
For this reason, today we pray for more vocations to the priesthood. The priest is called to bring Christ who is our Life to people, to make Him available through the Faith we proclaim, through the sacraments we offer, and through the life of faith, hope and love which characterises the Church. As in every life, being a priest has its challenges and its sacrifices. Yet it is also a deeply fulfilling life – a thrilling one where we are Christ’s living instruments in bringing people to the fullness of life. It involves a life of prayer and of action. It is a life of loving people with Christ’s own personal love. It is also a life where we are very aware of our limitations but where we know that Jesus always makes up our deficit with merciful generosity. It is about being an icon of Jesus Christ in a world that needs the full colour of His grace. It is a life where we remember that we too are sheep called upon to lead other sheep to the richest pastures of all – and we do so by hearing the Shepherd call out to each of us, saying, “Follow me!”
Today we pray that many others will hear that call and so offer themselves in the great work of leading people to the Harvest of eternal joy.
Fr. Patrick
Update from Deacon Peter on the ☎️ Telephone Apostolate☎️
As we tip over from April into May, it’s hard to believe that our telephone apostolate has now been up and running for over a month. First of all, I would like to offer my thanks to all of the volunteers and members of the parish council who have worked so hard to make this possible. The volume of our calls remains constant, but the duration of the calls continues to amaze me. While a few befriendees are happy with a wee check on how they are doing, most of our call durations are extending dramatically as relationships develop. We are now supporting befriendees from the Cathedral and St Andrews across Edinburgh and St Andrews. That was not a mistake in my typing, we really are supporting people as far away as St Andrews in Fife.
Loneliness and isolation can affect people anywhere and we were asked to support a couple of ex-parishioners who had moved away some time ago but given the present circumstances of the lock down, they had become vulnerable and isolated. We were happy to do so, and they were delighted to hear from us! We have had many messages of thanks from some of the people who have referred friends or family to us. Many of them speak of the relief to know that our volunteers are reaching out to those they love but can’t be with and whom they feel would draw comfort and support by a call from one our apostolate volunteers. We, in turn, are extremely happy to do this and because of the linguistic diversity of our parishioner volunteers, we are currently offering support to our befriendees in English Italian and Polish and we still have language capacity and flexibility to spare!
As these restrictions continue and personal circumstances change, perhaps you or someone you know of, might benefit from a friendly chat from one of our volunteers. You will find a contact form here and on our Facebook page or you can drop an email to me or to the cathedral house mailbox. Hope to see you all at Mass very soon!
Watch Daily Mass from Cathedral House Online
Each day, we publish one of the private Masses in Cathedral House, where we pray for our parishioners, mass intentions and an end to the spread of coronavirus. To participate spiritually in the Mass, please visit our Facebook page or the website
Mass Intentions
Although all public Masses are currently suspended, Fr. Patrick, Fr. Jamie and Fr. Tadeusz continue to offer Mass for the parishioners’ intentions. If you would like to schedule a Mass for someone who has recently died, for the anniversary of a loved one or for a special intention, please contact the Parish Office and we will help you to arrange a Mass. The Parish Office can be con-on 0131 556 1798 or email here. In order to prevent the spread of COVID-19, please do not visit the office in person at the moment.
Bring Flowers to Our Lady
As you know, both the Cathedral and St. Andrew’s in Ravelston are still closed. However, outside the church in Ravelston, we have a lovely shrine dedicated to Our Lady. During this month of May, we would therefore like to invite you to bring flowers and prayer intentions to Mary, the Mother of Christ and our Mother. Perhaps your daily exercise can become a little pilgrimage? If you would like to bring flowers to Our Lady, but live too far away or are self-isolating, please contact the Cathedral Office, and we will figure out a solution!
And Speaking of the Parish Grounds in Ravelston…
The Alma Mercy Sisters have also made a wee Rosary Walk. Well worth a visit! Ravelston Youth Group Online Since the Youth Group obviously cannot meet during the lockdown, we have tried to make a little video with a simple craft your family can make together. This week, we are making a May Altar, to help us fulfil our two very special prayer requests. Watch the video here
The Role of Women in the Church – New Group Starting Soon
What is the Christian concept of woman and her indispensable role in the Church, the family, society, and the world? ENDOW is an international organisation which gathers women into small group, to build friendship and learn more about our faith together. And now, we are for the first time starting up a group in the Parish! We will meet on a Saturday afternoon at 3pm-5pm once a month, initially over Zoom and then, after the social distancing restrictions have been lifted, in the convent in Ravelston, to study St. John Paul II's Letter to Women together. No reading is required outside the meetings, it’s all very simple! The cost for the material is £30, everything else is free. To register or for more information, please contact cathedralhouse@stmaryscathedral.co.uk. Please note that the number of places are limited, so registration is required. We look forward to hearing from you!
Marriage Week 2020
11th – 17th May is the week that is nationally set aside to celebrate commitment to the Sacrament of Marriage. The theme this year is "The Forever Conversation," recognising the need for continual open communication to enable a marriage to be long lasting. Marriage Encounter is working in partnership with Marriage Week UK to promote events and celebrate marriage. For more information see marriage-week.org.uk / or www.me.org.uk, and YouTube.
Young Adults – Ratzinger Reading Group
To continue to “grow on the inside”, some people from the Young Adults Group have started an online theology book club together with Fr. Jamie. Each week, we read twenty pages or so of Cardinal Ratzinger’s ‘Introduction to Christianity’ and then we meet talk together about what we have read. If you are between 18-35 years and would like to join, please email cathedralhouse@stmaryscathedral.co.uk.
Emergency Appeal from Bethany Christian Trust
It’s hard to #StayHome when you don’t have a home. When you’re homeless, you are more likely to suffer from underlying health conditions and don’t have the facilities to wash your hands. Self-isolating can seem like a luxury. That’s why Bethany Christian Trust is determined to keep our doors open during this crisis, to do more to assist people and to make sure all of our services stay operational. Homeless people are being hit really hard by the coronavirus outbreak. Due to the temporary closure of our charity shops, we urgently need your help to ensure we can still give vital care and support to those who have nowhere else to go.
Please donate today so that we can protect the people who need us now more than ever. You can give by phoning 0131 561 8927 or by visiting www.bethanychristiantrust.com. We know that this is a difficult time for many people financially. You can help us by sharing this information, praying for our staff and people who use our services or making a donation. Together we can make sure no one is left alone or in danger. Thank you for your valued support at this time of crisis.