A Reflection by Jim Deeds
Jim Deeds shares his reflection on today’s retreat:
We all have our shadow side—those areas of ourselves that we are less than proud of and those corners where we hold prejudices. In those corners we will find out who it is that we hold as being “these least of brothers of mine,” as Jesus says. Who is it that I think of as being less than good or less than I am? The answer to that question will give rise to another: What can I do about it?
It might be that one thing we could do is to be kind and merciful to those whom we dislike or hold with suspicion. Perhaps this could mean having a coffee with someone we have fallen out with. It could mean finding out more about a community of people I know nothing about and am wary of. Whatever we do to those we hold as least among us, we do to Jesus himself.
Jim Deeds
Jim Deeds is a husband and father from the wonderful and wounded city of Belfast, Ireland. He works as an author, poet, retreat giver, and pastoral worker across Ireland and beyond. During his life Jim has also worked as a busker, a film maker, a playwright, a bartender, a social worker, a therapist, a manager of a children's home, and a health service manager. He enjoys playing music and walking the streets and hills in his native city, drawing much of the inspiration for his writing from his life experience and from finding God in the sounds and sights, people and events around him. Jim is passionate about creating sacred space where people can pray, relax, and come to know the great love God has for all God's creation.