Ephphatha - Be Opened
The UnDeceiving, (Part Three)
Hello my friends – I’m travelling back wide eyed and seaweed strewn across the belly of Ireland from a startling journey into the isle of Inis Oirr. Just extraordinary, there will be much soon on that. I’m writing to you in a Galway hotel room readjusting to things like wifi and people trying to make your bed every five minutes. It hasn’t been at all like that. Not in any shape or form.
On the island I was. Ten days in regular-type time. But these were strayed-days; a flinty, yellowed type of time – stretched out for a year or three.
See where it leads you, they said. That was the only plan. Quite the Wild Liturgy was coming.
Day Eight
And for today: here is part three in my UnDeceiving series. Also here’s a long form interview with Justin Brierly and Belle Tindall just out this week. I really enjoyed my time with both of them. You will likely know much of this story already, but it was a reviving not repetitious experience. All sorts of other things are discussed.
EPHPHATHA - BE OPENED: The UnDeceiving, (Part Three)
Paddy & Martin, 2004
Restore Your Presence
We encounter God by encountering his earth: in people, conversations, in roads travelled and untravelled. We encounter God in noble little sausage dogs and sitting wearily on the late night Tube, by moments of pluck and generosity, but also times of shifting our eyes away from the Jesus who’s dwelling in the tramp by the doors of the supermarket. I understand we have to discern what we do and don’t focus on – we’d go bonkers otherwise – but it’s not as if we aren’t surrounded by poignancy and religious disclosure. It’s not like it all suddenly went away.
God has not withdrawn his presence. Maybe we have.