Luke 9:11b-17

‘Surely we need to ‘abound in hope' (cf Rom 15:13), so that we may bear credible and attractive witness to the faith and love that dwell in our hearts; that our faith may be joyful and our charity enthusiastic; and that each of us may be able to offer a smile, a small gesture of friendship, a kind look, a ready ear, a good deed, in the knowledge that, in the Spirit of Jesus, these can become, for those who receive them, rich seeds of hope.' Pope Francis

Some people bless themselves - make the Sign of the Cross - when they pass a church. What does it mean? Perhaps only God knows. It is a prayer, an invocation, a visible act of faith, a public yet personal gesture as you pass ‘God's house' - ‘teach Dé' - ‘teach an phobail'. It is a reminder of how precious and universal that gesture is: to bless yourself in the name of the Father and of the Son and f the Holy Spirit. You see people blessing themselves in all sorts of situations: absentmindedly on the way into church; solemnly at the end of Mass; in thankful delight, as with sports people; poignantly, in the case of mourners at a grave. In extreme sickness, when the brain can no longer form words and the only way we can turn to God may be with our feeble fingers, forming a cross. This sign can grow hurried and thoughtless through custom, but in moments of crisis and deep emotion, there are few gestures as rich in meaning as blessing ourselves