7 Sunday Easter B

My favourite place of pilgrimage is Clonmacnois. It is an oasis of tranquillity and solitude, alive with peace. I go in particular to visit The Cross of The Scriptures. It is one of the great treasures of Ireland and the world. It is a masterpiece in stone, a memory to Flann, High King of Ireland, 1045 ad.

The sculptor was a genius. He hides The Right Hand of God, under the arm of the Cross. I wonder ...what was his thinking? I guess, that he is saying that God’s Right Hand is super abundant and lavish in all the gifts given, but somehow they are unnoticed, unseen, hidden.

Who could imagine that The Good Friday would contain the seed of Resurrection of Easter. We have many Good Friday days in life, of disappointments, pain and failure, yet that is not the full picture. Jesus presence was confined during His days on earth, but His Resurrected presence is world wide, even universe wide. He is now present to us in a different way, through His Spirit. His leaving, He says, is to our advantage.

Perhaps, were it not for the leaving of many Irish Emigrants over the centuries, Ireland and other peoples would be less blessed. God’s hidden Hand was all the while present. In the Ascension there is a departure but only to celebrate a greater presence.

Liam Hickey St. Ciarans Hartstown Dublin 15.

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