The Italianate tower of the Friary seen from High Street through the houses of Mary Street (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Patrick Comerford
I am putting the finishing touches to tomorrow’s sermons in Saint Mary’s Church, Askeaton, and Saint Brendan’s Church, Tarbert. But, before the day begins, I am taking a little time this morning for prayer, reflection and reading.
Each morning in the time in the Church Calendar known as Ordinary Time, I am reflecting in these ways:
1, photographs of a church or place of worship;
2, the day’s Gospel reading;
3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary.
My theme for these few weeks is churches in the Franciscan (and Capuchin) tradition. My photographs this morning (16 October 2021) are from the Franciscan Friary in Wexford.
The striking interior of the Friary Church with its exquisite stucco work and panelled ceiling (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
For some years in 1970s, I lived in School Street and then in High Street, Wexford, just a ‘stone’s throw’ from the Franciscan Friday. Before that, generations of Comerfords were baptised in the Friary church in the 18th and 19th centuries when they lived in John Street and the neighbourhood.
The Franciscan Friars have been an intrinsic part of life in Wexford town for almost eight centuries. They first arrived in Wexford in 1230 or 1240, when a friary was founded by William Marshall and they have been present in the town ever since.
The Franciscans survived throughout the ages through the collection of alms, and donations from the townspeople of Wexford. Their friary was suppressed at the Reformation, the friars were expelled in 1540, and stones of the old friary were used to repair Wexford Castle in 1560.
But the friars remained in Wexford, and in the early 17th century were renting a house in Archer's Lane, off High Street, on the site of the present Opera House, and opposite the house I once lived in on High Street.
In 1649, Father Raymond Stafford, a Franciscan was killed in the Bull Ring as he pleaded with Cromwell’s soldiers to stop the slaughter of the people of the town. Six other friars – Richard Sinnott, John Esmonde, Paulinus Sinnott, Peter Stafford, James Rochford and the blind Didacus Cheevers – died at the altar in their church as they led the people in prayer before the onslaught of the Puritans.
Local lore says a shot fired at a crucifix held up by Father Raymond Stafford in the Bull Ring was deflected and killed a Cromwellian captain. There are also tales that other shots failed to penetrate the habits of some of the Friars.
Despite the sacking of Wexford, some Franciscans remained in the community incognito. At Easter 1654, four Franciscans were captured and hanged near Wexford Friary. In 1658, a Franciscan Guardian was re-appointed in Wexford, and with the restoration of King Charles II in 1660 the Franciscans were free to come out of hiding.
By 1690, the Franciscans had returned to the site of their original friary, renting it at a nominal rent until they were able to purchase the site where School Street meets John Street. An 18th century member of the Franciscan community in Co Wexford was Father James Comerford, who was parish priest of Tagoat and Rosslare from 1709 to 1734.
The present church is largely an 18th century building, when extensive renovation work took place, although two of the walls date from pre-Cromwellian times. The church is architecturally striking with its exquisite stucco work decorating the panelled ceiling, on which the brothers Richard, Robert and James Comerford worked in the early 19th century.
The grounds of the church hosted huge Temperance rallies addressed by Father Theobald Mathew in the 1840s.
Before the Twin Churches were built in Wexford in 1851-1858, the Friary Church also served as the parish church in the town.
The Franciscans led the way in terms of ecumenism in Wexford town, and during major renovations of the Friary Church in the 1980s, they accepted the friendship and hospitality offered by the Church of Ireland parish, and celebrated their Masses in Saint Iberius’s Church.
In 2007, the Franciscans of the Order of the Friars Minor (OFM or brown friars) left the Friary, and the Franciscan presence in Wexford is now maintained by the Conventual Franciscans or grey friars.
The tomb of Canon John Corrin in Wexford Friary was designed by AWN Pugin (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Luke 12: 8-12 (NRSVA):
[Jesus said:] 8 ‘And I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before others, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God; 9 but whoever denies me before others will be denied before the angels of God. 10 And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven; but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. 11 When they bring you before the synagogues, the rulers, and the authorities, do not worry about how you are to defend yourselves or what you are to say; 12 for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that very hour what you ought to say.’
The reliquary of Saint Adjutor in the Franciscan Friary Church in Wexford (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
The Prayer in the USPG Prayer Diary today (16 October 2021, World Food Day) invites us to pray:
Let us pray for a more equal distribution of food across the world, ensuring that all have enough food to eat. May we remember those suffering from malnutrition and starvation.
Yesterday’s reflection
Continued tomorrow
The spire of Rowe Street church glimpsed through a window in the Friary church (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org
The Franciscan Friary in Wexford Town and John Street, seen from the gates of Rowe Street Church (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
16 October 2021
Lessons in Saint Chad’s Church, Lichfield,
from the life of Saint Teresa of Avila
Saint Chad’s Church, Lichfield, and Stowe Pool … lessons this week on the life of Saint Teresa of Avila (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2021)
Patrick Comerford
Today is the Feast of Saint Teresa of Avila (15 October), the great Carmelite mystic and a Doctor of the Church.
During my visit to Saint Chad’s Church in Lichfield this week, I picked up the parish weekly magazine, which has chosen Saint Teresa as the ‘Saint of the Week’, and summarises some of her key teachings in this way:
1. Prayer
One of the key hallmarks of the spiritual heights of Saint Teresa of Avila is the importance of prayer. Even though she struggled for many years, she teaches us this basic but indispensable spiritual truth – Perseverance in prayer! Meditate on her immortal words of wisdom and memorise: ‘We must have a determined determination to never give up prayer.’
Jesus taught us the supremely important truth in the Parable of the Persistent Widow and the Judge. The widow, due to her dogged and tenacious insistence, finally gained the assistance of this cold-hearted judge (Luke 18: 1-8). Saint Teresa insists that we must never give up in prayer. If you like an analogy: what air is to the lungs so is prayer to the soul. Healthy lungs need constant and pure air; a healthy soul must constantly be breathing through prayer – the oxygen of the soul.
2. Definition of Prayer
Saint Thomas Aquinas gives us simple but very solid advice: define your topic before you start to talk about it. By doing this you can avoid much confusion. Saint Teresa of Avila gives us one of the classical definitions of prayer: ‘Prayer is nothing more than spending a long time alone with the one I know loves me.’
A short summary? Two friends love each other! Jesus himself called the Apostles friends – so are you called to be a friend with Jesus!
3. Love for Jesus, and his sufferings
Saint Teresa gives us a hint to prayer growth – meditating upon the humanity of Jesus. Spending time Jesus, the Son of God made man and entering into colloquy with him is a sure path to growth in prayer. Try it!
Saint Ignatius of Loyola, in the Spiritual Exercises, insists on us begging for this grace: ‘Intimate knowledge of Jesus that we love him more ardently and follow him more closely.’
4. Holy Spirit: The Divine Teacher in Prayer
On one occasion, the saint was really struggling with prayer and she talked to a Jesuit priest for advice on overcoming her struggle. His advice was simple and to the point, but changed her life! The priest insisted on praying to the Holy Spirit. From that point on, following this great advice to rely on the Holy Spirit, Teresa’s prayer life improved markedly.
Saint Paul to the Romans reiterates the same point: ‘In the same way, the Spirit too comes to the aid of our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit itself intercedes with inexpressible groanings’ (Romans 8: 26). Let us be led by the best of all teachers, the Interior Master of prayer, the Holy Spirit.
5. Spiritual Direction.
To attain constant growth in the spiritual life, we must have some form of spiritual direction. Spiritual blindness, we all experience. The devil can disguise or camouflage as an angel of light. And the higher we climb in the spiritual life the more subtle are the tactics and seductions of the devil – ‘who is searching for us a roaring lion ready to devour us’ (I Peter 5: 8-9).
Saint John of the Cross put it bluntly: ‘He who has himself as guide has an idiot as a disciple.’
6. Spiritual Masterpieces – Her Writings
Without doubt, one of the major contributions to the Church as well as to the world at large are the writings or spiritual masterpieces of Saint Teresa of Avila. One of her basic themes is that of the importance of prayer, and striving to grow deeper and deeper in prayer until one arrives at the Mystical Union of the spouse with Jesus the Heavenly Spouse.
Anybody who takes his or her prayer life seriously should know of Teresa’s writings and spend some time in reading some of her anointed writings. What are her classics? Here they are: Her Life, The Way of Perfection, The Interior Castle, Foundations. In addition to these texts/books, she also wrote many inspiring letters. Want to become a saint? Read and drink from the writings of the saints, especially the Doctors of the Church!
7. The Cross as the Bridge to Heaven
Jesus said, ‘Anyone who wants to be my follower must deny himself, take up his cross and follow me.’ Another common denominator in the lives of the saints is the reality of the cross. Saint Louis de Montfort would bless his friends as such: ‘May God bless you and give you many small crosses.’
Saint Teresa lived with a constant friend – the cross of Jesus. Her health was always very fragile; she almost died while very young. Furthermore, for Saint Teresa of Avila to carry out the Reforms of the Carmelite order, she suffered constant attacks and persecutions from many nuns in the convent who preferred a more comfortable lifestyle, from priests (Carmelites) and from other ecclesiastics. Instead of becoming discouraged and losing heart, she joyfully trusted in the Lord all the more – anyway, it was his doing.
In conclusion, may the great woman Doctor of the Church – the Doctor of prayer – Saint Teresa of Avila, be a constant inspiration to you in your own spiritual pilgrimage to heaven. May she encourage you to pray more and with great depth, arrive at deeper conversion of heart, and finally love Jesus as the very centre and well-spring of your life!
The three spires of Lichfield Cathedral and Stowe Pool seen from Saint Chad’s Church, Lichfield, this week (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2021)
Patrick Comerford
Today is the Feast of Saint Teresa of Avila (15 October), the great Carmelite mystic and a Doctor of the Church.
During my visit to Saint Chad’s Church in Lichfield this week, I picked up the parish weekly magazine, which has chosen Saint Teresa as the ‘Saint of the Week’, and summarises some of her key teachings in this way:
1. Prayer
One of the key hallmarks of the spiritual heights of Saint Teresa of Avila is the importance of prayer. Even though she struggled for many years, she teaches us this basic but indispensable spiritual truth – Perseverance in prayer! Meditate on her immortal words of wisdom and memorise: ‘We must have a determined determination to never give up prayer.’
Jesus taught us the supremely important truth in the Parable of the Persistent Widow and the Judge. The widow, due to her dogged and tenacious insistence, finally gained the assistance of this cold-hearted judge (Luke 18: 1-8). Saint Teresa insists that we must never give up in prayer. If you like an analogy: what air is to the lungs so is prayer to the soul. Healthy lungs need constant and pure air; a healthy soul must constantly be breathing through prayer – the oxygen of the soul.
2. Definition of Prayer
Saint Thomas Aquinas gives us simple but very solid advice: define your topic before you start to talk about it. By doing this you can avoid much confusion. Saint Teresa of Avila gives us one of the classical definitions of prayer: ‘Prayer is nothing more than spending a long time alone with the one I know loves me.’
A short summary? Two friends love each other! Jesus himself called the Apostles friends – so are you called to be a friend with Jesus!
3. Love for Jesus, and his sufferings
Saint Teresa gives us a hint to prayer growth – meditating upon the humanity of Jesus. Spending time Jesus, the Son of God made man and entering into colloquy with him is a sure path to growth in prayer. Try it!
Saint Ignatius of Loyola, in the Spiritual Exercises, insists on us begging for this grace: ‘Intimate knowledge of Jesus that we love him more ardently and follow him more closely.’
4. Holy Spirit: The Divine Teacher in Prayer
On one occasion, the saint was really struggling with prayer and she talked to a Jesuit priest for advice on overcoming her struggle. His advice was simple and to the point, but changed her life! The priest insisted on praying to the Holy Spirit. From that point on, following this great advice to rely on the Holy Spirit, Teresa’s prayer life improved markedly.
Saint Paul to the Romans reiterates the same point: ‘In the same way, the Spirit too comes to the aid of our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit itself intercedes with inexpressible groanings’ (Romans 8: 26). Let us be led by the best of all teachers, the Interior Master of prayer, the Holy Spirit.
5. Spiritual Direction.
To attain constant growth in the spiritual life, we must have some form of spiritual direction. Spiritual blindness, we all experience. The devil can disguise or camouflage as an angel of light. And the higher we climb in the spiritual life the more subtle are the tactics and seductions of the devil – ‘who is searching for us a roaring lion ready to devour us’ (I Peter 5: 8-9).
Saint John of the Cross put it bluntly: ‘He who has himself as guide has an idiot as a disciple.’
6. Spiritual Masterpieces – Her Writings
Without doubt, one of the major contributions to the Church as well as to the world at large are the writings or spiritual masterpieces of Saint Teresa of Avila. One of her basic themes is that of the importance of prayer, and striving to grow deeper and deeper in prayer until one arrives at the Mystical Union of the spouse with Jesus the Heavenly Spouse.
Anybody who takes his or her prayer life seriously should know of Teresa’s writings and spend some time in reading some of her anointed writings. What are her classics? Here they are: Her Life, The Way of Perfection, The Interior Castle, Foundations. In addition to these texts/books, she also wrote many inspiring letters. Want to become a saint? Read and drink from the writings of the saints, especially the Doctors of the Church!
7. The Cross as the Bridge to Heaven
Jesus said, ‘Anyone who wants to be my follower must deny himself, take up his cross and follow me.’ Another common denominator in the lives of the saints is the reality of the cross. Saint Louis de Montfort would bless his friends as such: ‘May God bless you and give you many small crosses.’
Saint Teresa lived with a constant friend – the cross of Jesus. Her health was always very fragile; she almost died while very young. Furthermore, for Saint Teresa of Avila to carry out the Reforms of the Carmelite order, she suffered constant attacks and persecutions from many nuns in the convent who preferred a more comfortable lifestyle, from priests (Carmelites) and from other ecclesiastics. Instead of becoming discouraged and losing heart, she joyfully trusted in the Lord all the more – anyway, it was his doing.
In conclusion, may the great woman Doctor of the Church – the Doctor of prayer – Saint Teresa of Avila, be a constant inspiration to you in your own spiritual pilgrimage to heaven. May she encourage you to pray more and with great depth, arrive at deeper conversion of heart, and finally love Jesus as the very centre and well-spring of your life!
The three spires of Lichfield Cathedral and Stowe Pool seen from Saint Chad’s Church, Lichfield, this week (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2021)
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