 Fr.
Tom's Tomes February 26, 2006
Wednesday is Ash Wednesday. We begin the season of Lent on Ash Wednesday. Lent is a season of 40 days and nights of prayer, fasting and alms giving. It is a time to focus our attention on our spiritual lives. It is a time of turning away from sin and believing in the gospel. It is a time to look deeply into our lives to see where we need to remove the sin from our lives and make us more Christ like in our love and response to God. Each year the Season of Lent gives us this time of 40 days to evaluate our lifestyle, to participate in activities of prayer, fasting and giving alms, moving away from the selfishness and self centeredness of our world to following the gospel message of laying down our lives for others. We can very easily become consumed in all the happenings of the world that we loose sight of what faith calls us to do. Faith is the gift from God to make a difference in the world around us. Faith asks for a response in our lives to love unconditionally. Unconditional love in our lives is hard. We find it difficult to do so because we want something in return when we give. Jesus is our example of unconditional love showing us we need not count the cost of loving but of asking God for the grace to love others. During the Season of Lent my homilies will be focusing on prayer, fasting and alms giving. Before Lent begins take some time and think about what you are going to be doing for Lent. Once you have made up your mind what you are going to do, write it down. When we write our goals we are more likely to follow through on our goals than just thinking about them. Find a safe place to keep your goals and to hold on to them from Ash Wednesday through Easter. When you find it hard to fulfill your Lenten resolutions take out your goals and hold onto them. I would invite you to have as one of your goals to attend Mass on Holy Thursday, the Service of the Word and Eucharist on Good Friday and at the Easter Vigil we will share a fuller sense of the Salvation of Jesus Christ. Please read the articles in this week’s bulletin on Protecting All God’s Children, the activities on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday, and the Lenten Regulations. God bless you as we begin the Season of Lent. |