Valladolid, 3 June 2008

All is grace, all is gift, the most precious things we possess in our lives, generally speaking, are things which we were given in the first place – our very life and being, our most important and sustaining relationships, all that gives meaning and direction to our lives – all are gifts beyond our control; gifts, however, that we must appreciate and use by sharing with all.
For our lack of thanksgiving, our lack of appreciation, for our self-centeredness, and for the times we have not been bearers of the Good News, we ask for mercy and pardon.
Lord, you are our refuge.
Lord, have mercy
You fill us with your love.
Christ, have mercy.
You are God, without beginning or end.
Lord, have mercy.

Sermon

The College year is coming to an end very shortly. Some are thinking, thank God for that, others will be wondering what the future might hold. Some others still might be filled with nostalgia with the end in sight. Others still might be feeling some regret about missed opportunities. Perhaps all feel some of these at the same time. I hope that whatever you are feeling, the overall experience of the year has been good and that as the year ends you all feel stronger, closer to God and with greater knowledge of the Church and your place within it.
I have had the great grace to have spent twelve years of my life in this hallowed place. In so many ways the experiences here have formed and directed me. For the graces received in and through this College, I give thanks to Almighty God, especially for all the good people who have supported, helped and prayed me through my life so far.
Despite myself, and there are some here who can testify graphically to this, I have been taught so many things. Living as guests in another country and learning to communicate in its language demands much more than linguistic skills. You have to learn a certain humility, to bend to new ways, new ideas, new culture. You need to acquire flexibility in order to live and move and exist in such a wonderful country as Spain and in order to avail yourself of its riches. If you are going to develop friendships and communicate well, it is so important to hone your listening skills and to become sensitive to others. As you make yourself vulnerable in order to strip yourself of prejudice and self-centred pride, you become aware of other’s vulnerability and recognise that it is the precondition of any Christian and therefore human progress. I am not sure that I would have been able to learn these lessons elsewhere – who knows; however, the fact remains that it was here that I learned some of these things and continue to learn and study them, and they are the bedrock of the Christian life and therefore, the foundations of ministry of any kind.
Perhaps you might recognise some of these things in your own journey here? Most of all I am grateful for the reflective prayerful atmosphere of the College and of the countryside around. Looking at the sky out in the country, I learned what the Book of Genesis meant by the “Dome of Heaven”. I come from the middle of industrial Manchester and had only really experienced the sky in patches between terraced houses. Here, I met the God of the Universe for the first time, the God of power and might whom heaven and earth could not contain. I met the Father of hospitality in so many table and Eucharistic settings, within the liturgical space and in so many other places. I understood the real meaning of desde la misa hasta la mesa. The concept of food and therefore Eucharist being for body and soul, for the whole person was taught to me here in gentle, convivial settings. I learnt so much more here than any book, any lecture or lecturer could ever teach me.
Most of all I experienced in a real but mystical way, the presence of the Lord walking at my side wherever I went, and no matter what I felt like, happy, sad, bored, desolate, I knew he was with me. His presence together with his holy ones the great saints, sustained me then and still do now.
I could go on. As I said at the beginning, for you the end is nigh. But it really is not the end, it is just another step, another part of your journey. There is so much more ahead, so much more to experience and to live.
God our Father,
teach us to cherish the gifts that surround us.
Increase our faith in you
and bring our trust to its promised fulfilment
in the joy of your kingdom
where you live for ever and ever. Amen