acollins16

Babel with better WIFI

There is something almost biblical about artificial intelligence. Not because it is magical or demonic. Nor should we gather around a laptop and start looking for the Antichrist in autocomplete. AI is biblical because it exposes us. It reveals what we want (think back to the show Lucifer on Netflix (I think)). It reveals whatContinue reading “Babel with better WIFI”

The Strange Holiness of Growing Up

Maturity is one of those virtues we rarely name directly. We praise leadership, resilience, professionalism, courage, wisdom, kindness. Yet underneath all of them sits maturity: that quiet, costly capacity to be more governed by truth than ego, more committed to the good than to being right, more responsible for one’s impact than attached to one’sContinue reading “The Strange Holiness of Growing Up”

When we really need the joy of Sacraments

There is a particular kind of joy that arrives when it has no business arriving. It is not the polished kind, nor the carefully staged version that depends upon circumstances behaving themselves, calendars clearing, bodies cooperating, relationships mending, or the world remembering how to be gentle. Sacramental joy is stranger and sturdier than that. ItContinue reading “When we really need the joy of Sacraments”

For the troubled heart

There are sentences in Scripture that arrive like a hand placed gently on the table. Not dramatic or loaded with sentiment. Not loud enough to silence the room. Simply there. Steady. Present. Waiting to be noticed. Do not let your hearts be troubled. Jesus speaks these words in John’s Gospel on the edge of loss.Continue reading “For the troubled heart”

Look down

There is a particular kind of wisdom that begins by looking down. Not in shame, not in fear, in attentiveness. We spend so much of our lives looking ahead: toward the next task, the next relationship, the next crisis, the next version of ourselves we are hoping to become. We are encouraged to keep moving,Continue reading “Look down”

Prayer

There is something quietly revealing about the way the word praying has drifted in ordinary speech. People say they are praying they get the promotion, praying their team wins, praying they get an apron on MasterChef, praying the rain holds off for the weekend. In that usage, praying has become a stronger synonym for hoping.Continue reading “Prayer”

The netball lesson

In Australia, netball has long been woven into the fabric of communal life. It has been played in parish schools, local clubs, and community associations for generations. It has formed girls and women in skill, discipline, resilience, and loyalty, often without fanfare. It has given people not merely a sport, but a place to stand.Continue reading “The netball lesson”

Unseen

There is a loneliness that does not come from being alone, but from being surrounded. It is possible to be competent, present, and outwardly fine, and still feel as though no one has really noticed you. Not simply noticed that you are there, but seen with the kind of attention that recognizes weight without demandingContinue reading “Unseen”

Humble feet

There is something deeply human about feet. They are not especially glamorous, so yes I am ignoring those who fastidiously prepare them at the nail salon. No one writes sonnets to them. They are rarely the part of ourselves we present first to the world. And yet they carry everything. They bear weight. They absorbContinue reading “Humble feet”

Easter Reflection

Soon the Paschal Triduum will be upon and around us. It is important, I think, not to rush through the brutality of Good Friday because we know that Sunday is coming. Good Friday is devastating. And on this day, we are not asked to explain that devastation away. We are invited instead to sit inContinue reading “Easter Reflection”