A cat pauses on the ramp beside St John’s Church in Monasterevin. Above it, the pointed doorway glows in warm light, while a purple sky deepens beyond the churchyard wall.

Our attention might first go to the stonework, the doorway, or the light. Then we notice the small creature sharing the scene, quietly occupying its own place beside the entrance.

Parish life has these unscheduled encounters too. Amid services, preparations and familiar routines, something catches our eye and invites us to pause. Sometimes the moment we carry home is a cat beside the church door.