On 10th April 1912 Father Robert Browne boarded the RMS Titanic for her maiden voyage. He had been gifted a ticket by his uncle to sail from Southampton to Queenstown* in Ireland, her last stop before the transatlantic crossing. But while at sea he made friends with a wealthy American couple who so enjoyed his company they offered to pay for him to travel all the way to New York. He needed permission from his superior to do so but the reply to his telegraph was unambiguous – ‘Get off that ship’. He did so and his obedience saved his life.

The message of Jesus is surprisingly similar. In Mark’s Gospel his first recorded words include a command for us to repent, which might just as well be translated ‘Get off that ship!’ Most of us are living lives our own way and perhaps, like Browne, are tempted to pursue a course that looks to be filled with pleasure and luxury. But Jesus’ invitation to repent is a call to turn our lives around and instead of facing away from God to walk towards him and embrace the fulness of life that he promises. When we do so we will discover, like Browne, that our obedience has saved our lives.

*Renamed Cobh in 1920

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