I began today trying to contact the inland revenue and after 20 minutes waiting I was put through to a phone that when it responded said, “This number is no longer available.” I am not sure that despair was what I was feeling (and I know those working there are very busy), but it did remind me of a lovely little book by Paul Murray OP called ‘A Journey with Jonah, a Spirituality of Bewilderment.’ Life can be bewildering in what it throws at us. But the book points out that this can be a moment when we discover our new path. Jonah, lost in the whale after disobeying God, is regurgitated back in the direction God wants him to go. So sometimes it is those times when we feel lost that are stripping us of old certainties and sending us in a new direction. (I hope he does not mind me copying this cartoon, which I love, from the book.)
Kendal Catholic Priest 