Pic Life

By Moira Billinge

The wind and the sun were disputing which was the stronger. Suddenly they saw a traveller coming down the road, and the sun said: ‘I see a way to decide our dispute. Whichever of us can cause that traveller to take off his cloak shall be regarded as the stronger.’ So the sun retired behind a cloud, and the wind began to blow as hard as it could upon the traveller. But the harder he blew, the more closely did the traveller wrap his cloak round himself, till at last the wind had to give up in despair. Then the sun came out and shone in all his glory upon the traveller, who soon found it too hot to walk with his cloak on. The moral of Aesop’s fable is ‘kindness achieves more than severity’. I was enthralled by this fable at the age of seven. At face value it had all the ingredients to delight a child –culminating in a villain receiving his comeuppance as kindness and gentleness overcame brute force. Looking back on the story now with the experience of life and hindsight, I have come to believe that both the sun and the wind were manipulators to some extent. If the traveller had not taken his cloak off because of the heat, how long would the sun have continued to shine on him? How much more intense would it have had to become to produce the desired effect if he had insisted on keeping it on? He was, after all, only removing his cloak because the sun had made him so very uncomfortable. If we need somebody to understand our position or opinion and want them to meet us even halfway, then they are not likely to listen if we become aggressive and start shouting at them. And if they are less able to deal with confrontation and back down under the onslaught, unresolved issues could well be left to fester in the background and probably make a bad situation worse. Perhaps mutual empathy, respect and listening might have prevented the problem in the first place or at least helped towards resolving the difficulty. Both the sun and the wind were unjust in their treatment of the unsuspecting man, who became the unwitting and innocent victim of their selfishness and greed. Determined to prove which was stronger, bigger and better than the other, they used the traveller for their own ends, ignoring his rights and their duty of care. In today’s world it is the innocent who are too often trapped between the conflicting egos of the self-centred. Wars are declared and fought, often with great violence and bloodshed. Far too many are needlessly hurt, killed and bereaved. When peace finally comes to Syria, will history judge the conflict to have been worth the tens of thousands of deaths, hundreds of thousands of injured, millions of refugees and the destruction of some of the world’s greatest and most irreplaceable historical treasures? When traumatised and shattered families can rebuild their lives, will they be grateful for the conflict and hardship forced upon them? Will they not, rather, wish that they might have been left alone in the security of their homes and villages?

The town of Harrogate in Yorkshire is well known for its quaint streets, historic houses and landscaped gardens, writes Lucy Oliver. The Royal Pump Room is among its most celebrated Grade II-listed buildings, now converted from a spa-water pump house to the town’s museum. In the 19th century, Harrogate’s affluent population and gentrified visitors from further afield visited the Pump Room to ‘take the waters’, drinking the spa water with its distinct sulphur smell for the believed medicinal properties and health benefits. At the height of its popularity, the spa was attracting 15,000 people in the summer months and esteemed guests even included Tsarina Alexandra of Russia in 1911. Visitors today can enjoy a well tour at this museum, learn more about Harrogate’s history and see temporary exhibitions such as ‘Make Do and Mend’ which explores the impact of World War Two on fashion. As we count down to Christmas, consider a visit between Friday 3rd and Sunday 12th December to enjoy the popular Christmas market and, of course, don’t leave without a stroll through the Stray, Harrogate’s central park, and a visit to Betty’s Tea Rooms for sandwiches, cake and light refreshments.

On a liturgical note Canon Philip Gillespie November can be a dark month, when we begin to take into our hearts (and our bones!) that the longer evenings and warm days of summer and autumn are well passed and that, with the fading of the leaves on the trees, the winter is upon us. Even as the colour of nature around us changes from the green of vibrant growth to the russet and gold of hibernation, the Liturgy seems to add to our despair by presenting us with thoughts of death and departure on the Feast of the Holy Souls on 2 November – a sense of sombre remembrance picked up again on the 14th as the nation keeps its annual silence and the poppies fall once more. Remembrance is also in the mind of the Catholic community in England and Wales as on Sunday 7 November the Bishops’ Conference have asked for Masses to be said in all Diocesan cathedrals for those who have died in the pandemic, and in thanks for the medical staff, care workers and family members who accompanied and assisted them in the last moments of their lives. Archbishop Malcolm McMahon will preside at the 11am Mass at the Metropolitan Cathedral on that day and at another special Mass at the cathedral on Friday 12 November, at 7pm, for all our priests who died during the pandemic. All that said, November opens with the solemn remembrance not of the power of darkness and decay, but of the triumph of light – the true Light of the World, the Lord Jesus Christ. The Solemnity of All Saints is also known as All Hallows, therefore making the last day of October All Hallows’ Eve – which became Hallow’een. It is a feast that speaks of light, happiness and peace, and of that blessedness which is the fruit of a close following of the way of Christ and of His Gospel. It not only invites us to reflect and be truly grateful for all those saints of God from past generations (some have been canonised by the Church, others not); it is also a challenge and an invitation to us to be those saints in our modern world. And not the ‘plaster saints’ or holier-than-thou figurines that run the risk of putting us off rather than attracting us to the Way of Christ. No, we are called to be those people who actually believe the words that Saint John spoke in the Second Reading on the Feast of All Saints: ‘Think of the love the Father has lavished on us.’ And once we have thought, then we live accordingly. As the old saying goes, ‘It is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness.’ May you light a candle of Christ-like goodness in your parish, community and family in these next weeks.

Mgr John Devine OBE

On the Isle of Man, we have been celebrating our annual novena to Mary, Untier of Knots. Bishop Tom Neylon opened the first night of the novena and it was great to have him with us so soon after his ordination. Father Colum Kelly led another evening. A friend from seminary days, he is a priest of the Diocese of Leeds. His theme for the evening was ‘Untying the Knots of Uncertainty’. Colum drew on his experience as a chaplain with the Apostleship of the Sea at the massive container port of Immingham. He spoke of the uncertainty and insecurity of the lives of seafarers visiting the port. They are away from home for months or more, uncertain when they will next see their families or when and how much they will be paid. Their working conditions can be a form of slavery. Colum went on to suggest that we all live with uncertainty: when we face diagnosis of a life-threatening disease; redundancy at work; in the erratic

behaviour of a family member suffering from an addiction. He shared his own experience of Mary, Untier of Knots, and how he had promoted the devotion in his ministry. This was Colum’s first visit to the Isle of Man. We talked into the night as we caught up on almost 100 years of priesthood between us. He explained how one seafarer was killed in the docks in a particularly harrowing way. His crewmates, thousands of miles from home, were distraught. Colum spent the day with them as they shared their grief. The captain said to Colum, ‘Look, I don’t know what a chaplain’s for or what a chaplain does, but I’m glad you’re here.’ That is a wonderful tribute to Colum’s dedication and perseverance. It is not a bad description of the priest’s role, whatever the setting. The Church needs more priests like Colum. Weekly Reflections are on the Archdiocesan website at www.liverpoolcatholicresources.com

Several years ago I was speaking at a conference in Limerick. When it was over, I took a detour to call in at Glendalough. I was enjoying the silence when a man came and asked if he could sit for a while. He then got some food out, asking if I would like to share it with him. I accepted a sandwich and we sat in silence for a while. Then he said to me: ‘I often come here to pray for strength.’ It transpired that his heart was completely immersed in the Gospel. He had made a lot of money and then taken early retirement wondering what to do with the rest of his life. While walking in the Wicklow Hills, the words from Luke’s Gospel came into his mind: ‘He has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners.’ He knew then that his life would be spent serving the poor. As we talked, I realised I had met someone who was very free because of his experience of Christ. When we experience the freedom that is in Christ, it uncovers the lack of substance that much of the world lives by – the need for power and possession of material goods. Yet psychologists tell us that one of the main drives within the human psyche is for power. As a Church we seem to be far more into power structures than the empowering of people. It is easier to tell people what to do than let them become the people that God wants them to be in case that threatens the power structures we put in place. When are we going to learn the lesson that for those of us who follow Jesus, power over others is not the way? We are not to build our own little kingdoms where we wield our authority, and everyone jumps to. We are to be people who love and serve one another and this means being open and inclusive and encouraging people to share their giftedness. Most of the opposition to Pope Francis comes from his desire to rid the Church of the scourge of clericalism and to see us become a more open, serving community. The Church is to be that place where each individual is respected regardless of what they are or who they are, where all of us are called to fulfil our potential and use our gifts to build up the Kingdom of God. We are to be an alternative to the world’s power system, to show that fullness of life does not depend on controlling people or having power over them but on following the Jesus way of loving service. That service which, at times, can be hard because it means letting go of our own needs and desires for power and control, but service in which our potential for life and love is fulfilled. Father Chris Thomas