The Ninth Station: Jesus falls the third time

Br Samuel Burke OP sees the third fall of Jesus as a cause for sorrow, which can turn to repentance as we open ourselves to receive forgiveness.

Br Samuel will lead the Stations this evening at 5.15pm in the church at Blackfriars, Oxford. 

All welcome.

Dominican Spirituality talks at St Giles' church

Over the last term, the Anglican church of St Giles, just an Aerobie's throw from Blackfriars, put on a series of talks on Dominican Spirituality, given mostly by members of the Blackfriars community. Although the series has come to an end, we are grateful that all the talks were video-recorded and are pleased to share them with you below.

Fra Angelico: An Illustrated Talk

Dr Nicholas Gendle

St Dominic and the Spirituality of Preaching

Fr Simon Gaine OP

The Spirituality of Dominican Government

Fr Timothy Radcliffe OP

St Thomas Aquinas: God as the Ground of Being

Fr Peter Hunter OP

St Catherine of Siena: Compassion and Mysticism

Fr Robert Ombres OP

Meister Eckhart

Fr Carsten Barwasser OP

St Thomas Aquinas: The Gifts of the Holy Spirit, especially Wisdom

Fr Richard Conrad OP

To see the original poster with the same list of talks and links to the videos, click here.

Eighth Station: Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem

Br Luke Doherty OP reflects on the meeting of Jesus with the women of Jerusalem, who should be weeping for themselves and their children.

Br Luke will lead the Stations this evening at 5.15pm in the church at Blackfriars, Oxford. 

All welcome.

Fourth Station of the Cross: Jesus meets his Mother

Br Paweł Szylak OP meditates on how the Virgin Mary's faithful "fiat" before the birth of Jesus 

now reaches its climax as she follows her son to the Cross.

Br Paweł will lead the Stations this evening at 5.15pm in the church at Blackfriars, Oxford. 

All welcome.

God Matters: Role of the Virgin Mary

Fr. Richard Conrad OP continued our "God Matters" series last Tuesday with a talk on, "The role of the Virgin Mary". As on previous occasions, Godzdogz feature the video of the talk, below:

Fr. Richard uses art to explore Our Lady's role and there is a very comprehensive handout, which can be downloaded by clicking here: "Handout".

Tomorrow sees the final event in this year's series. There will be a panel of this year's speakers to answers questions and draw together recurring themes over the course of the talks. As before, all are welcome to come and participate at Blackfriars Priory Church at 8pm. Bring a friend or three!

Pray Compline online!

Compline for Sundays III-VI in Lent from godzdogz on Vimeo.

Two years ago, we uploaded this audio recording of Compline for Sundays III-VI in Lent.

The video provides the full text, so that you can follow and pray this beautiful Night Office over the last Sundays in Lent.

It's the perfect way to end the old week and start the new.

First Station of the Cross: Jesus is condemned to death

The Dominican student brothers will be leading the Stations of the Cross every Friday in Lent (except Good Friday) at 5.15pm in the Priory church at Blackfriars, Oxford.

A brother will offer a reflection on one of the stations along the way. For those who cannot join us in person, we will share the video recording of each reflection here on Godzdogz.

For the first station, Br Toby Lees OP talks about training oneself in virtue, so that we might be ready for heroism when the moment of trial comes.

God Matters: "Sex, Marriage and that sort of thing”

On Tuesday, Fr. Peter Hunter OP, gave a talk entitled "Sex, Marriage and that sort of thing” as part of our "God Matters?" series. The talk followed our usual format: talk, coffee, then questions (not recorded).



Tomorrow (Tuesday 11th March) Fr. Richard Conrad OP will speak on the Blessed Virgin Mary at 8pm at Blackfriars, Oxford.  Please do come if you can and bring a friend or three! If you can't get to Oxford, as on previous occasions, we will continue to post the video of the talk here on Godzdogz.

First Sunday of Lent: Testing or trusting God?

Tonight, at Mass & Vespers in Oxford, the Blackfriars schola will sing 'Ne irascaris, Domine' by Byrd. The motet has been pre-recorded specially for Godzdogz. 

Every year, on the First Sunday of Lent, we hear the account of Jesus being tempted in the desert.  This time, it's from the Gospel according to St Matthew, and the passage is probably very familiar to you. But the temptations might seem a bit odd and even disconnected from our own daily lives. Who among us is really tempted to turn stones into bread, to jump off large religious buildings, or to conquer the world? Well, sometimes conquering the world does sound like an attractive idea! But under the cold light of day, such dramatic notions are alien to us. They must have deeper levels of meaning, and you can explore them in many places, including previous posts on this blog!

But there is another strange and striking aspect that suggests we need to find a deeper meaning: I mean, the shortness of the dialogue between Jesus and the Devil. We hear Jesus quote Scripture, but no further explanation is given. For example, in overcoming the second temptation, which is to throw himself from the top of the Temple and experience a miraculous rescue, Jesus replies that one must not put God to the test. 

I can easily understand why we shouldn't be testing God all the time, as this would suggest an immaturity of faith and a deep insecurity on our part. But don't we have good reasons to test God some of the time, especially when we feel we are the ones being tested by the difficult struggles in our lives? What I mean is, when life is putting us to the test, isn't it legitimate to ask God for help, to tell God to share some of our struggle with us, and so to put God to the test in return? After all, we are supposed to ask God for things, even small daily necessities. 'Ask and you shall receive.' Why didn't Jesus ask for bread in the desert (or, since he is God, just create bread on the spot)? Why didn't he ask his Father to provide him with his 'daily bread', as we do in the prayer that Jesus himself taught us?

You may have noticed that I've transposed the command about testing God from the second temptation (jumping off the Temple) to the first temptation (making bread). But I have good Scriptural reasons for doing so, and I think we should explore the underlying unity between the three replies given by Our Lord.

To find this unity we have to delve into the Old Testament. In the episode immediately following the Temptation in Matthew's gospel, Jesus will preach to the crowds the Sermon on the Mount, where he is revealed to be a new Moses. Indeed, he is the divine Lawgiver. And this fact has already been shown in the desert, where the parallels with Moses are clear. Moses had fasted forty days and forty nights on the mountain of the Lord, just before receiving the Ten Commandments, or 'ten words' (Ex. 24:18, 34:28). Jesus, the new Moses, is undergoing his own period of fasting and trial, before going to the people of Israel to preach the words of God. Here in the desert, he reveals his mastery of the Word of God, because he is that Word, he himself is the fullest revelation of God.

Poussin, Moses striking water from the rock

 In his second reply, Jesus says, 'Again it is written, "You shall not tempt the Lord your God."' (Mt 4:7) He is quoting from the Torah: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test as you did at Massah.' (Dt 6:16) And why is Massah cited as the archetypal place of testing and disobedience? We need to look at that passage in Exodus (17:2) to find the answer: 'they quarreled with Moses and said, "Give us water to drink." Moses replied, "Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you put the Lord to the test?"' This immediately follows the episode of the manna and quails in the desert, when the people grumbled against Moses and against God, demanding to be fed. And God provided a feast in the desert. So God sometimes provides despite our putting him to the test.

There is an historical Psalm which summarises this whole episode very well:

Yet they sinned still more against him,
 

rebelling against the Most High in the desert.

They tested God in their heart
 

by demanding the food they craved.

They spoke against God, saying,
 

"Can God spread a table in the wilderness?

He smote the rock so that water gushed out


and streams overflowed.


Can he also give bread,
 

or provide meat for his people?"

(Ps 78:17-20)

 And here is the odd thing: are we being told that asking for daily food was an offence against God? That can't be quite right, since Jesus tells us to pray, ‘Give us today our daily bread’ (Mt 6:11). Moreover, Scripture tells us that God provides ‘bread to strengthen man’s heart’ (Ps 104:15), and that ‘every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights’ (Jas 1:17).

The answer is provided when we look behind Jesus' first reply in today's gospel. In refusing to create bread, he refers to another passage in Deuteronomy (8:3), which teaches total reliance on God alone, explicitly in the context of asking for daily bread. 'He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.'

Poussin, The Jews gathering the Manna in the Desert

And here we see the link with Jesus' third reply, too. Total reliance on God alone means trusting him as the Author of Life, who in his Providence cares for us with an infinite love. Jesus tells the Devil, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’ (Mt 4:10) We must love and serve God wholeheartedly. We must trust him, not test him.

This is not an option. It is absolutely required by the commandment to love God and serve him alone. The command not to put God to the test, which we read a moment ago, actually comes in Deuteronomy, chapter 6, in the context of what Jesus would later tell us is the greatest commandment of all, that is, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.’ (Dt 6:5, cf. Mt 22:37)

In putting love at the centre, we see that Jesus' three replies to the Devil are a seamless whole. They are underpinned by the same logic. We can and should ask our daily bread from God. Our request is not a test but an act of trust. It is an act of love. And this means that we have to accept those times when we don't get everything we want. There is a time for feasting and a time for fasting. In his own fast, Jesus shows us how to trust the Father. And that is exactly what Lent is about.

God Matters: The Role of Women in the Church

On Tuesday evening, Blackfriars, Oxford continued its series of talks, "God Matters? Tricky Teachings and Difficult Doctrines". Sr. Ann-Catherine Swailes OP spoke on The Role of Women in the Church. As on previous occasions, the talk was very well attended! The talk was followed by tea and coffee, after which, the speaker and audience returned for questions (not recorded).

God Matters? talks and discussions continue on Tuesdays, 8pm, at Blackfriars, Oxford.  Please do come if you can and bring a friend or three! And if you can't get to Oxford, we will continue to post videos of them on Godzdogz.  The next talk is this Tuesday, 4th March under the title Sex, Marriage and That Sort of Thing.  

God Matters: The Beginning and End of Life

If you missed the second talk in the present series, God Matters? Tricky Teachings and Difficult Doctrines, you can catch up by clicking on the video below.
Bioethicist, Fr Robert Gay OP, spoke on The Beginning and End of Life. The talk was followed by refreshments and a Q&A session, which were not recorded, in order to encourage a free-flowing discussion.

Watch this space for future videos. The talks and discussions continue on Tuesdays, 8pm, at Blackfriars, Oxford. 

The next talk is this Tuesday, 25th February: Sr Ann Catherine Swailes OP, a Dominican sister and Assistant Chaplain at the University of Cambridge, will speak on The Role of Women in the Church. Come along, bring a friend, and join the discussion!

God Matters: Heaven, Hell & Purgatory

We are delighted to share with you the first of the talks in the present series, God Matters? Tricky Teachings and Difficult Doctrines.

Here, Fr Richard Ounsworth OP, speaks about Life After Death: Heaven, Hell & Purgatory. The talk was followed by refreshments and a Q&A session, which were not recorded, in order to encourage a free-flowing discussion.

Watch this space for future videos. The talks and discussions continue on Tuesdays, 8pm, at Blackfriars, Oxford. 

The next talk is this Tuesday, 25th February: Sr Ann Catherine Swailes OP, a Dominican sister and Assistant Chaplain at the University of Cambridge, will speak on The Role of Women in the Church. Come along, bring a friend, and join the discussion!

Fra Angelico: an illustrated talk

Today is the feast of Blessed John of Fiesole OP, better known as Fra Angelico. This Dominican friar and painter lived in 14th-century Italy and his works are easily among the most beautiful creations of the early Renaissance. As one would expect of a friar preacher, they are also theologically profound.

Recently, Dr Nicholas Gendle gave an illustrated talk on Fra Angelico, at the medieval church of St Giles just a stone's throw from Blackfriars, Oxford. You can watch it here:

That talk is part of a series, hosted by the parish of St Giles, entitled Dominican Spirituality: to learn Christ's truth and pass it on. The talks are held on Thursday lunchtimes, 12.30pm, in St Giles' Parish Rooms. The remaining talks are:

20 February - St Catherine of Siena: Compassion and Mysticism (Fr Robert Ombres OP)
27 February - Meister Eckhart (Fr Carsten Barwasser OP)
6 March - St Thomas Aquinas: The Gifts of the Holy Spirit, especially Wisdom (Fr Richard Conrad OP)

Finally, on 13 March, 12.30pm, there will be a tour of the Dominican Priory and Church, Blackfriars, and Midday Prayer with the friars, led by the Prior, Fr John O’Connor OP,.

If you would like to see any of the past talks, you can find the links to the videos here. At the end of the series, we will post a full list for easy access.

Blessed Fra Angelico, pray for us.

The Annunciation, by Fra Angelico OP

Why give it all up for God?

Channel 4 has a daily 90-second programme in which individuals are invited to contribute their “take” on various religious and moral questions. This week’s theme is Why give it all up for God?, and Br Nicholas Crowe, one of the Godzdogz team, is among the contributors:

Click on the picture to watch the video.

The Paschal Triduum – Celebration of the Lord's Passion

On the afternoon of Good Friday, recalling the time of day when, so the Scriptures tell us, Jesus died on the Cross, the Church gathers to commemorate that climactic moment in the history of our salvation. As we heard in the homily this afternoon at Blackfriars (a recording of which you can hear below) we are confronted with the shocking truth that God has died for us. We venerate the Cross as a sign that we recognise, in this instrument of humiliating suffering, Jesus' triumph - quite literally, his exaltation, as he had hinted several times in the course of his ministry (cf. John 8:28, 12:32).

Good Friday is also a day when the Church makes solemn intercession for the whole world: we see in Jesus' death that event which puts the whole of human history - indeed, the whole history of creation - in its true perspective, and so we pray on this day for all people, and especially those in need, that they too may come to see the transformation which Christ wrought upon the Cross.

With this in mind, our "highlights" from today's liturgy include the veneration of the Cross, when the deacon, in three stages, unveils the crucifix he carries into the church and invites the congregation to worship the Saviour of the world who hung upon it, but also a recording of the praying of the Our Father, in which we hope our readers and listeners will be able to join us in our prayer for the Church and the world.

In addition, the celebrant of today's liturgy, Fr Simon Gaine OP, has agreed to let us publish a recording of the sermon he preached this afternoon, which says much better than has been possible in a few words here something of the huge significance of what we celebrate today:

The Paschal Triduum – Tenebrae

As well as its three liturgical high points - the Mass of the Lord's Supper, the Liturgy of the Passion, and the Easter Vigil - these three days of the Triduum building up to Easter also see the continuation of the regular round of daily prayers which we call the Divine Office (or Liturgy of the Hours). The public celebration of the Office punctuates the days of monastic and religious communities such as Blackfriars, and during the Triduum it takes a special form - stark, austere, capturing something of the horror of Christ's suffering, and our response to it. During these days, the morning offices of Matins and Lauds are celebrated together and called Tenebrae (which means 'darkness' in Latin): no lights are used other than the altar candles and a special candlestick, on which the candles are gradually extinguished as the office progresses (though for the sake of those who wish to join us for its celebration, it's not as dark outside as it could be!).

This office gives us a chance to explore, especially in the psalms which form the heart of the Divine Office, but also in the readings and the meditative responsories sung after them, the truths of a Passion not so much in the dramatic form of the chief liturgies, but in a more reflective way. Below is a recording of one of the responsories sung in Blackfriars this morning, accompanied by images of the celebration of Tenebrae, as well as illustrations of the themes of the text:

In English translation, the text being sung, based on Matthew 26: 57-58,  is as follows:

The wicked man handed Jesus over to the chief priests and elders of the people: Peter, for his part, followed from a distance to see how this would end. And Peter entered the courtyard of the high priest: to see how this would end.

Why pray to God?

Br Andrew Brookes, one of the Dominicans students (and thus contributors to Godzdogz) at Blackfriars, Oxford, concludes the priory's God Matters? series of talks by offering an exploration of the spirituality of atheists, agnostics, and Christians in a talk entitled 'Why pray to God?'

Stations of the Cross: Simon of Cyrene carries the Cross

Br. Matthew Jarvis offers a reflection on the Fifth Station of the Cross, specially recorded for Godzdogz this Lent 2013:

Does God hate sex?

Fr Timothy Radcliffe OP, who from 1992-2001 served as the 84th Successor of St Dominic as Master of the Order, continues the series of talks given by Oxford-based Dominicans by reflecting on the Catholic vision for human sexuality:

Is Jesus God?

Fr Richard Ounsworth, the editor-in-chief of Godzodgz, continues our 'God Matters?' series by asking whether Jesus is really God: