“A Lent with All My Heart”. By Fr. Anthony Davis So, we begin another season of Lent, which is primarily the time of intense spiritual preparation for conquering our temptations, using the means Jesus used during his forty days of preparation in the desert for his public life. It is also the time for repenting of our sins and renewing our lives for the celebration of Easter with our Risen Lord who conquered sin and death by his suffering, death and Resurrection. Those of you who are as old as I am will remember Lent as a more severe season than it seems to be today. The fasting required was more challenging: adults had to fast every day of Lent and fasting included two meatless meals out of the three, with, of course, nothing between meals, and no meat at all on Fridays. Ash Wednesday and Good Friday demanded full abstinence from meat as well as fasting. So, Abstinence from meat was an everyday Lenten thing, not just an Ash Wednesday/all Lenten Fridays practice. We ate a lot of macaroni and cheese in those days! We made personal sacrifices, giving up smoking, candy, alcohol, or something else that we really liked. And generally, we practiced self-denial on Sundays as well as on weekdays. We went to Church a lot more, whether to daily Mass, or Stations of the Cross, or for prayer. HOWEVER, many feel that Lent today is much easier. Encouragement is given to do positive things during Lent,so many don’t give up much anymore. Most people don’t find their life during Lent much different from their life in any other season. Following the Second Vatican Council, the Church decided to take a risk and treat us as adults. While they removed many of the previous rules, they challenged us to observe the season of Lent with all seriousness, to take responsibility for our own spiritual growth. -- That is a lot harder than just following rules, but it also bears the potential of really making Lent a time to change our lives and truly become more Christlike. Life Message: It is in this spirit of Lent, that I suggest what I call, “Give Up”: GIVE UP grumbling! Instead, "In everything give thanks." Constructive criticism is OK, but "moaning, groaning, and complaining" are not Christian disciplines. GIVE UP 10 to 15 minutes in bed! Instead, use that time in prayer, Bible study and personal devotion. GIVE UP looking at other people's worst points! Instead concentrate on their best points. We all have faults. It is a lot easier to have people overlook our shortcomings when we overlook theirs first. GIVE UP speaking unkindly! Instead, let your speech be generous and understanding. It costs so little to say something kind and uplifting. Why not check that sharp tongue at the door? GIVE UP your hatred of anyone or anything! Instead, learn the discipline of love. "Love covers a multitude of sins." GIVE UP your worries and anxieties! Instead, trust God with them. Anxiety is spending emotional energy on something we can do nothing about: like tomorrow! Live today and let God's grace be sufficient. Conclusion: I want to begin Lent this year, using Ignatius' naming of a grace I desire: "Lord, lead me to the fullness of your grace." I want to ask that I might be more intent on prayer and works of charity. And, I want to experience, through the readings and the liturgies each week during Lent, that I'm really reliving the mysteries of my rebirth and salvation. “…become reconciled to God. Behold now isthe acceptable time…” (2Cor.6:2). Welcome to Lent!

Catholic Home Missions Support the Catholic Home Missions Appeal today! Nearly 40% of dioceses in the United States and its territories are considered mission territories because they are unable to fund essential pastoral activities needed in their communities. Your support funds religious education, seminary formation, lay ministry training, and other programs that build vibrant faith communities right here in the United States. Donation envelopes can be found in your pews. Thank you for your generosity.

Who do you have breakfast with? By ValerieWinston Healy I sat down for breakfast the other morning and while it was a typical start to my day, it did not turn out to be a typical breakfast time for me. Way more people arrived than I’m used to. Any given morning, I will get up, stop in my office to grab my prayer book, and walk to the kitchen. I place my prayer book on the table, put the kettle on for tea and pop a slice of bread into the toaster. While all that “cooks”, I will empty the dishwasher and put the dishes away. As I complete my first morning chore, the toaster beeps to let me know that my toast is ready and the kettle begins to whistle, letting me know the water is hot. That morning, I decided to have some jam on my toast. All is ready and I moved from the island to the table to sit and enjoy my quiet prayer time with tea and toast and jam. Sitting at the table, I looked down at my breakfast and realized nothing on the table had been purchased or made by me. All had been given as gifts. The toast was from a homemade loaf of bread, given by a parishioner who wanted to thank me for my ministry. The jam had been given by a dear friend for my Birthday to sweeten my mornings and bring a smile to my face. The tea was a present from my husband who knows that I believe “tea fixes everything”. My prayer book too, from Stephen given soon after we were married. I looked past my meal and prayer book to the plate I was using to hold my toast, and the knife I used, to spread my jam. Even those were gifts. Gifts given to Stephen and me when we got married, given from my mom and dad. The ‘remembering’ I was experiencing at that moment, reminded me of the Hebrew belief of remembering. When one remembers, the remembering recalls the person or persons being remembered to be present in some way at that moment. It’s like the words in our Eucharistic prayer, “do this in remembrance of me”, where Jesus become truly present to us at that moment. My gosh, suddenly, my breakfast table was crowed. The parishioner who gifted me with bread, my dear friend who gave me jam, my Stephen, my mom and dad. We were all present for that moment (and I was still in my jammies). It's moments like this that overwhelm me. I’m so privileged. I’m so grateful for all the people God has placed in my life. How loving, how generous they are and have been. How their presence has shown me God, has shown me love. What a wonderful way to start one’s day, even if the table becomes crowded. So, I ask you, who did you have breakfast with this morning? I’m hoping your table was crowded.

7th.Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A) Feb.19, 2023. Lev. 19:1-2, 17-18; I Cor 3:16-23; Mt 5:38-48. “Be holy, for I, the Lord, your God, am Holy.” “Be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Introduction: Today’s readings explain the basis of Jewish and Christian morality: the Holiness of the loving, merciful and compassionate One God. God’s chosen people were, and are, expected to be holy people sharing in God’s Holiness by embodying His love, mercy and forgiveness. Scripture readings summarized: The 1st reading, (Leviticus), gives the Holiness code: “Be holy, for I, the Lord, your God, am Holy.” It also gives us the way to share God’s holiness: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” The Resp. Psalm (Ps 103) challenges us to be like our God – kind, merciful and forgiving -- and it shows us the measure of perfection Christ asks us to bring to our relationships. In the 2nd reading, St. Paul gives us an additional reason to be holy. We are to keep our bodies holy because we are the temples of the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit lives in us. In the Gospel passage, Jesus confirms, corrects, and expands the Ten Commandments. Here, Jesus condemns even the mild form of the “Law of the Talion, (Lex Talionis),” the Babylonian tribal law of restricted retaliation which Moses passed on to Israel. In its place, Jesus gives his new law of love, grace, forgiveness, reconciliation, and no retaliation. Life Message: For Jesus, retaliation, or even limited vengeance, has no place in the Christian life, even though graceful acceptance of an offense requires great strength and discipline of character, as well as strengthening by God’s grace. The second part of today’s Gospel passage presents the Christian ethic of personal relationships: love one’s neighbors and forgive one’s enemies. It tells us that what makes Christians different is the grace through which they treat others with loving kindness and mercy, even if they don’t deserve it. In other words, we are commanded to love our enemies as Jesus loves us, with agápe love, not because our enemies deserve our love, but because Jesus loves them so much that he died for them as he did for us. Conclusion: In short, we are to mirror God’s attributes in the world. As God loves and welcomes, so too humans are called to love and welcome, even to “be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Perfection is not as humankind usually views it-an unattainable, inhuman kind of spotlessness. Rather Jesus speaks of moral and relation goodness, whereby, we bring God’s agape love into the world, through our interactions, particularly, with those who experience marginalization. Folks, our moral duty is to stand in solidarity with one another! Thus, while we may want to mirror God’s love through big, heroic, loving acts, at the end of the day, it is the smaller, simpler, daily interactions that reveal who we truly are as Christian disciples. Therefore, sent firth by Christ Jesus to live the way of love, let’s challenge one another to actively commit to the mission of Christ. “Be holy, for I, the Lord, your God, am Holy.” And “Be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

A Reflection on My Faith - By Kathryn Baker I was born Catholic, baptized as an infant and raised in a Catholic family. I followed through the sacraments at the traditional pace and attended mass regularly with my family. While I always had a strong relationship with my faith, my connection with God grew exponentially when I became pregnant with my first child. As a young girl, I dreamed of becoming a mother and a wife. I am truly blessed with an angel for a mother, and one of my aspirations was to be just like her. When I was blessed with my first pregnancy, I knew immediately, like most mothers, that this was my most precious responsibility. Becoming a mother was the turning point for me in my faith. I was so grateful for this cherished gift that I turned my gratitude toward God. I began praying more and connecting more with God’s word. It was almost as if a line of communication opened wide and I could feel God with me. Like most new mother’s I was naïve to all the complications that can affect a pregnancy. I was blissfully unaware until I was not. After a slight scare I met with my doctor to check on my baby for reassurance. My heart was wrought with fear when the nurse was unable to find my baby’s heart beat on the doppler. Alone in the exam room,waiting for the doctor, I turned to the Lord. I was so grateful for my baby and couldn’t wait to start a family with my husband, but was it all going to disappear? While my heart sank, I told God that I trusted in Him, that I knew He had a plan for me and our baby, and I completely surrendered myself to the Lord. In that moment I was terrified, but I knew I would be able to overcome what ever befell my family. The doctor was able to come in and my concerns were quickly relieved when she found my baby’s heartbeat loud and clear. Without prayer would I have been able to find peace in that moment of chaos? Talking to God helped me calm my typical overwhelming anxiety. My very good friend once told me that "the Lord will not give us anything we can’t handle." I often reflect on this statement when my anxiety gets the better of me. Many ups and downs have occurred since my pregnancy 14 years ago with my first daughter. Our family has lost loved ones, we have endured medical emergencies and stressful moments that have challenged my anxiety; but I know that with the help of God my family has pulled through even stronger than before. I know with God and prayer my family and I can overcome whatever may come our way, and when we are met with glorious achievements we can celebrate with the Lord and show him our gratitude together.

6th.Sunday in Ordinary Time. Year A. (Feb. 12, 2023): Sir 15:15-20, I Cor 2:6-10, Mt 5:17-37. “…If you chose you can keep the commandments…”, say the Lord. Today’s readings challenge us to choose freely and wisely to observe the laws given by a loving and caring God. Ask a group of high school students for their definition or understanding of obedience, and you will be greeted with lots of complaints and grumblings. Youth/children of this age, often feel like their loves are spent doing nothing, but obeying their parents, teachers, and older siblings. Being obedient to God/the Church, is one more requirement in their apparent rigid experience of life. Hence, to them, obedience is usually a list of rules-“DO’S AND DON’T’S”- that govern their every action. Perhaps even as adults this is our experience of work life or of religion, and right relationship with God. And as a result, many ardent and faithful Catholics have left the Catholic Church. In today’s gospel, however, Jesus smashes these expectations, and connotations, and sets the record straight. While the fear of being condemned to hell has motivated many Catholics to follow the Ten Commandments, and other pieces of the Catechism, the Church has slowly but surely, moved past fear and power-driven motivators, in favor of a focus on healthy relationships with oneself, the Community, Creation, and ultimately, God. LIFE MESSAGE: Q= What would our faith look like if our focus was truly on the motivation BEHIND, the rules and regulations, rather than the LAW, itself? To be clear, Jesus does not imagine a superhuman life without any emotion or temptation; instead, he describes how his disciples are called to defuse anger and pursue reconciliation in our broken relationships. Scripture Scholar, Barbara Reid writes: “Killing another person, is the epitome of broken relationships”. Thus when a relationship is beyond repair, broken rather than damaged, our anger is prone to be out of control and therefore damaging-not just to our neighbor, but to ourselves, God, and the entire body of Christ, to which we belong. Consider both the private and public spaces, in which anger is typically expressed! Whether expressed in a rant or text to a friend, or a post on social/print media, anger is both a symptom and a root cause of damaged relationships, psychologically, emotionally, and spiritually. Hence today, Christ challenges his followers to exercise detachment and healthy boundaries, so that emotions do not control us, and cause more harm in our lives. In short, if our anger or lust comes about and overwhelms us, that is a sign to examine our relationships and motivations. This means, obedience is not simply following a list of rules out of obligation; it springs forth from love, trust, and faithful relationship with another. Conclusion: Through Sirach, the Lord says: “If you choose you can keep the commandments. If you trust in God, you shall live. To whichever you choose, FIRE OR WATER, stretch forth your hand! God’s grace enables us to ‘observe’ his law and keep it with all your heart.” This means, we stretch forth our hands to the Fire of the Holy Spirit, and to the Water of our baptism, letting our “YES” mean “YES”, and “NO” mean “NO”. Eventually, those whose refuse to let lust master them; who are quick to reconcile with their brother or sister; and who teach and obey the Commandments, will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. This, for Jesus, is the “RIGHTEOUSNESS” that surpasses that of the Pharisees!

February 18th 6 pm in the Parish Hall Live Music & Dinner Tickets will go on sale: January 21st and 22nd January 28th and 29th

Sunday January 29th Come join the Knights of Columbus for good food and fellowship after both of the morning masses. We will have ham eggs, fruit and of course Basha's famous pancakes! Don't miss out on the good meal and helping us support our worthy charities which included improvement to St. Barbara Church, coats for kids, sponsoring our seminarian and our scholarship fund. See you there.

Donuts and Fellowship Please join us in the Parish Hall for donuts, coffee and fellowship following the 8 a.m. & 10 a.m. masses on January 22nd.

We Remember Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI I loved Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. He is the only Pope that I had ever wanted to see in person. He amazed me. Here was a man who had been at most, if not all the sessions of Vatican Council II. He had been instrumental in helping to write most of the major documents from the Council. He was the impetus behind the Catechism of the Catholic Church. What an amazing man, what an amazing life. His writings lead me on a journey of knowing more about my Catholic Faith, about the writings of people like Augustine, Bonaventure, and Little Teresa. More important than anything, he taught me that having a relationship with Jesus was the point to life. Let me share with you three of Benedicts quotes that have given me direction over the years. . . Maybe Benedict can help you on your journey. Give him a try. “God is no longer just in heaven…he is now also the One who is near us, who has become identified with us, who touches us and is touched by us, the One whom we can receive and who will receive us.” (God and the World.) “The purpose of our lives is to reveal God to men. And only where God is seen does life truly begin. Only when we meet the living God in Christ do we know what life is. We are not some casual and meaningless product of evolution. Each of us is the result of a thought of God. Each of us is willed, each of us is loved, each of us is necessary.” (Let God’s Light Shine Forth) “Being Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person (Jesus Christ), which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction.” (Encyclical Letter ‘Deus Caritas Est’—God is Love) - Valerie Winston Healy A Prayer for Pope Benedict XVI O God, true shepherd of all the faithful, look with kindness on your servant Pope Benedict XVI, whom you set as head and shepherd of your Church. We give you thanks for your grace at work in him as he has led us by word and example: in his teaching, in his prayer, and in his great love. Grant him your strength in frailty, comfort in sorrow, and serenity amid the trials of this world; and guide your Church, built on the rock of Peter, with the power of your Spirit as we continue on the path that leads to you. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

If you are an experienced painter and available to help update our hall Jan 5th & 6th 9 am to 5 pm, please contact Zack Midles at zmidles@gmail.com You can come for all or part of the day, time slots available. Lunch will be provided.

January 14th 6:00 p.m. in the Parish Hall You are invited to a Parish Spaghetti feed hosted by the Knights of Columbus. Please bring a dessert to share if you are able.