Pope Benedict XVI Blog

Let Yourself Feel the Pull of God, Urges UK Prelate

Archbishop Nichols Addresses Prayer Lecture Series

LONDON, OCT. 23, 2009 (Zenit.org).- The archbishop of Westminster is encouraging Christians to experience the "lure of God," and is offering tips on setting aside distractions in order to cultivate a prayerful relationship with him.

Archbishop Vincent Nichols told a childhood story to the crowd gathered in London's Westminster Cathedral Hall Thursday evening, of a time when he and his brothers went mackerel fishing on a holiday in southern Ireland.

"We rowed out into the bay," he said. "In fact we went too far and had some difficult moments on our return journey."

We threw the lines into the sea, the prelate recalled, and "at the end of each line, on each of the many hooks, was a spinner -- a rotating, highly colored piece of metal with sharp hooks attached."

"The mackerel could not resist the flash of light reflecting off the spinners and, once we hit a shoal, they were quickly caught," he said, adding that they "soon had enough for a healthy supper for everyone in the hotel."

The archbishop used this image to illustrate the topic of his talk, "The Lure of God," as he spoke about "the ways in which God can reel us in, if we are able to let him."

He encouraged his listeners to feel "the pull of God," sense the desire for God and turn "all of that into action."

The purpose of our spiritual lives, Archbishop Nichols affirmed, can be expressed in this way, "What I seek is that Christ is born in me, day by day, so that he can do his work through me."
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posted by Dr. Denice Hanley, DPM, M.Div. @ 5:39 PM