Dealing with the Loss of a Child
The loss of a child — in utero or later — gives us a sense of so much loss of potential, a loss of possibility, and a loss of the story of relationship that we are all part of.
Fr Chris Townsend
Be Honest in Your Parish
With all that the Church has gone through in the last few tumultuous months, we might well ask: What is the mission of the Church? With the...
Fr Chris Townsend: I’m More than a ‘Parish Pump Jockey’
In order to break the current model of the parish church as a service centre, like a filling station, I think we need to be much more...
What’s a ‘Good Catholic’?
Recently I was told, as many parish priests are, that the person who disagreed with a decision I made was a “very good Catholic”, and that my decision challenged their ability to be Catholic.
A Check-up for the Parish
Anyone over 40 knows the necessity, and occasionally the indignity, of having to go for a medical. It is prudent and practical to do so. With timely...
The Wounds of Social Media Violence
Anyone involved in the more social side of social media cannot help seeing the growing polarisation based on race that surrounds our civic (but often not so civil) dialogue.
How Do We Build A Church Community?
This Lent we have asked parishioners to put on name tags and to introduce themselves to each other at the beginning of the Mass. Generally, after an initial reluctance, most were happy to comply. Of course, there are always those whose vehemence in being anti-anything like this is really scary. But then, every family has those, don’t they?
Let’s Be Careful: The Single-Issue Church
Recently I received an e-mail from one of the many Catholic mailing lists I belong to. The mail asked me to pray for US President Donald Trump, and went on to tell me how profound this man was as a president of the United States because he had spoken at the March for Life
Fr Chris Townsend: A Priest’s Rest
Fr Chris Townsend takes time out to birdwatch on his annual holiday in the Kruger Park. In his column he describes the importance of getting away from urban life.
To Change South Africa ‘Clean Your Room’
We may be overwhelmed by South Africa’s problems, but we cannot do nothing about it. And change, Fr Chris Townsend argues, begins at home, even and especially at the Christmas table.
