SacredSpaces
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Ash, Attention, and the God Who Breathes: Writing This Hymn for Ash Wednesday
I wrote this hymn for Ash Wednesday out of a neurodivergent way of praying. For many of us, faith does not begin in abstraction. It begins in texture. In the grit of ash against skin. In the sound of a river looping the same bend again and again. In the stillness of a heron that… Continue reading
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Sacred Imagination, Wonderfully Wired
Many of the images that accompany my poems and hymns are created with the assistance of artificial intelligence, which I use as a humble instrument in the service of the Creator. As someone wonderfully wired, I believe the varied ways our minds perceive, feel, and imagine are not accidents but expressions of the imago Dei—the… Continue reading
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Memory. Mission. Transformation.
This hymn was written for NeuroDivine as a song of Eucharistic continuity and hope. It situates the community within the great communion of saints of the Celtic world—Patrick’s fire, Hilda’s shore, Columba’s pilgrimage, Cuthbert’s solitude, Bede’s scholarship—bearing witness that Christ has fed his people in every age and in every kind of mind. At its… Continue reading
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Rule. Dawn. Praise.
This hymn embodies Saint Benedict’s vision of communal prayer, uniting hearts through psalmody at dawn. Continue reading
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A hymn about Grace in humble things — “In quiet parks at break of day” (CM)
The hymn reflects on discovering God’s presence in everyday moments, emphasizing the beauty of ordinary experiences that reveal grace and the gradual manifestation of the Kingdom of God. Continue reading
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Andrew, this is you.
Some love stories are written in grand gestures. Ours has been written in endurance. This Valentine’s Day, I honour fifteen years of partnership with Andrew—and ten years of civil marriage later this year—not because the dates fall now, but because love that has lived this much deserves to be named whenever the heart nudges. Our… Continue reading
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Before Your holy altar
This hymn was written as a prayer of presence and sending — rooted in the Celtic landscape, centred on the Eucharist, and alive with the missionary fire of the saints. It gathers altar, land, and people into one act of worship: Christ present among us, Christ restoring us, Christ sending us forth. May it be… Continue reading
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Stop. Start. Stay.
A hymn capturing the beauty of life’s detours, celebrating gentleness and divine companionship. Continue reading
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Healing. Prayer. Hope.
This hymn was written for World Day of the Sick, a day when many pilgrims gather in Lourdes seeking healing, prayer, and hope. While crowds pray at the grotto and walk in candlelight procession, many of us keep the day in quieter places—hospital wards, dialysis units, and our own homes. For me, it is shaped… Continue reading
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Incense. Whisper. Hope. A hymn inspired by Psalm 141. “O Christ receive our evening prayer” (DLM).
This hymn is inspired by Psalm 141, the Church’s ancient evening prayer: “Let my prayer rise before you like incense.” Set in the landscape of Clonmacnoise, it joins the psalmist’s cry to the Shannon’s air and the long vigil of those who prayed on these stones before us. As night gathers, it asks Christ to… Continue reading
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Hours. Pump. Grace.
As I begin another week of dialysis, I come as I am—carrying tiredness, hope, and whatever this day holds. This hymn was written in the quiet place where machines hum and my heart keeps its own steady rhythm. It reminds me that Christ is here with me: in the care I receive, in the long… Continue reading
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Fall. Grace. Love.
This morning did not unfold as expected. Before Mass began, our celebrant was injured in a fall and taken to hospital. In her absence, the community gathered for Morning Prayer and the Litany. The form of worship changed, but prayer continued. What had been prepared for Eucharist became something simpler and quieter, shaped by attentiveness… Continue reading
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From Morning Light to Setting Sun—”Before the Dawn First Brushed the Sky” (CM and refrain)
Sexagesima (the Second Sunday before Lent) draws our attention to the quiet, faithful work of God—the sowing of the seed, the shaping of hearts, the long patience of love that bears fruit in its time. Before we strive, before we worry, before the dawn itself, God is already at work. This hymn is a prayer… Continue reading
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Shepherd. Host. High King. “Christ calls us to the table here” (DCM)
This hymn began with a simple wondering: What if Christ doesn’t only meet us at the table, but walks the whole week with us? Faith is rarely confined to sacred hours. It unfolds in Mondays heavy with responsibility, Wednesdays full of noise, Fridays marked by grief, and Saturdays thick with waiting. This hymn traces the… Continue reading
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Courage. Gentleness. Wisdom. A new hymn celebrating St Agatha “O God of Rome’s first faithful ones” (CM)
This hymn grew out of listening rather than certainty. It brings together two women who never met, yet somehow recognise one another across time and land. Saint Agatha, standing her ground in the hard stone world of Rome, and Saint Brigid, whose holiness took root in hearth-fire, field, and care for ordinary people. One knew… Continue reading
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Flour. Aprons. Presence.
For many of us, faith is encountered not first through abstraction or silence, but through texture, rhythm, repetition, and shared work. This poem emerges from the sensory world of baking—warmth, fragrance, patience, and touch—and attends to grace as something embodied and practiced rather than merely believed. Written to be read, prayed, or sung, it traces… Continue reading
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Held in the humming
A poem expressing the medical treatment I experience. The morning hums its fragile tune,the clinic lights grow bright;on Monday, Wednesday, Friday dawnsI take my steady rite.The lines connect with practiced care,the blood begins its round;a pilgrim held by humming pumps,yet rooted in this ground.Twice yearly comes the Dublin trip,a check that keeps me true;HIV’s a… Continue reading
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God’s Whisper Everywhere
A short poem in celebration of God’s whisper written during a restless night. Continue reading
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Carried. Promise. Radiance. A new hymn for Candlemas “Christ is carried to the temple” (87 87 D)
The hymn for Candlemas celebrates Christ as the Light, blending faith with themes of renewal. Continue reading
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