Saint Mary of the Immaculate Conception Roman Catholic Church

Dear Good People of Saint Mary,

Snow days are a disaster! I hear from teachers at  Holy Cross and other area schools, the kids are all mixed up. Days on, days off, no rhythm or rhyme to the process. Class work is disjointed, not following easily from day to day. As much as some of us might not like to admit it, we are people of routine. If we fall out of the habit it is hard to get back on track.

Masses here at church have been the same. Broadcast threats of storms that never quite materialized kept a lot people home, preferring not to go out and take a chance. One weekend attendance was less than half the normal attendance and the weather never really materialized, the roads were clear, it was our doorsteps or driveways that were slick. On the other hand, on another weekend we did have a lot of weather.

There is a truism that goes like this: “It is not wise to do something foolish.” But sometimes it is foolish to be so controlled by others, particularly media who sell a lot of advertising if they can prove that a lot of people tune into their scary weather predictions. It has reached the level of foolishness, I think, how we have lost our nerve, or our courage to try. One lady told me she stayed home last weekend because she heard on  the radio that there were icy patches, only realizing later that they were talking about the mountains in West Virginia.

It is also hard on a parish when Masses are not even near half-full. And I’m not talking financially (though these weekends do represent a huge hit). I’m talking about the momentum we have built  spiritually, gathering for prayer, building ourselves up as a community, growing in our penance and special practices as a parish family, praying together. It seems that, out of the forty days of Lent, we’ve already had a lot of holidays. Two of the first three Sundays of Lent were very light. People stayed home from Forty Hours and our parish mission. What may have been progress early on in the season of Lent may stalled: what can be done?

Like kids in  school, we are easily distracted and it takes a lot of energy to get back on track, but we still have a couple of weeks left: take the time you need to save Lent, if you need to. When I need to pay closer attention to work that isn’t getting done, I rely on a daily list. (People harass me for the way I use lists all the time; I have lists of lists.) But sometimes the physical action of writing it down will help to assure that it gets done.

Add prayer to your Outlook calendar. Ask your wife or husband or kids to help you to get it done. Express a priority for these things with those you love and ask them to complete them with you. Mass, and prayer, service, almsgiving for the poor, fasting, little sacrifices here and there—these are all things that we can do with one another to strengthen our resolve and improve our focus, and refocus. They will help us to be prepared for that moment when we recommit ourselves to the promises of baptism that we made years ago, or were made for us, that we must own again at Easter to move forward.

Here is a quick list of some ideas, they are called the spiritual and corporal works of mercy. Our confirmation candidates should be well aware of these by now. Here’s a checklist—mark all the ones you can realistically complete before Holy Week and check your progress before you go to bed at night. You might be surprised how natural these are to who you are!

Spiritual Works of Mercy                                                                 Corporal Works of Mercy

¤ To instruct the ignorant.                                                               ¤ To feed the hungry.

¤ To counsel the doubtful.                                                               ¤ To give drink to the thirsty.

¤ To admonish sinners.                                                                    ¤ To clothe the naked.

¤ To bear wrongs patiently.                                                             ¤ To shelter the homeless.

¤ To forgive offences willingly.                                                        ¤ To visit the sick.

¤ To comfort the afflicted.                                                                ¤ To visit the imprisoned.

¤ To pray for the living and the dead.                                            ¤ To bury the dead.

All seven of the first group are possible, practically on a moment-to-moment basis of our daily life. The second group requires some preparation and homework. Still, all of these are close to home and our parish does these things everyday. Maybe you could get involved in any number of ways that allow us to complete these commands.

God bless you.

Dear Good People of Saint Mary,

I have a Lent assignment for all of you this week. In the spirit of the new evangelization, consider reaching out to someone in your life who has grown indifferent or even disillusioned with the Catholic faith that they received. Maybe it is a spouse, or a child—or a parent, it happens. Give them a copy of this letter, if it is easier than distilling it into your own words, though that personal witness is always most effective if it comes from your heart and not through an email.

Last week we were challenged with the image of Jesus, transfigured, bright as the sun, a glimpse of God in his glory. Each of us is asked to consider that this same light is within each of us by baptism, whether we realize it or not. We can cover it up, but we can’t put it out. We live in a world where we always pray for more, and more, and more. All these things that we want. But when compared to this light within—well, everything is only a shadow. The fact is, we just don’t think about it enough to realize that we have already received everything. Already. If you have received everything, all that’s left is thanksgiving, which in Greek, is the basis of the word eucharist.

So we already have it all. Through the sunglasses of the world that dim the light, we can be convinced that we are all still so needy. Even when it comes to liturgy. This is to all of you who have left the church because “I just don’t get anything out of it:” Liturgy isn’t about getting, any more. It is about giving, we who have already received everything through the Last Supper and the Cross, Baptism and the new Pentecost of Confirmation. So here is a story that I’ve been reflecting on a lot lately.

At one time in my life, I found myself in Florence for a week. Florence is one of those cities that isn’t highest on many peoples’ list because it is exhausting. You run from one thing to another to see it all, you can never see it all. But I had been there a couple of times before, and this time had the luxury of leisure, and my goal was to discover one thing new each day. It was a Sunday, and I decided to try out a smaller church—not the big tourist experience of the cathedral choir where nobody sings, but a real neighborhood parish church in an old, poorer part of town. I was attracted to this beautiful church because I had walked into it one day and there was a shaft of light that struck the crucifix hanging over the altar in a way that I had never seen before. It stayed with me.

Mass was pretty normal. A not-so-great duo of guitar players strumming out some strange Italian folk song (?) that everybody seemed to know. Here, the congregation sang like crazy. It was a monastic church, I realized, since there were a dozen priests from the community concelebrating in white hooded habits. That shaft of light was back, this time splashing right onto the top of the altar as we prepared to celebrate Jesus’ sacrifice.

I also noticed that there were these huge woven baskets placed across the front of the sanctuary filled with rolls. The church, in fact, smelled like a bakery—that kind of hard, rustic bread that you can only find in Italy—my liturgy police siren went off. Should I leave? What if they consecrate regular bread against the rules? Maybe I should go. But the light on the altar kept me there.

Mass proceeded like normal. Couldn’t understand a word of the homily and loved every minute of it anyway. The light on the altar was so beautiful. The guitar duo persevered, people sang, we received Communion according to the rules. Then a most interesting thing happened. It was as though I suddenly heard the words in my own language (of course, I can understand Spanish which isn’t that much different): “So you must let your light shine among others.”

Before the final blessing the monks gathered around the baskets of that amazing bread as the presider, with holy water, blessed the rolls. The monks carried the baskets to the doors of the church. It was so bright outside, it seemed, looking out from the darker interior. As we left, the monks handed a roll to everyone who had been at Mass. One of them gave me a roll (my mouth was watering) and said, “Now, give to the hungry what you have received.

”I have never experienced a more perfect catechism of what the Mass is about. How beautiful is the plan to which Jesus has called us, it must have a lot of love behind it to have entrusted us with so much, just with the hope that we will realize it and respond with the same kind of love. Let’s not presume for more, let’s be thankful.

God bless you.