Being like David.

David is portaited in the Jewish and Christian tradition as the king of Israel, the one who is set as an example of a godly ruler.

Yet, when you look at the Bible, David is the one who gets it terribly wrong sometimes. You only need to look at the story of Bathsheba and how David first uses her and then kills her lawful husband Uriah. There's lust here, and murder. He probably broke at least three commandments in this one incident alone, if not all of them.

And yet there is something pure-hearted in David. He really wants to do God's will. He gets it wrong, yes. But he also repents and asks for forgiveness. 

Have mercy on me, O God, according to thy steadfast love;

    according to thy abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.

2 

Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,

    and cleanse me from my sin!

This story shows that we cannot see the world in a dualist way. There aren't people who are just good and those who are just bad. We all get it wrong. Maybe (hopefully) not so much as David did, but we are not perfect.

What is wonderful is that however wrong we get it, there's always a way back to the Father who never tires of forgiving. How could He, if He loves us with such unending love.

For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8: 38-39)

More than an organic carrot.

Praised be You my Lord with all Your creatures,

especially Sir Brother Sun,

Who is the day through whom You give us light.

And he is beautiful and radiant with great splendour,

Of You Most High, he bears the likeness.

Praised be You, my Lord, through Sister Moon and the stars,

In the heavens you have made them bright, precious and fair.

Praised be You, my Lord, through Brothers Wind and Air,

And fair and stormy, all weather's moods,

by which You cherish all that You have made.

Praised be You my Lord through Sister Water,

So useful, humble, precious and pure.

Praised be You my Lord through Brother Fire,

through whom You light the night and he is beautiful and playful and robust and strong.

Praised be You my Lord through our Sister,

Mother Earth

who sustains and governs us,

producing varied fruits with coloured flowers and herbs.

Praise be You my Lord through those who grant pardon for love of You and bear sickness and trial.

St Francis of Assissi

It's hard not to realise that we've made a mess out of this planet. I can experience it first hand in Krakow, where smog is a huge problem, especially in winter when people still burn all sort of rubbish to heat their houses. Oxford's air is one of the worst in the country as well.

Looking after the environment is one of my values, God has created the Earth for us and we should respect this creation as an expression of his love, so I'm trying to make small changes in my life to reduce my impact on the environment. I'm crazy about switching lights off when not needed, having a bit of a struggle with my housemates about it. Shorter showers (around 4 mins tops) are my second challenge. I'm trying to buy organic veg boxes or buy veggies at the farmer's market. Being a more aware consumer is not easy, you need to read labels and sometimes pay more for fairtrade products, but this seems like a tiniest inconvenience when I think about what the future must be like if we don't change anything. I bike a lot or use public transport (partly due to lack of the car, but I don't foresee buying it any time soon, it's too much of a burden and also would contribute to CO2 emission). Meat is off the menu now as well.

My major environmental sin is definitely flying. I fly a lot, because this is the quickest and most effective way to get home for all holidays. I've checked my train options (again), but with a prospect of over 25 hours of travel and 4-5 train changes, it's really not going to work. But there'll be less going home in the future, that's for sure.

I think we really need an attitude of St Francis. An attitude of respect and awe at how wonderful this world is. How ideally it has been set up. We need to appreciate the Sun, the water, the trees, the birds... It's sort of like with your relationships in life. If you value someone, you take care of that person. So should be the case with our planet. Let's take care of it. At last.

Sunday Special: The biggest challenge.

People say that Christianity is demanding, some even go further, saying that it is too demanding for an ordinary human being.

I had a revelation during Mass the other day. You know, Christianity is demanding. But not because of a plethora of rules. Not because we need to go to church at least once a week and pray every day. Not because of the Ten Commandments even. Sure, not lying, keeping chaste, having God as the only Lord in your life is difficult. White lies seemed to be widely accepted, sex is all too appealing and there's so many things trying to get your attention.

But I think this is not what really makes Christianity challenging. With a bit of willpower and working on your bad habits, you can probably deal with most of the issues above. You know what the real challenge is?

‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’

Love your neighbour. All of them. Whoever they are. Love the lady who always sings out of tune. Love the gentleman who always thinks he's right. Love the girl next door who insist on blasting her music at night. And the boy who is always unpleasant to you. The friend you always questions your faith. Your grandma who cannot keep up with the times. Mum when she's overprotective. Tutor who doesn't care about you. Friends who promised to get in touch, but never did. An old man who told you off on High Street. Your ex boyfriend who dumped you when you were so in love with him. Greengrocer who yet again gave you too little change back. A driver that didn't give way to you.

I need to love all these people. Even when I, with little faith, will and mercy, would rather reject them. 

What loving your neighbour means? Pope Francis writes: "We should note the verbs which describe God’s intervention: he sees, hears, knows, comes down and delivers. God does not remain indifferent. He is attentive and he acts." And again, talking about Jesus: "He saw and embraced all of creation. But he did more than just see; he touched people’s lives, he spoke to them, helped them and showed kindness to those in need. Not only this, but he felt strong emotions and he wept (cf. Jn 11:33-44). And he worked to put an end to suffering, sorrow, misery and death." It's more than just live and let live. Loving your neighbour means something more active, active openness to all. It might be a smile, helping with carrying shopping, donating to a charity, taking time to visit someone sick, praying for those who I encounter today, doing a good job which benefits the community. Possibilities are endless, and so many occasions to show your love!