Un-Quiet Word for Today
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un-quiet word for today, march 14th, 2021
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Let my tongue be silenced, if ever I forget you!
Psalms 137: 1-6
TO LOVE IS TO GIVE
When was the last time you were the recipient of kindness or mercy? - that kind of mercy, kindness or love that is totally undeserved or that you felt so ‘unworthy’ of? A kind of mercy that unexpectedly, ‘saved’ you? Such undeserved mercy or kindness is always never forgotten.
It is a kind of mercy that a prisoner for example on death row – whose life is pretty much ended, experiences when out of the blue, without any effort of their own, he or she is set free. It is a kind of mercy/love that is longed for by an exile who longs to go back to his or her homeland and refuses to let go anything that reminds them of home, even in the most trying of situations. This kindness or mercy is expressed in today’s responsorial Psalm of lament.
A kindness or mercy that does not look at one’s sinfulness or wrongs; a mercy that disregards the choke of one’s past for example that experienced the son in the parable of the Prodigal Son.
If anyone of us has experienced any of the above, then you have come close (still far away though...) to know what God’s love is like, and how God relates to us. His grace and mercy are total free gifts and undeserved. It changes the lives of all who believe and trust in him. God’s love is to give. He gives without counting the cost. Understanding God is always to see him in this light.
The First reading speaks to God’s kindness and mercy. The people of Israel are beyond repair because of the enormity of their sins. They do not listen to the messengers sent and this flares up God’s wrath and anger. Destruction befalls them and those who survive the destruction of Jerusalem are all taken captive to Babylon.
But even in God’s Anger, He leaves a window of Hope because God’s nature is not doom and destruction, but Life and Hope. God uses Cyrus the Persian king to offer a lifeline still for his people. They return home yet again and rebuild their nation, thanks to God’s undeserved kindness and mercy. It is this that saves them.
Do we see our lives as the consequence of God’s mercy and kindness to us? Or are we ‘entitled’? Do I see everything I am as a result of my own genius or merit/effort and do not see the greater force at work in my life or what others' effort have been to me? What defines gratefulness in my life?
The finest hour of God’s kindness and mercy is on the cross.
For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him might not perish
but might have eternal life. (John 3: 16)
To give away what one only has, is the type of father, God is to us. He gives the Son who is lifted up on the cross that others may benefit. (Not perish or be condemned) Who of us can do this? To let go without counting that cost? Without payback?
What is it that will heal the fractured world of today? What will we do to overcome hate and dislike? Divisions, indifference towards others? What will ‘save’ the world and remove the darkness of sin we perpetually experience?
The only way forward is put into practice this love (kindness and mercy) of God in our daily lives. It is to see myself as a recipient of God's kindness and mercy and that I need to reciprocate that mercy and kindness to others. It is this or the daily effort to put this in practice that brings hope to the world.
'To love is to give', that is and should be the motto of the Christian.
-Fr. Anthony
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readings of the mass
SELECT HERE for the Audio recording of the Readings of Sunday, March 14th, 2021, Fourth Sunday of Lent.
SELECT HERE for the Readings of Sunday, March 14th, 2021, Fourth Sunday of Lent.
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reflections
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celebrate the year of Saint Joseph
The Solemnity of Saint Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary is Friday, March 19th, 2021.
Pope Francis has proclaimed 2021 as the “Year of Saint Joseph” celebrate the 150th anniversary of the declaration of Saint Joseph as the Patron Saint of the Universal Church.
All are welcome to join us for Mass at 8:00AM on Friday March 19th. Following the Mass, we will have a special Eucharistic Adoration from 8:30AM to 12:00PM, reflecting on the “Year of Saint Joseph” .
40 HOURS OF EUCHARISTIC ADORATION
Friday, March 19thThe 10 parishes which consists of Our Lady of the Lake–Leominster, St. Francis–Fitchburg, St. Anthony of Padua–Fitchburg, St. Joseph's–Fitchburg, St. Leo's–Leominster, Holy Family–Leominster, St. Anna's–Leominster, St. Bernard/St. Camillus–Fitchburg, St. Cecilia's–Leominster and St. Boniface–Lunenburg will participate in 40 hours of Eucharistic Adoration in honor of the Solemnity of Saint Joseph.
Each parish will offer 4 hours of Eucharistic Adoration. We will pray as One Church.
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Season of Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, February 17th with Easter Sunday on April 4th
During Lent, we are asked to devote ourselves to seeking the Lord in prayer and reading Scripture, to service by giving alms, and to practice self-control through fasting. Many know of the tradition of abstaining from meat on Fridays during Lent, but we are also called to practice self-discipline and fast in other ways throughout the season. Contemplate the meaning and origins of the Lenten fasting tradition in this reflection. In addition, the giving of alms is one way to share God's gifts—not only through the distribution of money, but through the sharing of our time and talents.
-United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB)
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LEARN MORE about the Season of Lent.
READ HERE a special Lenten message from Bishop Robert McManus, the Bishop of the Diocese of Worcester.
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Palm Sunday is March 28th, 2021
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Palm Sunday is the final Sunday of Lent, the beginning of Holy Week, and commemorates the triumphant arrival of Christ in Jerusalem.
READ MORE about Palm Sunday.
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the mass: march 14th, 2021. fourth sunday of lent
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special guest celebrant fr. timothy brewer
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Live Catholic!
Bring your faith into your family, your school, your work and your play.
In this faith formation program, every week we share new information based on the present week's Sunday readings.
Read along as a family and learn how you can share and pass along your Catholic faith.
READ HERE the ideas for all different ages on how to live your Catholic faith in your daily life.
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"What are you looking for?", Christ asked of his disciples.
If you are new or have been away from the Church, we welcome and invite you to LEARN MORE about the faith that Jesus Christ founded.
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