Photo was taken near Rochestown on the Greenway walk, Cork (Irl
A full moon cast lovely reflective light over Lough Mahon
On This Day
On December 14th 1287 in Northwest Netherlands the Zuiderzee seawall collapses with loss of over 50,000 lives. It was the fifth largest recorded flood in history
On December 14th 2021 the American Covid-19 death toll passes 800,000, with more deaths recorded in 2021 than 2020
Birthdays Today
Stephen Donnelly (Irish Health Minister) is 47
Beth Orton (Singer) is 52
Mike Scott (Singer/Songwriter with the Waterboys) is 64
Saint For Today
Today Dec 14th is the feastday 0f Saint John of the Cross who was a 16th century Spanish theologian and mystic. Together with Saint Teresa, he reformed the Carmelite Order. He was proclaimed Doctor of the Church by Pope Pius XI in 1926 and is nicknamed the “Mystic Doctor”.
Significance Of Today
December continues to be Human Rights Month. Throughout history there has been so much blatant violation of the rights of people. Whether that was based on the colour of one’s skin, their nationality, religion, or merely being unfortunate enough to be living under the regime of another country, people have regularly been treated really badly. Universal Human Rights Month is here to remind us of that day in 1948 when the United Nations General Assembly codified the basic human rights of every individual on the planet.
Interesting Quote For Today
“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.” –Benjamin Franklin
Did You Know
Did you know when Mary Stuart was just six days old, she became the Queen of Scotland
Thought For The Week
“The taste of true joy is a joy that touches our innermost being. It is heartfelt joy, the joy which leads us forth and gives us courage.” ~Pope Francis
Last Sunday we celebrated ‘Joyful Sunday’ and the third candle of the Advent wreath was lit. The third candle is pink and it is meant to stand out. In many churches at the weekend there was an emphasis put on celebrating good news.
On this day no apologies are made for highlighting our good news stories. It is crucial and important that we do. We have a natural tendency to lean towards negative and sad stories. 2022 has been a challenging year. Just when we were leaving the negativity of Covid behind us, along came the war in Ukraine, soaring energy prices and a big increase in the prices of everything we buy. Many families are feeling the financial pressure of Christmas and lots of bills to pay. So it seems that good news is scarce around us.
But this should never stop us from putting the spotlight on good news. We all need to hear good news, we need to nurture good news and importantly we need to celebrate good news. We need to bring the balance back in. That is why ‘Joyful Sunday’ is one of those days that is so important. There are good news stories all around us but they often get squashed and pushed to one side. These good news stories do not have to make the headlines. It is often the small and insignificant good news stories that really are the best of all.
Christmas can be many different things to people including lots of spiritual significance. Christmas can rightly be called a ‘Celebration of Good News’ but especially a celebration of your good news. The message of ‘Joyful Sunday’ is that you are special and always worth celebrating. If we cannot do that, then there is no point having Christmas. Christmas celebrates you and celebrates the something special you bring to each day.
The Thought For The Week is updated each Monday
