This week we have been able to listen to the Pope pondering and this gives us the chance to ponder the Pope. No other religious figure commands such authority or influence over his people. As a result his brand becomes the flavour of his time.

He could be called the “big picture Pope”. His message is for all. Those in his church and those outside it. It is firstly a pastoral message not a doctrinal or liturgical one. It gets its creditability in good measure from his acknowledgment that he is a sinner. He identifies with hurt people and sees his church as a place of healing the wounded. He describes it as a field hospital after battle.

On evangelism the Pope reckons that failure in this area is due to people being closed to God. He thinks they do not hear Jesus knocking on their door. He adds somewhat mischievously that when Jesus knocks from within we do not let him out!

Interestingly a number of commentators have quaintly mentioned that the Pope remains a Catholic! He is using language more familiar to other churches in this his second interview where he tackles a wide variety of subjects. His desire is not only that his clergy should be poor (his first interview) but that they get involved with sinners in their need without losing the way themselves.

He also wants that within his church local disputes should be settled locally. This seems to indicate a move in the direction of independency of the local church within the overall structure of Rome.

What does the Bible say to all this?

When Jesus was knocking on the door it was of course the door of a church which had excluded him “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me” (Revelation Chapter 3 verse 20). As the church is people not premises it could be said that Jesus knock never goes unanswered. There are always those who hear his voice. He never knocks in vain.

Certainly as believers we would have to agree there are times we who have embraced the Saviour do not “let Him out” and our guilty silence we confess as sin.

On the message he advocated, “Proclamation in a missionary style focused on the essentials, on the necessary things: this is also what fascinates and attracts more, what makes the heart burn, as it did for the disciples at Emmaus”. St Luke records the conversation that made the hearts burn “beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself” (St Luke chapter 24 verse 27).

It is the plot-line of the Bible. It was the promised Messiah, His birth and now his death and resurrection. They had plenty to speak about on the road to Emmaus. May we proclaim Him as the sinner’s friend who died that they may be forgiven and rose that we might know with certainty that it is all true.

It would be hard to motor from Dublin to Aberdeen, Scotland, as we did last week, without noting the presence of flags.

In Ireland they adorn anything from lampposts to blocks of flats. In Scotland they were more evident on cars and houses.

In both countries the “Union Jack” was being flown to denote an allegiance for the British Crown. The statement they made was that this allegiance was to be preferred to another allegiance denoted by the other flag.

In Ireland the tricolour’s primary colour is green which is flown next to the flagpole and represents the Gaelic tradition. The other colour is Orange representing William of Orange and has come to symbolise those who esteem his memory. The white separating the two colours symbolises a truce where both are linked together.

In the Union flag the red cross of England and Wales is bisected by the two saltire crosses of Ireland (red) and Scotland (white). The Scottish cross appears against a blue background whereas the other crosses have a white background. Again the symbolism is one of unity and inclusion.

However at present the Scottish saltire cross (a white St Andrew’s cross on a blue background) has been extracted from the Union Jack and is being used as the flag of independent Scotland. The vote on independence is one year off by which time there will doubtless be plenty of flags of both variety on display!

The unity and inclusion symbolised by the flags is seldom a reality but rather an aspiration. Instead flags can so easily stake out territories and become symbols in the power struggles of our time.

What would the Bible comment on these things?

All three flags are used by people who would claim a connection to Christianity.

The Irish flag with its message of joining people of different opinions together bears the contradiction of symbolising unity whilst recalling the victory of William of Orange. It is hard to have reciprocal love for ones neighbour while waving a symbol of his defeat! The irony is that whose who wave it most are those who would espouse the Orange least!

The aspirations of the Union Jack by focusing on the cross have chosen the symbol which epitomises the love of God (Romans Chapter 5 verse 8). It is the agape love which seeks the good of others before self. It speaks of sacrifice for ones country and indeed has been waved in many battles to encourage loyalty and commitment.

The irony here is to see it being used by a largely agnostic people to represent their country before the world.

Shed of their values they become tools of dissention within the land. A re-focussing in faith on the Christ who bore the cross in order to make a way for we sinners to find reconciliation with God is the starting point. Out of our being forgiven the way opens for us to see things differently. “From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation” 2 Corinthians 5 verses 16/18.

The death of Seamus Heaney yesterday has triggered an avalanche of words providing an appropriate covering for our best known contemporary poet. Potted biographies and eulogies compete with each other in the newspapers, while Presidents and Poets recall their encounters with Seamus.

Not to be outdone, a taxi-driver on our Vox-pop radio show recounted presenting Seamus with a book of his poems only to be asked by the Nobel Prize winner to sign it first!

Throughout his life he sustained a prolific output of poems. Perhaps the most accessible are those which were inspired by memories of his childhood. His genius lay in taking the ordinary and imbuing it with a dignity that was always there but had previously been overlooked. He could construct word pictures that took us into our imaginations transforming the familiar into parables for us to interpret. Here is one such poem.

The annals say: when the monks of Clonmacnoise
Were all at prayers inside the oratory
A ship appeared above them in the air.

The anchor dragged along behind so deep
It hooked itself into the altar rails
And then, as the big hull rocked to a standstill,

A crewman shinned and grappled down the rope
And struggled to release it. But in vain.
‘This man can’t bear our life here and will drown,’

The abbot said, ‘unless we help him.’ So
We did, the freed ship sailed, and the man climbed back
Out of the marvellous as he had known it.

It seems that the crewman enters the world of the spiritual with a mission to save his ship. Salvation is beyond him but he is graciously delivered and his ship set free.

Seamus presents us with a division between the secular and sacred that is unbridgeable unaided. The crewman gets a glimpse of this marvellous “alter universe” to take back with him into his everyday life.

Perhaps the crewman could identify with St Paul who, writing about his heavenly vision, said “I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows” (2 Corinthians Chapter 12 verses 2).

For Seamus the anchor has been cast. For us let us make sure that it is in Christ.

With the imprisonment of Mohamed Morsi and the decimation of his well organised Muslim Brotherhood followers, went their vision of a caliphate extending from the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea. Just how near they came to pulling it off we will never know. The military stepped in and with an equal and opposite efficiency set about dismantling the fundamentalists’ structure created by the Brotherhood in the space of the one year of Morsi’s rule.

Of course there was a considerable backlash. The crackdown on the Brotherhood sit-ins was carried out by the police commandos while the army was used to hold strategic positions on roads and bridges. Considering the religious overtone of martyrdom among the Brotherhood there was always going to be bloodshed. The ensuing slaughter, coupled with the appearance of a thwarted democracy in President Morsi’s imprisonment, captured the media’s attention in the West and sparked some pro-brotherhood protests.

However it seems that the majority of the Egyptian population in giving their support to the army were indicating that they did not wish to have another Pharaoh (Morsi had assumed sweeping executive powers) to reign over them.

Internationally the backing of the army by the US continues and the Arab states of Saudi, Kuwait and the UAE have also lent their support. What started 12 months ago, under the guise of a democracy, but rapidly descended into the makings of an Islamic State has had it demise approved by these wealthy neighbours.

Of paramount importance is Egypt’s stability. This is key to the stability of a region which seems bent on instability in whichever direction you look.

The Bible speaks of a close relationship between Egypt and Israel. At times they were enemies and at other times Egypt was a place of refuge. The infant Jesus fled there with his parents until Herod’s death when it became safe to return. This was prophesied by Hosea and recorded in St Matthew’s Gospel Chapter 3 verse 15 “Out of Egypt I called my son.”

Sadly to this day Islam does not recognise Jesus as the Son of God who, as St Paul said “loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians Chapter 2 verse 20). Instead it believes that Judas was crucified and Jesus did not atone for anyone’s sins although the Koran believes He was taken bodily into heaven without having died (Surah 4:157)

Among the 99 names Islam associates with Allah are the compassionate and the merciful but there is no equivalent for love. Allah is impersonal and unknowable.

Perhaps the greatest challenge facing Christians today is to maintain a witness to the love of God in the face of conflict. As Jesus said in a difficult situation “I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as wise as serpents and innocent as doves” (St Matthew Chapter 10 verse 16).

And so it turned out to be for Cork-man Rob Heffernan who won the 50km walk at the World Athletics Championships in Moscow this week and brought home the Gold!

For those of us who still think in old money that’s 31 miles; 5 miles longer than the marathon. This achievement came out of the despair of Olympic failure last year where Rob came in fourth. Afterwards he felt like giving up but his two kids persuaded him to continue with the training, even if it meant that they would see little of him. His wife Marion, also an athlete and his coach, was behind him all the way.

At age 35 Rob was challenged by the 22 year old Russian Ryzhov. His experience helped him fend off the competition and the TV clip of him coming up to the finishing line seemed to show him walking on air. That was the one thing he was not doing as this most demanding of sports require one foot to be in contact with the ground at all times. This calls for great discipline if you are to complete the 31 miles in a little over 3.5 hours.

For a walker, age is not a handicap and Rob could well have the next Olympics in his sights. We wish him and his family well.

The Bible often uses walking as a metaphor for our manner of life.

The Apostle John quotes Jesus in his Gospel as the one who will help us to see where we are going, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (Chapter 8 verse 12). Later when St John wrote his first letter he returned to this theme, “God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin” (Chapter 1 verses 5-7).

Here St John points up the hypocrite in us namely claiming to be Christian when our walk takes us into darkness. There is a choice on offer; to come into the light of God’s truth. The first step is to come to Jesus for cleansing as often and as quickly as possible.

Physically we may not be able to keep up with Rob but with St John’s training we will get the Gold in the end.

Living in Ireland could be likened to inhabiting a semi-detached house where the neighbours have regular fights. These carry on largely ignored but occasionally an act of unusual violence disturbs the occupants in the other half of the house.

There were incidents earlier this year which spoiled the G12 Summit in Fermanagh from being the showcase to the world that we longed to present. There is also the “Marching Season”, that annual explosion of over 3,000 marches on or around the 12^th of July. It has to be said that there are only a few contentious parades, i.e. those which mischievously create disharmony but once the “cat is let out of the bag” the police have sometimes days of work to restore tranquillity.

Last night the neighbours were commemorating the introduction of internment without trial, back in 9.8.71, with their usual bonfire and parade. This was challenged by no less than four counter-demonstrations giving the Police a daunting task. Keeping the marchers separate required the usual riot gear, water cannon, plastic rounds and a helicopter. Opposing them were the brick and bottle throwers who found a plentiful supply of ammunition in the main shopping thoroughfare where the action was located.

Of course these encounters are very exciting for the participants. They run little risk of injury as the Police provide the buffer zone between the combatants. Woe betide any policeman who uses “undue force” to restrain individuals from breaking his bones or setting him alight with petrol bombs. It really presents young men with a golden opportunity to expend testosterone while incurring little if any sanctions.

What has the Bible to say to all this?

Quite a lot really. The struggles to live at peace in their land take up much of its Old Testament narrative.

Even when Jesus came, was recognised as the promised Messiah and established a small following, it was their desire to have him overthrow the Roman army of occupation and “liberate” the people.

This was why St Peter’s was shocked at Jesus mention of going to the cross.

It was such an obscenity to contemplate. A crucified Messiah! He wanted a physical deliverance not another failed coup! St Matthew records Peter saying, “Far be it from you, Lord!  This shall never happen to you.” But Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” Chapter 16 Verses 22/23.

A spiritual conquest, leading to a change of heart and a change of behaviour, transformed Jesus disciples. But for Belfast there first has to be a laying down of bricks and bottles before there can be a picking up of the cross. Jesus Christ has not only shown us the way. He is the way. There is no other for this life or the next.

The news this week has been dominated by the deaths of two young boys whose bodies were found in the boot of their father’s car.

The alarm had been raised by their mother when they did not return from a trip to Carlow where their father was taking them bowling. That was last Sunday and apart from a single distressed phone call from their father there was no more contact till his car was found crashed on Monday afternoon.

The crash appears to have been a failed suicide attempt.

Sanjeev is of Indian descent. He worked at repairing computers. He had married into a local farm family and his boys were Eoghan (10) and Ruairi (5). The boys were active in the life of the community. The apparent normality of the family makes the tragedy all the more difficult to deal with.

The love and compassion afforded by the community and church to the bereaved provide some comfort and solace but there are questions that will not go away. Perhaps sometime in the future Sanjeev will be able address the question why, but perhaps not.

When the balance of the mind is disturbed wrong things appear to be right to the extent that the actions taken appear, at that moment, to be the only thing to do. When the enormity of the consequences dawns suicide seems to offer the only way out.

Then there is God. Surely He could have intervened. Even atheists join the chorus “Why did He let it happen”! There seems to be a consensus that He could have prevented it.

God too has a Son who died in horrendous circumstances. And scripture tells us that God the Father had a hand in it, “Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him; he has put him to grief;” Isaiah Chapter 53 verse 10a.

But this was not the action of a tormented mind but a sublime act of love for sinners, “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans Chapter 5 verse 8.

This love of God for the unlovely, in fact for those utterly opposed to Him, is the only hope for a world gone mad and it is available in this day of grace to all repentant sinners. God’s mercy is as great as His grace and is freely offered to those who turn from their sins. The wonderful news is that there are none too far gone whether their names are Sanjeev or George.

The ink was scarcely dry on the journalist’s article outlining a couple of cases where crimes had been committed with impunity when the news broke on Thursday of the collapse of the Planning corruption trial.

Following a Tribunal which took 12 years and a trial which lasted 4 weeks the chief witness for the prosecution became ill and is unlikely to be fit to resume his evidence. Ironically he is the only person to have gone to prison in the history of the rezoning-for-cash investigation.

The ineffectiveness of the law to bring to justice those involved in “white collar” crime is monumental.

The UK financial regulator, who has been working here to restore some creditability to the Irish banking system, remarked in his last major public appearance before taking up his next appointment in the UK that the current system is not working well. This must be the understatement of the year! It seems that there is no appetite amongst “white collar” workers to reform the existing structure which has preserved those involved in the culture of corruption with impunity.

The journalist whose article anticipated the collapse of the trial prescribed a “root-and-branch” inquiry into the law, the Garda and the Office of the DPP. In other words an overhaul of our justice system carried out by international experts in those fields. This prescription may fit the disease but the medicine most certainly will not be taken!

How have countries rid themselves of such maladies? Usually by revolution or Christian revival. Historically France chose the former and England the latter. The guillotine proved a difficult instrument to stop once it got going whereas the 18^th century revival enabled change to be effected without bloodshed. Rather than looking for bribes those who had wronged others, those converted having themselves been forgiven by Christ, made restitution.

This was the reflex action of Zacchaeus following his encounter with Jesus, recorded by St Luke in Chapter 19 of his gospel. Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.”

Changing a corrupt culture by a better justice system may seem at first sight to be the way to go but it does not get to the heart of the problem which is the problem of the human heart. In its fallen state it is biased towards sin. It needs to be transformed by the Holy Spirit’s action in revealing Christ’s redemptive work as being the exact prescription we need and to realise his death for sinners was for me personally. Change in a culture begins when change takes place in us, one at a time, then we will see Christ’s kingdom come but it has to start within us.

“In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun, which is like a bridegroom coming forth from his pavilion, like a champion rejoicing to run his course. It rises at one end of the heavens and makes its circuit to the other; nothing is hidden from its heat” (Psalm 19).

We have been treated to exceptionally large amounts of pure sunlight these last couple of weeks which, combined with the absence of rain, has enabled the Meteorological Office to announce an official drought. Who would have thought it? Rainy Ireland in drought! And it seems we are not alone if an email from Philadelphia is to be believed they are suffering on that side of the pond too.

With no end to the hot weather in sight we can expect water rationing to be introduced. What we take for granted becomes precious when we realise we have only a finite amount and cannot reproduce it ourselves. When the well goes dry these facts become reality – a reality which is a daily problem for many on our planet.

The value of water was not lost on people in Bible times. The climax of the Feast of Tabernacles, the 7^th day, when water carried from the well was carried through Jerusalem and up to the Temple where it was poured out as an oblation onto the thirsty ground. This had occurred each of the preceding days but on the 7^th it was performed 7 times. That which was most precious was offered up to God in adoration.

It was against this backdrop that Jesus spoke. `On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” (St John Chapter 7 verse 37/8).

It is likely that all who heard these words that day were thirsty. It is even more likely that they recognised Isaiah’s words of invitation to the people of his day being quoted to them but with a difference. This time they pointed the thirsty to Jesus himself. He offered to quench their thirst. He had made the same offer to the Woman at the well of Samaria prompting her to ask for the “living water” (St John Chapter 4 verse 15).

These illustrations become more compelling in drought as we repeatedly fill up the glass with water which only satisfies for a little while. Jesus’s invitation to come to him of course means to come to place your trust in him, to believe in him in an ongoing personal way. Like the current heat the invitation reaches everyone. Will you receive the water of life?

The voice of conscience, so seldom heard in the land, rang out this week in the Dail debate on abortion with the resignation of four TD’s and the junior minister Lucinda Creighton. The latter took her time to reflect on the amendments which were instigated but eventually fell on her sword over the inclusion of the “suicide clause”.

These people present something of an anomaly as they have made a stand on moral grounds in a post-modern climate which has largely discarded any distinction between right and wrong.

What is and what ought have been eroded in recent years to simply what is. For example what is a fact – almost 4,000 women travelled to the UK for abortions last year. Therefore what ought according to our rights based society would be for the law to permit these to be carried out here.

Lucinda’s stand on that what ought to be i.e. safeguarding the life of the unborn child by the removal of the suicide clause was rejected by the coalition government leaving the door open for virtual abortion on demand. This runs contrary to the expressed intention of the Bill to protect life during pregnancy. Thus the government has produced an almost exact replica of George Orwell’s “doublethink” introduced in his book entitled 1984 where mutually contradictory beliefs were held to be correct.

The voice of conscience may find an echo in the Senate when it comes to examine the Bill as, in many ways, the Senate is fighting for its survival and this could reveal its worth.

In the Bible conscience is seen as an ally of God revealing to us the gap between what is and what ought to be in our lives. St Paul maintained that God’s laws were written on the hearts of those who had never been taught them! He added that conscience bore witness to this fact evidenced in our thoughts either accusing or excusing us (Romans Chapter 2 verse 15).

This gap was bridged at Calvary where those who wish to respond to the promptings of their conscience will find forgiveness and acceptance in Christ and, tutored by the Word of God, a conscience able to make right choices in a world largely unable to distinguish right from wrong.