Parish Bulletin for Sunday, March 13, 2005
Fifth Sunday of Lent
Lenten Psalm of the Royal Road
(Taken from: Prayers for a Planetary Pilgrim – Edward Hays)
- Lenten road,
- four- laned royal way,
- lead me to my Beloved
- in these forty days
- of prayerful pilgrimage.
- Royal and rich is the roadway
- of earnest prayer and worship,
- and blessed are those who travel it.
- They will find in the cave of their hearts
- the One whom they seek
- Royal and treasure-filled
- is the lane of study and reading,
- hours spent in feeding the soul
- with food of knowledge,
- insights into the divine nature.
- Royal and compassionate
- is the avenue of alms-giving
- and of working for the poor.
- Twice-blessed are those
- who give of self and treasure
- as a Lenten work of worship
- Royal and fertile with life is the lane
- Of discipline, fast and abstinence
- Which makes all disciples aware of their dependence
- On the truest ground of being,
- Carrying every pilgrim
- Homeward bound.
- Spirit of holiness, come to my aid,
- that I might walk with prayerful passion
- during these forty days
- on all four lanes
- of heaven's Lenten royal road.
May these final days of this year's Lenten journey bring you to the celebration of Easter in joy and hope. Today's gospel identifies Jesus as the resurrection and the life. He is the resurrection because of the hope he offers to all who believe in Him. He is the life because he is the source
of that new life that will one day flower into eternal life. Those who believe in Jesus share in that new life even now.
Physical death is inevitable; spiritual life is eternal. And yet we still must walk the Lenten journey to remember; remember all that the Lord of Creation has given to us. Remember that a sharing in his life means a sharing in his death and resurrection. This is the Paschal mystery.
As we listen to the story of Lazarus, as we hear how much the Lord loved his friends, we must remember that the gift of life is offered to each and every one of us. It is up to each and every one of us to accept or reject the gift. So continue on the Lenten journey and be ready to choose – new life!
— Rev. Thomas G. Moore
Mass Intentions for the week
- TUESDAY, March 15
- Lenten Weekday
- 12 Noon - † Lydia Arsenault
- Requested by family
- WEDNESDAY, March 16
- Lenten Weekday
- 8:30 a.m. - † Leonita Reyes Jun and Frank Reyes
- Requested by Reyes family
- THURSDAY, March 17
- Lenten Weekday
- St. Patrick
- 8:30 a.m. - † Joseph LeBlanc
- Requested by family
- FRIDAY, March 18
- Lenten Weekday
- 8:30 a.m. - † John Walter
- Requested by wife Margaret
- SATURDAY, March 19
- Lenten Weekday
- St. Joseph
- 9:15 a.m. – Morning Prayer
- (Office of the Blessed Virgin)
Parish Bulletin for Sunday, March 20, 2005
Passion (Palm) Sunday
Today's liturgy begins by describing the triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. He is welcomed with great joy and gladness; the people have been touched by His words and by His teaching. They have seen what He can do and honour Him with shouts of joy and by paving the way with their cloaks. "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest." These are people who know their psalms; the words of greeting come directly from one of them.
The dramatic contrast between the entry gospel and the proclamation of the passion according to Matthew takes us on an emotional roller-coaster – we travel from one emotional extreme to another. Welcome and triumph become rejection and failure. Yet we do not see this as contradiction. We proclaim the Lord's passion and death because we know it is prelude to resurrection, for Jesus and for each and every one of us.
Matthew's account is grounded in Scripture. Nothing happens by chance. Jesus is the fulfilment of all the promises and prophesies and in his fulfilment, He remains the master of His destiny. In fact, He clearly embraces what He does in obedience and with fidelity – "Thy will be done."
And what does this say to us? Have you ever thought about the people who first greeted Jesus and then, five days later, called for His death on a cross? Have you ever blamed them for "killing the Lord?" The ignorance that led sincere people to crucify Jesus is the self-same ignorance that leads people today to turn a blind eye, collectively and individually, to the injustices and prejudices that exist in our world today.
Do we realize at all how much God loves us? Do we truly act without conscience or thought? Were the people responsible for the crucifixion bad? Not any more than those today who would consider themselves good and upright Christians and yet can accept and tolerate that all men and women are not treated equally or justly. We simply don't get it!
Our God loves us so deeply and completely, so unconditionally and so intimately, that we sometimes miss it completely. If we did open our minds and our hearts to the love of God in each one of us, then perhaps our world would be willing to accept the kingdom of God and truly live in the footsteps of the Master. The light of Christ leads us from darkness to new life and allows us to act in the light, just as Jesus did.
This Holy Week, let us walk with the Lord and celebrate the new light of Easter with joy and an acceptance of God's love. Let us all pray today and throughout this week for new eyes to see what is there for us and has been all along.
— Rev. Thomas G. Moore
Mass Intentions for the week
- TUESDAY, March 22
- Holy Week
- 12 Noon - † Salvatore and Mario Beltrano
- Requested by Ida Beltrano
- WEDNESDAY, March 23
- Holy Week
- 8:30 a.m. - † John Drake
- Requested by Rita Drake
- THURSDAY, March 24
- Holy Thursday
- 7:30 p.m. – Mass of The Lord's Supper
- FRIDAY, March 25
- Good Friday
- 3:00 p.m. – Celebration of The Lord's Passion
- SATURDAY, March 26
- Holy Saturday
- 7:30 p.m. – Easter Vigil
- SUNDAY, March 27
- Easter Sunday
- 8:30 a.m. – 10:a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Parish Bulletin for Sunday, March 27, 2005
Easter Sunday
He is Risen! Alleluia!
Ash Wednesday began the season of Lent and the reflection for those beginning days of Lent asked you to "sit in the ashes' during this Lenten journey. To put on the ashes, to sit in ashes, was an image to direct us into that reflective and penitential mode that leads us to face the areas of our lives that need to be healed. It is recognizing what we have done and what we have failed to do to our relationships – with God, with each other, and within ourselves. It is a time to let the work of God's Spirit move through us so that we can be ready for change, for new life, for Easter.
And now Easter has come, as we knew it would. Our time for being still in the Lord and waiting for that spiritual growth that allows us to experience our God in ever new and delightful ways has brought us to the celebration of this Easter.
Resurrection is not just something that happened to Jesus 2000 years ago. It is not just that experience promised to each and every one of us when we die and are raised again into new life. Resurrection holds us, surrounds us, and invades our reality with goodness, graciousness, life, mercy and, above all, love. Resurrection comes to us in the ordinariness of life; new life is a gift that God continues to give.
Easter proclaims that God exists and that he celebrates life and goodness. God tells us that he is involved with us and his great love for us is manifested once and for all time in the gift of Jesus. His call to new life in Jesus is a call made over and over again in our lives. Our only response can and should be a commitment to nurture the gifts that God has given to us. All that we do and all that we say must contribute to life, life in the Spirit. The resurrection of Jesus is inseparable from his life and especially from his death. God's kingdom, forgiveness, new life, mercy, and love become a reality and are fulfilled in a most unexpected fashion. Once again our God is a God who saves, who liberates, who actively participates in our history. We are freed from sin and death and we are reconciled with God in Christ.
We celebrate Easter every year so that we can renew our faith and deepen our commitment. Christ lives! He lives with God and, through the Spirit, he lives with us. Our lives need to be marked with the joy and hope and love that truly give witness to the Resurrection. The time of stillness is over and we are called to celebrate through lives lived in the fullness of the Resurrection.
May the blessings of this Easter season rest upon all of you. May the challenge of this Easter season fill you with the joy, peace, hope and love that fill these fifty days of celebration.
From all of the clergy, the office staff, the pastoral staff and myself: Happy Easter!
— Rev. Thomas G. Moore
Mass Intentions for the week
- TUESDAY, March 29
- Easter Octave
- 12 Noon - † Margarita Briones
- Requested by family
- WEDNESDAY, March 30
- Easter Octave
- 8:30 a.m. - † Shalini Carvalho
- Requested by family
- THURSDAY, March 31
- Easter Octave
- 8:30 a.m. - † Mary Doyle
- Requested by Virginia Rainer
- FRIDAY, April 1
- Easter Octave
- 8:30 a..m. - † Lydia Arsenault
- Requested by family
- SATURDAY, April 2
- Easter Octave
- 9:15 a..m. – Morning Prayers
- (Office of the Blessed Virgin)
