'Enter into the joy of your master.' Sunday Reflections, 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

Woman Sewing, Van Gogh [Web Gallery of Art]

She seeks wool and flax,
    and works with willing hands. 

(Proverbs 31:13, First Reading)

Readings (New American Bible: Philippines, USA)

Readings (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, England & Wales, India [optional], Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Scotland, South Africa)

Gospel Matthew 25:14-30 [Shorter form, 14-15, 19-21] (New Revised  Standard Version, Anglicised CatholicEdition) 

Jesus told his disciples this parable:

 ‘For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them; to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. [The one who had received the five talents went off at once and traded with them, and made five more talents. In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents. But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.] After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, “Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.” His master said to him, “Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.” [And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, “Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.” His master said to him, “Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.” Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, “Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed; so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.” But his master replied, “You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents. For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”]

Jesse Robredo 

(27 May 1958 - 18 August 2012) [Wikipedia]

There was real sorrow throughout the Philippines when news broke that the small plane in which Jesse Robredo, Secretary of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) in the administration of President Benigno Aquino III of the Philippines had crashed offshore while trying to make and emergency landing on Masbate Island. Secretary Robredo had been on official business in Cebu but wanted to be present at a swimming competition in which his daughter was taking part in their home town, Naga City in the heart of the Bicol Region at the southern end of Luzon. So he hired a small plane to fly from Cebu to Naga City.

Naga City, Camarines Sur [Wikipedia]

During his six terms as elected Mayor of Naga City Jesse Robredo was noted for being close to ordinary people and for working for the improvement of the lives of all Nagueños. He saw his role as one of service.

Shortly after the Secretary's death Fr Lucio Rosaroso, a chaplain to the Philippine National Police (PNP), spoke in a homily at a Mass for the soul of Jesse Robredo of the sense of service that he had:  Service is a time-honored value, however, the span of time in service does not matter — it may be long or short. What is more important is how much love one puts into his or her service.

The late Secretary Robredo, though his service to our country was cut short due to his untimely demise, but that is not what matters. What matters most is the LOVE that he put into his service. By that he gives us the best example of servant-leadership, he stressed.

Fr Rosaroso continued: Robredo’s heart was after the heart of the Good Shepherd. He was not only a good public servant but first and foremost a father to his very own family.

I remember reading at the time of his death that Jesse Robredo, who was based in Manila during his time as Secretary of the DILG, made a point of going home each weekend to Naga City to be with his family. By air this takes about 45 minutes but by road maybe six or seven hours, as I recall from going there from Manila a number of times in the 1990s when I was a vocation director of the Columbans. It's never easy for a politician or someone in public service to balance family life with public responsibilities. But Jesse Robredo made his wife and three daughters a priority.

Our Lady of Peñafrancia [Wikipedia]

The shrine of Our Lady of Peñafrancia is in Naga City.

I remember reading too that the day before his death Jesse Robredo went to confession at a church run by the Divine Word Missionaries in Quezon City, the largest component in area and size in Metro Manila. Fr Rosarosa of the PNP in his homily testified to the fact the DILG Secretary confessed regularly: The late secretary used to come here in Crame Church. In fact, every week he would go to confession. We are six priests here in Camp Crame and each one of us experienced being asked by the late secretary to administer to him the Sacrament of Reconciliation from time to time. He really believed in the sanctifying graces of the sacraments. He was a practicing and devout Catholic. He was a holy man in our midst!

Jesse Robredo's confession the day before he died is a powerful example of what St Paul speaks about in today's Second Reading: For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night . . . But you, beloved, are not in darkness, for that day to surprise you like a thief (1 Thess 5:1-6).

The shorter version of the Gospel has a specific focus: You have been trustworthy in a few things. I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master. Because President Aquino saw how well Jesse Robredo had managed Naga City he made him responsible for local government throughout the Philippines. 

The longer version shows how harshly the master dealt with the servant who simply buried what had been given to him. The investigation into the accident that killed Jesse Robredo suggests that three people lost their lives because others were not trustworthy in a few things.

The parable of the talents reminds us that whatever gifts God has given each of are not just for ourselves but are meant to be used in the service of others. What we do with them has consequences in the lives of others. Jesse Robredo, whose Catholic faith was at the centre of his life, used his talents in serving the people of Naga City from the time he was elected Mayor at the age of 29 and later in serving the people of the Philippines. He gave his wife and children first priority. The reason for his wanting to fly from Cebu to Naga, a journey that ended in his death, is a testimony to this.

The failure of some to use their talents, to carry out the responsibilities they were given, led to unnecessary deaths.

When the Lord will come like a thief in the night which words do we wish to hear from him: As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth - harsh words that call us to be responsible for what God has given us - or you have been trustworthy in a few things . . . enter into the joy of your master?

Antiphona ad communionem   Communion Antiphon  Mk 11:23-24

Amen dico vobis, quidquid orantes petitis,
credite quia accepietis, et fiet vobis.

Amen, I say to you, Whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you will receive, and it shall be given to you, says the Lord.

This is also the Communion Antiphon for Mass in the Extraordinary Form on the 23rd Sunday after Pentecost.

'You have been trustworthy in a few things . . . enter into the joy of your master.' Sunday Reflections, 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A

Woman Sewing, Van Gogh

Rijksmuseum Kröller-Müller, Otterlo, Netherlands [Web Gallery of Art]

She seeks wool and flax, and works with willing hands (Proverbs 31:13, First reading).

Readings (New American Bible: Philippines, USA)

Readings (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, England & Wales, India [optional], Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Scotland, South Africa) 

Gospel Matthew 25:14-30 [14-15, 19-21]  (New Revised Standard Version, Catholic Edition, Canada) 

Jesus spoke this parable to his disciples:

“For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them;  to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. 

[The one who had received the five talents went off at once and traded with them, and made five more talents.  In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents.  But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.] 

After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ 

[And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed; so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ But his master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents. For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ ]

For the shorter form of the Gospel the text in [square brackets] is omitted.

Jesse Robredo (27 May 1958 - 18 August 2012) [Wikipedia]

There was real sorrow throughout the Philippines when news broke that the small plane in which Jesse Robredo, Secretary of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) in the administration of President Benigno Aquino III of the Philippines had crashed offshore while trying to make and emergency landing on Masbate Island. Secretary Robredo had been on official business in Cebu but wanted to be present at a swimming competition in which his daughter was taking part in their home town, Naga City in the heart of the Bicol Region at the southern end of Luzon. So he hired a small plane to fly from Cebu to Naga.

Naga City Hall [Wikipedia] 

During his six terms as elected Mayor of Naga City Jesse Robredo was noted for being close to ordinary people and for working for the improvement of the lives of all Nagueños. He saw his role as one of service.

Shortly after the Secretary's death Fr Lucio Rosaroso, a chaplain to the Philippine National Police (PNP), spoke in a homily at a Mass for the soul of Jesse Robredo of the sense of service that he had:  Service is a time-honored value, however, the span of time in service does not matter — it may be long or short. What is more important is how much love one puts into his or her service.

The late Secretary Robredo, though his service to our country was cut short due to his untimely demise, but that is not what matters. What matters most is the LOVE that he put into his service. By that he gives us the best example of servant-leadership, he stressed.

Fr Rosaroso continued: Robredo’s heart was after the heart of the Good Shepherd. He was not only a good public servant but first and foremost a father to his very own family.

I remember reading at the time of his death the Jesse Robredo, who was based in Manila during his time as Secretary of the DILG, that he made a point of going home each weekend to Naga City to be with his family. By air this takes about 45 minutes but by road maybe six or seven hours, as I recall from going there from Manila a number of times in the 1990s whem I was a vocation director of the Columbans. It's never easy for a politician or someone in public service to balance family life with public responsibilities. But Jesse Robredo made his wife and three daughters a priority.

Our Lady of Peñafrancia [Wikipedia]

The shrine of Our Lady of Peñafrancia is in Naga City.

I remember reading too that the day before his death Jesse Robredo went to confession at a church run by the Divine Word Missionaries in Quezon City, the largest component in area and size in Metro Manila. Fr Rosarosa of the PNP in his homily testified to the fact the DILG Secretary confessed regularly: The late secretary used to come here in Crame Church. In fact, every week he would go to confession. We are six priests here in Camp Crame and each one of us experienced being asked by the late secretary to administer to him the Sacrament of Reconciliation from time to time. He really believed in the sanctifying graces of the sacraments. He was a practicing and devout Catholic. He was a holy man in our midst!

Jesse Robredo's confession the day before he died is a powerful example of what St Paul speaks about in today's Second Reading: For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night . . . But you, beloved, are not in darkness, for that day to surprise you like a thief (1 Thess 5:1-6).

The shorter version of the Gospel has a specific focus: You have been trustworthy in a few things. I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master. Because President Aquino saw how well Jesse Robredo had managed Naga City he made him responsible for local government throughout the Philippines. 

The longer version shows how harshly the master dealt with the servant who simply buried what had been given to him. The investigation into the accident that killed Jesse Robredo suggests that three people lost their lives because others were not trustworthy in a few things.

The parable of the talents reminds us that whatever gifts God has given each of are not just for ourselves but are meant to be used in the service of others. What we do with them has consequences in the lives of others. Jesse Robredo, whose Catholic faith was at the centre of his life, used his talents in serving the people of Naga City from the time he was elected Mayor at the age of 29 and later in serving the people of the Philippines. He gave his wife and children first priority. The reason for his wanting to fly from Cebu to Naga, a journey that ended in his death, is a testimony to this.

The failure of some to use their talents, to carry out the responsibilities they were given, led to unnecessary deaths.

When the Lord will come like a thief in the night which words do we wish to hear from him: As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth - harsh words that call us to be responsible for what God has given us - or you have been trustworthy in a few things . . . enter into the joy of your master?

Antiphona ad introitum     Entrance Antiphon   Jeremiah 21: 11, 12, 14

Dicit Dóminus: Ego cógito cogitatiónes pacis, et non afflictiónis: invocábitis me, et ego exáudiam vos: et redúcam captivitátem vestram de cunctis locis. 
Vs. Benedixísti, Dómine, terram tuam: avertísti captivitátem Jacob.
 Glória Patri, et Fílio, et Spirítui Sancto. Sicut erat in princípio, et nunc, et semper, et in sæcula saeculorum. Amen.
Dicit Dóminus: Ego cógito cogitatiónes pacis, et non afflictiónis: invocábitis me, et ego exáudiam vos: et redúcam captivitátem vestram de cunctis locis. 

The Lord said: I think thoughts of peace and not of affliction. You will call upon me and I will answer you., and I will lead back your captives from every place.
Vs. Lord, you have blessed your land; you have put an end to Jacob's captivity.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
The Lord said: I think thoughts of peace and not of affliction. You will call upon me and I will answer you., and I will lead back your captives from every place.

The text in bold is the Entrance Antiphon for today's Mass in the Ordinary Form. The full text is the Entrance Antiphon for Mass in the Extraordinary Form on the 23rd Sunday after Pentecost.

Antiphona ad communionem   Communion Antiphon  Mk 11:23-24

Amen dico vobis, quidquid orantes petitis,
credite quia accepietis, et fiet vobis.

Amen, I say to you, Whatever you askf in prayer, believe that you will receive, and it shall be given to you, says the Lord.

This is also the Communion Antiphon for Mass in the Extraordinary Form on the 23rd Sunday after Pentecost.

'To everyone who has will be given more . . .' Sunday Reflections, 33rd Sunday Year A

The Parable of the Talents, 1712 woodcut

Readings (New American Bible: Philippines, USA)

Gospel Matthew 25:14-30 (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, England & Wales, India [optional], Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Scotland, South Africa)I have a young friend who has been gifted by God with more than average intelligence. I'll call her 'Rosa', though that's not her real name. She 'breezed' through all her examinations from kindergarten to college. She was involved in legitimate extra-curricular activities at school, without neglecting her studies. While studying, she would readily help other students prepare for exams. Most importantly, she recognises that she has a gift from God. She doesn't hide behind a false humility nor does she boast about herself. She is now working with persons who have suffered deeply from the sins of others.

'It is like a man on his way abroad who summoned his servants and entrusted his property to them. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to a third is one; each in proportion to his ability. Then he set out. The man who had received the five talents promptly went and traded with them and made five more. The man who had received two made two more in the same way. But the man who had received one went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master's money. Now a long time after, the master of those servants came back and went through his accounts with them. The man who had received the five talents came forward bringing five more. "Sir," he said "you entrusted me with five talents; here are five more that I have made." His master said to him, "Well done, good and faithful servant; you have shown you can be faithful in small things, I will trust you with greater; come and join in your master's happiness". Next the man with the two talents came forward. "Sir," he said "you entrusted me with two talents; here are two more that I have made." His master said to him, "Well done, good and faithful servant; you have shown you can be faithful in small things, I will trust you with greater; come and join in your master's happiness". Last came forward the man who had the one talent. "Sir," said he "I had heard you were a hard man, reaping where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered; so I was afraid, and I went off and hid your talent in the ground. Here it is; it was yours, you have it back." But his master answered him, "You wicked and lazy servant! So you knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered? Well then, you should have deposited my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have recovered my capital with interest. So now, take the talent from him and give it to the man who has the five talents. For to everyone who has will be given more, and he will have more than enough; but from the man who has not, even what he has will be taken away. As for this good-for-nothing servant, throw him out into the dark, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth."

An Soiscéal Matha 25:14-30 (Gaeilge, Irish)

San am sin dúirt Íosa lena dheisceabail “duine a bhí ag dul ar an gcoigríoch: ghlaoigh sé ar a sheirbhísigh agus thaobhaigh leo a mhaoin; thug cúig thallann do dhuine acu, a dó do dhuine eile, aon tallann amháin do dhuine eile – do gach duine de réir an chumais a bhí ann – agus d’fhág an tír. Ní dhearna fear na gcúig thallann aon mhoill gan cur chun gnó leo agus cúig cinn eile a ghnóthú. Mar an gcéanna d’fhear an dá thallann; ghnóthaigh seisean dhá cheann eile. Ach chuaigh fear na haon tallainne amháin agus rinne poll sa talamh agus chuir sé airgead a mháistir i bhfolach. Seal fada ina dhiaidh sin, tháinig máistir na seirbhíseach sin ag réiteach cuntas leo. Tháinig fear na gcúig thallann ina láthair agus thairg cúig thallann eile aige chuige agus ar seisean: ‘A mháistir, d’fhág tú cúig thallann ar iontaoibh agamsa; seo duit cúig cinn eile a ghnóthaigh mé.’ Labhair a mháistir leis: ‘Go han-mhaith; dea-sheirbhíseach iontaofa thú: bhí tú iontaofa i mbun beagán nithe; ceapfaidh mé i do cheann thú ar mhórán; gabh isteach in aoibhneas do thiarna.’ Tháinig ina láthair ansin fear an dá thallann: ‘A mháistir,’ ar seisean, ‘d’fhág tú dhá thallann ar iontaoibh agamsa: seo duit dhá cheann eile a ghnóthaigh mé.’ Labhair a mháistir leis: ‘Go han-mhaith: dea-sheirbhíseach iontaofa thú; bhí tú iontaofa i mbun beagán nithe; ceapfaidh mé i do cheann thú ar mhórán: gabh isteach in aoibhneas do thiarna.’ Tháinig ina láthair ansin an fear a fuair an t-aon tallann amháin: ‘A mháistir,’ ar seisean, ‘bhí aithne agam ort gur duine crua thú, ag baint fómhair san áit nár chuir tú síol, agus ag cnuasach as an áit nach ndearna tú scaipeadh; agus le barr eagla, chuaigh mé ag cur do thallainne i bhfolach sa talamh. Seo duit í: tá do chuid féin agat.’ Dúirt a mháistir leis á fhreagairt: ‘Drochsheirbhíseach leisciúil thú! Bhí a fhios agat go mbainim fómhar san áit nár chuir mé síol agus go gcnuasaím as an áit nach ndearna mé scaipeadh: ba cheart duitse mar sin mo chuid airgid a chur chun lucht gaimbín, agus nuair a thiocfainn gheobhainn mo chuid féin ar ais le hús. Bainigí de an tallann agus tugaigí í don duine a bhfuil na deich dtallann aige, óir, gach aon duine a mbíonn ní aige, tabharfar dó agus beidh fuílleach aige, ach an té a bhíonn gan ní, fiú amháin a mbíonn aige bainfear de é. Agus an seirbhíseach úd gan aird, caitear amach sa dorchadas é: is ann a bheidh gol agus díoscán fiacla.’

I have a young friend in the Philippines, Richelle (above), who has been gifted by God with more than average intelligence. She 'breezed' through all her examinations from kindergarten to college where she graduated summa cum laude. A few months alter she came second in the country in the licensure examination for social workers. She was involved in legitimate extra-curricular activities at school, without neglecting her studies. While studying, she would readily help other students prepare for exams. Most importantly, she recognises that she has a gift from God. She doesn't hide behind a false humility nor does she boast about herself. She is now working with persons who have suffered deeply from the sins of others.

When I was in Cebu I came to know a young man named Isabelo. Unlike Richelle, he had an intellectual disability because he was born with trisomy 21 (Down Syndrome). However, Isabelo had a special gift for the Faith and Light community to which he and I belonged - he had a great memory for names and would always remind us that so-and-so had not yet arrived.

I met a young girl of about ten or eleven from Hong Kong at the international Faith and Light pilgrimage to Lourdes in 2001 - the movement grew out of a pilgrimage to Lourdes for persons with intellectual disabilities in 1971 - whose name I cannot remember, to my shame, but whose trusting purity made a profound impact on me. In the Irish language such a person is called 'duine le Dia', 'a person with God'. This young girl was truly such.

She and Isabelo were unaware of the specail gift that God had given to each of them, but others enabled those gifts to be shared with the wider community. Rosa is very much aware of being gifted by God and consciously, unselfishly, joyfully and humbly shares her gifts with others.

We sometimes distort the image of Jesus by describing him as 'meek and mild'. This is certainly part of God who became Man. But in today's parable he is scathing of those who don't use the gifts that God has given them. A talent in Biblical times was a container of gold or silver but has come to mean an ability or gift from God that a person has.

Some have the gift of spotting and encouraging in others gifts they don't have themselves. My father, a carpenter, rarely read books but when I was still in kindergarten he gave me a copy of Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island that he had received as a child. It wasn't a simplified edition but unabridged. I read it with joy. The Sisters in the kindergarten I went to had alreadly spotted that my reading ability was way ahead of that of my classmates and used to give me stampetas or holy cards as a reward for reading something normally difficult for a young child.

Soemtimes we discover a gift we have because others see it first. It was only after my ordination, while studying in the USA, that I realised I have a certain ability to listen to persons. This was when individuals, some much older than me, came to me because they needed someone to listen to. I became aware of this while spending most of the summer of 1969 in a sprawling rural parish in Kentucky, where there were very few Catholics. The parish priest used to get college students from many parts of the USA to work in various summer projects, such as camps for poor children, Bible school, home-to-home visitation, and preaching tours, the latter with seminarians. Fr Ralph Beiting had a marvellous gift for organising and inspiring young people,but he wasn't a person you would go to if you wanted someone to listen to you. However, it was his giftst that made it possible for me to discover one of mine.

The two young Irish diocesan priests who founded the Columbans, Fr Edward Galvin (later Bishop of Nancheng, China) and Fr John Blowick, had very different gifts. Fr Galvin was an 'action man' while Fr Blowick was a brilliant scholar who also knew how to deal with bishops and with authorities in the Vatican. Neither on his own would have got anywhere with a new missionary society. Together, they used the speific gifts God had given each to further the mission Jesus gave the Church, to preach the Gospel to every creature.

On His Blindness, John Milton (1608-1674)

"When I consider how my light is spent

Ere half my days in this dark world and wide,
And that one talent which is death to hide
Lodg'd with me useless, though my soul more bent
To serve therewith my Maker, and present
My true account, lest he returning chide,
"Doth God exact day-labour, light denied?"
I fondly ask. But Patience, to prevent
That murmur, soon replies: "God doth not need
Either man's work or his own gifts: who best
Bear his mild yoke, they serve him best. His state
Is kingly; thousands at his bidding speed
And post o'er land and ocean without rest:
They also serve who only stand and wait."

English poet John Milton tried to come to terms with the blindness that came upon him. Many older persons, or those who have been struck with a severe illness or disability, go through a similar struggle. 'Who best bear his mild yoke, they serve him best'. Fr Edward Allen was a saintly Columban I was blessed to have lived with from 1997 till 2000. Over the years he had helped many young women discover ther vocation to religious life. Late in 1998 he had a severe stroke which made him almost totally dependent on others. His mind and his sense of humour remained intact, though his speech wasn't clear. He was 92 when he got the stroke but for the remaining two-and-a-half years of his life he was giving strength to the young and healthy nurses who were taking care of him because of his deep faith in Jesus Christ.
 
God has given each of us a unique set of gifts. We glorify and honour him by racknowledging them and using them joyfully in the service of others, and especially by helping others discover their gifts.

'I Dreamed a Dream'

For a real treat, if you haven't seen it already, watch this video. It proves beyond all doubt that you can't judge a book by its cover. Susan Boyle, a 47-year-old unemployed single woman from central Scotland, has become internationally known as a result of her appearance on Britain's Got Talent.

What surprised me is that this story has appeared on a number of Catholic news agencies. Here is that of CiNews from Ireland, based to some extent on an interview with her parish priest, Fr Basil Clark. Knock, in the west of Ireland, is where our Blessed Mother appeared in 1879.

Overnight sensation has sung many times in Knock

Monday, April 20th, 2009

Just before Easter a quiet woman from a small village in Scotland - a devout Catholic and long-term member of the church choir - came to London to sing in a competition, stating that her dream was to be like Elaine Paige.

When she came on the stage the audience snickered and the judges of Britain's Got Talent either rolled their eyes or allowed their blank expressions to betray their bemused scepticism.

When Susan Boyle began to sing I Dreamed a Dream, from the musical Les Miserables, they were spellbound and shocked by the beauty of her voice and rose to their feet in applause.

Back in Scotland Fr Basil Clark, who watched the show on television at his home in Broxburn, was not surprised.

He had seen the situation unfold many times before, having regularly accompanied Susan, 47, on the annual Legion of Mary pilgrimage to the Marian shrine in Knock, Ireland.

'When I watched the judges' faces it reminded me of what I was like when I first saw Susan singing - absolutely blown away by the quality of the singing and by that fantastic voice,' said Fr Clark.

'Anyone who sees her for the first time behaves the same way. I have never heard her sing badly, though she might lose the words if the stress gets too much,' he told the Catholic News Service.

Fr Clark said, 'When she gets up to sing it can either be wonderful or you can get the unpredictable eccentric behaviour, but it is to do with the fact that she has learning difficulties.'

He said that local people who knew her, the youngest of nine children of a family descended from Irish migrants, were 'enormously proud of her and wish her the best but they are aware of the risks she is running', adding that her behaviour has previously drawn cruel taunts from children.

'People are slightly worried about what might happen after this bout of fame,' he explained.

'I am quite worried for her,' he added. 'I think it's great at one level. It might just be the thing that will make her, but she is a very vulnerable person and it could be quite difficult.

'It is a great opportunity for her and as far as I am concerned she should make the best of it, and if it lasts, it lasts, and if it doesn't, then it's still more than almost any one of us will ever achieve," he added. "It is important in sustaining her and making sure this is all a very, very beneficial experience.'

He described Susan as 'a woman of great faith' who was often 'very gentle and very caring' .

Part of her attraction is that she appears to be such an unlikely candidate for stardom. She said on TV that she has 'never been kissed' and has lived alone with her cat since her mother died in 2007.

She received a standing ovation at her parish’s Easter Sunday Mass.

Her fame spread on the Internet, and in just a week she had attracted more than 26 million YouTube viewings of her rendition of I Dreamed a Dream.