Thought for the Day

20 May 2009

Father Robert King, the Catholic Chaplain at the University of Bristol, is one of the regular contributors to BBC Radio Bristol’s Thought for the Day.  When our contributors are on air we'll bring you the text of their thoughts. 

Thought for the Day is part of BBC Radio Bristol’s breakfast programme with Richard Wyatt.  The reflection is given at around twenty to eight every morning. 

Father Robert is back on the radio next Wednesday.  Father Robert's thought from last week is still online.  Keep an eye on cliftondiocese.com as Father Robert will be starting a new podcast series exploring the intersection of faith and culture soon.  He'll in conversation with leading thinkers and local people who enrich our lives through their cultural work.

This is what Father Robert said this morning:

"I’m feeling somewhat reflective at the moment. Fitting perhaps for thought for the day - especially as it’s given me a boost. I’m coming to the end of a project that I’ve really enjoyed. A project that began with the excitement that comes from working with someone new. A project with a creative spark to drive it. For me there’s little to match the rush of shared ideas.

"The project was to create a series of videos to tell the stories of an eclectic mix of priests. I knew each would have a tale to tell about finding his place in life, and I hoped that it would help others who are thinking about their future. When people are open about their own stories it can really help make sense of where we are and where we’d like to be.

"As with all projects of worth I was surprised to find where the stories led me. I fully expected to be moved by the stories and was. What surprised me, however, was people’s staying power and their ability to re-evaluate the bigger questions while on the move.

"Often life just takes over and we find ourselves going along with the flow of events. Then every once in a while events become a bit more challenging - not just the big and obvious ones but also the small events or even our response to what we see around us. Wake up calls are often unexpected and necessarily so if they are to help us take stock in an optimistic way."