Sunday 6 October 2024

Today is Sunday the 6th of October, beginning the 27th week of Ordinary Time. Bless the Lord, my soul, who leads me into life. The most important thing for me to do now, as I enter into prayer, is to let go for a moment, to let go of my own concerns, my own worries and fears and reluctance, and let myself be led by God, trusting that God, who loves me, will lead me into life. As you listen, spend a few moments in prayer. Share your thoughts and feelings with the Lord. Listen for the Lord’s response, allowing this to deepen your relationship with Him. Today’s reading is from the Book of Genesis. Genesis 2:18-24 Then the Lord God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper as his partner.’ So out of the ground the Lord God formed every animal of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. The man gave names to all cattle, and to the birds of the air, and to every animal of the field; but for the man there was not found a helper as his partner. So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then he took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. And the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. Then the man said, ‘This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; this one shall be called Woman, for out of Man this one was taken.’ Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and clings to his wife, and they become one flesh. In our Sunday scripture, we are taken to the Beginning. This scripture offers an opportunity for imaginative prayer and an invitation to enter into the scene. Imagine the Garden of Eden. Still a place people ponder on. How do you imagine the beauty, the peace, and the presence of God? Do you see Adam among the animals? Do you sense his loneliness and longing for companionship? Reflect on your own experiences of loneliness. How has God provided companionship in your life? Ponder the intimacy of the moment when God weaves woman from Adam’s rib. Consider the significance of this act. What does it say to you? Take a moment to reflect on the union of man and woman, becoming one flesh. As you listen to the passage again, consider how this reflection applies to your life. Are you called to cultivate deeper relationships and companionship? Perhaps to support and cherish the people around you? ‘It is not good that the man should be alone.” As you observe the Sabbath, take time to rest in God’s presence and abiding love. Allow the insights from this reflection to deepen your relationship with God and with others. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.