Holy Week is Upon Us!
Dear Parish Family,
If you haven’t had a chance to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation this Lent, the final Penance Service in the area is on Tuesday at Queen of the Miraculous Medal Parish at 7:00 p.m. Here is a short rundown of the Easter Triduum:
- Holy Thursday: Mass of the Lord’s Supper at 7:00 p.m.
- Good Friday: Celebration of the Passion of the Lord at 12:30 p.m.
- Holy Saturday: Easter Vigil at 9:00 p.m.
- Easter Sunday: Normal Mass Schedule
Some Spiritual Advice for the Easter Triduum
I encourage you to really enter into these events of our Lord’s life that won for us our salvation. To better profit from these celebrations, enter into them with a spiritual state of mind. Let go of the notion of time and get lost in the meditation of these sacred mysteries.
Our media-driven culture has trained us to be entertained and expect eye-catching stimuli to which to react, but this unfortunately has made our imaginations very passive and diminished our capacity to focus on the profoundly sacred. The aim of the Liturgy is not entertainment, but divine encounter. Remember that when Elijah was waiting for God, he was not in the mighty wind, the earthquake, or the fire. He was heard in the silence of a low whisper.
Maybe this is why yoga has become so popular. It has answered the soul’s yearning to quiet oneself in a very noisy world filled with incessant distractions. But yoga is not a substitute for prayer. The quieting of one’s soul is not the end in itself. The goal of prayer is to connect with God.
And so, as you hear the Last Supper, the Lord’s Passion, and his Resurrection recounted this Holy Week, channel your inner “monk” or “nun” to discover that God speaks in the silence of our hearts. And do not let someone’s coughing or a baby’s crying distract you. Allow those sounds to ground you into the reality that God has chosen to truly dwell among us on this earth.
Jeromy Alexander
Jeromy has done so much for our parish. He installed our sound system that allows us to hear the proclamation of God’s word and sing his praises. He has coordinated many aspects of the liturgy, managed our technical equipment, and led the way with our online and social media presence. Though we will certainly miss his many skills and abilities as a staff member, I am very happy for Jeromy Alexander and the new direction he is taking.
Yours in Christ,
Fr. Chas