Anglican Women's Studies Centre

Connecting Anglican Women in Aoteaoroa, New Zealand, Polynesia

  • Home
  • About us
    • Anglican Women’s Studies Centre
    • Council for the Anglican Women’s Studies Centre 2020-2022
  • Latest News
    • Older Newsletters
  • Virtual Theology Chat
  • Womens Stories
  • 2022 Hui Information
  • Tikanga
    • Tikanga Maori
    • Tikanga Pakeha
    • Tikanga Pasefika
  • Our Hui
    • Virtual Theology Chat
    • Gatherings – in person and online
    • Council/Link Meetings
  • Contact us
You are here: Home / Reflections / Kindness is a Mode of Blessing

Kindness is a Mode of Blessing

May 27, 2020

‘Perhaps we bless each other all the time, without even realizing it.

When we show compassion or kindness to one another, we are setting blessing in train. There is a way in which an act of kindness done becomes an independent luminous thing, a kind of jewel box of light that might conceal itself for days or years until one day, when you are in desperate straits, you notice something at the floor at your feet. You reach for it and discover exactly the courage and vision for which you desperately hunger’.

John O’Donoghue has written a whole book of blessings, called Benedictus. Published in 2007, this collection is remarkably suited to the spirit of our time, as we progress through the levels of living with the deadly virus, Covid-19. In his intro, O’Donoghue writes, ‘This book is an attempt to reach into that tenuous territory of change.’

Drawing on his belief that there is a kindness dwelling deep down in things, echoing the presence of compassionate goodness,. O’Donoghue uses words and silence to draw the reader into a space of reflection, awareness and hope. Human hope is based on the instinct that at the deepest level of reality some intimate kindness holds sway.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is wwXeBYSG5yE5J5g9wSi2uqvd2L4xP6UCzt17p8NY8e7ms3dTZv8x7lQkpT6J6oFjddhKQ0uxxG4C6HVCF6GoSYFNv53Y_Z34vTj-BcgCjqsnsG9D4SqCAfqbVmU_leKpl1M4w4ckC6jaTzUlE3SQVPSBtSSbwmphJIr1iaESPqgqM9K9XzVVNAnp9fqKAkfg2H4_UUHVW2D0AkYKwYWPN4E59m0fCV6zhmI43oIFd5LLx4LG2dk34YUFcfhpQbbl0zHH4raUVTBc9-Q0uZXS_07SRoT4ZFu9wHlECmDPfWUHF0nFFy9WJQf9t5_go9UK70THY_T0tSoy33pw5aHGvnlVBs1ZIkJRZ9wg4KXt63UFPIikbyQ0qiZQfzkADtgh2Vyr6JT_fixjQtZl_S_6amVUpyqZan5xVIq-fMZ7RWrA6V2DIwwoG5TI3CFIZl4AE0RS9Zbj8Xt8ZH69wRUAXvJ-dSxRSgHozib93s1WrHq0WaeWfYUBcbTwN8VWF5fqMCzIqnPHfesaqePK4O1NRsv48MdV_QkGMoBnEFC3uCDfZrVIEnYfQpGkrgQ-aSFQuCfvPJhqONGcl_e73BkFflvni3lD5CFEmG7gO25RUoaQeZ32YTBePQs6cCSyIbpGRU0POU0bx7027HDXGNU7iwAlmchEtwU3AUHlnPVYjlrBhKwIU8Ov71zXGBe5=w165-h220-no

The book is very beautifully produced with high quality paper and spacious

text, which honour his words of empathy and wisdom. As the publisher says, ‘John O’Donoghue offers blessings to shelter and comfort us on our journey through life.’ He inspires in us a new confidence and passion for life and helps us to confront key thresholds of human experience. Drawing on the heritage of ancient Celtic thought and imagination, the blessings and reflections in Benedictus can build a true sense of belonging in this often troubled world.’

Filed Under: Book Reviews, International, Reflections Tagged With: blessing, Celtic, change, kindness, theology

Virtual Theology Chat
Listen on Youtube

Keep in Touch

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • YouTube

Join our Email List

Posts on this Site

  • Dioceses (11)
    • Christchurch (3)
    • Waikato (8)
  • Gatherings – in person and online (63)
    • Council and Link Meetings (9)
    • Our Hui (15)
    • Virtual Theology Chat (21)
  • International (22)
  • New Appointments (11)
  • Places of study and retreat (5)
  • Reflections (33)
  • Resources (54)
    • Book Reviews (6)
    • Liturgical Resources (16)
    • Prayer (7)
    • publications (22)
    • Theological Education (5)
  • Study Opportunities (19)
  • Tikanga (80)
    • Maori (37)
    • Pakeha (44)
    • Pasefika (37)
  • Uncategorized (6)
  • Womens Stories, Talanoa (58)
  • Young Voices (10)

Latest Posts

  • Trauma and Theology Conference
    With Dr Karen O’Donnell
  • AWSC goes to Samoa
  • A Writing Retreat- is it for me?
  • Women’s Writing Retreat, Vaughan Park Retreat Centre, Auckland 25-29 October 2022
  • Blood, Bellies, and Breasts: A Theology of the Womb
  • Three ways to go to Lambeth
  • Climate Change in the Pacific: how one woman is making a difference.
  • Energy and Exploration: Waikato Women’s Clergy Gathering

Tag Cloud

AAW Anglican Bible bread making change Christchurch earthquake Christian Network-Talanoa climate change Council Covid-19 Diocese of Polynesia education Emily Colgan Fiji gender justice Gender Violence God grief House of Sarah Jane SImpson Jenny Campbell Kelera Oli liturgy Mana Wahine Patricia Allan Pechakucha prayer publication Ruihana Ruihana Paenga scholarship Scholarships Spiritual Direction spirituality Talanoa Telling our Stories theology Tonga Tonga 2019 UNCSW United Nations VAughan Park women priests World Council of Churches young women

Wisdom from members

The symbol of weaving is I think reflective of the journeys we have made as we weave our stories and experiences to better our understanding of ourselves as mothers and our roles in motherhood.

— Bolivia Smith, Samoa, https://anglicanwomen.nz/it-takes-a-woman/

The Council and Links 2021

Join our Email List

Contact us

Ceridwyn Parr, Administrator
anglicanwomenstudies@gmail.com
Home Office 027 573 8073

General Synod Office
Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia

+64 9 521-4439
www.anglican.org.nz
Postal: PO Box 87188,
Auckland 1742, New Zealand

Snapshots

Val-Riches-Wendy-Scott-Ceridwyn-31-Jan-2020-Copy
Jenny-Dawson
Kaye-Dyer
Bishop-Ellie
Carole-Hughes
Pacific-hui-7
Bridie-Boyd
jenny-campbell
Adi-Tuidama-lighting-candle
ELizabeth-Coleman-book
Rene-Maiava
Ellen-Bernstein-UNCSW-2017-2-photos
Episcopal-Womens-History-Project
Wash-and-Pray
Mele-Prescott-79274930_10158144996404434_3976904772794974208_n
Jenny-Quince-Bettina-Maxwell-Deb-Cole-
Patricia-Allan-and-Ceridwyn-Parr
Book-2020-editorial-meeting-7-March-2020
The Revd Dr Patricia Allan
Farewell-to-Numia-and-EVelini
Jenny-te-Paa-Daniel
Adi-photo-9
1_Mele-Prescott-79274930_10158144996404434_3976904772794974208_n
Feb-Hui-Mila-and-Bettina-rotated
Jean Palmer
Eleni Tevi
Jacqui Paterson
Nyasha Gumbeze, Auckland
Jean-Palmer-2-1
Emily-Colgan
Eleni-Tevi
Mary-R-Aug-2020-IMG_7132
Blythe-photo
Kahui-Wahine-from-website
Bridie-Boyd-pechakucha
Kaye-Dyer-scaled
Jacqui-Paterson-71-20200324_214734
Sophie-Marie-Thirsk-Y10-2mp