The Hebrides are especially beautiful during this warm and sunny spell. However, the natural tranquility has been routinely disturbed by military exercises: the sounds and flashes caused by the firing from both land missiles and warships. The weapons aim away from the islands into the sea but many parishioners have told me that they find the experience frightening, particularly when they think of the harm being inflicted upon people where powerful weapons are being fired today such as in Gaza, Ukraine and Sudan. Pope Francis insisted that war is always a defeat while since his first address Pope Leo has asked us to embrace peace. The Popes didn’t invent these teachings; they are rooted in the Gospel. The statue of Our Lady of the Isles invites us to walk the alternative path of the Prince of Peace. I recognise that life is complex but as Christians our choices must be discerned in the light of the Gospel.
+Brian