St. Joseph’s solemn feast is today! It’s a day of exuberant and Lent-defying celebration for the whole Church. And it’s a special joy for men everywhere who have the distinct privilege of being fathers—yes!—but also of being guardians of God’s beloved daughters.
Lent is a sacred season in the Christian tradition, a time to reflect on Christ’s sacrifice and prepare our hearts for Easter. Often, we think we must make grand gestures to grow closer to God. Yet sometimes it is the seemingly small daily practices—done with love and devotion—that draw us into a deeper relationship with Christ. Below is a set of 12 simple suggestions, each accompanied by reflections on why they matter and how you might incorporate them into your everyday life.
The fourth Sunday of Lent is called Laetare (Latin for “rejoice,” be glad”) Sunday because today’s theme reminds us of God’s infinite mercy and patience. We rejoice because we are reminded that in spite of our weaknesses and failures, God our Father is always awaiting our return.
It is the greatest symbol of the suffering Jesus underwent to redeem the sins of mankind. The Procession of the Passion of Our Lord made its way through the streets of Macau over the weekend, in a unique demonstration of faith. Thousands of people took part in the ceremony, announcing the triumph of Jesus over sin and despair. Among them were pilgrims from mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan.
We have seen previously (Keeper, 4) that through the centuries, some Fathers of the Church have provided us with a record of the list of the Popes until their times. But we have not only the list of names, but also the biographies of the Popes through the centuries. The recognized source of these biographies, especially of the first 15 centuries of Christianity, is the Liber Pontificalis.
Explaining the nature of theological hope, we now focus on some of its notes or properties. The notes that help unveil the nature of Christian hope are many. For our part, we shall develop three significant properties of hope, namely certain hope, patient hope and prayerful hope.
On the second Sunday of Lent, the Church presents to us the Gospel of the Transfiguration of the Lord. Throughout the gospel narratives, we follow the accounts of the numerous miracles that Jesus performed: healing people from the most diverse diseases, showing His power over impure spirits and the forces of nature. However, in the miracle of the Transfiguration it is different, here we witness the narration of the Manifestation of God in himself. He is the subject of the prodigious action, but also its object. This miracle has two vertices, one that marks the past, showing that in Him is fulfilled what was partially announced with the laws brought by Moses and the prophecy of Elijah. Another vertex that points to the future, where Jesus shines for three disciples, anticipating what He will be like in eternity and the Church will share in the glory of the Lord.
The Church of Our Lady of Sorrows, in Ká-Hó village, will once again a place of worship and pastoral activities. Built in 1966, the small, tent-shaped church on the northeastern tip of Coloane Island was entrusted by the Catholics Diocese of Macau to the Congregation of the Priests of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The Dehonian missionaries were tasked to transform Ká-Hó into a “spiritual hospital, a place always open to mend people’s souls”.
In the Basilica of Saint Paul’s Outside the Walls in Rome, one can find a series of mosaic portraits of the popes from Saint Peter all the way to Pope Francis. The project began with Pope Leo the Great (440-461) but a fire destroyed the Basilica in 1823. Only 40 portraits were saved. In 1847, Pope Pius IX (1846-76) revived the project which, of course, is ongoing.
The Christian hopes in the “here-after” and in the “here-now.” Christian eschatology is undividedly transcendent and immanent, anticipation of the future in the present and anticipating present of the future. The integral salvation of the human person begins now. In hope we expect our salvation at the end of time – eschatological salvation – and we work in time to attain it. Hence, integrates the eschatological and temporal (historical and social liberation).
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