Friday Thought with Fr Chris Ferguson - A Transformation

You think you know someone; not really, only when you have endured lockdown in the same house, do you more fully appreciate your family, friends or housemates although, the reality of being an inmate, is coming to mind at this juncture. It’s as well Shawshank Redemption is one of my favourite films.

Anyone who has been to seminary to study for priesthood, or spent time being governed by a daily communal routine can readily appreciate some of the themes which arise in the prison drama. One of the great themes concerns the phenomena of becoming institutionalised. Being so governed by an institution’s routine, you no longer have to think for yourself. Worse still, you become dependent on the structure. Well, the parochial house is becoming slightly institutionalised, we’re eating at fixed times, tackling daily chores, not to mention eating the same food and dinners.

Most days, I’m to blame for the menu and setting the meal times. I could take responsibility for these worrying trends, but when there’s a Tyrone man in the house, how could you not blame him. You might have noticed, I survived the slow-cooked chicken, so much so, I’m fading away to a small mountain.

Now, that Fr Gerard has the wind behind him, I’m beginning to worry. We’ve now enjoyed slow-cooked chicken on two occasions, which I have enjoyed. The worrying factor concerns Fr Gerard’s newfound enthusiasm. Not satisfied with mastering the slow cooker, Fr Gerard now wishes to tackle the steamer. From next week on, all veg will be steamed within an inch of its life.

Suddenly, when I thought the surprises had ended, Fr Gerard has announced he wants to grow his own vegetables in the back garden of the parochial house. By the time ‘the Lockdown’ has ceased, we could all be new people or at least transformed in some manner. The possibility exists of making new discoveries about ourselves and one another. Gifts, talents, and unexpected capacities may have flourished. By a similar token, annoying habits and foibles may have become intensified, resulting in rows and arguments.

When these unusual months come to an end, we will all carry not only scares and sores but new life. There is a possibility we have become imprisoned, within the negatively of a stressful home environment, where there has been no refuge, only bitterness, infighting and fear. All our homes and households, potentially, can become places of conflict and tension. Recognising these points of strain, being aware of others and our own anxieties, can be the beginning of healing. Otherwise, we will remain locked within the closed room of our hearts, closed off from the risen power of Jesus. What locked doors do we need to unopen, to experience the Resurrection? Jesus doesn’t remain in the tomb, he conquers sin and death, and by doing so, has trailed the way before us. What we couldn’t do ourselves, due to our weakness and frailty, God’s son, by assuming our humanity, has shown us how to love as selflessly, as God loves us. In Jesus, we find the most complete human response to divine love and grace. Having offered everything he is, by his death on the cross; Jesus shows how true love, is dying to oneself.

Only by giving away all that we are, can we make space in our hearts to be transformed by the love we experience in return. The meaning of divine mercy is the constant reality of God’s love. We trust in a God who would even embrace Godforsakenness, out of a love and desire, to gather in, even the most broken and despairing, woman or man. This mercy is available at all times, what we need to do is, bring our lives, with their wounds and scars, and ask for healing. Can we open the doors of our homes and hearts, allowing God to Resurrect our all too