Today we are in the middle of a paradox. On the one hand, we are filled with joy. As Jesus enters Jerusalem, throngs of people rejoice. The promised Savior has finally come! The Messiah is here! Redemption is at hand!

But then, on the other hand, we turn towards the sorrowful narrative of our Lord's rejection, suffering, and death - with his passion. Palm Sunday is also Passion Sunday. It is a solemn, silent moment.

How can a day of triumph be filled with both joy and sorrow? Because what seems to be Christ's defeat is actually his victory, the victory of everlasting love. "A man can have no greater love than to lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13).

That's what Jesus taught, and that's what he did in his passion, to prove beyond the shadow of a doubt that his love for us has no limits. The angels sang "Glory to God in the Highest" when Jesus was born in Bethlehem, and now the people sing, "Hosanna in the Highest" as Jesus enters Jerusalem.

Both entrances were motivated by God's love, the same love that led him to be obedient to the Father even to the point of death, so as to reverse the disobedience of Adam, pay the price of our sins, and rescue fallen mankind from hopelessness and injustice.

We have solved our paradox. The source of our sorrow is sin, our sins, the cause of Christ's suffering. But the source of our joy is Christ's love, the very reason Jesus was willing to suffer, and the very power that, through his sacrifice on the cross, conquers our sins.

And so Christians can always live inside the paradox of Palm Sunday, can always find joy, the joy of Christ's limitless love, even amidst the profoundest sorrows.

Bringing Christ's Victory to Others

During these days, the Holy Spirit wants to teach how to live this paradox more deeply. He will do so as we spend more time with Christ in personal prayer and come together for the special liturgies during the week.

If we live this week well, seven days from now we will know Christ's love for us better, and so we will be better able to experience true Christian joy, even in the midst of life's trials.

We should be grateful for the freedom we have in this country to celebrate Holy Week, a freedom not all Catholics enjoy, and we should also be grateful for our faith, that precious gift which is the key to living these days fruitfully.

But there are many people around us who do not have this faith. Each of us knows some of them: neighbors, colleagues, even family members. Maybe no one ever told them about Jesus Christ, the Messiah, the Redeemer. Maybe life's challenges made them fall into temptation, trading in their true Christian faith for some other, more fashionable world view.

Whatever the reason, the fact remains: they don't have palm branches in their hands today. They are not sharing in Christ's victory, not even a little bit. They are like the people in the Gospel who came up to the rejoicing crowds and asked, "Who is this? What's going on?"

Is there any better way for us to celebrate this holiest week of the year than by answering that question? By telling them who Jesus is and who he wants to be for them?

Pope John Paul II used to say that the best way to grow in our own faith was by giving it away to others. This week, strengthened by our celebration today, let's put that theory to the test. Christ's victory is too precious to keep to ourselves.

Today we begin the celebration of Holy Week. For many of us, this is known as Palm Sunday. But if we came here to Church only because of the palms, we are terribly mistaken. This celebration is not about the palms. This is all about the suffering and death of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. This is Passion Sunday. That is why the Gospel reading we heard is very long. It is the story of the Passion of our Lord.

The Celebration Palm Sunday Mass of the Passion of the Lord, the final Sunday of Lent and the start of Holy Week is the most solemn week on the Christian calendar. Palm Sunday Mass begins by recalling Jesus' entry in Jerusalem when palm branches were waved and cloaks placed at his feet. Christ's triumphant journey to the Mount of Olives. This week sees the climax of the mission of Jesus Christ in which the deepest meaning of his life is unfolded and in which his teaching becomes very real for us in his own words and actions -- his suffering, death, and resurrection. It begins in triumph; it descends into the suffering of death on Friday and rises with joy in the resurrection of Easter.

Ultimately, our liturgy turns our attention to the central event of Holy Week, one which has been at the center of our reflection and penance all during Lent. For us, as Christians, this is the ultimate event of Jesus' life. And, for that reason, that gives the further title to the celebration of today: Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord. The cross is the central event of the Passion. On the cross, Jesus is the Suffering Servant…the willing Servant, the One who gives himself on behalf of all humanity and in obedience to the will of the Father. That suffering won for all of us and all humanity the definitive victory over sin and hopelessness - a victory we declare and celebrate with these palm branches. These were the ancient world's symbol of victory.

Reflecting during this Holy Week, on the purpose of Jesus' death, saying it both comforts and challenges us. By his self-giving act of dying on the cross, he redeems us; he saves us from our sins and reconciles us with God. The challenge is the call he gives us to be his disciples, to live like him, drawing closer to Christ and letting him win over our hearts.

We should not let this Holy Week be like any other week. Spend some time reading over this beautiful story of the Passion during the week. Give the One who gave his life for each of us a chance to enter your heart this week. The week is holy because God is with us. Come to know him once again. His love gives life, hope, and joy."

The palms will be kept in our homes until the approach of the next Lenten season, when they will be burned to create the ashes used on Ash Wednesday. The vestments worn on Palm Sunday are red, the symbol of martyrdom and blood, a color that will be again used on Good Friday.

The celebration of Holy Week continues with the Chrism Mass, during which the bishop will bless the oil of the sick and the oil of the catechumens and consecrate the sacred chrism. The oil of the sick is used to anoint the sick, the oil of catechumens to bless those preparing for baptism, and the sacred chrism is used for baptism, confirmation, and the ordination of priests, as well as the consecration of altars and churches.

Fr. Antonius David Tristianto, O.Carm.

A group of St Anne's parishioners recently attended the WCCM (World Community for Christian Meditation)  Lenten Retreat in St Paul's House of Prayer in Sheung Shui over the weekend, March 13-14, 2021

Back row L to R: Anthony Tse, Dee Mulligan, John Mulligan, Joanne Cheng, Daniel Lee, Paul Jackson, Irene Jackson
Front row: Naomi Chui, Agnes Chiu Lee, Danielle Lee, Vivian Lee and Fr Tommy Murphy, our retreat master. 

We live in a technology-centered world. There's nothing intrinsically wrong with that. Even advanced technology is morally neutral; it is a useful tool, either for doing good or for doing evil.

But our experience of the power of technology to solve material difficulties can pose a danger to our spiritual lives. We can forget that as Christians, what matters most is not what we are able to do for God or for ourselves, but what God has done and wants to do for us.

Jesus is first and foremost our Savior, not our consultant. Jeremiah makes this clear in today's First Reading.

Through the prophet's words, God explains that, he will make an everlasting covenant with us; he will plant the law of freedom and interior peace within our hearts; he will forgive our evildoing and remember our sin no more.

The Letter to the Hebrews reminds us of this same truth.

Jesus doesn't point out how to reach everlasting happiness and then send us on our way, as if we could make the journey by our own efforts. Rather, through his life, death, and resurrection, he himself becomes the "source of eternal salvation."

And in today's Gospel passage, Jesus himself explains that his total love and obedience, up to the point of his humiliating death on a cross, is the turning point of history. With his self-sacrificial crucifixion, "the ruler of this world will be driven out."

In other words, Christ's faithful love will undo Adam's original sin and conquer the devil's sinful rebellion, the source of evil in the world. By announcing this beforehand, he shows that he is going to suffer it willingly, freely fulfilling his Father's plan of salvation.

And this - what God has done for us - matters more than anything we can possibly do for God.

Letting Christ Be Our Savior

The more we experience Jesus as our Savior, the more we will experience the abundant life, the interior peace, wisdom, strength, and meaning, that comes with his salvation.

But because our culture is so secularized, we have to make an effort to let him be our Savior. Two of the key activities for Lent (which is almost over!) can help us do that.

First, we can choose to spend time with him in prayer, even if, from a practical, technical standpoint, prayer may seem like a waste of time.

Second, we can choose to spend time serving others who are suffering and in need. The traditional name for this kind of Christian charity is almsgiving.

We all know people who are suffering. They may be suffering economically - their marriage and family life stressed by financial pressures beyond their control. They may be suffering physically - their body and mind weakened or ravaged by disease, injury, or old age. They may be suffering emotionally - working through an experience of betrayal, infidelity, or loss. They may be suffering existentially - wondering why they are on the planet and where they can find a reason for living.

As Catholics, we experience those same forms of suffering, but we know what to do with them. We bring them to Christ, our all-powerful, all-wise, and all-loving Savior; we grip our crucifixes; we offer them to the Father for the salvation of souls and the reparation of sins. In the few remaining weeks of Lent, let's reach out and help lighten someone else's cross, just as our Savior constantly helps lighten ours.

Let's show-and-tell, with our actions and words, someone else about the Savior they are looking for. Who knows, maybe by sharing the good news of God's love with others, we will come to believe it more deeply ourselves. 

The question of the meaning of suffering, in many ways an impenetrable question, finds an answer, above all, in the Passion of Jesus. On the cross, Jesus not only embraced human suffering in an incomparable way, but also made suffering redemptive. He conquered evil with good. He accomplished our salvation from sin and death by His own suffering on the cross. In suffering voluntarily and innocently, Christ gives the answer to the question about suffering and its meaning.

Much of the troubles in the world are caused by people who would rather run away than face their problems, difficulties and sufferings. Drug addiction, divorce, abortion and all vices are results of this desire to run away and avoid difficult situations. But we have to be constantly reminded that suffering is part of our human existence in this world. Problems and difficulties are realities in the world that we cannot avoid. It is utterly pointless to run away from them.

We see sufferings everywhere. For many of us, it is understandable if those who are suffering are the evil people. But that is not the case. What we see are innocent people and children who suffer the most. That is why we are tempted to complain to God. Why do the good and innocent suffer? If God is love and full of mercy, why does He allow these people to suffer? If God is all- powerful, why does He not put a stop to suffering?

The answer to all these questions is right in front of us: the image of Jesus nailed to the cross. God became man like us in all things but sin. Jesus is God in human flesh. It is God who is nailed to the cross. It is God who suffers and dies. And He never complained. He did not succumb to the temptation to use His powers to get down from the cross. He did not stop His own suffering. All these He endured so that we can be saved and have the fullness of life. The image of Jesus on the cross simply tells us one very important truth: God has no intention of taking away suffering from the world. In fact, He, too, suffered, for in His unfathomable wisdom, He knows there is great value in suffering: "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit" (Jn 12:24).

And if we are suffering in this world, the cross tells us that God is also suffering – for us and with us. We are not suffering alone; God is one with us in our suffering. The suffering and death of Jesus gained for us eternal life. He was the grain of wheat that falls to the ground and dies, and his death brought life and salvation to the whole world. This truth must give us inspiration and strength to bear our crosses patiently and follow Jesus to Calvary.

Unfortunately, many people still remain in the darkness of death due to selfishness and sin. Selfishness is what prevents us from living life to the full. Jesus reminds us: "Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will preserve it for eternal life." (Jn 12:25). Clinging on to a life in this world, which ultimately is passing away makes us blind to the beauty and infinite goodness of eternal life. On the other hand, willingness to let go of this life for the sake of eternity helps us discover the fullness of life here and hereafter.

It is only in dying to our self that we begin to live. Like the bread that must be broken in order to be shared to others; and like the candle that must be consumed in order to give light, so also we must learn to give of ourselves, to die to ourselves, in order for others to live. In so doing, we make our own lives more meaningful and fruitful, for we are able to share fully in the life Jesus – a life of total self-giving. For truly, as beautifully put by St. Francis of Assisi, "it is in giving that we receive; it is in dying that we are born to eternal life."

During the remaining days of Lent, let us seriously do some acts of self-denial: fasting, abstinence, almsgiving, sacrifices and acts of penance. These will surely help us practice dying. Saying "no" to our pleasurable vices, saying "no" to a comfortable and pampered lifestyle, saying "no" to selfish search for worldly gain and success will be very painful for most of us and could be tantamount to dying. But we have to, in order that we may be able to share ourselves with others – so that others may live. This is what martyrdom means nowadays, not anymore bloody martyrdom, but equally painful and fruitful martyrdom.

St. Gemma Galgani said, "If you really want to love Jesus, first learn to suffer, because suffering teaches you to love."

Fr. Antonius David Tristianto, O.Carm.

Join us for a taste of meditation! Every week, the World Community for Christian Meditation (WCCM) hosts an hour of online meditation, and every month, there will be a bilingual session. The program consists of a teaching on meditation, instructions on how to meditate, 25-minutes meditation, and finally the Gospel of the day. There is sharing but only if you wish to participate. A community of 40-50 people join each time.

Thursdays, 8:00 PM

Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89503349036?pwd=WmVjZzIvTDBlYzJ0Z2JHUFE2YUFEQT09

Meeting ID: 895 0334 9036

Passcode: 304121

11 March (Cantonese)
18 March (Cantonese)
25 March (Cantonese)

01 April (Bilingual)

You never really know someone until you know what's in their heart - what motivates them, what they're looking for, why they do what they do.

In the Gospel passage we just listened to, Jesus lays bare the heart of God.

Jesus is talking with Nicodemus, a member of the Sanhedrin, Israel's ruling body. It is at night - Nicodemus was afraid to come to talk to Jesus during the day-time, afraid to be seen with him. Maybe they are sitting around a campfire, or at a table with an oil lamp on it, casting restless shadows on their faces.

What message does Jesus give to this confused and fearful Jewish leader?

The history of salvation, from the fall of Adam and Eve until the final judgment, revolves around the coming of Jesus Christ, the Savior, the Son of God. Why did he come? Because the Father sent him. Why did the Father send him? Because he "loved the world so much." God simply couldn't bear to see us perish in our sins; he longed to share with us his everlasting life. He cares. God cares.

And Jesus Christ is the definitive proof that he cares.

He cares so much that he is willing to sacrifice his only Son to atone for the sins that have separated man from God, the source of all good things. We need look no further to find the very core of the Gospel: "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish, but might have eternal life."

No hidden agenda, no selfish undertones - pure generosity. This is the heart of God, of the Lord who longs for our friendship. Only when we internalize this fundamental motive of God does our Christian adventure really begin.

After the legalization of the Church by Constantine, the Church fathers continued to emphasize the importance of confession. St. Ambrose (d. 397) wrote, "It seemed impossible that sins should be forgiven through penance; Christ granted this power to the Apostles and from the Apostles it has been transmitted to the office of priests" (De poenitentia). Similarly, St. Athanasius (d. 373) asserted, "As the man whom the priest baptizes is enlightened by the grace of the Holy Ghost, so does he who in penance confesses his sins, receive through the priest forgiveness in virtue of the grace of Christ" (Contra Novatus). By the mid-400s and the pontificate of Leo I, private confession under the seal of secrecy became the norm to safeguard the reputation of the penitent and to attract others to the sacrament.

Therefore, we go to confession because it is a sacrament given to us by Christ, and it has always been a practice of the Church. This sacrament reconciles us first with God: "The whole power of the sacrament of Penance consists in restoring us to God's grace and joining us with Him in an intimate friendship" (Catechism, #1468). Secondly, the sacrament reconciles us with the Church: "It must be recalled that… this reconciliation with God leads, as it were, to other reconciliations, which repair the other breaches caused by sin. The forgiven penitent is reconciled with himself in his inmost being, where he regains his innermost truth. He is reconciled with his brethren whom he has in some way offended and wounded. He is reconciled with the Church. He is reconciled with all creation" (John Paul II, Reconciliatio et paenitentia).

This sacrament is so important in our sharing in the life of Christ, the Church has even mandated its practice. To prevent laxity, the Fourth Lateran Council (1215) required that "every faithful of either sex who has reached the age of discretion should at least once a year faithfully confess all his sins to his own priest. He should strive as far as possible to fulfill the penance imposed on him, and with reverence receive at least during Easter time the sacrament of the Eucharist": This rule is still a precept of the Church, commonly called the "Easter Duty." The Council of Trent in 1551 in its Doctrine on the Sacrament of Penance asserted that since mortal sin "kills" the life of God in our souls, these sins must be confessed and absolved through the Sacrament of Penance (a principle repeated by Pope John Paul II in The Splendor of Truth). Trent also said "it is right and profitable" to confess venial sins.

We could end the answer here. However, regular confession is a healthy spiritual practice. Each sincere Catholic needs to periodically– every month or two– do a good examination of conscience holding himself to the standard of Christ. Each person should reflect on how well he has lived a "Christ like life" by following the commandments and the teachings of the Church. Perhaps one's failures are not so much commissions as they are omissions. For all of these, we bring our soul to the Lord and receive forgiveness. The healing grace of the Sacrament of Penance washes away sin and gives us the strength to avoid that sin again. The more we love the Lord, the more we are aware of the smallest sins and the more we want to say, "Lord, I am sorry. Please forgive me." I am sure this is why Pope John Paul II goes to confession weekly, as did Mother Teresa during her life. We too ought to take full advantage of this beautiful sacrament which draws us closer to the Lord.

https://catholicstraightanswers.com/why-go-to-confession/

Fr. Antonius David Tristianto, O.Carm.

We all want to be satisfied in life. That's what happiness is, really, the achievement of satisfaction, of spiritual contentment, of a sense of fulfillment that doesn't wear out. Everything we do is directed towards that end.

It's like we have a homing device built into our hearts, and it keeps drawing us towards fulfillment and satisfaction. We keep seeking new activities, accomplishments, relationships, adventures - all because we feel this interior drive for fulfillment, meaning, and happiness.

This is a good thing. God made us that way. He put the homing device in our hearts, because he wants us to find that satisfaction and fulfillment, that happiness.

But there is a problem. Ever since sin entered into the world, we have had a tendency to look for this fulfillment in the wrong places.

God designed the human heart to find its lasting fulfillment in a deep, personal, ongoing friendship with him - in what the Catechism calls "communion with God" (#45). This is why the first three commandments, as we read in today's First Reading, have to do with our relationship with God - that's the most important thing.

But our fallen human nature tends to look for it in other places: career success, money, pleasure, power, popularity... But that is wrong.

Those things are fine in themselves, and they have their place in the human story. But they cannot substitute God! Only God can satisfy our deepest longing.

And that's why Jesus gets so worked up in today's Gospel passage.

The Temple was set aside as a place where people could go to pray, to encounter God and develop their friendship with him. But all of these merchants and money changers had made it into a mall, a place of buying and selling things!

The place that should have helped people find God had gradually become full of obstacles to finding God. Jesus passionately wants us to find God, because he wants us to find true satisfaction.

Two Methods for Cleansing the Soul

Jesus wants our friendship, because the only place we can find the fulfillment and satisfaction we yearn for is in communion with God.

And he wants this for us so much, that sometimes he goes to extreme measures in order to cleanse the temple of our hearts.

Many times, this is why he permits suffering in our lives.

When we suffer, we are forced out of our comfort zone; we learn our limitations; we discover that the promises of this world's politicians, advertisers, and self-help gurus just don't hold up under pressure.

When that happens, we can become more open to hearing God's voice, to stop pretending that we don't really need God and start leaning more completely on God.

But Jesus doesn't want to have to resort to extreme measures all the time.

And so, he gives us another option, an ongoing opportunity for us to work with him in cleansing out the temple of our hearts. It's called confession.

The sacrament of reconciliation is a voluntary cleansing of the temple. As Christians, our hearts are the real temple of God - the Holy Spirit and the Blessed Trinity dwell within us.

But our sins and selfish actions and habits can turn that temple into a place of confusion, noise, and tension, instead of one where we encounter God and discover his love.

Whenever we make a good confession, we give Jesus free entrance into our hearts, so that he can cleanse them, and fill them up again with the light and strength of his friendship.

Jesus wants to lead us to the meaning and fulfillment we long for. Today, let's promise that we'll give him the chance to do so. 

Jesus entered this world to forgive sins. Recall the words of our Lord: "God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him may not die but may have eternal life" (John 3:16). During His public ministry, Jesus preached about the forgiveness of sins: remember the parables of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11ff) or the Lost Sheep (Luke 15:1ff), and His teaching that "there will likewise be more joy in heaven over one repentant sinner than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need to repent" (Luke 15:7). Jesus Himself forgave sins: remember the story of the woman caught in adultery (John 8:1ff) or the woman who washed His feet with her tears (Luke 7:36ff). He also taught us to pray for forgiveness in the "Our Father": "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us" (cf. Matthew 5:9ff). His mission of reconciliation would climax in His passion, death, and resurrection: Jesus suffered, died, and rose to free us from sin and death.

However, Jesus never trivialized sin nor rationalized it. No, for Jesus, sin is sin, a violation of love against God, self, and neighbor. However, in His divine mercy, Jesus called the sinner to realize the sin, to repent of it, and to be reconciled with God, self, and neighbor.

Jesus wanted this ministry of reconciliation to continue. On that first Easter Sunday evening, Jesus appeared to His apostles, "breathed on them," and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive men's sins, they are forgiven them; if you hold them bound, they are held bound" (John 20:21-23). Only twice in Sacred Scripture do we find God breathing into human beings. First, in the Genesis account of creation, God breathes the life of a soul into the man He has created (Genesis 2:7). Now, Jesus, the Son, breathes His life into His apostles, His priests, so that through them He will "breathe" life into the souls of contrite sinners. In this scene, Christ instituted the Sacrament of Penance and made His apostles the ministers of it.

At the ascension, Jesus again charged His apostles with this ministry: "Thus it is written that the Messiah must suffer and rise from the dead on the third day. In His name, penance for the remission of sins is to be preached to all the nations, beginning at Jerusalem. You are witnesses of this" (Luke 24:46ff). Clearly, Jesus came to forgive sins, He wanted that reconciliation to continue, and He gave the Church a sacrament through which priests would continue to act as the ministers of this reconciliation.

We see this ministry of reconciliation lived-out in the early Church. St. Paul wrote, "God has reconciled us to Himself through Christ and has given us the ministry of reconciliation" (II Cor 5:18). The Didache (or Teachings of the Twelve Apostles), written about AD 80, stated, "In the congregation you shall confess your transgressions" and "On the Lord's Day, come together and break bread… having confessed your transgressions that your sacrifice may be pure." St. Cyprian in his De lapsis (c. 251) concerning the reconciliation of Christians who had succumbed to offering pagan worship rather than face martyrdom, wrote, "Let each confess his sin while he is still in this world, while his confession can be received, while satisfaction and the forgiveness granted by the priests is acceptable to God." At this time of persecution, when local "parishes" were small, individuals publicly confessed their sins at the beginning of Mass (as mentioned in the Didache) and received absolution from the bishop or priest.

https://catholicstraightanswers.com/why-go-to-confession/

Fr. Antonius David Tristianto, O.Carm.

We are still at the beginning of Lent, this season of repentance and penitence, but today the Church is already talking to us about the Resurrection.

In the transfiguration of Jesus in today's Gospel, Peter, James, and John get a glimpse of Christ's eternal glory, the glory he claimed fully after the resurrection.

St. Paul, in today's Second Reading, writes passionately about God's power and faithfulness as revealed in Christ. And he actually changes his emphasis mid-sentence to take the spotlight off Christ's death on the cross and let it shine on his glorious resurrection.

And in the passage about Abraham and Isaac, which narrates events that took place almost 2000 years before Christ, the release of Isaac from his bonds gives him new life - this too is a symbol of Christ's resurrection.

Even today's Psalm, when it speaks about walking with the Lord in the Land of the living and God "loosening the bonds" of his servant, is pointing our attention towards Christ's glorious resurrection.

And yet, Easter is still more than a month away! What's going on here? It's very simple, really.

Lent is indeed meant to be a time of repentance and penitence, a time of sacrifice and reflection in which we acknowledge the weight of suffering in the world and in our lives, suffering that always has its roots in sin.

This suffering is always part of the story of every human life, with or without Christ; but with Christ, it is not the end of the story. Crosses purify us of selfishness, if we allow them to, teaching us to lean more on Christ and to have a greater experience of his wisdom and joy - his resurrection.

In our Catholic faith, the cross and resurrection are two sides of the same coin; we must never allow ourselves to think of one without thinking of the other.

Carrying Each Other's Crosses

This balance between the cross and the resurrection, sorrow and joy, helps make sense out of a lot of confusing aspects of the spiritual life.

Since both are necessary for our growth in holiness, just as sunlight and darkness are both necessary for the growth of plants, God allows us to experience both, in accordance with the timing that he deems best.

In the resurrection moments, God grants us exceptional clarity and satisfaction in our Christian journey. But, like spoiled children, we tend to hold on to those good feelings as if they were God himself.

We echo Peter's comment in today's Gospel: "Lord it is good for us to be here! Let's just put up some tents and never leave!" But earth is not heaven, and God loves us too much to let us settle for anything less than the fullness of his friendship.

And so, he leads us down from our high mountains and walks with us to Calvary, letting us share the weight of his cross. On mountaintops he strengthens our hope, but with crosses he strengthens our love, as we learn to cling to him more than to his gifts.

And that's what Christian wisdom is all about. What can we do to speed up our Christian wisdom learning curve?

The easiest way is to work together. If we decide never to let those around us carry their crosses alone, then we can be sure someone will do the same for us.

By carrying each other's crosses, we combine the joy of Christian charity with the pain of our earthly exile - keeping perfectly in mind both the cross and the resurrection.

As Jesus comes to us to help us carry our crosses, let's promise him that we will do the same for those around us. 

It's the sacred season of Lent. Recall that the three disciplines of Lent are prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. In the concepts of anticipation and preparation for the Lord Jesus we find a connection to the practice of fasting and abstinence during Lent. Lent is a time of penance and atonement for sin in preparation for the celebration of the resurrection of the Lord. Fasting and abstinence are integral to that preparation for several reasons, such as building virtue, self-mastery, and helping to avoid sinful tendencies that may ultimately lead to spiritual death in the case of mortal sin.

The practice of fasting during Lent finds its genesis in our Lord's journey into the desert where he fasted and prayed for forty days and nights in preparation to begin his public ministry (Matt 4:1-2; Luke 4:1-3). The forty days of Lent are in imitation of Christ's time in the desert. During Lent, the Christian walks into the desert with Christ and fasts so as to have the strength to avoid temptation with the help of God's grace. Lent is also a penitential season in which we strive to atone for our sins and purify our lives in preparation for the celebration of Christ's glorious rising from the tomb on Easter Sunday.

Lent is a time that offers us an opportunity to come to terms with the human condition we may spend the rest of the year running from and it brings our need for a Savior to the forefront. There are many reasons to observe Lent, and they nourish the believer's reflection on the passion of Jesus Christ.

First, Lent reminds us of the terrible situation we were in before Jesus. It helps us remember of how far God has brought us. Lent is like that. It reminds us of the terrible condition of sin that you and I were in prior to being saved in the risen Jesus. It's always healthy for us to "remember our spiritual roots." Lent helps us remember always to include in our testimony a story of "I remember when I was headed for destruction because of my sinful condition." In this way, Lent always keeps us humble and eternally grateful for the awesome, undeserving gift of a love relationship with the Father, Son, and Spirit. Have you forgotten how far you've come?

Second, Lent reminds us of the terrible consequences of sin. As the Bible demonstrates, sin is anything we do that breaks down the love relationship that we are designed to share with the Trinity and our neighbor. Lent reminds us that sin is a terrible, destructive power in our lives: it tears away at the love relationship we were designed to maintain with the Trinity and our neighbor. Before Jesus, you and I were slaves to sin. After Jesus, we are no longer slaves to sin, but repeatedly hampered by it (as Hebrews 12:1 says, it's like a heavy weight that bogs us down). As Christians, Lent reminds us of the absolute necessity of confession and repentance. Lent reminds us of how we should be repulsed by any sin, and the necessity of being in step with the Spirit as He transforms us into the image of the Son. Do you have any sins that you've allowed to rule in your life?

Third, Lent reminds us of the necessity of contrition and self-control. Fasting performs two functions: (1) it demonstrates contrition because we abandon something that we enjoy; (2) it helps us practice self-control. The assumption is that if I can say no to sleep or food or drink, then surely, I can say no to various sins. So, we sacrifice various necessities and pleasures to demonstrate contrition and practice self-control. We need self-control because we tend to make idols out of nearly everything. Lent reminds us not to cling too tightly to anything or anyone other than God.

The Season of Lent is, therefore, our desert experience. Let us be aware of God present in our life. Let us also be aware of the lurking enemy around and inside us. And if we just strive to stay close to God, through our prayers and acts of charity and penance, He will surely give us all the graces we need to overcome all these dangers to our soul and to grow in holiness and Christian perfection.

Fr. Antonius David Tristianto, O.Carm.

Two images from nature dominate this First Sunday of Lent.

In these images we find the key for living the next six weeks deeply and fruitfully, as God is hoping we will live them.

The first image is that of the desert.

After Jesus was baptized, but before he began his years of public ministry, St Mark tells us in today's Gospel that the Spirit "drove Jesus out into the desert," where he experienced temptation.

Throughout the Bible, the desert is often referred to a place of testing, where we experience our weakness and dependence on God. Water and food are hard to come by there, and the temperatures and emptiness are oppressive to both the body and the mind.

The desert is a place where our illusions of self-sufficiency and comfort fade away. When we are in the desert, either literally or figuratively, we quickly realize that we need God.

In other words, the desert is the opposite of the Garden of Eden. It is the place of suffering and hardship that sin has led us to. Both original sin and also our own personal sins have interfered with God's plan for our lives and for our world; they have put us in need of salvation.

The second image in today's Readings is the flood, the abundance of water that cleansed the world of sin at the time of Noah.

That ancient flood of water foreshadowed Christian baptism, the flood of grace that purifies our souls from sin, bringing new spiritual life into the desert of our sin-damaged hearts.

Sin and salvation: our sins, and Christ's loving sacrifice that leads to salvation.

These are the most fundamental aspects of our Catholic faith, and these are the themes that should fill our hearts and minds throughout the season of Lent.

Practicing the Virtue of Hope

Besides the desert and the flood, there is another, third, image from nature in today's Readings: the rainbow.

Noah probably didn't know the scientific explanation behind rainbows, but he did understand their spiritual meaning. All of creation has a physical nature that science explores and explains. But creation also has a spiritual meaning - it is a gift from our God, a gift full of messages, lessons, and inspiration. Science can explain the prismatic refraction of light in a rainbow, but it cannot explain the thrill of wonder that fills our hearts we behold that same rainbow.

A rainbow appears when sunlight and storm clouds come together. And God chose this as a symbol of his covenant, of his promise that salvation would conquer sin.

That covenant and that promise still stand; we have to put our hope in them. Jesus, as today's Second Reading reminds us so beautifully, has suffered, died, risen from the dead, and ascended into heaven, conquering sin and evil once and for all.

The crucifix is our rainbow; the cross of Christ is our Ark.

No storm can cancel out Christ's victory over evil; no clouds can reverse it; no flood can extinguish it. And so, while we suffer in the storms of hardship and sin that make our lives and world so painful and difficult, we still continue to follow Christ, because the light of his love shines brightly even in the midst of the storm.

Today we have the privilege to renew our hope once again through this Mass and Holy Communion, to be freshly inspired by a glimpse of our rainbow.

When we see a rainbow in the sky, the first thing we do is tell those around us, so they will see it too. This Lent, let's do the same with the rainbow that shines in our Christian hearts.

Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent and always falls forty-six days before Easter. Ash Wednesday comes from the ancient Jewish tradition of penance and fasting. The practice includes the wearing of ashes on the head. The ashes symbolize the dust from which God made us.

From Biblical times, sprinkling oneself with ashes has been a mark of sorrow for sin. Several times the Bible mentions people repenting in dust and ashes; for example: Mordecai (Esther 4:1), Job (Job 42:6), the inhabitants of Nineveh (Jonah 3:5-6), and Daniel (Daniel 9:3-4). Following the example of the Ninevites, who did penance in sackcloth and ashes, our foreheads are marked with ashes to humble our hearts and reminds us that life passes away on Earth. Repentance in dust and ashes often was accompanied with fasting during Bible times.

As the priest applies the ashes to a person's forehead, he speaks the words: "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return." Alternatively, the priest may speak the words, "Repent and believe in the Gospel." Ashes also symbolize grief, in this case, grief that we have sinned and caused division from God. Writings from the Second-century Church refer to the wearing of ashes as a sign of penance.

We are reminded that we are creatures and that our lives were given to us. But we are also reminded that our lasting home is in eternity, with God. This is not our lasting home. We are reminded that our call is to turn away from sin and to believe the Good News of our salvation in Jesus. This is a joyful reminder. It challenges us, for sure, but reminds us of why we want to turn from sin.

It is important to remember that Ash Wednesday is a day of penitential prayer and fasting. Church use this service to prepare church members to better appreciate the death and resurrection of Christ through self-examination, repentance, prayer, fasting, and self-denial. Besides showing sorrow for their sins. Ashes are a symbol of penance made sacramental by the blessing of the Church, and they help us develop a spirit of humility and sacrifice.

Finally, we wear our ashes as a sign. It is not a boastful sign through which I say, "Look at me and see how holy I am." No, it is much more like, "I'm willing to wear this sign in the world and say that I've been reminded of where I come from and where I am going. And, I've heard the call to turn away from a life of sin and to give my life to living the Gospel of Jesus." And, occasionally, in this world which is too often caught up in the denial of death, I might be required to answer the question, "What's with the smudge on your forehead?"

Yet even now, says the LORD, return to me with your whole heart, with fasting, and weeping, and mourning; Rend your hearts, not your garments, and return to the LORD, your God. For gracious and merciful is he, slow to anger, rich in kindness, and relenting in punishment. - Joel 2:12-13

Fr. Antonius David Tristianto, O.Carm.

In today's world, we can all use help with our prayer life, and the leper in today's Gospel passage gives it to us. He reminds us of two key elements in a healthy life of prayer: confidence and humility.

The first thing to note is that this leper has no doubt that Christ can cure him. He says to the Lord, "If you wish, you can make me clean." It's hard for us to have so much confidence. Our secular culture is constantly sidelining God.

This tends to make us think that we can solve all our problems ourselves, through science, technology, or hard work. But if we think that, then we don't really have faith in God; if God is irrelevant, he's not much of a God, after all. But the leper didn't live in a secular culture; he lived in a religious culture, one that recognized the reality of sin and evil, and the need of God's grace to overcome them. And so he came out of his isolated and self-destructive bubble of self-sufficiency and exercised his faith.

The second thing to note is that the leper also recognizes that he has no right to demand a cure. He doesn't act like a spoiled child and say, "Cure me!" he says, "If you wish..."

It's as if he were saying, "You know what's best; if curing me will give you glory, please do so, but if not, I will still believe and trust in you." Only the humble heart can tap into the roaring stream of mercy that flows from Christ's Sacred Heart, mercy which not only cured the leprosy, but touched the leper, something no one else had done since the disease began.

If our prayer weaves together confidence and humility, God will be able to do wonders in us as well.

Three Ways to Grow in Confidence and Humility

We cannot have a mature and effective life of prayer without growing in these key areas of confidence in God and humility.

How can we do that?

There is no pill or surgical operation that can finish it once and for all - that's not how spiritual growth happens. Instead, we need to regularly and intelligently exercise whatever humility and confidence we already have (and all of us have some - they both were given to us in baptism).

All virtues grow through exercise, like muscles. And of course, exercise is at least sometimes demanding and uncomfortable. This is why regular exercise requires a decision of the will, an act of self-governance.

Here are three ways to exercise humility and confidence in God; let's each choose one of them to focus on this week.

First, the sacrament of confession.

This is the best exercise, because it was invented by God himself. Confession is a perfect mirror of this leper's transforming encounter with Christ. Think about it: everything the leper did, we do every time we go to confession.

Second, writing a thank-you note to God at the end of every day.

By focusing in on the amazing gifts he gives us every single day - life, opportunities, friendships, grace - we put everything else in proper perspective. Gratitude reminds us of God's unbounded goodness, and of our childlike dependence on him.

Third, by being the first one to say we're sorry.

Interpersonal conflicts are almost always the fault of both people involved, at least a little bit. When we take the first step to make peace, we are following in the footsteps of Christ himself.

Whichever exercise we choose for this week, Jesus will help us with it - that's why he is coming among us again through the sacrifice of this Mass.

This question refers to Jesus' teaching found in the Gospel of St. Matthew, when He said, "Do not call anyone on earth your father. Only one is your father, the One in heaven" (23:9).

Taken literally, we would have to wonder why we do use the title "Father" when Jesus seems to forbid it. First, we must remember the context of the passage. Jesus is addressing the hypocrisy of the scribes and the Pharisees—the learned religious leaders of Judaism. Basically, the scribes and Pharisees had forgotten that they were called to serve the Lord and those entrusted to their care with humility and generous spirit.

Since the earliest times of our Church, we have used the title "Father" for religious leaders. Bishops, who are the shepherds of the local Church community and the authentic teachers of the faith, were given the title "Father." Actually, until about the year 400, a bishop was called "papa" for Father; this title was then restricted solely to addressing the Bishop of Rome, the successor of St. Peter, and in English was rendered "pope."

In an early form of his rule, St. Benedict (d. c. 547) designated the title to spiritual confessors, since they were the guardians of souls. Moreover, the word "abbot," denoting the leader in faith of the monastic community, is derived from the word abba, the Aramaic Hebrew word for father, but in the very familiar sense of "daddy."

Later, in the Middle Ages, the term "father" was used to address the mendicant friars—like the Franciscans and Dominicans—since by their preaching, teaching and charitable works they cared for the spiritual and physical needs of all of God's children. In more modern times, the heads of male religious communities, or even those who participate in ecumenical councils such as Vatican II, are given the title "father." In the English-speaking world, addressing all priests as "Father" has become customary.

We must recognize that on the realm of faith, a relationship between the priest and the faithful is established that allows for the reality of fatherhood to be applied to the priest. The father figure is related to the origin of life, its defense, its protection and the vigilant presence that instills in us confidence. God is our Father and all life comes from him; his providence looks after us and his presence makes us feel safe. Thus, Jesus taught us to call him "Father." God is Father not only because he is the origin of our earthly life, but also because he is the one who gives us eternal and divine life. Every single one of our cells is deeply connected to, and depends on, him.

But God wanted to affiliate his fatherhood with those who share in his Son's priesthood; for the life of grace, the Communion that upholds us in life and the prayer that defends us from evil are all given to us through their ministry. The priest, as father, teaches us the faith, forgives us when we fail and blesses us like a father and like God, our Father. We receive from the priest the apostolic faith, the sacraments, supernatural life. He is not the source, but the channel.

"Father" is one of kindest words in our vocabulary. We use it to refer to God wholeheartedly. We use it with our father wholeheartedly. If you use it for a priest, do so from the faith: God is our Father, but this man represents him in my life and gives me supernatural life, feeds me with the Eucharist and helps me experience God's care.

Fr. Antonius David Tristianto, O.Carm.

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Simon Peter and the other disciples come to him the morning after a day like none they had ever known before.

Christ's popularity was at a zenith. His preaching was a huge success. He dramatically expelled a demon right in the middle of the synagogue. And he had spent the entire evening of the Sabbath working miraculous cures and amazing exorcisms.

The next morning, his disciples must have been wild with excitement. They may have even thought that Jesus would claim the Messianic kingship right away and gather an army to cast off the despicable Roman occupiers. And so, when they awoke to find him gone from the house, and a growing crowd of towns people clamoring to see him, they were confused.

They frantically organized a search party and scour the area. But when they find him, alone in prayer on the mountaintop, and they tell him that everyone is looking for him, Christ's answer is surprising.

He tells them it's time to move on, that his mission isn't to maximize his popularity, but to preach the gospel to all of Israel - this is what his Father sent him to do, and no opportunity for mere personal glory will distract him from it.

This was the first installment of a lesson that Jesus would teach over and over, by words and actions: he is not a political figure looking to climb the ladder of success; he is a servant and a messenger, a man for others.

In a world that tends to idolize "success" and "achievement," where great souls are withered by the rat race of petty promotions and vaporous rewards, the selfless, transcendent purpose of a man entirely focused on fulfilling someone else's plan (i.e., God's), is like a bright star shining in the darkness.

Letting Christ Love Us

This truth of our faith, this fact of Christ's being a man for others, has a direct impact on our personal relationship with him.

It means that Christ is "for" each one of us. It means that he is always thinking of us, always guiding us, always walking with us, always at our side.

As beautiful as this truth is, it can also be hard for us to accept. Our modern society is built on individualism, the idea that each person is self-sufficient, able to achieve happiness and fulfillment through their own efforts. Because of this, depending on others, is often seen as a sign of weakness.

This individualistic attitude is embedded in our TV shows, movies, music, advertisements - we are surrounded by it. And as a result, it seeps into our relationship with Christ too.

We sometimes think that we should be able to make ourselves perfect and holy, and then we will present ourselves to Christ to earn a reward. But if that were the case, Jesus would never have come to earth in the first place.

He wouldn't have given us the Church and the sacraments. He wouldn't have died on a cross to show us the limitlessness of his love. Christ is a man for others, because he knows that all of us need a Savior. It is not a sign of weakness or failure to let ourselves be loved and guided by God - it is the surest sign of wisdom.

Today, as Jesus gives himself to us again in this holy Mass, let's thank him for wanting to stay so close to us, and let's let him touch even the most hidden corners of our hearts, because they are the ones that need his light the most.