A few years ago, three friends joined me on a trip to Scotland. We were playing some rounds of golf at some of Scotland’s notable holy sites.

On a particularly “dreich” day (Scots for crap) I guided the group to the ruins of a cathedral and monastery in St Andrew’s. While St Andrew’s is a holy site for golfers, this ruin has become a special place for me. It is a place of sadness and warning.

“Jesus Christ is the face of the Father’s mercy. These words might well sum up the mystery of the Christian faith.” These sentences open Pope Francis’ declaration of a “Holy year of Mercy” (December 2015- November 2016).  Over my lifetime, my hunger has focused on Jesus, his face, his hands, his conversations, his sacrificial love, even his angry exchanges with those who didn’t get it.

Over an after-golf drink, I asked my late cardiologist friend Michael what the most important thing was his patients needed when he offered advice. “Empathy,” was his reply. He supervised a large staff and taught other docs at a major Toronto hospital. He had years of training and expertise, but fragile people need more than that when they are concerned about their heart’s health.

Welcome to our first “On Further Reflection with Norm Allen”. We plan for this to be a monthly podcast/journal to provide longer reflections on lessons we have learned over our years of the practice of Spiritual Friendship. I will draw on the freedom I have been given to listen in on the life journeys of hundreds of men and women over the years – they have been my real teachers.