As I reflect in our small Columban community of three sisters living in the heart of Mandalay, Myanmar’s second largest city, the words of the hymn, ‘Longing for light, we wait in darkness’ come to mind. We live in a situation where this longing for light is very...
My name is Alvaro Martinez, and I am a Columban priest who has always been fascinated by photography. Through my experiences with photography, I find a connection with nature, people, and, most importantly, God and myself. Nature photography requires patience,...
These days, I live a life of deep happiness in Pakistan, appreciative of many small things. Before I arrived, I was worried about the weather, living in a different culture with different food, and a new community life. But then I realised I was focusing only on my...
“All our cares and troubles cease, as we kneel with love before You ...” Since the month of May and Marian devotion go hand in hand, in this reflection, we pay a personal visit to the Marian Shrine in Knock. There we find our blessed Mother watching for us, waiting...
Proverbs are the ancient wisdom of a country’s culture expressed in pithy sentences – and often with humour. Proverbs provide missionaries with an insight into how their adopted people think and act, writes Columban missionary Fr Barry Cairns. To an aged person (I...
Nothing is so beautiful as Spring – When weeds, in wheels, shoot long and lovely and lush… From ‘Spring’ by Gerard Manley Hopkins Even the weeds in spring delight the heart of the poet, Gerard Manley Hopkins. After the dark days and cold winds of winter spring...
As we look back on the past year and begin a new year, it can sometimes be quite a challenge to put into practice the saying of the former UN Secretary General, Dag Hammarskjöld: “For all that has been, thanks. For all that will be, yes!” The year we are leaving...
Advent is a time to pause, listen and look back on the past year, writes Columban missionary, Sr Rebecca Conlon. There is much to ponder. Mother Earth is suffering. There have been droughts and famine in some places while in Pakistan there have been floods of epic...
Fr Tim Mulroy recalls a friend’s theory that nothing captures the spirit of Advent like a fishing expedition. Each year, at the beginning of December, as those around him begin preparing their Christmas shopping list, Ben begins preparing his fishing gear. Then, as...
A ‘Thin Place’ according to the late Irish philosopher and poet John O’Donohue is a place or time where heaven and earth meet and we have access to ‘light’ or the beyond in a different way. It is a threshold experience where time and eternity embrace. John...