Many Catholic feasts and traditions have developed over time, but the celebration of Lent goes back to the very beginnings of the Church.
Fr. John Flader, in his book 150 Questions and Answers on the Catholic Faith, explains the origins of Lent, starting with the fact that the word itself comes from the Anglo-Saxon word for springtime, “lencten.”
In St. John’s Gospel, there is the account of the healing of the man born blind (John 9:1-41). It is the sixth of the seven signs recounted by St. John that announce the fulfillment of the Old Covenant in the New Covenant and the passing away of the old rites, replaced by the grace and sacraments of Jesus Christ. It is also the passage associated with the second of the Scrutinies undergone by the elect (those to be baptized at the Easter Vigil Mass) in the process of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults. It is the Gospel for this past Sunday.
The Pope spent about three hours in the famous Milan penitentiary. He even took a half an hour “power nap” in the chaplain’s room before the Mass in the park of Monza.
The Feast of the Annunciation marks the day when Mary said “Yes” to God. May today be the day we say “Yes” to Him, too.
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux writes that when Saint Gabriel announced to Mary that she had been chosen to be the Mother of God, it was as though the angels in Heaven held their breath waiting for her reply.
The words of Dori Falcone, who received Francis and asked him to bless the bread she prepared for her neighbors in the White Houses.
The Rosary of Our Lady of Sorrows is a wonderful read for those trying to embrace the Lenten season
We are still in Lent, so in case readers would like to recharge their Lenten reading matter Gracewing has produced The Rosary of Our Lady of Sorrows by Anthony Jeremy. The author, who teaches Canon Law at Cardiff University and who was received into the Church within the Ordinariate, is clearly knowledgeable about the history of this devotion and passionate about making it more widely known.
The Lion of Judah is no tame lion. Neither is he predictable.
While walking along the streets of Jerusalem one day, Jesus sees a common enough sight in the Holy City. There is a disabled person by the side of the road begging (John 9). What else is the poor man to do? He has been blind from birth, so employment opportunities are limited. He has no ability to see, but he can speak. So he cries out for assistance.
As we enter into the season of Lent, it is important for us to understand why we fast so that when we fast during Lent, it is not just something we do that is a habit we’ve done over the past years, and something that we’re going to do again this year; the point is to understand that our fasting has a purpose. The purpose of our fasting is to put away our sins and to grow closer to Christ. We fast so that we can imitate Christ.
‘There is only one true remedy to death, and we Christians are robbing the world if we do not proclaim it by our words and our lives’
Following is the third Lenten homily 2017 given this year by preacher of the Pontifical Household Capuchin Father Raniero Cantalamessa:
The Holy Spirit in the Paschal Mystery of Christ
Fourth Sunday of Lent – LAETARE SUNDAY – Year A – March 26, 2017
Roman Rite
1Sm 16,1B 6-7 10-13A; Ps 23; Eph5.8 to 14; Jn 9, 1-41
Ambrosian Rite
Ex 34.27 to 35.1; Ps 35; 2 Cor 3.7 to 18; Jn 9, 1-38b
Sunday of the Blind Man
1) Light for the eyes of the soul
While last Sunday, through the Gospel of the Samaritan woman, Jesus promised also to us the gift of living water (Jn 4, 10.11), this fourth Sunday of Lent, called “Laetare” (= Rejoice) Sunday, presents Christ “light of world” who heals a” born blind man”(Jn 9, 1-41).
