I enjoyed our time spent with Dominican Friar Fr Timothy who was visiting Adelaide at the invitation of the Archbishop.
His message was deceptively simple:
His Vision for local Church was for people to feel at home.
As DH Lawrence wrote that being at home is “to be like a grasshopper in the grass”
When you are at home you are at ease
Pope Francis has a vision for Church to be the house of the Father. We know how well Pope Francis lives out his vision. He is wonderfully caring, approachable and inclusive.
However, the reality is that not everyone feels at home in the Church. Part of the disconnect for people and church may be the way that Church makes them feel.
If people feel judged that does not make them feel at home.
Fr Timothy asserts that people should be accepted by the Church “where they are . He can see no purpose in telling people where they need to be”
As he said, “If they live in Chicago there is no point in telling them they should live in New York”
The same can be said for schools; it is of critical importance that people feel at home at Holy Family.