By Father Kevin Cullen
Half of the days have passed during this short yet perfectly balanced month. Celebrations mark many Olympic events: the closing ceremonies of Ordinary Time (Mardi Gras) and the opening ceremonies of the Lenten Season (Ash Wednesday). To accomplish God’s holy will, we set aside time on our Spiritual journeys, like many of the faith traditions, for deepening in prayer, for practicing fast and abstinence, and for stretching outward by our almsgiving.
This Wednesday, we begin our Lenten Journey. We are marked with ashes, for we are sinners who are loved by God. We begin simple steps in our daily lives. Our prayer may include more time to sit with Scripture (Lenten Linger over Coffee on Tuesday mornings) or to engage in devotional practices like The Stations of the Cross or Taize Prayer. Our fasting may be from sweets or alcohol and include a Friday parish fish-fry. I could fast from distracting myself with the internet or other media. Our almsgiving may include sharing my pocket change with Operation Rice Bowl or sharing a conversation with someone seeking assistance. All these Lenten practices try to enhance our encounter with our God, our neighbor, and our world.
This unique month of February offers shifts, steps, and movements that take us out of ordinary ways into new seasons in life. The time for change is now. Let us “repent and hear the good news.”
Consider joining us to reflect on our call to deepen on this spiritual journey:
On Friday, February 20, the members of the Sisters of Charity Governance Council invite us to reflect on Treasuring the Gifts of the Desert (9:00 to 2:30 p.m. in O’Shea Conference Room). The Vincentian Family gathers to be renewed during this Lenten Season with the hope of the Gospel deepening us in our Vincentian charism.
Every Tuesday, beginning February 24 through March 24, we will Linger Over Coffee: Staying firmly on the path as we journey this Lent. (9 to 11 a.m. each Tuesday: 2/24, and 3/3,10,17, 24).
From Friday until Sunday, March 27-29, Sr. Mary Pat Johnson, SCL, offers the Transformative Power of Prayer. This Retreat will explore ways in which fidelity to prayer will gradually heal and transform us into the women and men we were created to be. Time for silence, personal prayer, and faith sharing will be included.
May 26-31, a preached retreat following The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola, will be directed by Fr. Frank Reale, SJ, a Jesuit of the Central and Southern Province. The interior movements of the four weeks include major themes like The Principal and Foundation to The Contemplation to Attaining the Love of God.
