acollins16

A new year arrives

New Year’s Day arrives with its familiar confidence, as though time itself is a clean page and we are simply meant to write more neatly this time, but I have discovered, yet again, that grief does not respect the stationery of the calendar, and love does not pack itself away just because the date hasContinue reading “A new year arrives”

When the candles are interrupted

This year, Advent arrives with a bruise. In the midst of a season that teaches us to watch, to wait, and to practise the small disciplines of hope, Australia has become a nation of grief. A mass shooting at Bondi Beach struck people gathered for a Hanukkah celebration, killing 15 and injuring many others. Today,Continue reading “When the candles are interrupted”

Rites of Passage for young men

There comes a moment in every young man’s life when something shifts. His questions deepen, his choices begin to carry weight, and his world grows wider than his own reflection. Cultures recognised this moment and marked it – with blessing, with challenge, with community, with truth. Yet in the modern West, boys now cross theseContinue reading “Rites of Passage for young men”

Through the glass we see

There’s a quiet truth about the soul that we often forget in the noise of our days: what we take in becomes what we see. The images we scroll past, the stories we repeat, the voices that fill our feed: all of them polish or cloud the lens through which we look at the world.Continue reading “Through the glass we see”

The path and the shoes

A short reflection There are times in life when we stand at the edge of a path and feel ready to walk. We’ve studied the map, packed what we think we’ll need, and set out with purpose, perhaps even with a little Louboutin in our stride. At other times, the path appears beneath our feetContinue reading “The path and the shoes”

The Ugly Truth

We talk about the pursuit of Truth, of Veritas. When will we admit that Truth rarely comes dressed for dinner parties? It does not arrive ribbon-tied, polished, or polite. Think instead of Jesus on the cross: disfigured, broken, utterly human. Not a sight we would post on our Instagram feed or even on Facebook. AndContinue reading “The Ugly Truth”

A prayer

Loving God, We walk through life knowing the world holds illness, loss and struggle. Yet when those shadows touch our own circle, we feel the tremor of our own mortality and the fear of meaning slipping away. Suffering is not just pain but the unravelling of our story. Be with us as we stand besideContinue reading “A prayer”

We all want heaven. What are we doing about it?

Aquinas says our true end is happiness in God and that charity gives shape to every other virtue. If that’s true, then everyday life becomes deeply theological: how we answer emails, correct a misunderstanding, or hold a boundary is either training our hearts for heaven or dragging them away. Personal formation is not an add-on;Continue reading “We all want heaven. What are we doing about it?”

Lifted UP

There is something profoundly human about the Feast of the Assumption. It is a moment that does not draw us away from our humanity, even though at first glance it may seem otherworldly as Mary is taken body and soul into heaven (a concept that challenges the finite human cognition), rather it plunges us intoContinue reading “Lifted UP”

The Weight of What Is Gone: A Theology of Loss

There are days when absence barks louder than presence. Loss is not a chapter we choose, yet it writes itself into the margins of our lives. It is in silence as you enter a space, follow routine, or go to say good morning or good night. We do not invite grief, but she enters anyway,Continue reading “The Weight of What Is Gone: A Theology of Loss”