Today is “Latare Sunday” the halfway point of the Lenten Season. Latare is the Latin word for rejoice. We rejoice not so much because we are halfway through Lent, but because we are that much closer to celebrating the glorious feast of the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Whenever we reach the halfway point of any journey we tend to look back as well as ahead. We can also do this on our journey through Lent. Have we used this holy season to grow closer to God? Have we made more of an effort to pray, to fast, and to give alms to the poor? Have we made an effort to take advantage of the opportunities to join our parish family in prayer by participating in the Stations of the Cross or a weekday Mass? If we have not used the first half of Lent in the most beneficial way, there are still three full weeks of Lent to do better. It is never too late to begin again with the Lord. It is never too late to turn to the Lord with all our hearts. God is so generous because He gives us so many chances and so many opportunities to turn to Him and turn away from our sins.
Our lives, like Lent, are a journey to the Lord. This journey is filled with low points and high points. There are times when we feel so very close to the Lord and times when we feel very far away from Him. Nonetheless, God is always close to us and always with us. We need to draw close to Him by allowing Him to enter more deeply into our daily lives. Let us use, very wisely, these remaining days of Lent so that we can rejoice at Easter not because Lent is finished and we made it, but because we have grown closer to the Lord, and we have resolved to continue that growth.
Last Sunday at the 5 PM Mass, we conducted the First Scrutiny for those who will be baptized at the Easter Vigil. The prayers of this rite urge the participants, and all of us, to look closely at our lives and our relationship with Jesus. We might ask ourselves what our relationship with Jesus is like and how can we deepen that relationship with Him through prayer and the sacraments. This is what the holy season of Lent is all about. As these catechumens look forward to their baptism, we are asked to look back at our own baptism and ask the Holy Spirit to help us make it a deeper sharing in the life of the Trinity in the way we love God and others. Two more scrutinies will follow today and next Sunday. Please keep praying for these catechumens and the candidates during their final weeks of preparation for the Easter Sacraments.
Today in the Gospel, we hear the very familiar Parable of the Prodigal Son which, of course, teaches us about the great mercy of God our Father. No matter what we do or how far we may wander from His Way and His love He will always forgive us and take us back. He even does more than that. He also is ready to come to meet us, as long as we have turned to Him and have the desire to return to Him.
Sometimes we can be like the elder son who just does not understand this great love and mercy of God. Whenever a brother or sister turns back to God’s love and mercy, we should rejoice with them and welcome them back just as God Himself does. Mercy is a two-way street. We seek God’s forgiveness, and we must be ready to forgive our brothers and sisters from our heart if we are to enter the banquet prepared by the Father.
This is what Jesus teaches, as He taught us to pray, “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” Let us forgive one another from our hearts when someone sins against us or our loved ones or anyone who strays from God’s Way and turns back to Him. This is not easy for any of us, but it is what God calls us to do. To forgive another from our heart opens the way for God’s love to come more into our hearts. When we refuse to forgive another we block God from our hearts, which helps no one, and least of all ourselves.
