It is lovely that we can relax this Bank Holiday weekend dedicated to Saint Brigid. There are some lovely feast days that fall during these early days of February. Last Friday we celebrated Candlemas Day. Candles come in all shapes and sizes. Candles have a deep spiritual meaning. We live in a world where darkness can often dominate, with bad news often making the headlines. This can lead to a complete imbalance. We need light and good news to balance out the darkness.

The light is also symbolic of the light of Jesus. He encouraged people to let their light shine, to be proud of their light and to know that the light is always near, even when it seems darkness has the upper hand. He is very much our light too. Candlemas Day is a reminder how special your light is and to be proud of it. Saturday was also the feast of Saint Blaise and there is a lovely tradition of throats getting blessed in many churches.

I will finish with this beautiful prayer to Saint Brigid and have a lovely restful weekend.

We give thanks to you Saint Brigid for your message of hope and your message of good news.

You brought a beautiful simplicity to everything you believed in.

You became a voice for fairness and equality.

For you everything in life is not in isolation but connected.
For you the centre of your Saint Brigid’s Cross represents God.

Everything points to the centre, and everything starts from the centre. You remind us that the centre can be God, Jesus, a favourite saint, Mary, our Guardian angel.

Your centre can also stand for love and the beautiful blessings love can bring.

And so, we ask Saint Brigid to bless us with hope, with light and with love. We ask Saint Brigid to give us courage and hope to face the challenges of today and the unknown of tomorrow. We ask Saint Brigid to bless us with peace, to bless our family and to bless us on our daily journey.

Amen