THE HOLY SEASON OF LENT: Wednesday is Ash Wednesday. Masses are at 7 AM, 9:30 AM, and 7 PM. Ash Wednesday is also a day of fast and abstinence for Catholics. We are to abstain from meat and all Catholics between the ages of 14 and 59 are to fast by eating three meals with no eating in between the meals, this means two small meals and one regular meal. What is important is that we begin this holy season by making sacrifices. All our sacrifices help us to grow in holiness. Ashes will be blessed and distributed on Ash Wednesday. When we give up or go without certain things that we like or find comforting, we can become more aware of our need for God. We need God more than we realize, but this need for God is often distorted and confused by the distractions of the things of this world. We have so many possessions and so many choices that the universal need for God is often clouded.
It is good and necessary that we make some time to move away from these distractions by going without them for a while. Jesus tells us that when we do righteous deeds, we do them for God to see and not for people to see. When we give alms to the poor, pray, or fast we should first and foremost do them for God and God who sees all and knows all will reward us. This reward may be understood as a closer relationship with God and a more profound awareness of His love for us.
The holy season of Lent is a time to grow closer to God by giving alms, praying, and fasting. By focusing on these activities in a special way during Lent we can gain a deeper understanding of who we are in relationship to God and the community of faith. There are many opportunities for us to participate in these righteous deeds. We can make an effort to attend Mass during the week, attend Stations of the Cross and Benediction, we can make frequent visits to the Blessed Sacrament in our Chapel of Divine Mercy, and we can make more time for prayer with our families at home. A deeper prayer life can lead us to a greater desire to fast and give alms to the poor. This is how we can use this holy season to really grow spiritually in our lives and relationship to Jesus.
Remember that during the season of Lent we pray the Stations of the Cross with Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament on Friday evening at 7 PM in the church, beginning on March 7. We also pray the Stations of the Cross each Wednesday afternoon with the school children starting next Wednesday, March 12 at 2:30 PM in the church. The Stations of the Cross are a very sacred tradition in the Church and a very prayerful way to remember the sufferings and death of Jesus, which He endured for love of us.
We all know that the Sacrament of Reconciliation is a very important part of our spiritual lives and also helps us in our relationship with God and others, but we do not use this sacrament as often as we should. Sometimes it is just a good confession after many years of being away. In an attempt to make the sacrament more convenient, on the evening of Wednesday, March 19, from 5:00-8:00 PM, most of the churches in the eight counties of the Catholic Diocese of Cleveland will open their doors and offer the Sacrament of Penance…confession. Catholics across the Diocese are asked to invite someone who may have been away from the faith for whatever reasons to participate at this special time as an occasion to return.Our parish Communal Penance for Lent will be on Monday, March 24 at 7 PM in the church. Do not be afraid to approach Jesus in confession. He is waiting for you, and He is calling you to come to Him with all His love. Immerse yourself in His ocean of mercy just as He told St. Faustina.
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We had a very wonderful GALA CELEBRATION for our 75th Anniversary School Celebration. We combined this celebration with our annual school fund raising auction. The event was attended by over 275 people and was beautifully planned by some of our school staff and the PTO. I am very grateful to all who helped to make this such a successful event, especially Lisa Kelley, one of our second-grade teachers, and our principal Mr. C. May God bless everyone for their hard work and devotion to our school.
