27/05/2026

St Augustine of Canterbury

There is no such thing as an empty word coming from the mouth of God. That is why I often struggle as I did yesterday trying to understand how Jesus could reply to Peter's question by stating that the things of this world i.e. family and wealth which he and the Apostles had "given up" would be returned "one hundredfold" in "this time".

"My kingdom is not of this world" has presented to each generation of Christian what is basically the same problem for we all grow to maturity in societies in which there are human norms that are contrary to the will of God and our Institutional Churches have from long ago fudged their adherence to "Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesars and to God the things that are God's".

St Gregory the Great, who despatched St Augustine to convert the Pagan Angles, is credited by St Bede with the pun not "Angels not Angles". He had seen the blond Angles exhibited as merchandise in a "Slave Market". For the people of his generation a "Slave Market" in the Roman Empire was a normal commercial enterprise in which prisoners of war were sold into slavery. 

We are able to live just and holy lives only when we remain alert to the dangers that the human norms of the societies in which we live infiltrate our consciences even to the extent that in the "these days" of now we make no effort to deflect our children away from the excesses that are portrayed as norms by the media that can bedazzle us all into captivation that really does waste the time that we should use only to bring ourselves closer to God.

Dear Lord, help me to continue the struggle against all that is displeasing to you and with true sincerity of heart endeavour to accept the grace which never-endingly flows into the Church of Love, your New Holy Family in which we on Earth can anticipate the peace that it is to be know and be known after the self-inflicted turmoils of this life. Amen

"Woman behold thy son. Son behold thy mother."