This Sunday is Catholic Family Sharing Appeal 2022 Commitment Sunday. It can be difficult for us to make commitments and even more difficult to keep them. Due to the difficulty in keeping commitments, it makes us very careful in making them, or at least, it should.
Why do we need commitments? It would be worth every individual reflecting on this question and on how to be careful in making the right commitments!
Life is tough and full of suffering. Jesus Christ makes it possible for we Christians to get through life, not give up, and be the victors. Jesus leads the victory over sin and death, by going through it with us, being triumphant by the power of the Resurrection, and being the Way, Truth, & Life for us to share in His Victory! (Prayerfully, read the Book of Revelation. Don’t let the imagery and difficulty in understanding prevent you from learning and being convinced we share in the Victory of Christ if we remain faithful to Him through suffering and death into Eternal Life!)
Jesus Christ taught us that we must take up our cross and follow Him. By the Mercy and Grace of God, commitment to Him, His Church, our parishes, our loved ones and other commitments is what it takes to do this!
To make the right commitments takes making faithful, Christian decisions. This, at a minimum, requires knowing ourselves and other people, discernment, and other factors. The Sunday readings for this Sunday teach us a very important way for getting to know what is in our hearts and the hearts of others. The words from our mouths can reveal what is in our hearts, for better or for worse. We can help others realize this about themselves by charitably reflecting back to them what they have said. We must be very careful to try to give everyone the benefit of the doubt and keep our possible interpretations positive for ourselves and for others.
As far as discernment, this takes great skill, practice, and spiritual direction from others. I gave a talk to Sacred Heart Parish evening youth disciples at YFF last Wednesday. My presentation was recorded using Livestream. It is available through the Sacred Heart Parish website by clicking on livestreamed Masses. I will have handouts available in our church entrances. After Lent, I will have the opportunity to give a presentation to St. Pius X Parish YFF disciples in middle and high school.
LENT REGULATIONS FOR CATHOLICS
All Fridays throughout the year, especially during Lent, are penitential days. Abstinence: All who have reached their 14th birthday are to abstain from eating meat on Ash Wednesday and on all Fridays of Lent. Fasting: All those who are 18 or older, until their 59th birthday, are to fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. Fasting is one full meal and two lesser meals without eating between meals.
ANNUAL MASS ATTENDANCE SURVEY
Mass attendance counts will be taken at all Sunday Masses (including Saturday vigils) during upcoming weekends March 12-13, 19-20, & 26-27, 2022. The data collected in this annual survey has been shown on many occasions to be helpful in explaining decisions or lending essential context to decisions that are made both at the parish and diocesan levels