Invitation to A Holy Lent

As Winter blasts his frigid breath, and Nature sleeps, awaiting Spring, the Church invites us to a Holy Lent. It's a somber call amid a bleak season. Outside, no growth is perceptible; but spiritual roots take their nourishment and medicine, empowering upward growth in due season. 

A certain bamboo grows only one inch per year for four years. During that time, all the growth is in the roots: preparing, drinking, and growing strong underground. When all is ready, in the fifth year, this bamboo grows 80 feet tall in one season! In this example, the natural is pointing to the supernatural. A disciple's growth in the Spirit that all can see comes only after diligent preparation that few see. If you want evident spiritual fruit in your life, you can begin by nourishing your spiritual roots (John 15, Galatians 3).

God builds up your spirit man when you engage the spiritual disciplines that He has appointed in His Word: prayer, fasting, and self-denial; Bible study, self-examination, and service, to name a few. The worldwide Church joins together in these 40 days we call Lent, to prepare our souls and spirits for the remembrance of the Passion and Resurrection of our Lord during Holy Week. 

The Lenten tradition of the Church takes its inspiration from Jesus' 40 days of solitude, prayer, and fasting in the wilderness (Luke 4:1-13). Our Lord did this immediately after his public ministry began, as necessary preparation for His ministry to come. He confronted the devil and withstood temptation. As the master, so goes the student. Jesus assumed his disciples would fast and pray (Matthew 6:16). 

We invite you to join us in a Holy Lent.   

The Delightful Book of Proverbs

The Delightful Book of Proverbs 

by Friar Jim Van Vurst, OFM 

The Book of Proverbs, which was written about 400 years before the birth of Jesus, covers only 32 pages in the Bible. These are wisdom sayings that were attributed to King Solomon, the son of King David. In fact, for many years, Proverbs had been called “The Book of Wisdom.” These sayings aim to guide and instruct the reader in the correct ways of behaving toward others and in understanding our relationship with God.In the New Testament, Jesus, Paul, and James quoted wisdom sayings. In Romans, Paul quotes Proverbs 25:21: “If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat, if he be thirsty give him to drink; For live coals you will heap on his head.” In modern parlance, we have the saying, “Forgive your enemy because it messes up his head.”
The Book of Proverbs covers many areas of life, such as one’s relationship with God. “For each man’s ways are plain to the Lord’s sight” (5:21). In other words, with God there are no secrets. About prayer: “The Lord is far from the wicked, but the prayer of the just he hears” (15:29). Concerning abandonment to the Lord: “Happy is he who trusts in the Lord” (16.20).
Words of Wisdom

Most people have little wisdom sayings that are an indication that we are made in the image and likeness of God. God gave us intelligence, understanding, and the ability to see the results of our acts. Parents often guide their children through their own wisdom sayings. Don’t we remember our parents telling us to look both ways before crossing the street? Not to mention our parents warning us to never get into cars with strangers. We can be sure those words of wisdom have prevented some terrible tragedies.I came across a wisdom saying from Confucius—who has hundreds of such proverbs. In fact, one would have fit very well in the Book of Proverbs. Confucius said, “Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves.” Revenge will almost always affect the life of the avenger in ways he could not foresee.
If you are on the lookout for a used car, there is a very practical modern-day proverb full of wisdom: “Show me the Carfax.”
The Goodness of God

There is a powerful proverb (3:31) that warns, “Envy not the lawless man and choose none of his ways.” Our wounded human nature being what it is, the temptation may be to wish we didn’t feel so guilty in doing something wrong or sinful. In a moment of weakness, we could wish our conscience was not with us. And yet what a blessing and grace that is for us.

For a moment, we might envy the gains of the man who always gets his way. And it is sometimes difficult to always want to seek the good and the right when it might seem easier to put our conscience to sleep. And yet, when we take a moment to think, we know we are grateful for our well-formed conscience. As the wise saying goes, “The softest pillow we can lay our head on is a good conscience.”

We can be grateful that we are bathed in the goodness and the wisdom of the Lord. We would be miserable without it. 

Presentation of the Lord

Today the Church celebrates the feast of the Presentation of the Lord which occurs forty days after the birth of Jesus and is also known as Candlemas day, since the blessing and procession of candles is included in today's liturgy.

According to the 1962 Missal of Bl. John XXIII the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, today is the end of the Christmas season. The reformed calendar has designated that the Sunday after Epiphany, the Feast of the Baptism of Our Lord, is the end. This feast in the Ordinary Form is no longer referred to as the "Purification of Mary" but the "Presentation of the Lord". 

This day marks the completion of forty days since the birth of Jesus, when Mary and Joseph took the child to the Temple in Jerusalem. The requirement in Levitical law was for Mary to be 'cleansed', the completion of her purification following the birth of a male child. Until that day, she could touch no holy thing nor enter the sanctuary. Yet on seeing the holy family, Simeon praised God and acclaimed the infant as 'the light to enlighten the nations' and the prophet Anna gave thanks and proclaimed him her Redeemer. The image of Christ as the Light has led to the celebration of light countering darkness, with candles often taking a central place in the observance.