Banksy Video

Video of photos ofBanksy graffiti art with the Beatles tune 'Help' performed by Rick Wakeman.

Telegrams to Padre Pio… a story from Austria-

Shortly before Easter 1950, I found out that a dear friend of mine who lived in Innsbruck, had suffered a heart attack while visiting her sisters in Vienna; she was in hospital hovering near death. I wondered what I could do. Whenever I have asked myself this question on similar occasions, I have always felt the entirety of my wretchedness and my inability to offer real help.

Of course I can pray. To be sure, we never pray in vain, even if we are conscious of the weakness of our own prayers. But in these kind of cases we need powerful prayers; so I sent the following telegram to San Giovanni Rotondo. “Padre Pio, we very much recommend to your prayers Mrs N.B who is seriously ill in Vienna, so that she may improve, have priestly assistance and go back home”

Almost immediately I received the response from San Giovanni Rotondo “Padre Pio prays for the sick woman, sends his blessing and his best wishes” My friend recovered from her heart attack almost immeditely and her health improved day to day, she was also visited by a priest and was able to go back home to Innsbruck.

And thus all 3 things I had asked for in my telegram, at a moment when, humanly speaking there was no hope left, were granted to the letter.

Carry on Wayward Son..

No one knows the day or the hour

A few months ago a lady had a Mass offered for her sick brother-in-law who was a cancer patient, she was looking after him, a full time job at that stage.

After the Mass a few of the parishioners were invited back to the house for tea & biscuits. They talked for a while and she shared her concerns for her brother-in-law.

Whilst she was a devout Catholic, he had no time for God at all. A very intelligent man, the living room was filled with plaques and certificates that hailed his achievements in his academic and professional undertakings and as a civic leader and local hero, but faith was absent and she feared for him as he had already exceeded the life expectancy predicted by the doctors, another credit to his will of iron.

That evening he was not at home, but at the hospital scheduled to receive a blood transfusion. The nature of his illness meant that he had a low “blood count” and so needed regular transfusions.

After tea, the group decided to pray together for a while, first for the lady who was so exhausted in every way and also for her patient. They prayed for the current problem with his blood, also that he would be relieved of his pains and be able to sleep again (it had been almost a year since he had a nights sleep, every few minutes he woke up because of the pain), and also for him to open his heart to God and receive the faith.

Meanwhile in the hospital, at the same time, 9pm, the patient was hooked up to a machine which measured his blood count, while the doctors were preparing for the transfusion. The blood count was measuring a low level, then suddenly it went up and was reading what would be considered Normal. The doctors were a bit baffled by this, but continued with the transfusion. (The patient told his sister-in-law about this strange event, on his return, before she told him that he was being prayed for). That same night he slept like a baby too, and was able to do so in the next few months with little or no pain killers.

The same group of parishioners visited him again after his release from the hospital and whilst he became more open and requested prayers, as he always felt better afterwards, he was still unwilling to believe what God had done for him. (perhaps the blood count machine was malfunctioning, perhaps the pain killers were working better all of a sudden, maybe its psychological , if you know you’re being prayed for maybe it makes you feel better !etc etc) The more people that witnessed to him the wonders of God, the more hard headed he seemed to become !

Some months passed and on January the 3rd 2006, he passed away.

On January the 2nd he was rushed to hospital with a chest problem, which turned out to be Pneumonia.
But on January 1st, at his own request, he was Baptised and became a Catholic the peace and joy that filled him at that moment visible to all present. The Lord knew the day and the hour and He answers prayers !

Israel set free from Egypt

This is the favourable time: now is the day of salvation. When Israel came out of Egypt, Jacob's people from a land of strangers, Judah became his sanctuary and Israel his domain. The sea saw it, and fled;the Jordan flowed backwards at the sight;
the mountains leapt like rams;the hills, like yearling sheep.Sea, what was it, what made you flee? And you, Jordan, why did you flow uphill? Mountains, why did you leap like rams? Hills, like yearling sheep? Tremble, Earth, at the presence of the Lord,
the presence of the Lord of Jacob, who has turned the rock into a pool of water
and made a fountain out of the flint. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen. This is the favourable time: now is the day of salvation.

Push !

Once there was a guy who was told by God to push a large boulder for him. So after some years, the man became frustrated and God asked the
man why he was so sad. So the man explained, "I've been pushing this rock for so long and I've failed you because I failed to move it.
It's not going anywhere"

And so God looked at the servant and said,
"I never told you to move the rock, I only told you to push it. It's my job to move the rock, not yours." And so God moved the rock and
then told the man that he had not wasted his time at all.
"Look at how strong you've gotten all this time pushing and your body is in great shape and has a great tan."

Coffee, milk and one sugar to go..

It was a freezing afternoon in November, an artic wind howling outside. I went outside for a smoke and I noticed across the square there was a taxi, with the bonnet open, broken down. The driver was sat inside most probably waiting for a breakdown truck to arrive.

I paid little attention to it, until the Lord suggested (that voice of conscience) that I go and ask him if he would like a hot drink; you would think he had asked me to sacrifice my first born son, such was my resistance. I was busy and could think of a litany of reasons not to bother. But after a brief wrestle, 3 falls and 1 submission I went inside and put the kettle on.

Crossing the square I wondered at the reaction I might receive from the cab driver. I tapped on the window. He was on the phone and kept me waiting, giving me the opportunity to appreciate just how cold it was becoming out there.

He opened the window and I explained that I noticed he had broken down and would he like a hot drink. He leapt from the cab rejoicing at my offer and thanked me so enthusiastically you’d think he won the lottery.

Somewhat relieved and having established his preference, I dashed back to make it and returned with mugs of coffee (in the best mugs) and we had a chat about diesel engines, getting air in the fuel line and quite a lot of his life story.

As we parted I was amazed to think at how Our Father in heaven, the creator of the universe, was still busy, in this instance giving his undivided attention to a stranded cab driver, seeing his needs but not merely as an observer; getting one of his children to go and attend to that need. Truly He is present in even the smallest details of life.

It puts me in mind of a story I heard from the end of the second world war when allied soldiers stationed in a bombed out village were asked to help out. The villagers asked them to re-build a statue that had taken pride of place in the main square but had been blown-up.

They set about collecting the pieces of broken statue and painstakingly putting it back together again. They found most of it, just a couple of pieces that could not be found, and they placed the completed work back in the main square, and covered it up so there could be a grand unveiling for the townsfolk.

When it was unveiled people were a bit shocked as their statue of Jesus had the hands missing. Underneath, the soldiers who had worked on it, placed a sign which reads “I have no hands. Won't you please lend me yours? "

We are His partners in reaching out to our brothers  and sisters.