Dear Friends,
There is no time like Lent to delve deeply into the merciful love of God. Since Ash Wednesday is just days away, we are launching our Lenten content this week so you can benefit from the beautiful offerings that have been prepared for you. The intro letter is a little longer this week to orient you to the Lenten content.
Our Lenten theme is the corporal works of mercy, which come to us through our Catholic tradition, are rooted in Scripture, and are listed in the Catechism of the Catholic Church (No. 2247). During the weeks of Lent and the Sacred Triduum, we’ll feature content related to these works of mercy in this order: shelter the homeless, feed the hungry, cloth the naked, give drink to the thirsty, visit the sick, bury the dead, and visit the imprisoned. Finally, early in his pontificate, Pope Francis added an eighth work of mercy — care for our common home.
In a beautiful way, each corporal work of mercy aligns with the Mass readings from one of the weeks of Lent. These works of mercy — ways of putting our Eucharistic faith and devotion into action — culminate in the experience of Holy Week and the Triduum. In light of this, each week you will receive: - A Eucharistic Testimony rooted in one of the corporal works of mercy;
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A short Reflection on a paragraph from Mystery of the Eucharist in the Life of the Church with a corresponding reflection question, action point and prayer;
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A new Eucharistic Prayer Companion corresponding with the Lenten Sunday Mass (or Ash Wednesday) readings and the week’s particular work of mercy.
I am so grateful to our writers and editors who have diligently worked, supported by trusting prayer, to make this content available for us! It is my hope that together we will be inspired and challenged, truly growing in faith, hope and charity this Lent as we journey with Jesus.
All that being said, for Ash Wednesday I chose to focus on “shelter the homeless.” It seemed fitting, since each Lent is a new opportunity for us to recognize that all of life is a journey toward our eternal home. The measure in which we offer shelter to our brothers and sisters in need directly connects to the measure in which we’ll be ready to enter our heavenly home! What better time than Lent to evaluate where we are along the road to Heaven, seek forgiveness where necessary, and recommit to this heavenly pilgrimage.
May Mary, under the title of Our Lady of Guadalupe, intercede for us, that we may travel well and together as the Body of Christ, united in the Eucharist, this Lenten season! |
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INSPIRED BY THE EUCHARIST |
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Throughout her life, Annmarie Zullo has been captivated by the quest for home. She’s experienced the loving mercy of God, who’s always provided for her. Today she shares her testimony of God’s providence in her own life, and how she’s been able to share her blessings, alongside her parish community, by helping shelter a Ukrainian refugee family. Leer en español.
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In this week’s video, Archbishop Gustavo Garcilla-Siller, archbishop of San Antonio, recalls a moving experience during a celebration of Mass of ministering to children and their families suffering through the aftermath of the Uvalde school shooting. |
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Return of the prodigal son
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By Jem Sullivan, Ph.D.
"Return of the Prodigal Son," Bartolomé Esteban Murillo
Lent begins with the invitation of the prophet Joel, “Even now, says the LORD, return to me with your whole heart” (Joel 2:12). This Lenten invitation begs a question — what does it mean to return to the Lord?
Jesus gives a profound answer in the parable of the prodigal son that he tells the scribes and Pharisees who complained that he welcomed sinners and ate freely with them. The return of sinners to the loving embrace of God was the divine reason for Jesus’ mission. Jesus’ entire life revealed, in one way or another, the loving mercy of his heavenly Father.
The seventeenth century Spanish Baroque painter, Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, delivers an evocative visual homily to accompany our Lenten journeys through this familiar Gospel parable. In a simultaneous narrative, Murillo places in his masterpiece titled “The Return of the Prodigal Son” all the elements of the parable to inspire our Lenten return to the Lord with our whole heart, mind, and soul.
Reading the painting from left to right, we see on the left a young boy leading a calf with a man holding an ax. They will prepare a lavish family feast to celebrate the return of their long-lost son. On the right, a steward in bright yellow holds a tray with fine clothes, sandals, and a ring, symbols of the restored dignity of the prodigal son. In the outer right doorway, the older son looks intently at the scene with displeasure. He is blind to the in-breaking of divine grace that returned his younger brother to the family.
At the center of the composition, the prodigal son and his father are locked in a tender embrace evoking the heart of Christian faith — God is love! The son kneels before his father, his eyes raised in hope and his hands begging for mercy. His clothes are torn and tattered, and his feet are smeared with mud. He symbolizes humanity, separated from God in self-seeking sin and pride. The father stoops down to embrace his returning son with wrinkled hands, warmed by golden light, that convey his tender mercy and forgiveness as he rejoices saying, “this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.” Finally, jumping up to greet his returning master is the family pet, a little white dog, a symbol of fidelity and devotion.
Jesus continues to eat and drink with sinners. We who are sinners begin each Eucharist by acknowledging our sinfulness. Asking the prayers of Mary, Mother of God, the angels and the saints, and our brothers and sisters we pray, “I confess to Almighty God. ...” Then we beg humbly for God’s forgiveness as we pray, “Lord, have mercy, Christ, have mercy, Lord, have mercy.” Each time we pray these words we are welcomed back to the table of the Lord with the tender embrace of a loving father, who rejoices to see his children return to new life again.
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Do This in Remembrance of Me: A Step-by-Step Walk through the Mass — Taking a closer look at the Liturgy of the Word in this week’s column, Father Luke invites us to see and hear how God comes lovingly to meet us and speak to us in Sacred Scripture. Read now. Leer en español.
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Recently both Father Craig Vasek and Sister Alicia were guests on different episodes of the “Made for Love” podcast, hosted by Andrew Buonopane from the Secretariat of Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth at the USCCB. Father Craig focuses on Revival growth across the country and Sister Alicia shares about the connection between her vocation, the Eucharist and the Eucharistic Revival. Enjoy listening today!
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“The person who shares worthily in the Eucharist is enabled more and more to live the new law of love given by Christ precisely because Christ communicates himself in the sacrament of the altar.” |
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FOLLOW ALONG WITH THE REVIVAL |
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