The Value of Penance

March 9, 2025By

1st Sunday of Lent 2025
We must imitate the example of Our Lord in the face of temptation.  When we are afflicted by evil thoughts we should turn to the powerful defense of Sacred Scripture.  Christ’s victory over the devil in this Gospel foreshadows His ultimate victory on the Cross.  Unless we do penance, we will surely perish.  We should have a thorough understanding of what the word “penance” means.  Lent is a time of joy, when we shake off sin and prepare for Heaven.  This season presents to us God’s mercy and gives us the opportunity to obtain a peaceful conscience.  God in His justice is bound by His very nature to punish sin, but when we punish ourselves with works of penance, even our smallest acts have great value, if they come from the heart.  There are many such acts that every Catholic should know and put into practice during this season.
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The Beginning of Our Sanctification

March 5, 2025By

Ash Wednesday Evening 2025
The sacramental of ashes is meant to be for us a memento mori – a reminder of our mortality.  We have the testimonies of St. Justin Martyr and St. Irenaeus, from the earliest centuries after Our Lord, which speak of the ancient practices of Lent and the use of blessed ashes, as well as the numerous examples of ashes being used by penitents in the Old Testament.  On this day, we stand at the border of our sanctification, and if we take advantage of the days ahead, we could be true saints by the end of this season.  There is no more difficult conflict than the battle to overcome oneself, so we must use the tools available to us in order to win our victory.  The practice of mental prayer, spiritual reading, and almsgiving are the great tools which Holy Mother Church instructs us to use during the season.
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We Are The Enemy

March 5, 2025By

Ash Wednesday 2025
We are beginning the most sacred and ancient season of the liturgical year.  This season is particularly for the catechumens who are learning the Faith, and the public penitents who desired to be reunited with Our Lord.  The public penitents were sprinkled with ashes to remind them that they are dust and unto dust they shall return.  It was by the popular demand of the rest of the faithful that the sacramental of ashes was shared with all of us.  We are all sinners, and we unite with those public penitents in making up for our sins.  We have been shown the consequences of sin, we know our predominant fault, and we are ready for battle against self.  Everything we do during these days must be from the heart and caused by charity.  Today many “recall” Lent but do not live it.  The reminder of death we receive in the ashes gives us an increase of life.  We should remain joyful in our penance because through it we are becoming saints.
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Trade Nothing and Gain All

March 2, 2025By

Quinquagesima Sunday 2025
In today’s Epistle, St. Paul teaches us about the greatest of the theological virtues.  In Heaven there is no need for faith nor hope, but charity will last for all eternity.  We are told by the Church Fathers that the blindness of the man in this Gospel represents our own blindness, and we too should cry out today for Christ’s help.  The work we put into any effort in life, apart from that which aids in the salvation of our souls, will eventually be taken away from us.  The saints realized that they could trade those things that have no value here on Earth to gain everything for all eternity.  Not only the one who desires riches, but also those who work tirelessly just to survive, must not lose perspective.  We should never care for sustaining our temporal lives so much that we risk losing our eternal life.  Today we come to the end of this season of examination of conscience.  We ask that God open our eyes and give us true sight, so that in seeing God we may love Him, and in seeing ourselves we may cease to love ourselves.
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We Must Be The Fertile Ground

February 23, 2025By

Sexagesima Sunday 2025
The season of Septuagesima is a very ancient season of the liturgical year.  The color violet reminds us to examine our consciences and reflect on our lives.  In this season, the Divine Office calls to mind the history of man’s creation and fall, and the Gospel last week instructed us that it is never too late to labor for Christ and gain Heaven.

In today’s Epistle, St. Paul gives his credentials to the gentiles to convince them of his authority as a true minister of Christ, yet all he accomplished was made possible only by the grace of God.  In the Gospel of St. Luke, Our Lord tells us to possess a good heart so that the word of God might bear fruit in our souls.
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Our Promised Land

March 30, 2024By

Easter Vigil 2024
Our time of training as catechumens and penitents is almost over.  We begin this ceremony in the darkness of the tomb where the light of Christ will be restored.  Without the Resurrection, our faith is in vain.  This light is carried by the clergy and the people and is meant to be spread throughout the whole world.  The deacon represents St. Mary Magdalene while he proclaims the joy of the Resurrection.  By God’s grace we may be restored to our baptismal innocence and be worthy to enter the true Promised Land of Heaven.
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We Must Be Changed

March 29, 2024By

Good Friday 2024
We do not have the Mass today because even though the Mass is the re-presentation of Our Lord’s death, it is also the reminder of His Resurrection.  The Church avoids even the slightest hint of joy on this day.  An infinite offense was offered to God and only an Infinite Being could make up for it.  Why did Christ do this?  So that we would appreciate the evil of sin, and the great love of God.  We prostrate under the weight of our sins at the beginning of this ceremony, and we recite the solemn prayers in union with Christ on the Cross.  We must pray that today we remove all the obstacles we have placed in the way of God’s grace.
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The Prerequisite of Charity

March 28, 2024By

Holy Thursday 2024
These are the most sacred days of the liturgical year, because they make present the very act of our Redemption.  The Holy Oils, from the Mass of the Chrism, receive their efficacy from the Holy Eucharist.  Today is the birthday of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, which was offered in anticipation of Christ’s death on the Cross the following day.  A gift of Faith is required to believe the dogma of the Holy Eucharist.  The Holy Oils made this morning are prepared to sanctify us.  The exorcisms performed over these oils drive away the influence of the devil from the oils themselves and from all whom they will anoint.
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The Bravery of the Saints

March 17, 2024By

Passion Sunday 2024
Saint Patrick stood for the true God against the pagans in Ireland.  He threw down the idols of the druids and established the Catholic Church in what is now known as the Island of Saints.  Saint Cyril of Jerusalem fought against the Arian heresy and was persecuted for it.  His bravery and steadfastness in defending the Faith are examples we must follow.  Saint Benedict saw the corruption in Rome during his time and left to become a hermit.  He started his famous Benedictine Order, which has produced thousands of saints.  If we pray with confidence and humility, we have nothing to fear. We must stand courageously beside the saints in defense of God.
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We Witness the Miraculous

March 10, 2024By

Laetare Sunday 2024
We celebrate the midpoint of the season of Lent by looking forward to the glory to come.  The way we pray is the way we believe, which is why Catholic worship has been so attacked by the enemy.  A golden rose would be blessed and anointed on this day by the pope and presented to a favored Catholic monarch.  Our mother on Earth is the Holy Catholic Church, who leads us to the heavenly Jerusalem.  The Gospel text is the great impetus for joy at this Mass.  We know that even when God tests us our future is secure if we pray.  Catholics are surrounded by the miraculous, and we must never allow ourselves to take it for granted.
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