That the passion of Christ points us to the one thing that we can change? That one thing is our selves. We now enter into Holy Week, which in my mind is the most sacred time of the year. As the season of penance and sacrifice comes to an end, we turn to the focus of Holy week – the passion and suffering of Christ, the resurrection of Christ, and all of the happenings that lead us to these events – events that define who we are and what it means to be a Christian. There is something especially beautiful about the Easter Vigil for me, for it was here that I moved one step closer to answering God’s call to enter the seminary. I credit the Holy Spirit, for I discovered that by engaging myself wholeheartedly in this beautiful celebration, and truly listened to the words being proclaimed, that is has the power to change a person forever. During the Triduum we suffer along with Christ. We also journey with Him in prayer so that we too might rise with Him at His glorious Resurrection. It was here that I learned that the only thing I have power over to change is myself. We can pray for each other, yet only I can make the decision to change. That personal invitation from Jesus is open to each and every one of us. I invite each of us to immerse ourselves into this mystery this week. While very different from any Holy Week we have ever experienced before, consider joining us for all of our live streamed liturgies this week, and let us join our hearts and minds with Jesus, and remember what He did for each of us. May God continue to bless and keep safe each of you and those that you love.
Fr. Greg That God calls us to transform our weaknesses into strengths? Looking back at our life journey for just a moment, growing up in our families, attending school, or in figuring out what we want to do in life, at every turn we look at our strengths and weakness. What am I good at? What gifts have I been given? When I was working in retail, S.W.O.T. analyses were often completed, to identify not only strengths and weakness of the business, but also opportunities and threats. Most importantly, the analysis asks the probing question: how do we turn those weaknesses and threats into strengths and opportunities? Our Catholic faith also calls upon us to look at and identify our strengths and weaknesses, and the importance for us, to transform our weaknesses into strengths. However, we are called not to look back and dwell on the past, but rather to look forward, all in order to become the people God intended us to be. Mathew Kelly writes: “Our weaknesses are the key to the
future that God has envisioned for us.” God has a plan for each and every one of us – and the plan continues to unfold each day as we continue to listen in our hearts to where God is calling us. During this season of Lent, may each of us take the time to bring our weaknesses to God, and allow Him to transform us, through the power of the Holy Spirit, to be the people He personally calls us to be. May God bless each of you and those that you love, Fr. Greg. That most of the spiritual plans we bring to Lent end up working for a short period of time? It would be my guess, that for the few days prior to Lent we were busy reconstructing our usual programs for Lent, the things that worked the last five to ten years, so that all would be in place for Ash Wednesday. It is like pulling out of storage a box of old decorations that have brought us some useful comfort and familiarity. The lists of things we give up – and the list of things we do – the books of prayer, the pasta and fish dinners, even the resolutions that provide us an opportunity to be renewed. However: Eye has not seen, ear has not heard, nor has it so much as dawned on us what God has prepared for those who love Him. (I Corinthians 2:9) These are good things! How about us leaving them in our spiritual trunk? How about we go to the Lord with heart, mind and soul open to what He will bring? What He will want of us! I am speaking only for myself – most of the spiritual plans I bring to Lent end up working for a short period of time or only take me as far as I want them to go (maybe Forty Days). If the Lord is calling the game, inviting us to join in, to surrender to the unknown – new heights, to new ministries in His name and most importantly new intimate moments of prayer and to come
away to those holy places where we have need of nothing, for the Lord suffices – then Lent will not be a program of accomplishments but an immersion into His transforming Love in ways we can’t even imagine. That we need a constant reminder that things get out of sync in our lives? That is exactly what the season of Lent is all about. I find for myself, more times than not, I get out of balance when it comes to work, rest, and prayer. At the end of a long day, we let our prayer life falter. We allow things to control us rather than us controlling them. And then there is Lent. It stops us, and gives us the opportunity to say “I want to get it right.” I want to be renewed; I want to be refreshed. May this season of Lent be a time that all of us try to improve ourselves, to turn away from the presence of sin in our lives, that has crept into our lives. At the end of this 40 day journey, may we celebrate Easter, an Easter renewed in spirit, with a refreshed prayer life, and being reconciled with God. That is my prayer for each and every one of us this Lent.
That ashes are a symbol of penance made sacramental by the blessing of the Church, and that they help us develop a spirit of humility and sacrifice? Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the season of Lent, a season of penance, reflection, and fasting which prepares us for Christ's Resurrection on Easter Sunday, through which we attain redemption. The ashes are made from the blessed palms used in the Palm Sunday celebration of the previous year, and are christened with Holy Water and are scented by exposure to incense. While the ashes symbolize penance and contrition, they are also a reminder that God is gracious and merciful to those who call on Him with repentant hearts. God’s divine mercy is of utmost importance during the season of Lent, and the Church calls on us to seek that mercy during the entire Lenten season with reflection, prayer and penance. May each of us have a truly blessed, grace filled season of Lent.
That Jesus calls us to love one another? This past Friday we celebrated Valentine’s Day. It made me think of when I was teaching some Sudanese children Catechesis in Buffalo’s inner city. In our conversations, I learned that they had never heard the words “I love you” nor had they ever told their parents that they loved them. This shocked me. What many of us consider a given was something they had never heard in their life. It simply was not part of their culture. Upon reflection I thought about the people in my life, my friends, colleagues, teachers, and even my own extended family. Was there love there? Yes. Did we say “I love you?” Yes and No. While we never said “I love you” verbally, we said it non-verbally in many ways – in our deeds and actions. In talking with these children, I let them know that they were very much loved, for while they may have never heard the words verbally, their parents say it to them every day by keeping them safe, wanting a bright future for them, putting a roof over their heads, and so on. And the children too, can say “I love you” by doing simply things, like doing the dishes without being asked or making their beds. As we read in 1 John 3:18, “Children, let us love not in word or speech but in deed and truth.” As baptized Christians, we are called to be instruments of love here on earth, through our deeds and actions, which are often unspoken. So whether it be a smile, holding the door open for someone, or dropping off some food for the poor, it’s these simple things that say to our brothers and sisters that they are loved without saying a single word.
That each of us are “blessed”? When we think of “blessed”, we are usually talking about something good, something great, something that other people would want. Yet in looking at the people Jesus labels as blessed, they seem to be the exact opposite of what the world tells us we should be aspiring for – the poor in spirit (those who have nothing in this life but their faith in God); those who mourn (not just those who have experienced death, but those who struggle with sin in their lives and “mourn” over the fact that they struggle with that), and the meek (those who seem powerless, insignificant to the world). Jesus is not giving us a pep-talk, but rather he is trying to change our perspective about what it means to be “blessed”. Jesus invites us to recognize that Blessed are you when even in the midst of all that is going on in your life, all the trials and tribulations you suffer and endure. Blessed are you when you realize God hasn’t abandoned you. Blessed are you when you realize this isn’t some divine punishment. Blessed are you when you see God is there with you in the midst of it all. Blessed are you when you endure with that
confidence of faith, knowing the love of God sustains you. All too often the world thinks that when we win the lottery, THEN we will be “blessed.” Our faith, and the fact that Jesus died for us reveals how blessed we truly are. That the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord is a relatively ancient celebration? The Church at Jerusalem observed the feast as early as the first half of the fourth century, and likely earlier. The feast celebrates the presentation of Christ in the temple at Jerusalem on the 40th day after His birth. Just as we process in at the beginning of mass with lit blessed candles, the light of the candles symbolizes Christ, who is the Light of the World. This light symbolizes the infant Jesus, our Saviour, who entered into the temple with Mary and Joseph. God, our Father, who is the Source of all light, revealed to Simeon the Light of revelation to the nations. That was some 2020 years ago. So how are we to celebrate this feast today? We are reminded that we are to always bring that light of Christ we received at our own baptism to those who live in darkness. I admit, this is not always easy. It is with God’s grace that we are called to be the light of Christ today in our words, deeds, and actions, in our parish, in our families, and in our communities. Let us pray that, together, we may be the light of Christ for others – for each other!
That Saints were ordinary people like you and me? The Catechism tells us that a Saint is the “holy one” who leads a life in union with God through the grace of Christ and receives the reward of eternal life. In the classrooms we talk about how the Saints act as “role models” to us, each in their own way. The Saints inspire us, in our own little way, to be the hands, feet, eyes and voice of Christ in the world. Is this easy? Not all the time. It is at these very times that we rely on the graces that we receive in the Sacraments. The Saints were
young and old, from all over the world, and have been recognized by the Church for their service to others. We too are called to serve others, and to share our gifts to continue Christ’s work. I encourage all of us to look up some of the lives of the Saints, and to be inspired by their lives and service to others! That there is nothing “ordinary” about ordinary time? Bishop Bergie recently pointed out that for some “ordinary” implies a liturgical season that is uneventful or even unimportant. As we know this is far from the truth. The term “ordinary” is an English translation of the Latin word ordinalis which
refers to numbers in a series. Here we find the origins of the English word “order”. So Ordinary Time is really “ordered time” which reminds us that God has ordered all things beginning with bringing order to chaos as found in The Book of Genesis. Let us use this period of time prior to Lent to order our parish life toward God and our Blessed Mother Mary. In this way we will be doing something “extraordinary” during Ordinary Time. |
AuthorFrom Our Pastor Archives
April 2024
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