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This particular song started to take shape the year before my ordination to the permanent diaconate. I
was recovering from some surgery, and had lots of time to read and pray and think about
God while continuing my studies. I was struck with the idea of how all things proceed from and
return to God. It was during the Thanksgiving season, and I was moved to consider how every gift
we have, from the smallest to the greatest, all come from God in the first place. The things we give
back to Him (charity toward others, prayer, personal efforts to bring others to Him) all came from and
belong to Him. The only thing we can give Him that is our own, is our Love for Him. I originally
released the first version of this song on my website in 2007, on the occasion of my ordination, as
a thank you gift for everyone 'out there' for supporting me in my vocation in prayer and thoughts.
2. We Come to Return; 2006
This song considers the gifts of the Sacraments, and reflects on the nature of our relationship
and the gratitude (or lack thereof) we show to God in return for all we've been given. It's one thing to know
in our rational minds all of the things we have learned in Bible study , or in catechesis - learning about Sacraments
before we receive them. It is quite another thing to know these things in our hearts. This song speaks of
how we really feel that sense of returning to God - our Creator and originator - when we know his generosity
with our hearts...it is then that we really feel we are on our return journey home.
3. Elohim; 2007
The Old Testament books have a number of terms to describe God; one of these is Elohim, which is a
Hebrew term for 'Lord' or 'God'. I guess the easiest way to describe this song, is it's really a love song to God,
who provides for us both on the physical and spiritual levels, and describes that sense we feel in our souls that there
is so much more to know of God, and how that 'longing' can never be satisfied in this lifetime.
(with thanks to St. Augustine)
4. I Have Heard; 2006
One of a couple of songs on this CD in which my children participated, for which I am very thankful.
This song speaks to me of listening and finally hearing God in the everyday - in the wind, in those
who walk through life with me, in the songs of children praising God...this was one way of expressing
my eventual certainty with which I had discerned my vocation, and draws on St. John's Gospel.
5. Jesus Prayer; 2007
The Jesus prayer dates back to the fifth century, and is one of the oldest and simplest prayers in
the Christian tradition. It is meant to be repeated over and over until one not only says it with their
minds, but with their hearts. I have adapted the words, and the reason for the length of this
particular track (9:41) is so that the listener can use it as a 'mini-retreat' to connect with Jesus in
the midst of their busy and distracted lives.
6. Who Do you say that I Am; 2006
This song was the result of contemplating over a period of a couple of years who Jesus really is.
Just as the Gospels relate, even today there are so many people who think of Jesus only in a
historical, humanist sense...calling Him only a great teacher, or a prophet, or someone of ancient
wisdom; and they miss the point of who He himself in His own trial admitted who He was; the Son of
God!
7. Oh Dear Father/Hail Mary ; 2007
These two prayers have always gone together in my mind and my heart. I have adapted/changed the
words in the Lord's prayer totally for artistic licence and clarity of explanation; the Hail Mary has
always held a treasured place in my heart as a prayer based on Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition.
8. Could you give me some Water; 2007
The amount of human suffering in the world is staggering. Although we know (again with our minds)
that it is widespread, sometimes we are confronted with its immensity. I read some figures before
writing this song, of how on the African continent, each day , about 3,000 children die of hunger.
Imagine that - three thousand a day! And that doesn't include deaths from disease, war, or natural
disaster. All this in a world where 10 to 20 percent of the world's population controls 80 to 90 per cent
of the world's resources ( that would be us in the developed west).
In St. Matthew's Gospel, Jesus talks about the last judgment, describing Himself as a
shepherd separating the sheep from the goats. The point of His judgment in this story, is the
explanation to the blessed and the cursed , "as long as you did it to the least of these, you did it to me."
This song has an edge to it, but then, so do the Gospels. They challenge us to do something for
Jesus who we see in the poor and the suffering.
(with thanks to Blessed Teresa of Calcutta)
9. How we adore You; 2007
The attributes of each Person of the Holy Trinity are distinct and incredible. This song is all about
praising and glorifying God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit; and how praise of one
leads into and through praise for the others. (personally, I use this one whenever I am trying to remember the
gifts of the Holy Spirit )
10. Blessing; 2008
This is just a way of asking God, who has been so good to me, to be as good to you as you listen to this
music. God who gives all things and all gifts, through His Son Jesus; the same Jesus who asks us to take
on His 'yoke'...His love, which is really no burden at all. It is my thought on how it feels when you recognize
God's personal call to service; that feeling of a soul when it has been 'kissed by the Lord'
(with thanks to St. Teresa of Avila).