We've all read books that have spoken to us at a particularly meaningful way at some time in our lives. I remember as a teenager reading Shūsaku Endō 's Silence (recently made into a film). The book tells the story of two Jesuit missionaries working in Japan in the 17th Century. One of the book's central themes is the loss of idealism, enthusiasm and, indeed, faith among its central protagonists. They experience Japan as a 'swamp' where the seed of the Gospel can take no root and experience no growth. This approach is easily contrasted with the attitude of Jesus explored in chapter 11 of Matthew's Gospel. For Jesus the world is a fertile field waiting, expectantly, to be planted with God's word. How do we experience our community, our culture, and our country? Is it a swamp dead to the life of the Gospel or is it a fertile field waiting for God's word? Swamp or field? Are we weighed down by failure, by indifference or by spiritual fati