A Moment To Pause: Friday 29th May 2026

Good morning and welcome to the Oblate time of prayer and reflection today by Sarah Braid, a member of the Oblate Parish of St Joseph's, Colwyn Bay. Today's Gospel is from the Holy Gospel according to the Gospel of Mark, chapter 11, verses 11 to 26. As I reflected on this Gospel, I found myself moving slowly through the different parts the fig tree, the temple, then prayer and forgiveness.The fig tree appears alive, yet is not bearing fruit. Then Jesus enters the temple and sees that the outer courts where the the place where Gentiles could come close to God, had become transactional and crowded with merchants. It made me think about how easily faith, church life, and even volunteering can become more about activity and duty than prayer and welcome. But what stayed with me the most is that the Gospel feels like a call to integrity between outward action and inward truth. If we pray, we should pray wholeheartedly. If we seek forgiveness. We should try to forgive. If we have gifts. Perhaps we are meant to use them well. Thank you for reflecting with us today.