We love freedom. Be yourself. Speak your truth. Live unapologetically. But here’s the rub: what happens when your unapologetic truth steamrolls someone else’s dignity? Being you should not damage someone else being them. It’s a bit of a conundrum. I have the right to do anything,’ you say—but not everything is beneficial. No one shouldContinue reading “Freedom vs being a Tool.”
Author Archives: acollins16
Authentic Witness
Beyond Whitewashed Words There’s a peculiar sting when someone says all the right things but means none of them. It’s a hollow echo, a performance of virtue rather than the substance of it. And yet, Jesus names this dynamic with unflinching clarity: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs,Continue reading “Authentic Witness”
Leaving the Grave Behind: A Liberation Theology Reflection for the First World
What entombs you? I am Catholic but I really love contemporary Christian music. There are so many various bands whose prayerful tunes fill my heart with hope. In the Hillsong song So Will I (100 Billion X), the lyric “If You left the grave behind You, so will I.” It is a line that hasContinue reading “Leaving the Grave Behind: A Liberation Theology Reflection for the First World”
Equilibrium
In a world marked by constant change and restless pursuit, the human heart seeks equilibrium. For centuries, spiritual and religious traditions have served as the steady compass guiding individuals and communities toward balance. As a woman, uniquely gifted with the call to nurture life in its many forms, I have encountered in my own CatholicContinue reading “Equilibrium”
Happy New Year
As time continues we emerge into 2025. Often we start the year with enthusiasm and positive energy, that – let’s be honest – can quickly fade as routine begins and challenges emerge. That is okay. It is good to look to improve, to seek the positive, to strive to be our best self. It isContinue reading “Happy New Year”
Christmas 2024
Christmas Eve: the church is aglow with candlelight, the air thick with the scent of incense, children abound, life is vibrant and the choir is in song, and the pews packed with people—some regular parishioners, others unfamiliar faces. There’s something uniquely beautiful about this gathering, where everyone, regardless of their spiritual journey, feels the pullContinue reading “Christmas 2024”
Restored and Re-storied
I heard this phrase recently and it truly captured my attention. At this stage of the year when exhaustion reigns supreme the idea of being restored automatically signals the need for rest and reminds me of the importance of being recharged and refreshed. To be re-storied is a wonderful idea. We all have a storyContinue reading “Restored and Re-storied”
Relentless Compassion
I heard this term recently. It was a quality attributed to my brother who works in a cancer hospital, helping those who face significant medical challenges, especially in their last weeks. ‘Relentless’ was absolutely a term I would see in him, but for the first time I heard the term ‘relentless compassion’ and whilst theContinue reading “Relentless Compassion”
Opportunity
In preparing a prayer for a session focused on Saint Mary of the Cross MacKillop, I reflected on her industrious efforts to create opportunity for those who were not naturally afforded it in society at the time. Education opens doors, and not all were receiving one. In drawing parallels to today I thought about theContinue reading “Opportunity”
Empowerment
It’s a big word – empowerment – but it is the one that leaps out at me when I think of the significance of fathers in the lives of daughters, or indeed children. We need fathers who not only protect and provide, but those who empower children to be the wonderful person that lies inContinue reading “Empowerment”
