Dear Brothers and Sisters,

"I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" She said to him, "Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the one who is coming into the world."

This passage from the 11th chapter of the Gospel of St. John is from the 5th Sunday of Lent. As we began this year 2020, St. Bernadette and St. John XXIII were making plenty of plans. In the parish, we were anticipating the parish beautification project. Our various ministries were in full swing. Church attendance was increasing, Bible study groups were meeting, children were attending school, parish life was vibrant, and life seemed good. And then … the coronavirus happened seemingly overnight.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Would God allow the COVID-19 virus to upend our lives? As I write this column on Tuesday morning, I should be hearing confessions and preparing to offer morning Mass which surely would be a good thing according to God, right? Instead I sit in my office trying to make sense of things.

It would be great if I could come up with a thoughtful response that would put things in perspective for people. But I have come to realize that the cross is not so easily and swiftly explained and managed. Jesus' walk to Calvary that we reflect upon during lent, was just that, a walk… a process… that was not understood until Easter Sunday.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

I want to give you an update on our Charity and Development Appeal and the Together Let Us Go Forth Campaign.

First, the Charity and Development Appeal. Throughout our diocese, Catholics are being invited to participate in the holy work of transforming people's lives and people's circumstances through this Annual Diocesan Appeal. As of today, 84 generous donors have contributed for a total of nearly $ 45,428 towards our goal of $105,000.00.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

The foundational call of Christians to charity is a frequent theme of the Gospels. During Lent, we are asked to focus more intently on "almsgiving," which means donating money or goods to the poor and performing other acts of charity. As one of the three pillars of Lenten practice, almsgiving is "a witness to fraternal charity" and "a work of justice pleasing to God." (Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 2462).

Our Lord gives us three essential occasions for spiritual growth during the Lenten Season--prayer, fasting and almsgiving. I have already addressed the importance of prayer and fasting in previous bulletins. Today I want to focus on the third of the three pillars: Almsgiving.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

I want to address the practical notion of how we are called to make use of the Communion rail. Currently, the people of God approach the priest, deacon or extraordinary minister of Holy Communion to receive Our Lord. The problem is that once someone receives Holy Communion, the person is forced to make way for the person coming up next in line. The danger is that this way of encountering Our Lord in this intimate moment can be lost because the person may feel hurried, if not obligated, to move along so the next person in line can step up to receive Holy Communion. The feeling that you have to "move along" or "make way" for the next person in line can be problematic for several reasons. A feeling of being rushed may cause a person who is receiving Holy Communion to miss out on a chance to express a proper devotion to Our Lord. A person may rush by the décor, i.e., the nativity scene, flowers, the candles, the vestments, the statues located in the sanctuary. There is also the danger that Holy Communion becomes too individualistic and people forget the communal part of Holy Communion.