Daily prayer in Lent 2026: 25, Saturday 14 March 2026

The Pharisee and the Publican (Luke 18: 9-14) … a stained glass window in Saint Michael’s Church, Limerick (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Patrick Comerford

We have passed the half-way point in Lent, and tomorrow is the Fourth Sunday in Lent (Lent IV, 15 March 2026) and Mothering Sunday or Mothers’ Day.

Today is the decisive and final day in the Six Nations championship, promising wall-to-wall rugby. After an exciting weekend of rugby last weekend, I hope to find somewhere appropriate in Stony Stratford to watch today’s fixtures: Ireland v Scotland (14:10), Wales v Italy (16:40), and France v England (20:10). But, before today begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, to reflect, to pray and to read in these ways:

today begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, to reflect, to pray and to read in these ways:

1, reading today’s Gospel reading;

2, a short reflection;

3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;

4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.

An icon of the Pharisee and the Publican … who was good at praying, and who was a model for praying?

Luke 18: 9-14 (NRSVA):

9 He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt: 10 ‘Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax-collector. 11 The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, “God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax-collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.” 13 But the tax-collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!” 14 I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other; for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted.’

Today’s Reflections:

The Jesus Prayer … an image from Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Reflections:

Κύριε Ἰησοῦ Χριστέ,
Υἱὲ Θεοῦ,
ἐλέησόν με τὸν ἁμαρτωλό

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner

The Jesus Prayer, in its simplicity and clarity, is rooted in a prayer heard in this morning’s Gospel reading at the Eucharist (Luke 18: 9-14) and three other passages in Saint Luke’s Gospel:

• the cry of the ten lepers who called to him, ‘Jesus, Master, take pity on us’ (Luke 17: 13);
• the cry for mercy of the publican, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner’ (Luke 18: 14);
• the cry of the blind man at the side of the road near Jericho, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me’ (Luke 18: 38);
• the sentiments of the cry of the penitent thief on the cross (Luke 23: 42).

The parable of the Pharisee and the Publican and their prayers is an interesting way to examine our own approaches to prayer. Christ teaches his Disciples a variety of approaches to prayer, giving them examples of prayer with the Lord’s Prayer, and examples of how others pray: the Prodigal Son’s father who prays for his son every day; the persistent widow who keeps on badgering the unjust judge every day; and this morning’s Gospel reading, which presents us with two different approaches to prayer, public and private.

But perhaps we can we can be too quick to say that we are presented with one good example and one bad example.

Both the Pharisee and the Publican prays for himself. Each bares himself before God.

The Pharisee gives thanks to God. In fact, by all the current standards of and means of measuring Jewish piety, he is a good man. Consider what he tells God and us about himself.

First of all, he thanks God that he is not like other people. The Morning Prayer for Orthodox Jewish men, to this day, includes a prayer with these words: ‘Blessed art thou, O Lord our God, King of the Universe, who hast not made me a gentile, … a slave, … a woman.’

Thanking God that I am not like others is not an expression of disdain for others; it is merely another, humble way of thanking God for being made the way we are, in God’s image and likeness. The Pharisee’s prayer is not unusual.

The Pharisee then goes on to tell God that he obeys all the commandments: he prays, he fasts and he tithes – in fact, he tithes more than he has to, and perhaps also fasts more often than he has to – and he gives generously to the poor. He more than meets all the requirements laid on him by the Mosaic law, and he goes beyond that. He is a charitable, kind and faithful man.

Anyone who saw him in the Temple and heard him pray would have gone away saying he was a good man, and a spiritual man.

But, despite attending to his responsibilities towards others, the Pharisee in this parable does not pray for the needs of others, in so far as we are allowed to eavesdrop on his prayers.

But then, neither does the publican pray for the needs of others.

So neither man is condemned for not being heard to pray for the needs of the other.

What marks the prayers of the Pharisee out from the prayers of the publican is that, in his prayers, the Pharisee expresses his disdain for the needs of others.

The parable of the Pharisee and the Publican is also a reminder that at times people may think that because they have sinned they should not pray.

But the story of the Pharisee (apparently good) and the Publican (apparently bad), tells us that the Pharisee prayed easily, while the publican could not even lift his eyes to heaven. Instead, the publican smote his breast and prayed: ‘Lord, be merciful to me a sinner.’

Christ tells us it was the publican who ‘returned home justified’ not the Pharisee.

The publican wants to pray even when he feels guilty of sin.

We do not have to wait until we feel righteous, like the Pharisee, so that we can pray. Such prayer is almost useless. I know I can all too easily pray the Jesus Prayer, ‘Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me the sinner,’ and pray it all the more readily when I am feeling righteous than when I realise I am a sinner.

The error of the Pharisee is to confuse the means with the end. Acts of virtue or piety are meant to dispose our hearts towards communion with God, not turn us in on ourselves. As Metropolitan Anthony Bloom wrote: ‘From the [Pharisee] learn his works, but by no means his pride; for the work by itself means nothing and does not save.’

Religious feelings can be deceptive in the extreme. When I think I feel like praying, I may in fact be feeling ‘pious,’ and I may not be ready to pray at this stage. Instead, I may be preparing to be self-consumed and self-congratulatory about being a pious person of prayer.

John Betjeman’s most savage satire is ‘In Westminster Abbey.’ This poem is a dramatic monologue, set during the early days of World War II, in which a woman enters Westminster Abbey to pray for a moment before hurrying off to ‘a luncheon date.’ Her thoughts on bombings and war are particularly relevant in the midst of today’s wars and crises.

She is not merely a chauvinistic nationalist, but also a racist, a snob and a hypocrite who is concerned more with how the war will affect her share portfolio than anything else. Her chauvinistic nationalism leads her to pray to God ‘to bomb the Germans’ … but ‘Don’t let anyone bomb me.’

Her social and ethical lapses are a product of her spiritual state, which is a direct result of her nation’s spiritual sickness. But she lets God know prayer and her relationship with God are low down her list of priorities:

Let me take this other glove off
As the vox humana swells,
And the beauteous fields of Eden
Bask beneath the Abbey bells.
Here, where England’s statesmen lie,
Listen to a lady’s cry.

Gracious Lord, oh bomb the Germans,
Spare their women for Thy Sake,
And if that is not too easy
We will pardon Thy Mistake.
But, gracious Lord, whate’er shall be,
Don’t let anyone bomb me.

Keep our Empire undismembered
Guide our Forces by Thy Hand,
Gallant blacks from far Jamaica,
Honduras and Togoland;
Protect them Lord in all their fights,
And, even more, protect the whites.

Think of what our Nation stands for,
Books from Boots’ and country lanes,
Free speech, free passes, class distinction,
Democracy and proper drains.
Lord, put beneath Thy special care
One-eighty-nine Cadogan Square.

Although dear Lord I am a sinner,
I have done no major crime;
Now I’ll come to Evening Service
Whensoever I have the time.
So, Lord, reserve for me a crown,
And do not let my shares go down.

I will labour for Thy Kingdom,
Help our lads to win the war,
Send white feathers to the cowards
Join the Women’s Army Corps,
Then wash the steps around Thy Throne
In the Eternal Safety Zone.

Now I feel a little better,
What a treat to hear Thy Word,
Where the bones of leading statesmen
Have so often been interr’d.
And now, dear Lord, I cannot wait
Because I have a luncheon date.

On the other hand, when I feel like the Publican in our parable, then I can pray like a Publican. Throughout the Church, parishioners protest, ‘I cannot take Communion … lead the intercession … serve at the altar today … because I do not feel worthy.’ But surely I am in much greater danger when I do feel worthy.

When does someone ever say, ‘I have been so good this week I have not felt in the least like a sinner, and this is a great sin and deception?’ Now we would be getting somewhere with prayer!

The 19th century Russian, Saint John of Kronstadt (1829-1902), writes: ‘When the foolish thought of counting up any of your good works enters into your head, immediately correct your fault and rather count up your sins, your continual and innumerable offences against the All-Merciful and Righteous Master, and you will find that their number is as the sand of the sea, whilst your virtues in comparison with them are as nothing.’

What ever happened to the publican or the tax-collector afterwards?

We are not told his name. We are not told where he lived. We are not told how he lived.

Did he ever put into practice what he was praying for? Asking for mercy, receiving mercy, giving mercy?

In moments when I allow my imagination to run away with itself, and with me, I like to ask whether this is the same tax collector as Zacchaeus who appeared in the Gospel reading late last year (Luke 19: 1-10, the Fourth Sunday before Advent, 2 November 2025).

The Pharisee this morning lists all he does: he fasts twice a week; he gives a tenth of all his income (verse 12). Zacchaeus has a profound change of heart, and decides to give away half of his possessions to the poor and to repay four-fold what he has squeezed out of anyone unjustly (Luke 19: 8).

Prayer leads us to God, but prayer that does not lead us to love our neighbour is prayer that is dead.

We need to be people who pray like a publican. We will find so many more times available for prayer if we do. But we should pray for those who are praying like a Pharisee too, so that God may free us from our delusions.

‘In Westminster Abbey’ by John Betjeman’s is a dramatic monologue that retells one part of the parable of the Pharisee and the Publican (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Prayers (Saturday 14 March 2026):

The theme this week (8-14 March 2026) in ‘Pray With the World Church,’ the Prayer Diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), has been ‘Biblical Sisterhood’ (pp 36-37). This theme was introduced last Sunday with reflections by Dr Sanjana Das, PhD feminist theologian, advocate for the dignity and rights of trafficked and migrant working women.

The USPG Prayer Diary today (Saturday 14 March 2026) invites us to pray:

Merciful God, we pray for traffickers and all who exploit others. Reveal their wrongdoing, open their hearts to repentance, and guide them toward justice, so that lives may be freed from abuse and dignity restored.

The Collect:

Almighty God,
whose most dear Son went not up to joy but first he suffered pain,
and entered not into glory before he was crucified:
mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of the cross,
may find it none other than the way of life and peace;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

The Post Communion Prayer:

Merciful Lord,
grant your people grace to withstand the temptations
of the world, the flesh and the devil,
and with pure hearts and minds to follow you, the only God;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Additional Collect:

Eternal God,
give us insight
to discern your will for us,
to give up what harms us,
and to seek the perfection we are promised
in Jesus Christ our Lord.

Collect on the Eve of Lent IV:

Merciful Lord,
absolve your people from their offences,
that through your bountiful goodness
we may all be delivered from the chains of those sins
which by our frailty we have committed;
grant this, heavenly Father,
for Jesus Christ’s sake, our blessed Lord and Saviour,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

Yesterday’s Reflections

Continued Tomorrow

The Pharisee and the Publican … who would you prefer to have coffee with this morning? (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

Two experiences of Orthodox Lenten traditions in Walsingham with the Akathist Hymn and the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts

Father Stephen Platt serves the Akathist Hymn before the icon of the Theotokos Hodogetria in the Shrine Church in Walsingham last night (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

Patrick Comerford

I have spent the last three or four days staying at the Anglican Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham in Norfolk, where I was speaking at the Ecumenical Pilgrimage to Walsingham yesterday on ‘A Priest along the Way of a Pilgrim’.

This ecumenical pilgrimage was organised with the support of the Fellowship of Saint Alban and Saint Sergius and the Society of Saint John Chrysostom and yesterday’s programme included interesting experiences of Lenten liturgical observances during in Lent.

In the morning, the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts in the Shrine Church was served by Father Stephen Platt of Saint Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church, Oxford, and of the Fellowship of Saint Alban and Saint Sergius, assisted by Father Ian Graham, Parish Priest of the Greek Orthodox Community of the Holy Trinity in Oxford.

Then, at the end of the day, Father Stephen and Father Ian led us in the Akathist Hymn, an experience unique to the Orthodox Church. Introducing the Akathist Hymn in the Shrine Church, Father Stephen explained how the Akathist Hymn and Small Compline are two services which are sung on the first five Fridays during Great Lent. The Small Compline, and the canon, is sung on each of the five Fridays. This is also true of the prayers beginning with Holy God and continuing to the end of the service with the exception that the Holy Gospel is read only on the First Friday.

The canon is sung on each of the first four Fridays. At the same time, one of the four stases is also chanted by the priest on each successive Friday.

The late Metropolitan Kallistos has written about the Akathistos Hymn as one of the greatest marvels of Greek religious poetry, with a richness of imagery that is the despair of any translator, the Akathistos Hymn has 24 main stanzas, alternatively long and short: each long stanza bears the title ‘Ikos’ and ends with the refrain ‘Hail, Bride without bridegroom’, while each short stanza is termed ‘kontakion’ and ends with the refrain ‘Alleluia’.

The title ‘Akathistos’ means literally ‘not sitting’, because while the hymn is sung all remain standing. The greater part of the hymn is made up of praises addressed to the Holy Virgin, each beginning with the salutation of the Archangel Gabriel, ‘Hail’ or ‘Rejoice’ (Luke 1: 28). Theh hymn recalls the main events connected with the Incarnation, starting with the Annunciation (first ikos) and ending with the Flight into Egypt (sixth ikos) and the Presentation in the Temple (seventh kontakion).

The Akathistos Hymn was originally composed at an epoch when the Annunciation was still celebrated together with Christmas and had not yet become a separate festival. The Annunciation probably first began to be celebrated on 25 March during the reign of the Emperor Justinian (527-565), and the Akathistos Hymn was appointed to be sung on 25 March. Later, after the fall of Constantinople (1453), the hymn was transferred from the fixed to the movable calendar, and instead of being sung on 25 March it was appointed for Saturday in the fifth week. The custom of singing a portion of thehHymn at Compline on the first four Fridays of Lent is more recent still among Greeks.

TMost of the texts at Friday Vespers before the Vigil of the Akathistos are taken directly from the office for 25 March. The Annunciation almost always falls within the period of the Great Fast, and that is why this special office of praise to the Mother of God has found a place in the Lenten Triodion.

A Kontakion greatly loved by Orthodox people is sung at the beginning of the Akathistos Hymn, ‘To thee, our leader in battle and defender …’. It celebrates the deliverance of the city of Constantinople from its enemies through the aid of the Mother of God. The Kontakion was written most probablyn by Patriarch Sergios to celebrate the escape of the Byzantine capital from the attack of the Persians and Avars in 626; it may also have been sung at the thanksgiving celebrations after Constantinople was saved from the Arabs in the mid-670s and in 717–718, and from the Russians in 860. The Kontakion expresses the Orthodox faithful sense of continuing dependence on the protecting intercession of the Holy Virgin at all moments of crisis and peril.

The Akathist Hymn is one of the most well-loved services of devotion in the Orthodox Church. Many scholars agreethat the Akathist was composed by Saint Romanos the Melodist, who reposed in the year 556. It has also been suggested that the Kontakion ‘To thee, our leader in battle and defender …’ was written in 532, to celebrate the safe escape of the city from the Nika riots. On such a hypothesis the Kontakion could be contemporary with the rest of the Akathistos Hymn, and might even be the work of Romanos.

The majority of the hymn is made up of praises directed to the Mother of God, always beginning with the salutation of the Archangel Gabriel: ‘Rejoice.’ In each of them, one after the other, all the events related to the incarnation are contemplated. The Archangel Gabriel (in Ikos 1) marvels at the Divine self-emptying and the renewal of creation which will occur when Christ comes to dwell in the Virgin’s womb.

The unborn John the Baptist (Ikos 3) prophetically rejoices. The shepherds (Ikos 4) recognise Christ as a blameless Lamb, and rejoice that in the Virgin ‘things on earth rejoice with the heavens.’ The Magi (Kontakion 5), following the light of the star, praise her for revealing the light of the world.

As the hymn progresses, various individuals and groups encounter Christ and his mother. Each has his own need; each his own desire or expectation, and each finds his or her own particular spiritual need satisfied and fulfilled in Our Lord and in the Mother of God. So too, each generation of Orthodox, and each particular person who has prayed the Akathist, has found in this hymn an inspired means of expressing gratitude and praise to the Mother of God for what she has accomplished for their salvation.

The authorship of the Akathist Hymn to the Mother of God is the subject of much discussion, though many reputable scholars attribute it to Saint Romanos the Melodist. The poem defies every translator and it is virtually impossibleto translate all the rhetorical devices that are such a striking feature of the Greek original. The original has an alphabetical acrostic for the first word of each Kontakion and Ikos and the lines begining ‘Hail!’ are marked by many internal rhymes.

The Greek ‘Chaire!’ is translated by Metroplitan Kallistos as ‘Rejoice’ as the most natural meaning of the Greek. Even though etymologically it means ‘Rejoice!’, it is a standard greeting, like the Latin ‘Ave!’, which is what the Roman soldiers presumably said to the Lord as they mocked him. In the New Testament it often translates the Hebrew ‘Shalom!’

Liturgically the hymn forms part of Matins on the Saturday of the Akathist, and in the monasteries of the the Holy Mountain it is read each night at Compline. In Greek use, it is chanted solemnly in four sections at Compline on the first four Fridays of Lent, the whole being chanted at Compline on the fifth, the eve of Akathist Saturday.

The Akathist hymn to the Theotokos is the original of all Akathists. It is a type of Kontakion. In a regular Kontakion, There is one (or more) Proëmion or opening hymn (now called confusingly ‘the Kontakion’ of the hymn) followed by several Ikos hymns. All the hymns have the same or nearly the same refrain. The acrostics vary, and therefore, so do the number of Ikos hymns. In the Akathist, the acrostic is the Greek alphabet, so there are 24 hymns. All akathists follow this number, even if they do not produce an Alphabetical acrostic. These 24 hymns vary between long hymns, called Ikos hymns, that have the same refrain as the Proëmion, and shorter hymns with the refrain ‘Alleluia’, (also, confusingly, called ‘Kontakia’).

On the Fifth Saturday of Great Lent, the Saturday of the Akathist, the Orthodox commemorate the ‘Laudation of the Virgin” icon of the Theotokos.

Father Stephen Platt introduces the Akathist Hymn in the Shrine Church in Walsingham last night (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

Akathist to the Theotokos:

Troparion

Taking knowledge of the secret command, the bodiless Archangel went with haste to Joseph’s dwelling and said to her that knew not wedlock: ‘He who in his self-abasement bowed the heavens and came down is housed wholly and unchanged in thee. I see him take the form of a servant in thy womb and in wonder cry to thee: Rejoice, Bride without bridegroom.

Kontakion 1

To thee, our leader in battle and defender, O Mother of God, we thy servants, delivered from calamity, offer hymns of victory and thankgiving. Since those are invincible in power, set us free from every peril that we may cry out to thee: Rejoice, Bride without bridegroom. Rejoice, Bride without bridegroom.

Ikos 1

A prince of the angels was sent from heaven, to say to the Mother of God, Rejoice! And seeing Thee, O Lord, take bodily form at the sound of his bodiless voice, filled with amazement he stood still and cried aloud to her:

Rejoice, for through thee joy shall shine forth:
Rejoice, for through thee the curse shall cease.
Rejoice, recalling of fallen Adam:
Rejoice, deliverance from the tears of Eve.
Rejoice, height hard to climb for the thoughts of men:
Rejoice, depth hard to scan even for the eyes of angels.
Rejoice, for thou art the throne of the King:
Rejoice, for thou holdest Him who upholds all.
Rejoice, star causing the sun to shine:
Rejoice, womb of the divine Incarnation.
Rejoice, for through thee creation is made new:
Rejoice, for through thee the Creator becomes a newborn child.
Rejoice, Bride without bridegroom!

Kontakion 2

The Holy Maiden, seeing herself in all her purity, said boldly unto Gabriel: ‘Strange seem thy words and hard for my soul to accept. From a conception without seed how dost thou speak of childbirth crying: Alleluia! Alleluia.

Ikos 2

Seeking to know what passes knowledge, the Virgin said to the ministering Angel: ‘From a maiden womb how can a Son be born? Tell me.’ And to her in fear he answered, crying:

Rejoice, initiate of God’s secret counsel:
Rejoice, faith in that which must be guarded by silence.
Rejoice, beginning of Christ’s wonders:
Rejoice, crown and fulfillment of His teachings.
Rejoice, heavenly ladder by which God came down:
Rejoice, bridge leading men from earth to heaven.
Rejoice, marvel greatly renowned among the angels:
Rejoice, wound bitterly lamented by the demons.
Rejoice, for ineffably thou shalt bear the Light:
Rejoice, for thou hast revealed the mystery to none.
Rejoice, wisdom surpassing the knowledge of the wise:
Rejoice, dawn that illumines the minds of the faithful.
Rejoice, Bride without bridegroom!

Kontakion 3

Then the power of the Most High overshadowed her that knew no wedlock, so that she might conceive: and He made her fruitful womb as a fertile field for all who long to reap the harvest of salvation, singing: Alleluia! Alleluia.

Ikos 3

Bearing God within her womb, the Virgin hastened to Elizabeth; whose unborn child, knowing at once the salutation of the Theotokos, rejoiced, and, leaping up as if in song, cried out to her:

Rejoice, vine whence springs a never-withering branch:
Rejoice, orchard of pure fruit.
Rejoice, for thou tendest the Husband-man who loves mankind:
Rejoice, for thou hast borne the Gardener who cultivates our life.
Rejoice, earth yielding a rich harvest of compassion:
Rejoice, table laden with mercy in abundance.
Rejoice, for through thee the fields of Eden flower again:
Rejoice, for thou makest ready a haven for our souls.
Rejoice, acceptable incense of intercession:
Rejoice, propitiation for the whole world.
Rejoice, loving-kindness of God unto mortal man:
Rejoice, freedom of approach for mortals unto God.
Rejoice, Bride without bridegroom!

Kontakion 4

Tossed inwardly by a storm of doubts, prudent Joseph was troubled: knowing thee to be unwedded, O blameless Virgin, he feared a stolen union. But when he learnt that thy conceiving was from the Holy Spirit, he said: Alleluia! Alleluia.

Ikos 4

The shepherds heard the angels glorify Christ’s coming in the flesh.

Quickly they ran to the Shepherd, and beheld Him as a lamb without spot, that had been pastured in the womb of Mary; and they sang praises to her, saying:

Rejoice, Mother of the Lamb and Shepherd:
Rejoice, fold of spiritual sheep.
Rejoice, protection against unseen enemies:
Rejoice, key to the door of Paradise.
Rejoice, for heaven exults with earth:
Rejoice, for things on earth rejoice with the heavens.
Rejoice, never-silent voice of the apostles:
Rejoice, unconquered courage of the victorious martyrs.
Rejoice, firm foundation of the faith:
Rejoice, shining revelation of grace.
Rejoice, for through thee hell is stripped bare:
Rejoice, for through thee we are clothed in glory.
Rejoice, Bride without bridegroom!

Kontakion 5

Seeing the star pointing to God, the Magi followed its radiance. Keeping it before them as a beacon, with its help they sought the mighty King; and attaining the Unattainable, they rejoiced and cried to Him: Alleluia! Alleluia.

Ikos 5

The children of the Chaldaens saw the Virgin holding in her hands Him who with His hands fashioned mankind. Though He had taken the form of a servant, yet they knew Him as their Master. In haste they knelt before Him with their gifts and cried out to the Blessed Virgin:

Rejoice, Mother of the Star that never sets:
Rejoice, bright dawn of the mystical day.
Rejoice, for thou hast quenched the furnace of deception:
Rejoice, for thou dost illumine all who love the mystery of the Trinity.
Rejoice, for thou hast cast down from his dominion the tyrant that hates man:
Rejoice, for thou hast made known the Lord Christ who loves mankind.
Rejoice, deliverance from the worship of pagan idols:
Rejoice, liberation from the filth of sin.
Rejoice, for thou hast quenched the worship of fire:
Rejoice, for thou hast released us from the flames of passion.
Rejoice, guide of the faithful to chastity:
Rejoice, joy of all generations.
Rejoice, Bride without bridegroom!

Kontakion 6

Becoming God’s messengers, the Magi returned to Babylon. Having fulfilled the prophecy concerning Thee, and preaching Thee to all as Christ, they left Herod to his raving, for he knew not how to sing: Alleluia! Alleluia.

Ikos 6

Shining upon Egypt with the light of truth, Thou hast dispelled the darkness of falsehood; for the idols of that land fell down, unable to endure Thy power, O Saviour, and all who were delivered from them cried unto the Theotokos:

Rejoice, restoration of men:
Rejoice, downfall of demons.
Rejoice, for thou hast trampled on the delusion of error:
Rejoice, for thou hast exposed the snares of the idols.
Rejoice, sea that has drowned the invisible Pharoah:
Rejoice, rock that gives drink to all who thirst for life.
Rejoice, pillar of fire, guiding those in darkness:
Rejoice, protection of the world, wider than the cloud in the wilderness.
Rejoice, food that takes the place of manna:
Rejoice, minister of holy joy.
Rejoice, promised land:
Rejoice, source of milk and honey.
Rejoice, Bride without bridegroom!

Kontakion 7

As Simeon drew near to the time of his departure from this world of error, he received Thee as an infant in his arms, but he knew Thee to be perfect God; and struck with wonder at Thine ineffable wisdom, he cried: Alleluia! Alleluia.

Ikos 7

A new creation has the Creator revealed, manifesting Himself unto us His creatures. From a Virgin’s womb He came, preserving it inviolate as it was before: that, beholding the miracle, we might sing her praises, crying:

Rejoice, flower of incorruption:
Rejoice, crown of chastity.
Rejoice, bright foreshadowing of the resurrection glory:
Rejoice, mirror of the angels’ life.
Rejoice, tree of glorious fruit on which the faithful feed:
Rejoice, wood of shady leaves where many shelter.
Rejoice, for thou hast conceived a Guide for the wanderers:
Rejoice, for thou hast borne a Deliverer for the captives.
Rejoice, intercessor with the Righteous Judge:
Rejoice, forgiveness for many who have stumbled.
Rejoice, robe for the naked and bereft of hope:
Rejoice, love surpassing desire.
Rejoice, Bride without bridegroom!

Kontakion 8

Seeing this strange birth, let us become strangers to the world, fixing our minds in heaven. To this end has the most high God appeared on earth as a lowly man, because He wishes to draw heaven-ward all who cry aloud to Him: Alleluia! Alleluia.

Ikos 8

The boundless Word was wholly present here below, yet in no wise absent from the realm on high: God descended to earth yet underwent no change of place. He was born of a Virgin, over-shadowed by divine power, and unto her we sing:

Rejoice, enclosure of the God whom nothing can enclose:
Rejoice, gate of the hallowed mystery.
Rejoice, tidings doubted by unbelievers:
Rejoice, undoubted glory of the faithful.
Rejoice, most holy chariot of Him who rides upon the cherubim:
Rejoice, best of all dwellings for Him who is above the seraphim.
Rejoice, for thou bringest opposites to harmony:
Rejoice, for thou hast joined in one childbirth and virginity.
Rejoice, for through thee our sin is remitted:
Rejoice, for through thee Paradise is opened.
Rejoice, key of Christ’s Kingdom:
Rejoice, hope of eternal blessings.
Rejoice, Bride without bridegroom!

Kontakion 9

All the ranks of angels marveled at the great work of Thine incarnation. For they saw God, whom none can approach, as a man approachable by all, dwelling in our midst, and hearing from our lips: Alleluia! Alleluia.

Ikos 9

Eloquent orators we see dumb as the fishes in thy presence, O Theotokos, for they are at a loss to say how thou remainest virgin and yet hast power to bear a child. But we, marvelling at the mystery, cry aloud in faith:

Rejoice, vessel of God’s wisdom:
Rejoice, treasury of His providence.
Rejoice, for thou revealest lack of wisdom in the lovers of wisdom:
Rejoice, for thou provest devoid of reason those skilled in reason’s art.
Rejoice, for the cunning disputants are shown to be fools:
Rejoice, for the myth-makers have withered into silence.
Rejoice, for thou hast torn asunder the tangled webs of the Athenians:
Rejoice, for thou hast filled the nets of the fishermen.
Rejoice, for thou dost draw men from the depths of ignorance:
Rejoice, for thou dost illumine multitudes with knowledge.
Rejoice, ship of all who would be saved:
Rejoice, haven for the seafarers of life.
Rejoice, Bride without bridegroom!

Kontakion 10

Wishing to save the world, the Fashioner of all things came to it of His own free choice. As God, He is our Shepherd, yet has He appeared for our sake as a man like us; and calling like by means of like, as God, He hears our cry: Alleluia! Alleluia.

Ikos 10

For virgins and all who flee to thee thou art a wall, O Virgin Theotokos undefiled: for the Creator of heaven and earth has made thee ready and adorned thee, dwelling in thy womb, and teaching all to sing to her:

Rejoice, pillar of virginity:
Rejoice, gate of salvation.
Rejoice, beginning of the new and spiritual creation:
Rejoice, provider of God’s mercy.
Rejoice, for thou hast given birth to those conceived in shame:
Rejoice, for thou hast given good counsel to those robbed of understanding.
Rejoice, for thou bringest to naught the corrupter of man’s mind:
Rejoice, for thou bringest to birth the Sower of purity.
Rejoice, bridal chamber of a marriage without seed:
Rejoice, for thou joinest in union the faithful to their Lord.
Rejoice, fair nursing-mother of virgins:
Rejoice, bridal escort of holy souls.
Rejoice, Bride without bridegroom!

Kontakion 11

No hymn can recount the multitude of Thy many mercies. For though we offer unto Thee, O holy King, songs numberless as the sand upon the seashore, yet we do nothing worthy of the blessings Thou hast given us, who cry unto Thee: Alleluia! Alleluia.

Ikos 11

We see the Holy Virgin as a lamp to those in darkness. Kindling the immaterial Fire, she guides all men to divine knowledge; she illumines our mind with radiance, and we sing these praises in her honour:

Rejoice, beam of the spiritual Sun:
Rejoice, ray of the Moon that never wanes.
Rejoice, lightning flash that shines upon our souls:
Rejoice, thunder that brings terror to our enemies.
Rejoice, dawn that makest the manifold Splendor to arise:
Rejoice, spring that makest the River with many streams to flow.
Rejoice, for thou dost prefigure the baptismal font:
Rejoice, for thou takest away the filth of sin.
Rejoice, water washing clean the conscience:
Rejoice, cup wherein is mixed the wine of mighty joy.
Rejoice, scent of Christ’s fragrance:
Rejoice, life of mystical feasting.
Rejoice, Bride without bridegroom!

Kontakion 12

Wishing to release from ancient debts, the Redeemer of all men came of His own will to those who were exiled from His grace; He has torn up the record of our sins, and from all He hears the cry: Alleluia! Alleluia.

Ikos 12

We all sing in honour of thy Son, O Theotokos, and praise thee as a living temple. For the Lord who holds all things in His hand made His dwelling in thy womb; He hallowed and He glorified thee, teaching all to cry to thee:

Rejoice, tabernacle of God the Word:
Rejoice, greater Holy of Holies.
Rejoice, ark made golden by the Spirit:
Rejoice, never-empty treasure-house of life.
Rejoice, precious crown of orthodox kings:
Rejoice, honored boast of godly priests.
Rejoice, unshaken fortress of the Church:
Rejoice, unconquered rampart of the Kingdom.
Rejoice, for through thee the standards of victory are raised on high:
Rejoice, for through thee our enemies are cast down.
Rejoice, healing of my body:
Rejoice, salvation of my soul.
Rejoice, Bride without bridegroom!

Kontakion 13

O Mother worthy of all praise, who hast borne the Word, the Holiest of all Holies accepting this our offering, deliver from every ill and from the punishment to come, all those who cry aloud to thee: Alleluia! Alleluia. Alleluia! Alleluia

Kontakion 13 is read three times, and then Ikos One is read again:

Ikos 1

A prince of the angels was sent from heaven, to say to the Theotokos, Rejoice! And seeing Thee, O Lord, take bodily form at the sound of his bodiless voice, filled with amazement he stood still and cried aloud to her:

Rejoice, for through thee joy shall shine forth:
Rejoice, for through thee the curse shall cease.
Rejoice, recalling of fallen Adam:
Rejoice, deliverance from the tears of Eve.
Rejoice, height hard to climb for the thoughts of men:
Rejoice, depth hard to scan even for the eyes of angels.
Rejoice, for thou art the throne of the King:
Rejoice, for thou holdest Him who upholds all.
Rejoice, star causing the sun to shine:
Rejoice, womb of the divine Incarnation.
Rejoice, for through thee creation is made new:
Rejoice, for through thee the Creator becomes a newborn child.
Rejoice, Bride without bridegroom!

And then again the First Kontakion:

O Victorious Leader of triumphant hosts, we, thy servants, delivered from evil, sing our grateful thanks to thee, O Theotokos. As thou dost possess invincible might set us free from every calamity so that we may sing: Rejoice, Bride without bridegroom!

Priest: Glory to thee, O Christ our God, and our hope, glory to thee.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and for ever and ever. Amen.

Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord have mercy. Father give the blessing in the name of the Lord.

Priest: May Christ our true God, at the prayers of his most pure and holy, Mother, by the power of the precious and life-giving Cross, and the protection of the honoured, spiritual powers of heaven, at the intercession of the honoured and glorious prophet, forerunner and Baptist, John, of the holy, glorious and righteous forebears of God, Joachim and Anna and of all the saints, have mercy upon us and save us, for he is good and he loves mankind. Amen.

Priest: Through the prayers of our holy Fathers, Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us and save us. Amen.

We were all then invited to venerate the icon of the Mother of God and receive the priest’s blessing.

Father Stephen Platt serves the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts in the Shrine Church in Walsingham earlier yesterday (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

Daily prayer in Lent 2026: 24, Friday 13 March 2026

‘Hear O Israel … שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל‎ …’ (Deuteronomy 4) … the words of the ‘Shema’ once seen on the wall of the Beth El Synagogue near Bunclody, Co Wexford (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Patrick Comerford

We have passed the half-way point in Lent, which began three weeks ago on Ash Wednesday (18 February 2026). This week began with the Third Sunday in Lent (Lent III, 8 March 2026).

I have been staying for the last three nights at the Anglican Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham in Norfolk, where I spoke yesterday at the Ecumenical Pilgrimage to Walsingham.

This ecumenical pilgrimage, which began on Tuesday (10 March) and ends today (13 March), has been organised with the support of the Fellowship of Saint Alban and Saint Sergius and the Society of Saint John Chrysostom and is in its 100th year. I was invited to speak yesterday on ‘A Priest along the Way of a Pilgrim’.

Today’s programme begins with the Catholic Mass at the Convent of the Little Sisters of Jesus, and there are talks this morning by Father Mark Woodruff, Chair, Society of Saint John Chrysostom; Dr Daniel Pratt Morris-Chapman of Wesley House, Cambridge. The day ends with the Anglican Eucharist in Saint Mary and All Saints’ Church, when the celebrant and preacher is Bishop Lindsay Urwin, Assistant Bishop, Diocese of Southwark, and the Ecumenical Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary, led by Canon Norman Wallwork and the Revd Dr Richard Clutterbuck.

Before today begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, to reflect, to pray and to read in these ways:

1, reading today’s Gospel reading;

2, a short reflection;

3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;

4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.

Teaching the Law and the Prophets … ‘Teacher and student’ by Judel Gerberhole (1904), in the Jewish Museum in the Old Synagogue, Kraków (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Mark 12: 28-34 (NRSVA):

28 One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, ‘Which commandment is the first of all?’ 29 Jesus answered, ‘The first is, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; 30 you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” 31 The second is this, “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” There is no other commandment greater than these.’ 32 Then the scribe said to him, ‘You are right, Teacher; you have truly said that “he is one, and besides him there is no other”; 33 and “to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength”, and “to love one’s neighbour as oneself”, – this is much more important than all whole burnt-offerings and sacrifices.’ 34 When Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, ‘You are not far from the kingdom of God.’ After that no one dared to ask him any question.

The Ten Commandments on two tablets in a synagogue in Thessaloniki (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Reflection:

‘Listen’ – the word is a call to listen to the groan and cry of creation, to listen to the cry of the dispossessed, and to listen to God’s voice on how we can live more simply so that others might simply live.

In my reflections on Wednesday morning (11 March 2026), I recalled the conversation in today’s Gospel reading (Mark 12: 28-34) between Jesus and the unnamed Scribe about the greatest of the commandments. Jesus begins to reply with the word ‘Listen’, or ‘Hear, O Israel …’

Saint Benedict begins his Rule with the word ‘Listen’, ausculta: ‘Listen carefully, child of God, to the guidance of your teacher. Attend to the message you hear and make sure it pierces your heart, so that you may accept it in willing freedom and fulfil by the way you live the directions that come from your loving Father’ (Rule of Saint Benedict, Prologue 1, translated by Patrick Barry). His advice is as short and as succinct a directive on how to prepare to pray as I can find.

Benedictine prayer became more accessible in popular culture over 20 years ago when the BBC screened the television series, The Monastery (2005), in which the then Abbot of Worth Abbey, Abbot Christopher Jamison, guided five men (and three million viewers) into a new approach to life at Worth Abbey in Sussex.

Since then, Dom Christopher’s best-selling books following the popular series, Finding Sanctuary (2007) and Finding Happiness (2008), have offered readers similar opportunities. He points out that no matter how hard we work, being too busy is not inevitable. Silence and contemplation are not just for monks and nuns, they are parts of the natural rhythm of life.

Yet, to keep hold of this truth in the rush of modern living we need the support of other people and sensible advice from wise guides. By learning to listen in new ways, people’s lives can change and Dom Christopher offers some monastic steps that help this transition to a more spiritual life.

Saint Benedict of Nursia wrote the first official western manual for praying the Hours over 1,500 years ago, in the year 525. Benedictine spirituality approaches life through an ordering by daily prayer that is biblical and reflective, and Benedictine spirituality is grounded in an approach to spiritual life that values ‘Stability, Obedience, and Conversion of Life.’

The major themes in the Rule are community, prayer, hospitality, study, work, humility, stability, peace and listening. This distinction between liturgical prayer and private prayer, which is familiar to modern spirituality, was unknown to the early monks. Apart from one short reference to prayer outside the office, Chapter 20 of the Rule is concerned with the silent prayer that is a response to the psalm. Listening to the word of God was a necessary prelude to every prayer, and prayer was the natural response to every psalm.

When the scribe asks Jesus which of the 613 traditional commandments in Judaism is the most important (see Matthew 22: 34-40; Mark 12: 28-34; Luke 10: 25-28), Christ offers not one but two commandments or laws, though neither is found in the Ten Commandments (see Exodus 20: 1-17 and Deuteronomy 5: 4-21). Instead, Christ steps outside the Ten Commandments when he quotes from two other sections in the Bible (Deuteronomy 6: 4-5, Leviticus 19: 18).

And the first command Christ quotes is the shema, ‘Hear, O Israel, …’ (שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל‎) (Mark 12: 29), recited twice daily by pious Jews. The shema, שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ יְהוָה אֶחָֽד‎, is composed from two separate passages in the Book Deuteronomy (Deuteronomy 6: 4-9, 11: 13-21), and to this day it is recited twice daily in Jewish practice.

The Hebrew word Shema is translated as ‘listen’ or ‘hear.’ But it means more than to just hear the sound, it means ‘to pay attention to, or to ‘focus on’. In fact, it has an even deeper meaning, requiring the listener or hearer to ‘respond to what you hear’. It calls for a response to what I hear or I am told, to act upon or do something related to the command. In other words, shema often means ‘Listen and Obey.’ They are two sides of the same coin so that comes to my ear is understood and results in action. Not to take proper action, not to respond, not to follow in discipleship is to not listen at all.

For responding in this way, Christ tells this unnamed scribe that he has answered wisely and is near the kingdom of God (verse 34).

And that silenced everyone who was listening, and it put an end to the debates … for the moment.

Silent people, who are pushed to the margins, may have more to say about God, about truth, about love, and about the true meaning of religion if only we would allow them to move in from the margins and listen to what they have to say.

People who ask questions about religious values are not necessarily trying to upset our faith and beliefs. They may actually be calling us back to the core values.

Named or unnamed, male or female, insider or outsider, we each have a place and a part in God’s plans. Being open to love, especially to the love of others, is the key to finding ourselves in that place.

Reading and studying in the Scriptorum in Ealing Abbey … Saint Benedict begins his Rule with the word ‘Listen’ (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Prayers (Friday 13 March 2026):

The theme this week (8-14 March 2026) in ‘Pray With the World Church,’ the Prayer Diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), is ‘Biblical Sisterhood’ (pp 36-37). This theme was introduced on Sunday with reflections by Dr Sanjana Das, PhD feminist theologian, advocate for the dignity and rights of trafficked and migrant working women.

The USPG Prayer Diary today (Friday 13 March 2026) invites us to pray:

Gracious God, we thank you for all who work with trafficked and migrant women. Grant protection, wisdom and courage as they tirelessly work to support vulnerable communities.

The Collect:

Almighty God,
whose most dear Son went not up to joy but first he suffered pain,
and entered not into glory before he was crucified:
mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of the cross,
may find it none other than the way of life and peace;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

The Post Communion Prayer:

Merciful Lord,
grant your people grace to withstand the temptations
of the world, the flesh and the devil,
and with pure hearts and minds to follow you, the only God;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Additional Collect:

Eternal God,
give us insight
to discern your will for us,
to give up what harms us,
and to seek the perfection we are promised
in Jesus Christ our Lord.

Yesterday’s Reflections

Continued Tomorrow

Moses and the Law outside the Palais de Justice in Perpignan (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

‘A Priest along the Way of a Pilgrim’

Where were you 60 years ago? … Ballinskelligs, Co Kerry, was an introduction to ‘The Way of a Pilgrim’ and the Jesus Prayer (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

‘A Priest along the Way of a Pilgrim’

Patrick Comerford

Ecumenical Pilgrimage to Walsingham

Thursday 12 March 2026,

5:15 pm, The Orangery, Anglican Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham

Introduction

Thank you to Father Mark for inviting me to speak this evening. I had visited his cathedral in London last year without him knowing, without me ever expecting this invitation, and without knowing we have shared Comerford family links to catch up on.

Thank you too to Cyril Wood for his generosity and kindly going out of his way to get me here this week. It’s a long way from Stony Stratford to Walsingham for someone like me who does not drive. It’s even longer than you imagine, because this time last week I was somewhere in the air between Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia and Oman in the Gulf, not knowing if I was going to get back to England in time to be here.

Although I have been a member of the Society of Catholic Priests, this week is proving to be somewhat outside my experiences; this is my first-ever visit to Walsingham, and first impressions are always both striking and formative.

I am Irish, but I have only once been to the Knock Shrine in Co Mayo, and that was out of interest in the architecture of the basilica rather than out of interest in the Marian Shrine. Yes, I have been to Armagh, Downpatrick and Kildare. But I have never been to any of the Marian pilgrim sites or ‘moving statues’ in Ireland.

If you are a football fan like me, and you are about the same age as me, you will be able to answer immediately where you were 60 years ago. I remember the summer of 1966 quite clearly.

I watched the 1966 World Cup Final in July 1966 in a convent in Ballinskelligs at the western end of a remote peninsula in Co Kerry, in one of the furthest corners of south-west Ireland, looking out onto the wild Atlantic waters.

During that month in Coláiste Mhichíl, I also remember learning Irish dancing, boring evenings listening to an old seanachaí, rising to the challenge to go ‘skinny dipping’, my first kiss and my first smoke, reading Anne Frank’s Diaries and being introduced to JD Salinger’s writings, Catcher in the Rye and Franny and Zooey.

As a 14-year-old, little did I realise then of the significance of Franny and Zooey. It introduced many in the west to The Way of a Pilgrim. That book, as many of you know, began as a collection of essays first published as four short stories in Russia in 1884. It is now a beloved spiritual guide to many, introducing them to the Jesus Prayer and the riches of Orthodox spirituality.

My old copies, translated by RM French and introduced by Bishop Walter Frere, are torn and worn or were given away long ago. I later acquired a more recent edition, published in 2017, translated by Anna Zaranko and edited and introduced by Father Andrew Louth. But that too has been lent, borrowed or passed on with the passage of time.

I remember quite clearly how I was obsessed that summer 60 years ago with football, with little or no interest in prayer, spirituality or any pilgrim’s way. But perhaps the seeds were being sown for a very real experience five years later in my teens.

The Chapel and the Hospital of Saint John Baptist without the Barrs, Lichfield, today … recalling a pilgrimage in life that began 55 years ago (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

A pilgrim’s experience of the ‘uncreated light’

As a 19-year-old, I walked in one summer evening, by accident rather than design, into the Chapel of Saint John’s Hospital in Lichfield. I say by accident, because I was attracted by the Tudor architecture of this almshouse rather than its religious significance.

And to this day, it is a lived and living experience, as I remember the sound of lifting the latch, stepping down into the chapel, and being filled with what I still describe 55 years later as the light and love of God.

Physically, it was impossible: sunlight does not stream through the east window of any church or chapel on a summer evening, and that chapel has no west window.

Psychologically, there may be alternative explanations. But, in time, the experience and the sensations would have faded, and not remain so real, so explicit, so alive after 55 years. You could say it was – still is – a living experience of the ‘uncreated light’, of being filled with the light and the love of God.

How was a 19-year-old to respond to such an unexpected experience? I immediately went down Saint John Street, up Bird Street and into Lichfield Cathedral and for the first time sat in the choir stalls for Choral Evensong. Silent. Receptive. Enfolded by the love of God.

On the way out, one of the residentiary canons shook my hand and said something like, ‘I suppose a young man like you is coming back to church because you’re thinking of ordination.’

All in one summer afternoon or evening.

It was too much to take in. It still is. I am still coming to terms, 55 years later, with its meaning and its implications. I have described it to one interviewer as my ‘self-defining existentialist moment.’ It is too limiting, too reductionist, too partisan, too trite, to describe it as a conversion experience, still less as being ‘born-again’.

And, if it could happen to me, I realised, then it was not unique or individual, it could happen to anyone and everyone. God’s love for me had to be God’s love for everyone. It was, is, an experience with immeasurable and unfathomable dimensions and universal implications: if God loves me, then why, of course God loves you, and you, and you …

Or, as the Revd Dr Kenneth Leech (1939-2015), the Anglican ‘slum priest’ in the East End, once said: ‘Transfiguration can and does occur “just around the corner,” occurs in the midst of perplexity, imperfection, and disastrous misunderstanding.’

And yet, in a way, without feeling at all uncomfortable, I can feel like saying I was born in Lichfield that day. And so, I go back on pilgrimage, not to relive that experience – because it remains a living experience; not, like Peter, James and John wanting to stay on the mountaintop and build their booths of piety; but as a pilgrim, to give thanks, to pray, to reflect, to be silent, to – as it were – cover my head and bare my feet, for I stand on holy ground.

I go back at least two or three times a year to Lichfield, to this spiritual home or birthplace, to pray in that chapel, sometimes silently without words, when God speaks to me too without words; to follow the cycle of daily prayer and the liturgy in the cathedral; to be comfortable in the presence of Christ in word, in sacrament, and in the body of Christ, the people who are the Church.

If you came this way,
Taking any route, starting from anywhere,
At any time or at any season,
It would always be the same: you would have to put off
Sense and notion. You are not here to verify,
Instruct yourself, or inform curiosity
Or carry report. You are here to kneel
Where prayer has been valid. And prayer is more
Than an order of words, the conscious occupation
Of the praying mind, or the sound of the voice praying.

(TS Eliot, ‘Little Gidding’)

And I hope I’m not being too pious, too po-faced about it. I meet friends, I eat rather than fasting, I go for walks through fields and farmland that I know, some that bear my family name from generations ago. And I enjoy a drink at the end of the day – ‘O taste and see that the Lord is good’ (Psalm 34: 8). (Aside: if I had ever end up in a Benedictine monastery, I want to be the cellarer).

I first visited Jerusalem and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in 1987 (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

A pilgrim’s pilgrimages

In my life in the 55 mature years since, I have been a pilgrim or on pilgrimage to many places:

Jerusalem, which was a graduation present after receiving one of my degrees, along with a ‘bling’ certificate signed by Avraham Sharir and Teddy Kolleck that says I have ‘ascended to Jerusalem, the Holy City’ and am ‘henceforth authorized to bear the title of Jerusalem Pilgrim’.

Mount Athos: (aside: how many of you have been there?) as a priest, I had to receive a particular invitation and permit. As I left, the monks reminded me that when I returned I was to remember that Vatopedi is now my monastery.

Patmos: where Saint John experienced the light in the cave as ‘seven golden lampstands’ and ‘a flame of fire’ (Revelation 1: 12-13) and, incidentally, the monastery of Metropolitan Kallistos.

Mount Sinai: where Moses covered his face with a veil after speaking with God because his face was radiating intense light (Exodus 34: 29-35), and Elijah heard the still small voice in the crag of the rock (I Kings 19).

The Western Desert: the beginnings of monasticism and the home of many of the Patristic writers.

Arkadi and the monasteries of Crete: especially Aghia Irini, where the nuns have brought the place to new life, and welcome tourists on tour buses from throughout the world, bringing the light of Christ back out into the resorts.

Vlatadon: the monastery that is the balcony above Thessaloniki, and where I had a moving moment recalling my grandfather’s own war-time sufferings and eventual death.

Tolleshunt Knights in Essex, which was a regular one-day pilgrimage from Cambridge during the courses organised by the Institute for Orthodox Christian Studies. There Saint Sophrony, the disciple and biographer of Saint Silouan, made the monastery a major centre for the practice of the Jesus Prayer and the community follows the hesychast tradition. ‘Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner’. Even as a child, Saint Sophrony would say, he experienced the Uncreated Light.

The Jesus Prayer and the Uncreated Light seem to be constant, recurring and repetitive tropes in each of these places for this pilgrim priest.

And there are others too: the churches of Cappadocia … Santiago (without doing the Camino) … Bethlehem … Notre Dame … Rome … the Julian Shrine in Norwich … Coventry Cathedral … Whitby … Glenstal … Rostrevor … Mount Melleray … Saint Mary’s Church, Johannesburg …

I have been strongly influenced by Jewish spirituality over the years, so there is a feeling of pilgrimage too when I visit the Jewish quarters in Kraków, Prague, Berlin and Venice, Le Marais in Paris, or the grave of the Chatham Sofer in Bratislava. I may be too broadminded for some of you when I talk about the efforts I made to organise my own one-day visit to the tomb and shrine of Rumi in Konya:

A mouse and a frog meet every morning on the riverbank.
They sit in a nook of the ground and talk.

Each morning, the second they see each other,
they open easily, telling stories and dreams and secrets,
empty of any fear or suspicious holding back.

To watch, and listen to those two
is to understand how, as it’s written,
sometimes when two beings come together,
Christ becomes visible.

(Rumi)

And I always return to Lichfield, constantly, as that first place where I become me, realised who I was made to be, that I am loved by God, made in God’s image and likeness, the God who loves each and every one of us.

The gates of Auschwitz … a sense of pilgrimage in the memories of darkness evil (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

A pilgrim or a tourist?

We do that sort of thing in secular life and family life too.

Auschwitz, Hiroshima, Sachsenhausen … they can never be reduced to being places of tourist curiosity, they are sacred and secular, secular and sacred.

In our own family lives, we go back to the houses we were born in or where our parents or grandparents were born or lived. If we can’t get inside those houses, those houses get inside us and we walk around them in our minds’ eyes.

We go back to where our parents brought us on holidays, walk the beaches, remember the childhood experiences, try to explain them to our children and grandchildren. I do … I even went back some years ago to that beach in Ballinskelligs I so happily remember from 60 years ago – for that World Cup final seen in a convent parlour, and for Franny and Zooey’s introduction to The Way of a Pilgrim and the Jesus Prayer.

We go back to our old schools, no matter what we thought of them then or think of them today.

We go back to see where we were brought to our first football matches, the pubs where we had our first drink, we long wistfully for the cinemas we knew as children, the shops whose windows we once gazed at, smile inwardly as we remember where we stole that first kiss. My visits to Venice or Portmeirion are less tourism and more like architectural pilgrims.

Those of you are married or still married probably go back occasionally to or remember with fondness where you first met, where you were married, where you went on honeymoon, where you had your first home. Yet they also become visits marked by pain and sorrow, or regret and penitence, for those who are widowed or divorced.

Not all pilgrimages are filled with joyful, promise and sweet memory. You may know of the painful stories of the ‘Mother and Baby’ homes and ‘Magdalene Laundries’ in Ireland. Whenever I have written about places such as the former Good Shepherd Convent in Limerick or Dunboyne Castle, I become aware of how many of those women, their children and their grandchildren want to visit and revisit them, because, with all the pain and inhumanity, this is where they were born or formed and made who they are today.

These family and social visits are not just secular pilgrimages, they are spiritual too. They break down the barriers between the profane and the sacred, for these are the places where we were made, and we are made in the image and likeness of God. These pilgrimages have their sacred value too. They are, as we should affirm, incarnational. For in the incarnation, Christ tears down the barriers we set up between the sacred and secular.

In that story of darkness and light in the Gospel reading the Sunday before last (John 3: 1-17, Lent III, 1 March 2026), we were told of our birth and reminded that ‘God so loved the cosmos’ – not the world, not merely humanity, still less ‘man’ – ‘God so loved the cosmos that he gave his only Son, so that everyone (aside: let’s emphasise everyone) … may have eternal life’ (verse 16).

That Pythagorean concept of the cosmos implies that we are created, nurtured, brought into existence within the womb of God. And God then turns that around in the incarnation when God becomes flesh in the human womb. We are made in the image and likeness of God, then God is made in our image and likeness. We could say, in a deep and very true sense, humanity is God’s own pilgrimage.

We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.

(TS Eliot, ‘Little Gidding’)

The Jesus Prayer … an image from Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

‘We are pilgrims on a journey’

I have spent the last two weeks in Malaysia, travelling there and back through Oman in the Gulf. I was aware in both places how Ramadan and Lent overlap significantly this year. For Muslims, Pilgrimage, like Ramadan, is one of the five pillars of Islam. But as Christians, do we give pilgrimage the same value, imperative, significance it has for Muslims?

It is wonderful to be here. But we should not make pilgrimage too difficult for people in their everyday, sacred secular lives. We are all pilgrims in this life, not just in our own lives but sharing in God’s pilgrimage in humanity.

I am reminded of Richard Gillard’s lyrics in ‘The Servant Song’:

Will you let me be your servant,
let me be as Christ to you;
pray that I may have the grace
to let you be my servant too.

We are pilgrims on a journey,
we are trav’lers on the road;
we are here to help each other
walk the mile and bear the load.

I will weep when you are weeping;
when you laugh, I’ll laugh with you.
I will share your joy and sorrow
’til we’ve seen this journey through.

We make – or we are invited to make – that pilgrimage every Sunday to the holy mountain, to Mount Tabor, when we meet Christ present for us in Word, in Sacrament, and in the Body of Christ, the living and holy members of the Church.

Κύριε Ἰησοῦ Χριστέ, Υἱὲ Θεοῦ, ἐλέησόν με τὸν ἁμαρτωλό
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner

At the Eucharist in the Chapel of Saint John’s Hospital, Lichfield (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Possible asides or added conversation points:

One pilgrimage I am not making this year – the World Cup in the US

JD Salinger and Anne Frank, a conjoint introduction to Jewish spirituality as well as connection to Jesus Prayer

These notes were prepared for the Ecumenical Marian Pilgrimage Trust, 10-13 March 2026, with the support of the Fellowship of St Alban and St Sergius and the Society of St John Chrysostom

I return to Lichfield, constantly, as that first place where I became me, realised who I was made to be (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

27 million people linked in one big family tree, 27 million in human traffic, and 27 million blog readers

A family tree with far-reaching links … researchers at the University of Oxford have created the largest-ever family tree, linking more than 27 million people (Image: Patrick Comerford)

Patrick Comerford

This blog continues to surpass all previous records, with yet another record landmark with 27 million views or hits by eaarly this morning (12 March 2023). It has been like this for weeks now, reaching 26 million ten days ago (Sunday 2 March 2026), when the hits that day were also the highest daily figure I have ever recorded (318,307), and 26.5 million hits two days later (3 March 2026).

Last month (February), indeed this year so far, has seen a phenomenal amount of traffic on this blog, reaching a volume of readers that I never have expected when I first started blogging 16 years ago. Half the total hits (13.5 million) have been within less than nine months, since 24 June 2025, and the total of hits last month (February 2026) was the highest monthly total ever (3,386,504).

The new figure of 27 million hits for this blog followed the mileposts of 26.5 million hits last week (3 March 2026), 26 million two days earlier (1 March), and 25.5 million the day before (28 February). Indeed, this blog passed the half-million mark seven times in all last month: 25 million two weeks ago (26 February), 24.5 million earlier that week (22 February), 24 million the previous week (20 February 2026), 23.5 million (17 February 2026), 23 million (12 February 2026), and 22.5 million (4 February).

At the end of 2025, this blog had 21 million hits (31 December 2025). So far this year, there have been more than 6 million hits or visitors for 2026, and February 2026 was the busiest month ever, with over 3.3 million hits.

I first began blogging in 2010, and it took almost two years until July 2012 to reach half a million readers – a number reached seven times last month alone. Half of the 27 million hits – 13.5 million – have been within less than nine months, since 24 June 2025.

Throughout last year and this year, the daily figures have been overwhelming on many occasions. Eight of the 12 days of busiest traffic on this blog have been in February alone, two were this month (March) and two were in January last year:

• 318,307 (1 March 2026)
• 314,018 (28 February 2026)
• 301,449 (2 March 2026)
• 289,076 (11 January 2025)
• 285,366 (12 January 2025)
• 280,802 (26 February 2026)

• 273,022 (27 February 2026)
• 261,422 (13 January 2026)
• 195,391 (20 February 2026)
• 190,630 (23 February 2026)
• 190,467 (21 February 2026)
• 188,376 (19 February 2026)

The number of readers has been overpowering this year and last, with the daily averages currently running at over 100,000 hits a day so far this month. Ten years ago, the daily average was around 1,000.

We all figure on someone else’s family tree (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

To put this figure of 27 million in context:

Researchers at the University of Oxford’s Big Data Institute have created the largest-ever family tree, and it links more than 27 million people – both living and long dead – across the world. It marks a major milestone in the journey towards mapping the entirety of human genetic relationships, according to the study published in the journal Science.

This family tree helps us know more about where and when our human ancestors lived – namely in Africa – the researchers said.

‘We have basically built a huge family tree, a genealogy for all of humanity, that models as exactly as we can the history that generated all the genetic variation we find in humans today,’ said one of the co-authors, Dr Yan Wong, an evolutionary geneticist at the institute. ‘This genealogy allows us to see how every person’s genetic sequence relates to every other, along all the points of the genome.’

In layperson’s terms, the comprehensive tree, which appeared as both a research paper and a video, depicts how people around the world are interrelated, like an all-encompassing 23andMe.

Specifically, the study mixed-and-matched data from both modern and ancient human genomes from eight different databases, spanning a total of 3,609 individual genome sequences from 215 populations across the world. The ancient genomes ranged in age from 1,000 to over 100,000, while ‘the resulting network contained almost 27 million ancestors.’

According to the study, the algorithms ‘predicted where common ancestors must be present in the evolutionary trees to explain the patterns of genetic variation.’

The map also employed location data, allowing scientists to estimate where the common ancestors had lived, and included seminal evolutionary events such as our migration out of Africa. The earliest ancestors included in the map are an extinct species of human that predates homo sapiens. They lived a million years ago in a region estimated to be modern Sudan.

The unprecedented family tree is just the foundation ‘for the next generation of DNA sequencing,’ Dr Wong said. The genome scientists are currently working on making the blueprint even more comprehensive by ‘continuing to incorporate genetic data as it becomes available.’

Their ultimate goal was to produce an all-encompassing map of how everyone around the globe is related to each other. ‘As the quality of genome sequences from modern and ancient DNA samples improves, the trees will become even more accurate, and we will eventually be able to generate a single, unified map that explains the descent of all the human genetic variation we see today,’ Wong said.

The map is not just applicable to humans. ‘While humans are the focus of this study, the method is valid for most living things, from orangutans to bacteria,’ he explained.

In another understanding of the figure 27 million, estimates indicate that over 27 million people are enslaved globally. ‘Twenty Seven Million’ is a song released in 2012 by the evangelical songwriter Matt Redman and the electronic dance music group LZ7. The song was aimed at raising awareness for the anti-human trafficking movement, and in support of the A21 Campaign to abolish modern-day slavery.

Matt Redman said: ‘It’s a huge issue in our world that’s rising to the surface. Governments, police and the media are all talking about it, and the church is doing a lot of stuff – this is a song to recognise that and hopefully drive some more awareness. Let’s propel this somewhere good together, make some noise about this issue that is on the heart of God and the heart of the Church.’

About 27 million people rely on unsafe water which, for malnourished children, can lead to fatal diarrheal diseases. UNICEF reports that 27 million people lacked safe water in countries facing or at risk of famine.

The Soviet Union World War II losses of about 27 million lives during World War II, both civilian and military deaths from all war-related causes.

The Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Abbey in 1953 was the first coronation ever to be televised, and was watched by 27 million people in the UK alone and millions more around the world. It was probably the first time many homes in the UK bought a television.

27 million metres is 27,000 km and 27 million square metres is 27,000 km. The Crimean peninsula, which is almost entirely surrounded by the Black Sea and the smaller Sea of Azov, is 27,000 sq km. Crimea is internationally recognised as part of Ukraine but has been occupied by Russia since 2014.

And 27 million minutes is equal to 51.33 years, 18,750 days, or 450,000 hours. In other words, if this blog was getting only one hit a minute, it would take more than 51 years to reach this latest 27 million mark.

It is four years since I retired from active parish ministry in March 2022. These days, though, about 100 people on average are reading my daily prayer diary posted on this blog each morning. I imagine many of my priest-colleagues would be prayerfully thankful if the congregations in their churches totalled 700 or more people each week.

Today, I am very grateful to the real readers among those 27 million hits on this blog to date, and in particular I remain grateful to the faithful core group of about 100 people who join me in prayer, reading and reflections each day.

Daily prayer in Lent 2026: 23, Thursday 12 March 2026

‘If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand?’ (Luke 11: 18) … a gargoyle at Lichfield Cathedral (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Patrick Comerford

We have reached the half-way point in Lent, which began three weeks ago on Ash Wednesday (18 February 2026). This week began with the Third Sunday in Lent (Lent III, 8 March 2026).

I am staying at the Anglican Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham in Norfolk. I am speaking later today at the Ecumenical Pilgrimage to Walsingham which began on Tuesday (10 March) and continues until tomorrow (13 March).

This ecumenical pilgrimage has been organised with the support of the Fellowship of Saint Alban and Saint Sergius and the Society of Saint John Chrysostom and is in its 100th year. I have been invited to speak today on ‘A Priest along the Way of a Pilgrim’.

Today’s programme begins with an Anglican celebration of the Eucharist in the Shrine Church or Catholic Mass (Ordinariate Use) with the Little Sisters of Jesus, and Scripture Meditations led by the Revd Samuel Harris of the Church of Scotland in the Shrine Church, and the morning includes a talk by Father Michael Lambros of Saint Mary and Saint George Coptic Orthodox Church, East London; and the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts served by Father Stephen Platt of the Fellowship of Saint Alban and Saint Sergius. The afternoon programme includes sprinkling at the Holy Well in the Shrine Church and my talk, ‘A Priest along the Way of a Pilgrim’. In the evening, Monsignor Keith Newton is in Conversation with Father Mark Woodruff.

Before today begins, however, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, to reflect, to pray and to read in these ways:

1, reading today’s Gospel reading;

2, a short reflection;

3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;

4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.

The Temptation of Job in the Purgatory Window by Richard King of the Harry Clarke Studios in the Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, Athlone (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Luke 11: 14-23 (NRSVA):

14 Now he was casting out a demon that was mute; when the demon had gone out, the one who had been mute spoke, and the crowds were amazed. 15 But some of them said, ‘He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons.’ 16 Others, to test him, kept demanding from him a sign from heaven. 17 But he knew what they were thinking and said to them, ‘Every kingdom divided against itself becomes a desert, and house falls on house. 18 If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? – for you say that I cast out the demons by Beelzebul. 19 Now if I cast out the demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your exorcists cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. 20 But if it is by the finger of God that I cast out the demons, then the kingdom of God has come to you. 21 When a strong man, fully armed, guards his castle, his property is safe. 22 But when one stronger than he attacks him and overpowers him, he takes away his armour in which he trusted and divides his plunder. 23 Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.’

Giovanni da Modena’s fresco of the Last Judgment in the Basilica of San Petronio in Bologna was inspired by Dante’s descriptions of the Devil and Hell (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Reflection:

The Gospel reading at the Eucharist this morning (Luke 11: 14-23) is laden with images of demons, Beelzebul, Satan, more demons, exorcists and still more demons. And we read of a kingdom divided against itself that becomes a desert, houses falling on houses, castles being plundered, and strong men abusing their strength.

What is your image of the Devil?

For many people today, he is old hat and the stuff of superstition. For others he is a figure of fun: the gargoyles gushing out rainwater from gutters on cathedrals and churches; the logo for Manchester United; or the impish black-and-red costumes of children at Hallowe’en or some adults at Carnival in Continental European cities in the days before Lent.

Many of our cultural images of the Devil come not from the Bible but from Dante’s Inferno, which influenced John Milton’s Paradise Lost, other poets, including TS Eliot’s The Waste Land, as well as frescoes, paintings, and stained-glass windows throughout the world.

But the Devil appears in many forms throughout the Bible.

The word satan in its original original Hebrew term sâtan (שָּׂטָן‎) means an ‘accuser’ or ‘adversary,’ and refers to both human adversaries and a supernatural entity. The word is derived from a verb meaning primarily to obstruct or to oppose. When it is used without the definite article (satan), the word can refer to any accuser; when it is used with the definite article (ha-satan), it refers specifically to the heavenly accuser: the Satan.

Ha-Satan with the definite article occurs 13 times in two books of the Hebrew Bible: Job 1 and 2 (10 times) and Zechariah 3: 1-2 (three times); satan without the definite article is used in 10 instances.

These occurrences without a definite article include the Angel of the Lord who confronts Balaam on his donkey (Numbers 22: 22); and the Angel of the Lord who brings a plague against Israel for three days after David takes a census (II Samuel 24).

The satan who appears in the Book of Job is one of the ‘sons of God’ (Job 1: 6-8) who has been roaming around the earth and who tortures Job physically, mentally and spiritually, to see whether Job will abandon his faith. But Job remains faithful and righteous, and satan is shamed in his defeat.

The English word devil, used as a synonym for Satan, can be traced through Middle English, Old English and Latin to the Greek διάβολος (diabolos), ‘slanderer,’ from a verb (diaballein) meaning to slander, but originally meaning ‘to hurl across’ or ‘to back bite.’ In the New Testament, the words Satan and diabolos are used interchangeably.

Another name in today’s Gospel reading, Beelzebub, means ‘Lord of Flies,’ and is also a contemptuous name for a Philistine god and a pun on his name meaning ‘Baal the Prince.’ Some critics in today’s reading accuse Jesus of exorcising demons through the power of Beelzebub.

Satan plays a role in some of the Gospel parables, including the Parables of the Sower, the Weeds, the Sheep and the Goats, and the Strong Man.

In Saint Luke’s Gospel, Judas betrays Christ because ‘Satan entered into’ him (see Luke 22: 3-6; cf John 12: 13: 2) and Christ implies Satan has authority to test Peter and the other apostles (see Luke 22: 31).

In Saint John’s Gospel, Satan is identified as ‘the Archon of the Cosmos’ (ὁ ἄρχων τοῦ κόσμου), who is to be overthrown through Christ’s death and resurrection (John 12: 31-32).

The Letter to the Hebrews describes the devil as ‘the one who has the power of death’ (Hebrews 2: 14).

In the Book of Revelation, Satan is first the supernatural ruler of the Empire. In that book, we also come across Abaddon, whose name in Greek is Apollyon, meaning ‘the destroyer,’ an angel who rules the Abyss (Revelation 9: 11).

The vision of a Great Red Dragon with seven heads, 10 horns, seven crowns, and a sweeping tail (Revelation 12: 3-4) is an image inspired by the apocalyptic visions in the Book of Daniel. A war then breaks out in heaven, and Michael and his angels defeat the Dragon who is thrown down. This dragon is identified with ‘that ancient serpent, who is called Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world (Revelation 12: 9) and the accuser.

This identifies him with all the images of satan in the Hebrew Bible, from the serpent in Eden, to Job’s tempters. Later, the chained and imprisoned Satan breaks loose from his chains in the abyss and wages war against the righteous. But he is defeated and cast into a lake of fire (see Revelation 20: 1-10).

The three synoptic Gospels describe the temptation of Christ by Satan in the wilderness (see Matthew 4: 1-11, Mark 1: 12-13, and Luke 4: 1-13), and, each time, Christ rebukes Satan.

Too often we reduce temptation to small things in life. The one real temptation facing Jeff Difford, the slick pastor in the television series Young Sheldon, is greed in the form of wanting a new combined toaster and microwave oven. He resists that temptation for a day or so, and when he gives in, he asks for forgiveness.

But this is a fatuous and fraudulent presentation of temptation. True temptation can come in small ways, but it can also come in dramatic ways, leading to the abuse of privilege, position and power, in the church, in business, in politics.

There is real evil in the world. It is 81 years since the end of the Holocaust and World War II. Yet racism is rampant, open Islamophobia and antisemitism are on the rise, with the US attacks on Iran, the world is close to war yet again, peace seems impossible in the Middle East, and the rule of law is being undermined in the US, moment by the moment.

As I watch the daily rantings of the kleptocracy that has taken grip of the institutions of democracy and justice in the US, I cannot but help find parallels in the parable contained within today’s Gospel reading: ‘When a strong man, fully armed, guards his castle, his property is safe. But when one stronger than he attacks him and overpowers him, he takes away his armour in which he trusted and divides his plunder. Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters’ (verses 21-23).

Yet there is hope too: demons are cast out, those who were once silent finally find the power to speak out, the strong and the mighty are exposed as plunderers and despoilers, kingdoms find they are divided against themselves and become desert, and houses fall on house.

And when these things happen, as they shall happen, we must hope for signs that the kingdom of God is to come among us.

Saint Michael and the Devil … a statue by Jacob Epstein at Coventry Cathedral (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Prayers (Thursday 12 March 2026):

The theme this week (8-14 March 2026) in ‘Pray With the World Church,’ the Prayer Diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), is ‘Biblical Sisterhood’ (pp 36-37). This theme was introduced on Sunday with reflections by Dr Sanjana Das, PhD feminist theologian, advocate for the dignity and rights of trafficked and migrant working women.

The USPG Prayer Diary today (Thursday 12 March 2026) invites us to pray:

God of courage and compassion, awaken in us the honesty to examine our own actions. Forgive the times we have looked away or acted without thought. Help us to shop, eat and live in ways that honour the labour of others, and uphold dignity and justice for all.

The Collect:

Almighty God,
whose most dear Son went not up to joy but first he suffered pain,
and entered not into glory before he was crucified:
mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of the cross,
may find it none other than the way of life and peace;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

The Post Communion Prayer:

Merciful Lord,
grant your people grace to withstand the temptations
of the world, the flesh and the devil,
and with pure hearts and minds to follow you, the only God;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Additional Collect:

Eternal God,
give us insight
to discern your will for us,
to give up what harms us,
and to seek the perfection we are promised
in Jesus Christ our Lord.

Yesterday’s Reflections

Continued Tomorrow

‘When the demon had gone out, the one who had been mute spoke, and the crowds were amazed …’ (Luke 11: 14) … a sculpture in the Llotja de la Seda or Silk Exchange in Valencia (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