Last Sunday morning when I was tuned into a talk-back radio programme, a listener called in asking for residents living near him to help him find his pet, wall-eyed Samoyed dog which had gone astray. He explained to the radio compere that he would be broken-hearted if he was not reunited with his best friend. That plea reminded me of another story of an elderly man who was out enjoying his customary evening stroll when he heard a quiet voice calling: “Help me! Please, help me!”

Before I offer a reflection on the Pentecost readings, I want to suggest that our religious education has sometimes left us with an incorrect understanding of the word “Advocate” as it is applied to the Holy Spirit. In light of the fact that we are loved by God everlastingly and unconditionally, we don’t need the Holy Spirit to plead to God on our behalf or to present our needs and wants to God.

Traditionally, Lent is a time when we turn our close attention to how we deal with the temptations that come our way, reflects Christian Brother Julian McDonald. While we were reminded on Ash Wednesday that prayer and fasting are helpful disciplines for ordering our waywardness, our focus might best be put on quality rather than quantity. Any disciplines we decide to undertake for Lent are surely meant to be about enhancing the quality of our love, our compassion for others and our relationships with one another. 

Advent was included in the Church’s calendar as a period of reflection intended to engage the Christian in giving attention to the significance of the fact that, in the person of Jesus, God demonstrated unequivocal solidarity and identification with all of humanity, reflects Christian Brother Julian McDonald.

Whenever we dare to pray “thy kingdom come” we are acknowledging our willingness to reflect something of the mercy, compassion and love of God that Jesus so eloquently expressed on the Cross., writes Christian Brother Julian McDonald.