Dear Friends,
Easter is early this year. Which means…Lent is upon us! This Wednesday, we begin our Lenten Season with Ash Wednesday Masses. Then, we start our Lenten reflection series on Mercy with a talk by Dr. James Keating on Thursday evening at 7:00 pm in the church. Friday kicks off the traditional Lenten custom of the Stations of the Cross at 7:00 pm. For those of you who would like a daily boost this Lent and who enjoyed your Christmas gift of Rediscover Jesus, I would suggest you go to www.DynamicCatholic.com and sign up for their Best Lent Ever Program. The parish will be joining other Archdiocesan parishes in offering the sacrament of reconciliation every Thursday from 5:00 to 6:30 pm with Leave the Light On.
Please reserve your Thursday evenings this Lent for our Lenten Thursday series on Mercy. We have some of the best speakers on the topic of spirituality from the Omaha area joining us this Lent. There is a flyer in the bulletin today with each of the speakers listed. Please put that flyer on your refrigerator as a reminder to join us each Thursday. You will not be disappointed by any of these presenters. Join us for one or join us for all of them! Your spiritual life will grow through these great reflections on mercy.
Why do we do Lent each year? Why do we step up our spiritual activity for these 40 days? The origin of Lent comes from the process of making Christians. In the early church, if people wanted to become Catholic, they had to go through a long process called the Catechuminate, just as they do today. People truly enjoyed the process of meeting Jesus, growing in their spiritual life, and disciplining their lives around the teachings of Jesus. They wanted to keep coming back to the Catechuminate year after year, but that was not possible with so many joining the church. So, Lent was created as a way of preparing all of us for Easter; a way for all of us to go on a yearly retreat.
Life tends to move too fast for most of us. Our days are filled with meetings, transporting children, preparing meals, working long hours, studying for tests, returning emails, etc, etc. Some of us are sinking in tough times with personal problems, family problems, financial problems or health issues. Some of us ache with deep wounds that have come from personal loss. The result of all that is a loss of a sense of self and a loss of our relationship with God, which simply makes matters much worse.
This Sunday, in the gospel, Jesus invites Peter to put his boat out into deep waters. Peter says he has been doing it all night long with no results, but he will do what Jesus says. They end up with a huge catch. That is what Jesus invites you to do this Lent. Put your life into the deep waters. Listen to the Jesus who nourishes your soul as he says to you “I will take care of you, trust me.” Come to Jesus and find that quiet space where he will take you away from all that is stressful and will help you again experience the wonder of his mercy. Join us this Lent. Nourish your soul with the Lord.
Peace,
Fr. Damian