Jesus' Temptation

In this week’s Gospel, we see Jesus, soon after being baptized by John the Baptist, being led into the desert by the Holy Spirit to fast, pray and be tempted by the Devil.  It is at the end of the forty days that Jesus, no doubt famished, lonely and longing for an end to this trial, is approached by the Devil and presented with what Steve refers to as the “Provisions, Pride and Power” temptations:  Bread to abate his fast, an opportunity to answer the Devil’s “show me what you got” challenge, and a trade of the world’s kingdoms for Jesus’ worship. Yet with each successive temptation, we see Jesus rebuff the Devil and remain steadfast in the face of false promises.  

As Lent begins, God calls us to examine the desert areas in our lives that are spiritually dry, areas that we’ve allowed to become obstacles to receiving and sharing His abiding love for us.  In this season, we focus on our need for repentance and self-sacrifice, practices that require us to confront aspects our lives of which we are less than proud. As husband, and wife, it is during this season that we both find a need to live more fully the lives of sacrifice to which God calls us in the sacrament of marriage.  Too often, in matters large and small, we fail to express as we should the love to which we are called as spouses. Through pride and stubbornness, we allow these failures to become obstacles to living our marital vocation.  

As individuals, and as a married couple, we hear the call on Ash Wednesday to “Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel.”  Hearing these words, we both realize that we have been too lax in sacrificing of ourselves for each other, too quick to criticize each other for shortcomings actual and perceived, and too slow to forgive.  As we progress in our journey to become the best versions of ourselves, we are recommitting ourselves, first, to regular daily prayer both together and on our own. We will seek God’s forgiveness and healing through the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  We will be taking extra time to prepare for Mass each Sunday, and when we’re able to attend Mass during the week, by reflecting on the Mass readings. And through all of this, we will reflect on, and express our gratitude for, how richly God is feeding us spiritually through the priests, staff and fellow parishioners at Holy Family.  We pray that by making these changes, we may be better prepared to celebrate Jesus’ glorious resurrection on Easter Sunday.  

Reflection by Steven and Susan Gandt

To Be Holy

To be holy……..what a wonderful goal.  But how exactly does one approach holiness?  Does it mean more time on one’s knees, frequent Masses, Communions, confessions?   All wonderful devotions and practices. But what else can one do?  

Our Family Liturgy Choir has had some answers about being holy and good and bringing God’s light to their world.  They share in their prayer before we sing that they can bring Jesus to others by reaching out to a new student; they can be concerned for a sick classmate; they can show kindness to one who is not included in friend activities at school;  they can (and do) pray for a family member who is having a difficult time.  This is holiness in action.  And I learn from this group of young people how to be holy.  They are Jesus to me.

But to be holy is a daily challenge.  I have all sorts of holy thoughts as I pray in the morning at home or at Mass.  But then going into “the world” of responsibilities and work can steer me off course in matter of minutes.  That person is irritating or that task is annoying and/or frustrating.  Or I just want to stay on the couch and binge-watch a favorite Netflix series rather than do God’s work which the Lord has chosen for me.

A couple weeks ago I attended a conference in Boston on spirituality.  Two days of focusing on one simple message has given me new life for my weaknesses.  BEGIN AGAIN.  That’s it! No complicated, involved message.  Just……BEGIN AGAIN.   Every day, sometimes every hour we have a chance to have a minute with our Lord, asking Him to walk with us and help us.  If and when we fail, the Lord’s mercy is there to forgive.  It can be just a moment of recognition that we need His help to leave the moment, the situation of anger, frustration, criticism –whatever it may be – and start over.

“Be holy, for I, the Lord, your God, am holy.”   [Levitius 19:1-2]

And what a perfect moment to BEGIN AGAIN as Lent starts this Wednesday.  We can become a people through God’s love and mercy who “gather together in the love of Christ” and see in each other that where there is love, there is God.

Reflection by Mary Keefe

Holy Family’s Appalachian Service Project (ASP) trip

When I was asked to contribute to the blog to talk a little bit about Holy Family’s Appalachian Service Project (ASP) trip that members of the Parish take each summer, I was very excited. This is a trip that I look forward to every year and one that I hope everyone, in some capacity, can experience. It’s an incredible example of how we help serve the Lord and all his people.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with the trip, ASP is a Christian service organization that repairs homes for the poorest of the poor in the Appalachian mountains. With financial assistance from our community, and with our teen and adult volunteers donating their time and labor to help make these homes warmer, safer, and drier, together we help to give dignity to these families’ otherwise very difficult lives.

When asked what makes this mission trip so great, the answer, for me, is simple. It’s a time that we can REALLY give back. I know so many of us participate in fundraisers and sit on boards and co-chair events to raise money for local families or shelters or other relevant causes – and it’s all needed and so much appreciated. However, there’s something different about being in someone’s home where you can get down and dirty and build things with your hands and interact one on one with families who truly need our help. To be able to give back in this capacity is a gift – one that changes each person in some way after returning home.

It’s such a powerful experience to see our students and our chaperones working together to make homes warmer, safer and drier for these families.  At the end of our work week, we can see the difference that we make. We can see it physically in the homes and we can see it emotionally in the smiles and hugs of those families that we help. We can also feel it within the greater community as shop owners, restaurateurs and local residents recognize the work that we do and the good we bring to the community in the true spirit of service.

This year, more than 50 students and 25 chaperones will make the pilgrimage to West Virginia – Holy Family’s 18th annual trip. We will meet people they would’ve not had the opportunity to meet and we will surprise ourselves with what we can build and how much we can contribute to making a community better and brighter.  We will experience the true meaning of service and touch the lives of many from the aging to the first walkers.

We ask that you pray for the safe travel of our caravan to West Virginia and give all of the volunteers the strength, patience and ability to recognize the power of the Lord as we set out to positively impact our West Virginia brothers and sisters.

Reflection by Kim Ballerene

A Sword will Pierce your Heart

Luke’s Gospel on the Presentation at the Temple is a Gospel reading which is bitter sweet for me.  When I received my blog dates, and looked up the readings, I thought oh no, this one is too personal for me.  I’m not sure I can write on it and maybe I should ask for another one. But no, God wanted me to share on this one.  So here goes.  

Several years ago, I started on a year long journey of learning and practicing the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola.  I met with a Spiritual Director and a group of people every Saturday at 8am. Together, we were instructed on these exercises, and each person shared their personal experiences on the contemplation of the various biblical readings throughout the week.  We were to spend at least 1 hour a night meditating on that days particular reading, and write down our thoughts, and/or experiences.  

During one of my nightly 1-hour sessions, I was sitting quietly and listening, and by the way, this scripture passage was not the one I was meditating on, the thought came into my head “a sword will pierce your heart”.  Immediately, fear overcame me, and I thought no God, not my son. Anything but that! I quickly put it out of my head and continued on with my meditation. Every now and then I would think about that, and what it meant for me.  A few years later my nephew was found dead of an overdose, and my heart physically hurt. I thought is this the sword? But after some time had passed, I had the sense that this was not the only sword that would pierce my heart.  Four years later, tragedy struck again. My youngest brother was killed in a horrific car accident. Again, I thought ok this must be the sword.  

Over the past several months I have come to realize that yes, these tragic events were piercing swords in my heart, but that there will be more.  Maybe not as tragic as these two, but there will certainly be more pain and sorrow.  

So what can we do?  How do we cope or prepare for such blows?  We all have our “swords” that pierce our hearts during our lifetime.  The only answer I can see is my faith and trust in God.

I thank God everyday for my Catholic faith which has certainly helped me through these difficult times.  I truly believe that God is always with me and will help me through whatever comes my way.  

Reflection by Cheryl Provost