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Good Morning.
One day, on a pilgrimage abroad, I decided to visit a monastery. I rang the bell and an 80 year old nun welcomed me in warmly.  She then guided me to a private chapel where she suggested we pray together in the silence which had a particular quality about it. ‘This is a place where you can pray, ‘she said. ‘I find it easy here.’ So we sat together, offering ourselves and our concerns to God as we entered into the stillness. The sister was right – it was a sacred space. After taking refuge from the kingdom of noise for a while, it was an opportunity to go down into the depths. But then, without warning, we were jolted to our senses by the sound of electronic pop music which grew louder and louder. And with that, I looked up to find my contemplative friend fumbling into her habit and pulling out her mobile phone with a ring tone which seemed to have been recorded in a nightclub. The nun blushed and apologised, and then neither of us could stop laughing. And for me the joy of the laughter was as much a prayer as the silence.  She’d been lost in contemplation but now she was being called back to her duties and help with preparations for Mass. So often we think of prayer as a formal duty set apart from our other routines but in reality it’s part of our everyday life. We find God in the midst of it, wherever we are and whatever we’re doing. Prayer isn’t about becoming more religious – it’s about becoming more human. So today we remember all women and men in religious communities and thank God for their faith and humanity. Amen.