Credo III

I’m trying to learn Credo III
to sing at Latin Mass.
It’s the hardest song
I’ve tried to learn …
ever!

I’m struggling.

Gregorian chant-style.
Nearly five minutes long
and yet no verses, no chorus,
no timing
and, in fact,
no pattern at all
that I can see.

Yikes!!!

Twenty five years
of church folk group music
simply have not prepared me
for this.

Have you ever found yourself
trying to walk behind a crowd
of tiny children
as they jostle and play
in front of you?
The children are totally unpredictable
and you have absolutely no idea
where they’re going next.
Well, learning Credo III
is a lot like that!

Then Mammy springs to mind.
Mammy recently received
her gold Fáinne
for speaking Irish fluently.
She was in her mid-eighties
at the time
and got that gold Fáinne
through determination
and sheer hard work.
If Mammy is capable of that
there’s no way
that I can let Credo III
to get the better of me!

And so here I sit
in the kitchen
while the spuds are on,
with a sheet of music
in my hand
and YouTube on my phone.
I’m going to master this Credo III.
Do you know why?
Because I have that same determination
that Mammy has!

Credo III, here I come!

© Claire Murray, 15th March 2023

Greatest in Heaven

The disciples ask Jesus
a question –
“Who will be the greatest
in the kingdom of Heaven?”
And I sense their wondering
as they wait to hear
Jesus’s answer.

Will it be
the greatest teacher,
the greatest healer
or the one who casts out
the most devils?

Will it be one
who raises the dead to life
or a great king
who governs his people fairly?

Will it be someone
who works endlessly
with the poor
or perhaps a man
with tremendous wisdom?

Hmmm …
which will it be?

Before answering
Jesus calls over
a wee child
whom He then presents
to His disciples
before explaining –
the greatest in Heaven
is someone who is as humble
as this youngster.

A sense of astonishment
among Jesus’s disciples
as a sad realisation dawns –
that simply by posing this question
they have demonstrated
that none of them could possibly be
the greatest in the kingdom of Heaven.

A challenge to each of us
to strive in life
to be as trusting
as a child
and as humble
as Jesus Himself.
A tall order, surely.
Aren’t we blessed
to have Jesus by our side
to help us
every step of the way?

(c) Claire Murray

Crowning with Thorns

As I pray the Sorrowful Mysteries
I find myself thinking
about the Roman soldiers
who decided to entertain themselves
at the expense of Jesus –
dressing Him royally
in fake robes
with a stick for a sceptre
and with a crown of thorns
cruelly shoved
onto His tender head.

Jolly japes for the Roman soldiers
as they paraded Jesus around.
Pain and utter humiliation for Jesus.

A war news story
comes to mind.

A soldier is captured, tortured
and finally bayonetted five times
by his torturers
who then leave him for dead.
Some time later
the torturers are, themselves,
captured
and brought to an interrogation room.

Imagine their astonishment
and horror
when into room walks the very man
whom they had bayonetted five times
and left for dead.

This man sat before his torturers
and asked one simple question –
“Why?”

I wonder …
is that how the Roman soldiers
will react
at Judgement Day
when they find themselves
face to face again with Jesus
whom they humiliated?

Will I be equally
shocked and dismayed
on that same day
when I see in Jesus
the faces of those
whom I myself hurt
or simply failed to help?

5th February 2023

Talk on Corners

Recently
there’s been talk on corners.
Mary is expecting a baby,
you see,
before she has begun
to live with Joseph.

“Oooh,
some people just can’t wait!”
smirks someone.
Mary passes by,
head bowed down.

“Bringing shame on the family!”
whispers another
as Mary approaches.
Mary hurries past.

“Bring back stoning,
that’s what I say!”
rasps someone else.
Mary lowers her head
and blinks away tears.

Harsh words
to cut, to humiliate, to hurt
and to terrify.

Mary hurries off
to a town in the hill country
to visit Elizabeth.

What a reception
she receives –
welcome, warm embrace
and smiles all around.
Even Elizabeth’s unborn child
leaps for joy!

Here, Mary can hold her head high
and reveal at last
her true feelings –
“My soul glorifies the Lord!”

Three months in the hill country
with Elizabeth –
where Mary feels
known, loved, accepted
and understood.

A hope that,
by the time she returns home,
the talk on corners
will have ceased.

© Claire Murray, 12th January 2023

Look Beyond

As we stand at the top
of Divis Mountain
mists swirl all around
and all we can see
in front of us
are a few gorse bushes.

Beyond that …
nothing!
It really looks as if
the world … ends … here.

And yet I know
that when the mists lift
I will see before me
a panorama that spans
from the mighty Mournes
to the sweeping Sperrins
with Lough Neagh in between them
glinting
in the sunlight.

I know this
because I have seen it
many times.
And if someone were to tell me
that the world ends here,
I simply wouldn’t believe them.

In our secular world
we often find ourselves
in the company of people
who cannot see
beyond death
and who view death as
The End.

I cannot subscribe
to this view
Death is not The End.
Rather, it is The Beginning –
the beginning of Eternal Life
either with God
who knew us
before He formed us
in the womb –
or without God.

I know this
because Jesus told us
and I know this
because I have experienced
the deep love
that God has for me.

And so if someone tells me
or a whole clamour of voices tell me
that death is The End
I will know
not to believe them.
Because I have faith in Jesus.

Thanks be to God!

© Claire Murray, 7th June 2022

Talk on Corners

Recently
there’s been talk on corners.
Mary is expecting a baby,
you see,
before she has begun
to live with Joseph.

“Oooh,
some people just can’t wait!”
smirks someone.
Mary passes by,
head bowed down.

“Bringing shame on the family!”
whispers another
as Mary approaches.
Mary hurries past.

“Bring back stoning,
that’s what I say!”
rasps someone else.
Mary lowers her head
and blinks away tears.

Harsh words
to cut, to humiliate, to hurt
and to terrify.

Mary hurries off
to a town in the hill country
to visit Elizabeth.

What a reception
she receives –
welcome, warm embrace
and smiles all around.
Even Elizabeth’s unborn child
leaps for joy!

Here, Mary can hold her head high
and reveal at last
her true feelings –
“My soul glorifies the Lord!”

Three months in the hill country
with Elizabeth –
where Mary feels
known, loved, accepted
and understood.

A hope that,
by the time she returns home,
the talk on corners
will have ceased.

© Claire Murray, 12th January 2023

When the Sun Shines

It’s a sunny day
in Belfast
so we pack a picnic
and drive off
to spend the day
at Ravensdale.

Unfortunately
the good weather doesn’t last
and by the time we arrive
the sun has disappeared
and the sky has darkened.

Oh, dear!
Time to don hats and gloves!

Our forest walk
is challenging –
steep uphills
and stoney paths
but we find peace here
and beauty.

Turning a corner
we emerge from the trees
and find ourselves
dazzled in sunlight.
Ahead of us
the path brightens
and our shadows stride before us
like giants.

The path is just
as steep and stumbly
as before,
yet our hearts lift
and our step is light.

Haven’t those few
moments of sun
simply transformed our walk?

In much the same way
that God transforms our lives
if only
we open our hearts
and invite Him in.

© Claire Murray, 15th January 2023

Authentic

Every single week
as I take my seat
at Latin Mass
one word springs to mind –
“authentic”.

The chapel I go to
is the simplest of chapels.
You won’t find any finery here
but what you will find
are all the essentials
for Holy Mass –
seats for the congregation,
an altar for the holy sacrifice
of the Mass,
altar rails for us to receive
Holy Communion,
Stations of the Cross and statues
to inspire us.

Nobody is drawn here
by grandeur
and yet every Sunday
this tiny chapel
is packed,
filled to capacity
by a devout congregation
that is steeped
in our Catholic faith.

In this tiny, cramped,
crowded chapel
we receive the Body of Christ,
truly present,
and we listen to the teaching
of the Holy Catholic Church
given to us
without compromise.

As I take my seat
on a simple, plastic chair,
the word “authentic”
springs to mind
and I give thanks to God
for bringing me
to this Latin Mass
celebrated simply, authentically
and uncompromisingly
every Sunday.

© Claire Murray, 24th November 2022

I Just Found God

The Water Boys sing a song
containing the lyrics,
“I just found God
where He always was!”
and this morning
as I enter our tiny chapel
for Latin Mass,
this is exactly
how I feel.

During Covid
we visit many churches
throughout Belfast
and far beyond
in our search for Sunday Mass.
This feels a bit
like being in a pin-ball machine,
shooting about
from parish to parish
as we try to find somewhere
that suits.

Nowhere feels just right.

Then one day
we step into the tiniest of chapels,
the simplest of chapels,
a chapel that feels to us
just right.

And where is this elusive chapel?
Right at the very top
of our street!

I just found God
where He always was!
Isn’t that amazing?
And isn’t that simply wonderful?

© Claire Murray, 6th November 2022

Midnight Mass

This year for Christmas
we do something completely different –
we go to vigil Mass in Latin …
at midnight!

Everything about it
is special.
Beginning with driving to Mass
along deserted streets.
Then carols during the blessing
of the crib.
Followed by the mystery and wonder
of the Mass
celebrated with great reverence
in Latin.

A sense of Christmas expectation,
a sense of community,
a sense of shared faith,
a sense of being in a church
that feels like home.

Then, as we leave,
something very unexpected happens –
a young man shakes my hand.
The first handshake
in almost two years.
A simple, Christ-like gesture
from someone who chooses
to live life in faith
rather than in fear.
I feel like I’ve been given
a very special Christmas present!

Midnight Mass in Latin –
wonderful (literally!)
Such a perfect way
to celebrate Christmas!

© Claire Murray, Christmas 2021