Dear Friends in Christ,
I hope your Lent is off to a good start! If it snuck up on you, then let’s engage! The readings this Sunday plunge us into the heart of Lent’s drama. In the gospel, we hear of how Jesus goes to battle for us in the desert. He will do just the same in His Passion. Lent draws us into the desert with Christ to be won over by Him, won over to His open Heart of love.
The Catechism #539 explains the temptations in the desert: “Jesus is the new Adam who remained faithful just where the first Adam had given in to temptation. Jesus fulfills Israel’s vocation perfectly: in contrast to those who had once provoked God during forty years in the desert, Christ reveals himself as God’s Servant, totally obedient to the divine will. In this, Jesus is the devil’s conqueror: he ‘binds the strong man’ to take back his plunder. Jesus’ victory over the tempter in the desert anticipates victory at the Passion, the supreme act of obedience of his filial love for the Father.”
In Lent, we are in the desert with Christ. When we humbly and sincerely call upon Jesus, He is actively working to restore us. He is healing us, bringing us to encounter God’s love and truth which brings us into communion and wholeness.
In the desert with Christ, we come to understand the truth of who God is: merciful and trustworthy; the truth of who we are: a beloved son/daughter, loved more than we can imagine; the truth of who our neighbor is: a gift! In this Lenten season, with the timeless means of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, we let go of distractions, fast from pleasures and entertainments, and say yes to deeper communion with God and more sincere, generous service of our neighbor. Lord, help us persevere!
Thank you to all those who helped organize as well as those who supported our various youth ministries with dinner at the Rumor Meal and/or the Pancake Dinner.
Please see our Lenten schedule for the many good things we have going on to enrich our community and deepen our faith this Lent. There are the Friday Lenten Fish Frys at St. Jane. (You may see me serenading/busking once again.) The weekly Stations of the Cross; the Catholic Men’s Fellowship Conference March 14th; the Lent Mission March 16-18.
In addition to your prayers for our Pastorate family, please say a special prayer for the participants in OCIA as they journey to the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen to participate in the Rite of Enrollment/Call to Continued Conversion, presided by Archbishop Lori.
God bless you!
Fr. John
