Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ Jesus,

On this First Sunday of Lent, Mark the Evangelist invites our attention to the desert, beasts, Satan, Angels etc. We must understand that Mark wrote his Gospel for the persecuted Christians in Rome, who lived in constant fear of being thrown to the wild beasts in the arena. By narrating the triumphant emergence of Jesus from the temptations in the wilderness, Mark is encouraging the Christians in Rome not to lose heart in the face of persecutions. Like Jesus they too will come out victoriously from the wilderness of persecutions, to proclaim the Good News of salvation.

Lent is a time to journey with our Lord and to experience him more closely. Fasting, prayer and almsgiving are our traditional practices during the Lenten season. We must come out of our own wildernesses of temptation, addiction, selfishness etc through the practice of piety.

I am extremely delighted to see hundreds of bags of food placed in front of the altar as part of our Lenten Food Drive. This is one of the clearest expressions of Lenten observance. Lent is not simply brooding over our past failures and mistakes but is a time to come closer to the Lord through the works of mercy. We should extend the fruits of our little Lenten sacrifices to the needy brothers and sisters around us. In this respect this food drive is a big success and I would like to thank all of you for your generosity. The Lenten giving plan sheet of CNEWA (A Papal Agency for humanitarian and pastoral support) says that if you give up a pack of cigarettes everyday…your gift of $200 can be used to provide special equipment for a disabled child in Lebanon. So why don’t we celebrate this Lenten Season in a meaningful way?

God bless,
Fr. James Raphel CMF
Pastor