There was snow in many parts of Ireland last Friday, including on top of Ben Bulben in Sligo. This beautiful photo was taken by my sister Kathryn McSweeney Mooney
On This Day
On March 3rd 1939 Mahatma Gandhi began a fast in Mumbai (Bombay) to protest against autocratic rule in India
On March 3rd 2020 The UK had its wettest February since records began in 1862. Aaccording to the Met Office, 209.1mm of rainfall fell during the month which was 237% above average.
Birthday’s Today🎂
Ronan Keating (Singer) is 47
Jessica Biel (Actress) is 52
Brian Kerr (Irish S0ccer Pundit) is 71
Saint For Today
Significance Of Today
Today is World Wildlife Day. We human beings sometimes forget that we are far outnumbered by other living things, from animals and plants to fungi and bacteria. Wildlife isn’t just something that we passively observe; it’s part of our world, and something we need to care for. World Wildlife Day is your chance to celebrate all wildlife, from the smallest insect to bumblebees, to butterflies to dolphins. It is so important that we appreciated the beauty of wildlife all around us and how we have a duty to protect it too.
Interesting Quote for Today
“The shoe that fits one person pinches another; there is no recipe for living that suits all.” ~ Carl Jung
Did You Know😇
Did you know that raspberries are actually a member of the rose family. So are apples, pears, and plums.
Video for the Week🎥🎥
To mark our Leap Year, I have put together the following new video
The next video will be uploaded on Tuesday evening at 7pm (Irish Time) and it is called ‘Prayer to the Holy Spirit’ to coincide with all those making confirmation in so many of our parishes at this time.
Thought For The Week
We had a Lenten Talk/Prayer Service in Carrigaline last Thursday evening and it was led by Fr. Philip Mulryne O.P who is currently working in St. Mary’s Priory here in Cork. I was very touched by Fr. Philip’s talk and his story is impressive to say the least.
I am a big sports fan myself and that includes football. Since I was a child, I have followed West Ham United and I sometimes say: “Now you know why I am bald!!”. But no matter what team you followed, Man Utd under Alex Ferguson, were a powerful team with massive momentum and simply won everything all around them.
In his talk Fr. Philip talked about his dream coming true of playing for Manchester United. Alex Ferguson was his boss. He was in the same dressing room as Roy Keane, Scholes, Giggs, Schmeichel, Neville and all those great players.
As Man Utd was so competitive because of such great players, Philip wanted more game time and so he signed for Norwich City, where he was a key player in helping them to promotion up to the Premiership. But while Philip had everything, he wasn’t happy deep down. He had so much money he could buy a car and change it in two weeks if he didn’t like it.
But he talked about this restlessness that just wouldn’t go away. At a key time in his life at the age of 29 he took a break from Norwich City, came back home to Belfast, found his faith and the restlessness melted away bit by bit.
He kept searching and nourishing his faith and he went on to become a Dominican priest. Philip’s story can touch ours too. Our lives are restless until we connect with God. Once we connect with the spiritual, in whatever way works for us, the restlessness begins to melt away. This is the invitation of Lent too, to turn to God, to be open to something spiritual and to be open to something positive and good.
Does the melting away of the restlessness happen in a day or two? Of course not. But over time it most certainly does. The journey of Lent is such a lovely time to be open to the spiritual and see what happens.
(Thought For The Week is updated each Monday)
