A Moment to Pause - a short daily audio reflection rooted in Sacred Scripture

Good morning and welcome to the Oblate time of prayer and reflection today by Padraig Corcoran, a member of the Oblate Mission with Youth Team. 
In today's Gospel, Jesus tells the parable of the tenants in the vineyard. The owner sends servants to collect the fruit, but the tenants reject and mistreat them. Today we mark International Children's Day and the Global Day of Parents what did the owner do, he sends his beloved son, thinking they will respect him, but they kill him as well 
This parable reminds us of God's persistence, love and patience. Throughout history, God has reached out to His people through prophets and, ultimately, through His Son, Jesus. Yet the Gospel challenges us to ask: How do we respond when God speaks to us? Do we welcome His voice, or do we resist the changes He asks of us?
The vineyard has been entrusted to us. God invites us to bear fruits of justice, compassion, forgiveness, and faith. The good news is that even when humanity rejects Him, God's plan of salvation continues. The stone rejected by the builders becomes the cornerstone.
Today, let us open our hearts to Christ, receive Him with trust, and allow our lives to produce the fruits that glorify God and serve others. Amen.

Good morning and welcome to the Oblate time of prayer and reflection today by Sarah Braid, a member of the Oblate Parish of St Joseph's, Colwyn Bay.Today's Gospel is from the Holy Gospel according to the Gospel of John, chapter three, verses 16 to 18. I find this Gospel quite difficult and also very beautiful. What stays with me first is the love within it. For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son. God sends his Son not to condemn the world, but to save it.I found myself reflecting on the line about condemnation. It almost feels as though separation from separation from God begins within the human heart. When we close ourselves off from faith, hope, or love.The Gospel feels quite mystical to me. It also speaks about eternal life, and I find comfort in that. It makes me think of the people we love who have died, and the hope that they remain held in God's love and peace.What I take from this Gospel most is not fear, but love, mercy and the invitation should remain open to God.Thank you for reflecting with us today.

Good morning and welcome to the Oblate time of prayer and reflection today by Sarah Braid, a member of the Oblate Parish of St Joseph's, Colwyn Bay.Today's Gospel is from the Holy Gospel according to the Gospel of Mark, chapter 11, verses 27 to 33.In this Gospel, the religious leaders asked Jesus, By what authority are you doing these things?It is actually, I think, a quite an important question, but what struck me most was the fear. Underneath the conversation the leaders seem afraid. Afraid of saying the wrong thing. Afraid of losing status. Afraid of the reaction of the people around them. Because of that fear, they cannot fully engage with Jesus or grow in understanding. The conversation becomes more about protecting themselves than searching honestly for the truth.It made me reflect on how fear can sometimes stop us learning, changing, or deepening our understanding.Fear can make us defensive rather than open. This Gospel, to me is a reminder that growth often requires humility, honesty, and the courage to remain open even when we feel uncertain.Thank you for reflecting with us today.

Good morning and welcome to the Oblate time of prayer and reflection today by Sarah Braid, a member of the Oblate Parish of St Joseph's, Colwyn Bay.Today's Gospel is from the Holy Gospel according to the Gospel of Mark, chapter 11, verses 11 to 26.As I reflected on this Gospel, I found myself moving slowly through the different parts the fig tree,the temple, then prayer and forgiveness.The fig tree appears alive, yet is not bearing fruit.Then Jesus enters the temple and sees that the outer courts where the the place where Gentiles could come close to God, had become transactional and crowded with merchants.It made me think about how easily faith, church life, and even volunteering can become more about activity and duty than prayer and welcome. But what stayed with me the most is that the Gospel feels like a call to integrity between outward action and inward truth. If we pray, we should pray wholeheartedly. If we seek forgiveness. We should try to forgive. If we have gifts. Perhaps we are meant to use them well.Thank you for reflecting with us today.

Good morning and welcome to the Oblate time of prayer and reflection today by Sarah Braid, a member of the Oblate Parish of St Joseph's, Colwyn Bay.Today's Gospel is from the Holy Gospel according to the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 26, verses 36 to 42.I find this Gospel quite upsetting because it shows that the people who love Jesus most could not stay awake and support him, while he was sorrowful and troubled. Peter and the disciples are very relatable here. They love Jesus and wanted to do what was right, but they were human, tired and perhaps overwhelmed.What strikes me is that Jesus does not hide his pain. He says his soul is sorrowful, yet he still accepts the will of my of the father. Not my will, but yours be done. There is something deeply powerfulin that trust and love. Jesus also says the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. I think many of us can recognise ourselves in that we are not perfect.Sometimes our enduring, our endurance or resilience fails us even when our hearts and intentions are good. Our intention should always remain aligned with our values and with the good we are trying to live out. We know this and we try continually.This Gospel perhaps reminds us that God understands our humanity, our weakness, and our struggleand still walks beside us through it.Thank you for reflecting with us today.

Good morning and welcome to the Oblate time of prayer and reflection today by Sarah Braid, a member of the Oblate Parish of St Joseph's, Colwyn Bay.Today's Gospel is from the Holy Gospel according to the Gospel of Luke, chapter ten, verses 1 to 9.This Gospel feels unusually direct and clear. Jesus sends out the 72 with simple instructions.He knows they are vulnerable, describing them as lambs among wolves. And he also understands that not every town will welcome them. Yet the one thing they are asked to carry is peace. What stands out to me is Jesus does not tell them to carry power or status, but only peace. And he says that if their peaceis not received, it will return to them. The Gospel also speaks about healing, and it makes me wonder if part of the healing Christ offers is healing from the inner disturbance we sometimes carry within ourselves. When we are not at peace,something in us often needs healing. Perhaps this Gospel reminds us that peace is not weakness, but it's a grace and a gift, something we receive from God and then carry into the world for others.Thank you for reflecting with us today.

Good morning and welcome to the Oblate time of prayer and reflection today by Sarah Braid, a member of the Oblate Parish of St Joseph's, Colwyn Bay.Today's gospel is from the Holy Gospel according to the gospel of Mark,chapter 10 verses 28-31. This gospel I feel, can be slightly confusing at first. Peter appears to be showing his loyalty, but perhaps also asking what is in it for them. Peter is being very human.What is interesting is that Jesus does not rebuke him. Instead, he acknowledges the sacrifice and says they will receive a hundredfold now in this time.I think Jesus is speaking about a new kind of family and a spiritual richness found through a community of believers. But he's also very clear that these blessings come with persecutions. Jesus understands that following faith and living by our values is not always the easy path. The final line is perhaps my favourite. It reminds us that humility is essential: “The first shall be the last, and the last shall be first.” True discipleship is not about status or recognition. It's about faithfulness, love, and humility.Thank you for reflecting with us today.

Good morning and welcome to the Oblate time of prayer and reflection today by Sarah Braid, a member of the Oblate Parish of St Joseph's, Colwyn Bay.
Today's gospel is from the Holy Gospel according to the Gospel of John Chapter 19, verses 25 to 34.
When I think about it and have a moment of reflection and a moment of pause the thing that jumps out of me is Mary's journey. Mary's journey is built on faith. At the Annunciation, she's asked to trust without fully understanding.And at the cross, that faith is tested in the most painful way imaginable for a mother. She stands before the violence, the hatred and the suffering inflicted on her son. But she refuses to abandon him. She remains present. She can't stop what's happening, but she won't leave. Many others have left, but she stays. Mary's courage is supported also by the presence of other women.Her friends beside her. This I also find wonderful. Maybe a reminder that even in grief, we are not meant to stand on our own and our friends can be there for us.
In the midst of this horrific moment, Jesus's words are deeply tender.“Behold your mother.”“Behold your son.”
So even when he's dying, he creates for eternity. He wants the community. He asks us to care.He asks people to look after one another and forms a new family rooted in love and fellowship and honour and obviously humanity.Often I don't think we fully understandwhat God is doing in our lives, but we can ask Mary to share with us her courage, her faithfulness, and her ability to remain present.
This is very important in life to be there for people. Stand calmly and be present. And we can remember Christ's constant call to care for one another, and especially in moments of suffering.
Thanks for joining us this morning. 

Good morning and welcome to the Oblate time of prayer and reflection today written by Mary Tyrrell.
This passage is still pertinent today. Just as the disciples faced fear and uncertainty, millions of people around our world are feeling fearful, confused, anxious, and uncertain about the future. You might be one of them. There are so many threats to life, to health, to relationships and basic human needs. Dramatically we’re told Jesus,“came and stood among them and said  ‘Peace be with you”. These words convey more than just the absence of conflict; they remind the troubled disciples and us that God’s presence brings reassurance, and restoration to any situation.Jesus meets the disciples in their fear and transforms it into joy. We definitely need more Jesus in our hearts and world. We are called to be a presence of peace wherever we are. When I was a lot younger, I remember I travelled to London to take part in an anti war demonstration.We didn’t stop the war but I have always been happy, and quietly proud, that I took part in that march.Let’s pray in the words of St Francis:Lord, make me a channel of your peace, thatwhere there is hatred, I may bring love;where there is wrong, I may bring the spirit of forgivenesswhere there is discord, I may bring harmonywhere there is despair, I may bring hope.
Thanks for joining us today.

Good morning and welcome to the Oblate time of prayer and reflection today written by Mary Tyrrell.
What a really interesting passage this is. I was struck by the last few lines. In this gospel of St John Chapter 20 verse 25 reads, ”But there are also many other things that Jesus did; if every one of them were written down, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.”Of course, it must be true, there probably were  millions of encounters Jesus had that we don’t know about because books weren’t written or were lost or people looked on their encounter as being personal. And more importantly there was no television news broadcasts twenty four hours a day every day and definitely no internet. However did people find out about anything? Of course, they talked to each other, they shared stories or some would have written letters to friends.Then during the week I came across this fact each bible has blank pages at the end for us to write our own gospel stories. When we can write down our own encounters with Jesus in prayer. Times when Jesus was so close, so active, saving us, calling us or challenging us into discipleship. And we have all had those moments.Now where did I put my pen?
Thanks for joining us today.