Who would have thought that the eruption of a volcano in Iceland, releasing clouds of volcanic ash into the atmosphere, could cause so much disruption to international air travel, stranding friends thousands of miles away! It makes one realise just how small the globe has become and yet how dependent we are on air travel to circle it, perhaps raising the question of whether all this air travel is really necessary, especially when we think global warming? That issue apart, talking to a neighbour, there was the interesting speculation that all this ash was causing the recent lack of sunshine! May be she's right!

Ultimately, however technologically advanced we have become, there are some forces of nature we still just cannot control even if we think we can; upset or interfere with nature and disaster often follows. While volcanic ash floats in the air, in the Gulf of Mexico oil gushes from the sea bed, from a broken pipe, as I write seemingly impossible to stop, causing immeasurable damage to the environment, threatening coastlands and beaches, sea and wild life-when will we ever learn! Here, as elsewhere, cutting corners with nature is never wise! Meanwhile the shaky state of the world's financial markets reminds us of just how fragile the recent economic recovery is, the present state of affairs in Greece is a solemn warning to whole European community, whilst recent political events in Britain remind us how uncertain our own future has become as we face a period of austerity measures to get us back on track!

Reading the Book of Revelation, the Apocalypse, throughout Eastertide, my fertile imagination made me wonder if we were indeed facing the end times, volcanoes erupting, environmental catastrophes, and what about the recent earthquakes and a thousand other human miseries around the world- the four horsemen of the apocalypse unleashing war, famine, plague and destruction on a vast scale I Spooky or what! When nothing seems to be going right it makes you wonder! Yet another celebration of Eastertide reminds us that we are a community of faith; we need to be constant in that faith in times of trouble. We will never be able to control nature yet we know the volcanic ash will pass and the oil spill will no doubt get sorted and the environmental damage eventually put right. As for the world's finances, the markets need to be less greedy. As for the needs of our nation, all I can say is we need to have less state and more society; something all political parties should be working for. The state can not, nor should it control every aspect of our daily lives, we all want good education for our children, we want jobs for our young people, we want economic stability and safe communities and we want good health care for all, we want a society in which every person is respected. I believe we have a better chance of achieving all this if we rediscover the importance of the part played by our voluntary societies and organisations, professional and trade associations, churches and charities and the contribution they all make to the well being of society, especially at the grass roots! Let the Government, in whatever shape or form it takes, listen to others rather than keep on telling us what's best for us and making a mess of ill

Will things ever change or is it too much to hope? The Book of Revelation looks forward to a new heaven and a new earth and ends with a flourish, a great out pouring of joy. The writer urges those 'who are good, to go on doing good', which I take as an encouragement never to give up or give in! The Easter faith proclaims belief in a living Lord, Jesus Christ, the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end- the same Jesus who invites us to drink from the well of the waters of life and eat of the fruits of the tree of life, that same Jesus who not only promises to be with us to the end of time but also promises to be with us soon!

your friend and priest,

Father Keith


LOOKING BACK

LOOKING FORWARD

PREVIOUS EDITIONS OF REACHING OUT