Anne Sullivan was a survivor. She was one of two children born in Massachusetts to famine immigrants from Co Limerick. Following her mother’s death when she was age 8 her father could not cope and placed both herself and her younger brother into an almshouse. The brother died shortly afterwards and Anne, who had developed trachoma when she was age 5, had to deal with the additional burdens of painful eye problems and reduced vision.
Anne received her education at Perkins School for the Blind in Boston. While she was there she became friends with Laura Bridgeman, the first deaf blind person to be educated there. During this period in her life she learned sign language and had a number of operations which slowed her sight loss.

At her valediction she addressed her fellow students with these words, “Fellow-graduates: duty bids us go forth into active life. Let us go cheerfully, hopefully, and earnestly, and set ourselves to find our especial part. When we have found it, willingly and faithfully perform it.”
The year was 1886 and Anne was now age 20. In the providence of God, the Keller family in the State of Alabama contacted the school for someone to teach their 7-year-old deaf blind daughter named Helen. Anne was given the task and went to live with the family. By all accounts Helen was an unruly child but Anne was able to communicate with her. First she taught her letters by drawing shapes on her hands. Then words associated with objects. She was a fast learner and picked up sign language. She learned sounds from placing her hand on Anne’s face while Anne wrote the letters on her free hand.

Anne Sullivan served as Helen Keller’s educator for over a decade and accompanied her to Radcliffe College where she became the first deafblind person to graduate with a Bachelor of Arts Degree. They remained together for 50 years till Anne died in 1936.
During her life Helen, who lived till 1968, was a prolific author, a member of the Socialist Party of America and the Industrial Workers of the World, she campaigned for women’s suffrage, labour rights, socialism, anti-militarism, and other similar causes. She was inducted into the Alabama Women’s Hall of Fame in 1971.
The ‘Miracle Worker’ is a cycle of dramatic works ultimately derived from Helen’s autobiography, The Story of My Life. The various dramas each describe the relationship between Keller and Sullivan, depicting how the teacher led her from an unruly childhood to an intellectual celebrity.
Of course Jesus was the real miracle worker. The problem he had was to stop folk from following him for the benefits of the miracle and to realise that each miracle emphasised that he was God incarnate and they were to believe in him (St John Chapter 6 verses 25 to 29). He then used his Father’s signature – the ‘I Am’ of deity and equated our spiritual hunger being satisfied by coming to him and our spiritual thirst being quenched by believing in him (verse 35).
Some who had seen him perform miracles would not take up this invitation but then comes the gracious promise “All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away” (verses 36 and 37).
Miracles are of limited worth and, unless they lead to faith in Christ, are of no spiritual value for time or eternity. May it be that the women in this blog, who achieved so much, be found in Him on judgement day.

This week the news broke of legal charges filed against Cardinal Pell, formerly archbishop of Sydney and Melbourne, but for the last three years has been in the Vatican dealing with its finances. During his time away from Australia there appears to have been multiple complaints lodged against the Cardinal of “historical sexual offences” but so far it is unclear just what offences he has been charged with.
The Cardinal claims that he is innocent and looks forward to clearing his name in court on 18th July. As we know from the Irish experience of these cases it is difficult to hold to the adage “innocent till proved guilty”, the one charged finding himself on the defensive.

Sexual offences of varying severity are probably quite widely experienced and, if my own case is anything to go by, seldom spoken about. It was in my early teenage years that the offences occurred and they were of a minor nature.
We kept around 100 hens and one of my tasks was to provide them with chaff during the winter months when they were kept indoors in the deep litter shed.
The chaff (empty husks after the ear of oats has been threshed) was obtained from underneath the mill which was housed in a building on our neighbours farm. I would fill anything up to 14 sacks on a Saturday transporting them, two at a time, on my bicycle the 5-minute journey to the hen shed.
There were three sons on the farm but it was always the eldest one who would come to ‘help’ me gather the chaff. His advances were fairly easily repelled but he had the advantage of size and age. It was a bit like a cat and mouse game with the mouse frequently escaping!
Looking back over the years I recall that his father, the farmer, often came to the mill and I wonder if he had a suspicion about his son’s behaviour? Nothing was ever said about the incidents, which in fact were very few, but I certainly knew in my mind that this was a sexually warped person.

Why did I never speak about it? It is hard to analyse but perhaps not having reported it immediately to my parents I felt somehow complicity with what was going on.
It has given me a greater understanding as to why there seems to be an extraordinary long time between alleged offences and their being reported.

Jesus didn’t have much time for people who took advantage of their position to abuse believers under their authority (St Matthew Chapter 18 verse 6).
For the repentant who confesses his sins there is forgiveness (St Luke Chapter 24 verse 47).

St Paul wrote “Jesus came into the world to save sinners” and added that he was the foremost (1 Timothy Chapter 1 verses 15-17).
St Paul was probably implying that if he could be saved then there was hope for everyone. By God’s grace he could say that Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to us who believe, or are in the process of coming to faith in Jesus, for eternal life.

Then in a typical Pauline outburst which I can echo he adds “To the King of the Ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honour and glory forever and ever.” Amen.

The fate of refugees in Ireland is not a happy one. Given the trauma they have experienced in getting here a bit more of the famed 100,000 welcomes would not come amiss!

Globally the refugee crisis is increasing by the minute as highlighted in a United Nations report published this week. It showed the rich nations escape much of the burden while the poor and middle-income countries are home to 84% of those displaced.
Ireland would be in the 16% with its policy of ‘Direct Provision’. This consists of 34 Direct Provision Centres which are forms of social housing that separate asylum seekers from mainstream society and making difficult their long term integration.

At present there are around 4,300 refugees of whom one third are children.
They are allocated €19.10 per week (kids get less). They live in challenging conditions, where families with children often have to share small rooms. The management cooks their food, explain where they can go and handle the domestic arrangements. They have their medical needs attended to by the State.
The longest have been waiting for 8 years to have their plea for asylum fully considered with the average duration being 3 years 8 months. The education needs are met up to second level. It has been difficult to go further but this may change.
One refugee, a mother of 3, did well this week when she won a scholarship to the University of Limerick. Hopefully this achievement will show what can be done and lead to a more constructive approach to higher education.
There is further good news in that Government has passed an easement of the “no working” rule this week which will make a big difference to the well-being of those in direct provision.

In the Bible the people of God have always been a pilgrim people in search of an earthly home. They disobeyed God in the garden of Eden and became refugees (Genesis Chapter 3 verse 24). Later a home was found for them in the Promised Land, a type of Eden, where God’s presence was with them there in the Tabernacle (Genesis Chapters 2 verses 10- 14 & 15 verse 18 & Jos. 18 verse 1). Through further acts of disobedience, they end up in captivity in Babylon “away from their land” (2 Kings Chapter 25 verse 21). After the prophesied 70 years God put it in the heart of Cyrus, King of Persia, to restore the Temple and Jerusalem and return the people of God to the land (Ezra Chapter 1 verses 1 to 4).

With the death and resurrection of Jesus the people of God were still a pilgrim people (Hebrews chapter 11 verses 13 to 16) only the land has expanded to “all the world” and the promised presence continues now by the Holy Spirit in the individual believer “I am with you always to the end of the age” (St Matthew Chapter 28 verse 20). We are still refugees!
For those who have put their trust in Christ the words of the old song ring true: –
“This world is not my home, I’m just a passing through; My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue, the angels beckon me from heavens open door, and I can’t feel at home in this world anymore.”

This week was broken up nicely into a two-day conference entitled “The Mission of God” and a two-day visit to Rathlin Island which lies off the north coast of Ireland. The former declared that accurate preaching from the scriptures is ‘an act of God’ and the latter displayed the splendour of His Creation.
The sea cliffs at the Western tip of Rathlin Island are home to the peak population of breeding seabirds at this time of year. Each of the four main species has it as its preferred location. They divide the terrain according to each species preference. The Razorbills take the individual ledges; the Puffins have their holes in the ground; the Kittiwakes build on the previous years’ nests and the Guillemots colonise every flat surface they can find.
The latter vastly outnumber the others and jostle each other for the few inches of bare rock they call home!
Their single egg is conical shaped so as to prevent it from rolling off the cliff.
Some of these had hatched and chicks were visible but it will be next week before it gets busy. There follows a three to four-week period where the chicks require to be fed before they glide into the sea by which time they are able to feed themselves.
The seas around the cliffs are rich in fish swept along in the strong currents. The close proximity between the nesting sites and the food supply makes it a popular breeding location. The number of breeding pairs would be recorded in thousands. The noise and the smell ensure that predator birds keep their distance! Around noon there was a feeding frenzy when every species of bird joined in the feast as some underwater current produced a bonanza of food.

By comparison the earlier part of the week seemed unremarkable until you realise that the One who designed the individual birds (who but a God of beauty would have painted the puffins bill that colour?) and assigned the habitats for them to live is the same sovereign Lord who gave us his Word that we might know how we ourselves should live!

Just as co-existence for the Guillemot on the ledge is possible living in peace should be the hallmark of the redeemed church. Those who have experienced the forgiveness which comes from the work of Christ in dying for our sins should be able to point others to Him the Prince of Peace (Isaiah Chapter 9 verse 6). Then out of mutual gratitude to our Redeemer, in so far as it depends on us, we too can live at peace with everyone (Romans Chapter 12 verses 17 to 21).

This coming week will see the appointment of Leo Varadkar as Taoiseach.
At age 38 he will be the youngest in that office and with Indian/Irish parents reflects the current multi-ethnic Ireland.
But there is a further way in which Leo stretches the culture in that he is the first openly gay person to hold this office. This poses a dilemma for the Bible believer as scripture names gayness as a sin while the law of the land has recently given legitimacy to the gay lifestyle in sanctioning same-sex marriage.

Amongst heterosexuals it is not uncommon for married men in high office to engage a mistress and whilst the Bible condemns adultery, society and the judiciary have become increasingly more tolerant of what is known as “extra-marital” sex.
I am not suggesting that the two sins are coterminous but simply that in a fallen world these offences will occur. A major difference here lies in that one is covert while the other is proclaimed openly. The confidence to do the latter comes partly from the notion that gayness is inborn. However, God cannot be understood as having created what His revealed Word defines as sinful (Leviticus Chapter 18 verse 22).
Nowhere is there evidence that God designed and created a percentage of the population to be gay. The resistance to give in to gay behaviour, may require as much willpower as the resistance heterosexuals are required to exercise to remain pure in a licentious society. It’s not that gays have been dealt a bad hand. They are not unique when it comes to resisting sinful sexual attraction.
The practice of co-habiting, for whatever reason, puts what must be an almost unbearable pressure on self-control. It avoids the responsibilities of a life-long covenant which marriage is and substitutes a counterfeit lifestyle which, however faithful, abrogates what God intended from the beginning (Genesis Chapter 2 verse 24).
But your life-style does not present God with an insuperable barrier any more than it did for the Israelite’s in Moses day (Deuteronomy Chapter 7 verses 7/8).
His love, reiterated by St John, is a redeeming love (John Chapter 3 verse 16).
It saves the repentant sinner but does not leave him there. He receives the Holy Spirit whose power brings you into the family of believers and provides you with the strength to live godly.
As St Paul wrote to Titus; “the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age” (Chapter 2 verses 11/12). Jesus is “the grace of God” and no one can say “I belong to an excluded group of people”. Salvation is for all. Trust Jesus

On Thursday evening the weather conditions were just right. Clouds of insects were being blown out of the trees to be devoured by many House Martins. The latter produced an aerobatic display second to none as they relished having a time of plenty.
Normally these House Martins mix with swallows but this year the swallows are in short supply. Of course the speed of their flight makes identification difficult but when the feast is over they perch on electricity wires where it is possible to make a more accurate analysis.

We welcomed the return of our breeding pair who set about repairing the remains of last year’s mud nest in the apex of the garage roof. In truth there was not much left to work on but in the space of 3 to 4 days they now have a habitable nest. Recent rains enabled the Martins to access a plentiful supply of mud and from today’s forecast they should not have much difficulty in getting sufficient material to complete the “topping out”.

On the ground our fox families are getting bigger and bolder. Since the passing of our resident collie, Holly, old age having caught up with her, a large dog fox has taken to strolling through the garden at dusk. Perhaps that is the same one which a neighbour saw attacking a cat as it crossed the road in front of him.
With baby foxes to feed they seem to be expanding their diet. This may explain the disappearance of the farm cat and its three kittens although all hope has not yet been abandoned for them.

Numerous animals appear in the Bible usually to illustrate a point by comparing the animal or bird’s main characteristic. So in the case of the fox, a sly animal, the Lord Jesus likens King Herod’s behaviour to it (St Luke Chapter 13 verse 32). He had reacted against John the Baptist’s accusation of adultery putting John in prison. Then, making a foolish oath at his birthday party, he had to agree to the beheading of John rather than lose face. When he heard of the fame of Jesus and learned of the miracles he had performed Herod came to the conclusion that this was John the Baptist raised from the dead (St Matthew Chapter 14 verses 1 to 12).

Possibly this superstitious thought was still lingering in his mind some time later when Pilate sent Jesus, now a prisoner on trial, over to Herod who wanted to see him perform a miracle. In the cross-questioning and mocking that followed Jesus did not open his mouth (St Luke Chapter 23 verses 8 to 12). This fulfilled what Isaiah said many years before in Chapter 53 verse 7. Jesus was “obedient unto death, even death on the cross”. He accurately fulfilled the scriptures.

St Paul brings the quote up to date; “Therefor God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians Chapter 2 verses 8/11).

Till that day dawns there is an opportunity in this day of grace, day of opportunity, to be like the Martins and prepare in advance by bowing the knee to Jesus now and move into a life of obedience serving him.

There are no words which can adequately describe the horror of finding your infant dead from heatstroke in the back of your car. The knowledge that it was your fault adds to the feelings of desolation. The stark reality is that this happened on Thursday in Co Tipperary.
There can be no ameliorating factors. The clock cannot be put back. The omission to drop the 7 month old Chloe at the crèche, compounded by the continuing memory lapse till after 13.00 the father remembered – too late.
Ireland seldom gets a heatwave but last Thursday temperatures soared into the mid-twenties. There was no breeze nor shade where the car was parked.
Conditions resembled the US where we are told some 38 such tragedies occur annually.
The personal desolation experienced by parents and those nearest to them leaves an indelible imprint on their lives.
Emotions can so easily run riot with the circumstances of Thursday being ceaselessly recalled and blame allocated and re-allocated. Then, like those in Manchester who suffered the death of 22 largely young people at the hands of a suicide bomber, the question ‘why’ arises.
Could God not have intervened? Is there no justice? These cries echo the Psalmist, “How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart?” (Psalm 13 verses 1/2).
None of us need to be reminded that we live in a very dysfunctional world. Things are not as they ought to be. The “sorrow in my heart” of the Psalmist is all too commonly experienced. Indeed, it may well be daily as in David’s case. This did not mean that he gave up praying; still less stop believing in an all-powerful God. His faith triumphed over feelings.
Isaiah reminds us that these things happen in a fallen world. “Can a woman forget the baby at her breast
And have no compassion on the child she has borne?
Though she may forget, I will not forget you.
See I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;
your walls are ever before me” (Chapter 49 verses 15/16).
Even in the brokenness of Jerusalem, her walls were in ruins, his memory would have no lapses.
In Christ we see this plainly in his nail-pierced hands, when on the cross he identified with our brokenness and his marvelously reassuring promise “I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (St Matthew Chapter 28 verse 20).

“Oooops your files have been encrypted” is the dreaded phrase many received when they opened up their computer this week. Too late to wish you had updated your anti-virus software. The dreaded virus had arrived!
Fortunately it was not as lethal as it first appeared and in the worst case scenario the requested ransom could be paid and in a couple of hours your data unlocked and you are back in business.
The hackers aptly named their device “Wannacry”. It has that effect on the recipient! It is of the hunter variety. This means, once in your computer, it searches for networks along which it can travel contaminating the devices along the way.
In this regard it resembles a human virus which triggers an epidemic where infected people require to be isolated to avoid contaminating their friends. Just as in the case of infectious diseases there is always a remedy. A patch is available but cannot be applied to an infected computer. It first requires to be cleaned then like any wound the patch may be applied.
It is estimated that 1 in 5 Irish business have been affected at one time or another.
Prevention is better than cure so vigilance is required in what you download. Viruses link themselves to attachments so any suspicious document should remain unopened until its authenticity can be verified. Even official looking documents require careful handling as bogus notices containing An Garda Siochana’s badge have also been used to demand payment!
It is also necessary to have a good back-up program to enable you to preserve your files in the event of corruption.
Despite the higher level of sophistication the same old sin of greed provides the motive.
The very name “Ransomware” looks to a ransom payment being made in order to release the programs that have been taken captive.
In a similar vein Jesus offered his life as a ransom, his blood shed on the cross paying the repentant sinners debts and giving them a lesson on humility (St Mark Chapter 10 verses 42/5).
St Peter encouraging the believers reminded them that they were ransomed, redeemed, restored and forgiven from a life of futility and meaninglessness to one of service and significance not by money but by the precious blood of Christ (1 Peter chapter 1 verses 18/19).
Just as the computer needs to be cleaned so do we and by God’s grace we have the means in putting our trust in the blood of Christ (the Bible uses this expression to refer to his sacrificial death) shed on the behalf of others.

This week we have been treated to a re-run of the blasphemous utterances of Dawkins and Fry. They are unfazed by the publicity their comments originally produced, indeed Dawkins defence of Fry (who had been accused by the Garda of blasphemy, although it was subsequently dropped) was robust! He went so far as to offer himself and his unedited views of “the Old Testament God”, as written in his book, as a test case in an endeavour to show just how unworkable is our blasphemy law.
Of course there is but one God. Dawkins hitches his attack to the common myth that God somehow changed when Jesus revealed him. No doubt we will hear more of his heretical views when he comes to Ireland in June.

Our law, which is grounded in Article 40.6 of the Constitution is intended to safeguard free speech. As Ireland becomes more secular and pluralistic the defining of seditious speech becomes increasingly difficult. In a multi-faith society it becomes impossible. In fact by having the law we lend credence to those Governments whose blasphemy laws permit them to sentence to death those who break them. We also give a platform to gowks who want to go on the rant against a god who they claim does not exist!

The Bible makes a distinction between those who hastily speak words against the Son of Man (Jesus) and repent of it (St Luke Chapter 22 verses 54 to 62) and those who mount a persistent and un-repentant attack on the Holy Spirit and the work of Jesus in procuring salvation.

The ones who persist in hardening their hearts against God’s provision of Jesus as the Saviour and resist the promptings of the Holy Spirit place themselves beyond the reach of God’s forgiveness and salvation (St Luke Chapter 12 verse 10).
St Paul describes himself as once a blasphemer. But he received mercy because he didn’t know any better (1Timothy Chapter 1 verse 13). Part of his testimony before King Agrippa was his attempts to make the new Christian converts blaspheme God. He wanted them to become like himself. This was in the days before his own conversion when he was part of the persecution of Jesus followers (Acts Chapter 26 verse 11).
So what are we to say to the likes of Dawkins and Fry? The scriptural warnings are plain. But the glory of the Good News is that repentant blasphemers can change. It happened to St Paul in his day. Pray that God might do it again in our day.

As one journalist put it; “That old chestnut of whether or not to commence the ‘daily hostilities’ with a nice prayer got another outing this week.” Thus our National Parliament allow themselves to be distracted from the affairs of state by the rights and wrongs of public prayer.
To pray or not to pray that is the question. As their tradition has it the whole assembly rise to their feet while prayer is uttered. However there are rebels in the pack. At least two left-wing lady deputies have indicated their intention to remain seated in protest. Will they be evicted from the chamber?

Whatever about the antics of Parliament what is it about prayer that creates such consternation? Its efficacy is not in doubt. When Moses held up his hands in prayer (with the assistance of Hur and Aaron) over the valley where the Israelites were fighting the Amalekites the forces of Israel prevailed but when his hands were lowered the battle turned in favour of the Amalekites. A more graphic picture of the power of prayer is hard to imagine (Exodus Chapter 17 verses 8 to 13).

When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray it arose from observing their Master himself at prayer (St Luke Chapter 11 verse 1). Jesus responded with ‘the Lord’s Prayer’ which commences by addressing the Father and his desires before listing our basic needs for food, forgiveness of sins and protection from the evil one. A fuller version of the prayer is found in St Matthew Chapter 6 verses 7 to 15).

In the organisation of the Church after Pentecost we read of the appointment of Deacons to handle the practicalities of food distribution among widows. This had become a problem as it was taking up the Disciples time. The solution was agreed that the Deacons would handle practical matters so as to permit the Disciples time for prayer and the ministry of the word (Acts Chapter 6 verses 1 to 7). This is how most Christian Churches organise themselves today with prayer and preaching given special focus.

Perhaps the most powerful illustration of a prayer asking for forgiveness of those bent on killing you was uttered by Jesus on the cross. They did not realise he was the Messiah and Son of God. And this prayer was offered whilst the torture of crucifixion was actually taking place (St Luke Chapter 23 verse 34). It is probable that some of those who heard these words were among the 3,000 who were saved a few weeks later following St Peter’s preaching at Pentecost (Acts chapter 2 verses 36 to 41).

The most important prayer is probably the first spoken in faith from a repentant heart seeking forgiveness and trusting completely that it will be heard and answered. It does not have to be a long prayer nor do the words require to be out of the ordinary. But these are the prayers that start a new relationship. The person praying is declared to be right with God (St Luke Chapter18 verse 14).
Sadly it’s not the sort of prayer that you are likely to hear in the Dáil but it is one you can make in the quietness of your own room. And the Lord will hear and answer. Trust Him.