Celebrating at Home: Transfiguration*II Sunday in Lent*This Sunday’s Gospel of the Transfiguration completes the ‘little parable’ formed by the Gospels of the first two Sundays of Lent. These Gospels tell us what Lent is about and what Christian life is about: a journey from temptation and doubt to transfiguration and faith. A journey away from allowing ourselves to be tempted to evil, and towards allowing ourselves to be tempted to good by the action of God’s Holy Spirit within us.       & ...Continue Reading

Celebrating at Home: Temptation to Transfiguration*I Sunday in Lent*Our great Lenten journey has begun. It’s a journey which begins in ash and ends in water. We begin Lent in the ash of acknowledging our own part in harbouring, creating and doing evil - those places in our hearts where the fire of anger, bitterness, selfishness or narrowness of mind and heart has left nothing but cold ash. As always, the Gospels of the first two Sundays in Lent provide a road map for our Lenten journey from temptation (this Sunday) to t ...Continue Reading

March – Marzo – Marzo  2022 ENGLISH | ESPAÑOL | ITALIANODownload English: ocarm.org/en/prayer/lectiodivina Descargar Español: ocarm.org/es/prayer/lectiodivina Scarica Italiano: ocarm.org/it/prayer/lectiodivina ENGLISHLECTIO DIVINA - March 2022[*]Lectio Divina March 2022 EN [PDF] [*]Lectio Divina March 2022 EN [ePub] [*]Lectio Divina March 2022 EN [Mobi] If you wish to receive updates on current news from the Carmelite Order, subscribe to CITOC News at ocarm.org------ocarm.org- ...Continue Reading

Celebrating at Home: Sound Tree, Good Fruit*VIII Sunday in Ordinary Time*We live in a world of words thanks to modern mass media and, particularly, social media. We have seen the extremely harmful way in which words can be used in harsh judgement against other people, and the sheer vitriol of some on social media gives us pause for thought. It begs us to ask the question, implied in the first reading for today (Eccl 27:4-7), ‘What do my words reveal about who I am?’ Today’s Gospel is our final reading from Luke’s Sermon ...Continue Reading

Celebrating at Home: Generous Relationships*VII Sunday in Ordinary Time*Last Sunday we began to read Luke’s Sermon on the Plain. This week, Jesus’ radical teaching focusses on lavish generosity in human relationships. The opening words, ‘Love your enemies,’ set the tone of the rest of the text. The point of this kind of prophetic speech by Jesus is to stimulate his audience (and us) to reflect on the whole pattern of behaviour in human relationships. Jesus is not really suggesting rules to be followed literally in certa ...Continue Reading

Celebrating at Home: Blessings and Woes*VI Sunday in Ordinary Time*Over the next three Sundays we will listen to almost the whole of Luke’s Sermon on the Plain. Luke has used Matthew’s Sermon on the Mount but changed and shortened it significantly. It is important to realise that both Sermons are more than only the Beatitudes which begin them.The whole of the Sermon is quite confronting and challenging, especially those verses which form today’s Gospel reading. The Sermon begins with four blessings and four woes. At fir ...Continue Reading

Celebrating at Home: Here I Am, Send Me*V Sunday in Ordinary Time*As if to balance the rejection Jesus experienced in last week’s Gospel, this week’s episode tells two stories of people who welcome his message. Firstly, an enthusiastic crowd has gathered on the shore of the lake, eagerly pressing forward to hear Jesus’ teaching. Secondly, Luke tells us that Simon and his companions are washing their nets on the shore as Jesus teaches, no doubt listening to what he has to say at the same time. Amazingly, Simon Peter ...Continue Reading

February – Febrero – Febbraio  2022 ENGLISH | ESPAÑOL | ITALIANODownload English: ocarm.org/en/prayer/lectiodivina Descargar Español: ocarm.org/es/prayer/lectiodivina Scarica Italiano: ocarm.org/it/prayer/lectiodivina ENGLISHLECTIO DIVINA - February 2022[*]Lectio Divina [PDF] Download here [*]Lectio Divina [ePub] Download here [*]Lectio Divina [Mobi] Download here  If you wish to receive current information about the Carmelite Order, subscribe to CITOC news ...Continue Reading

Celebrating at Home: Homecoming (2)*IV Sunday in Ordinary Time*This Sunday’s Gospel continues Luke’s story of Jesus’ visit to his hometown. The warmth, welcome and approval with which Jesus was initially greeted soon turns into an ugly scene. At first astonished by ‘the gracious words that came from his lips’, the people can hardly believe that this message of welcome and acceptance by God could be coming from the boy they watched grow up. He is beginning to sound like a prophet, but, ‘This is Joseph’s son, surely?’Usin ...Continue Reading

Celebrating at Home: Homecoming*III Sunday in Ordinary Time*In the Gospels for this Sunday and next, Luke tells the story of Jesus’ visit to his hometown of Nazareth. Following his temptation in the wilderness, Jesus returns to Galilee, the region in which he had grown up. He sets about teaching in the synagogues, winning many admirers. What Jesus reads out becomes and explanation of his mission and ministry. In the Spirit of the Lord, with which Jesus has been anointed, he will bring good news to the poor, liberty to c ...Continue Reading