Second Sunday of Lent
A Self-Directed Reflection from
The St. Joseph Retreat Center
with Anne Louis De Palo

As we prepare for Easter, the St. Joseph Retreat Center will be sharing weekly reflections during Lent. Thank you for joining us on this journey. We look forward to hearing from you in this time of fasting and reflection.

ARE YOU LISTENING?

"Your presence, Oh Lord, I seek. Hide not your face from me," Psalm 27.

"Listen to him." Luke 9:35.

Listen is defined in Webster's dictionary as to give one attention. In the Bible, the word listen goes a bit further. "Listen means to pay close attention, obey or act on what is heard." The word "shema" is used in the Bible to mean "listen closely." The words, "Listen to him" resonated with me. I wondered, "Am I listening?"

How can we truly listen to God?" Well, first we must prepare ourselves and cultivate an atmosphere to be able to give our attention to God;

1. We need silence to be able to hear the inner voice of God.
2. We need peace - take a few deep breaths and clear your mind and calm your body.
3. We need openness to be receptive to God's voice and grace to act on it.
4. Clear away any distractions. Shut your phone and computer off. Close the door to your room.
5. Light a candle and pray, "Come Holy Spirit, come;" or pray today's Psalm, "Your presence Oh Lord, I seek. Hide not your face from me." Psalm 27.

Next sit quietly and just listen, or perhaps read a passage from the Gospel or one of the readings of the day and ask what is God saying to me in this moment? Do you feel prompted to speak to God about a problem or decision or question that you are wrestling with? Is the Holy Spirit urging you to do something, such as make that call to a relative or friend that you have not forgiven, or call someone who is lonely or ailing in body or spirit?

Is the Spirit asking you to look at a recurring habitual sin, attachment or addiction; offering healing through prayer and the sacraments. Perhaps the Spirit beckons you go to the Sacrament of Reconciliation and receive the Eucharist for spiritual help and healing.

Is the Spirit prompting you to go deeper in your relationship with God - pray a little longer, begin saying the rosary, make a sacrifice for a loved one who has died or is in need of conversion or healing? Is the Spirit asking you to give your time, talent or money to a cause? Are you being asked to "give" forgiveness which Saint Agustin said, "Is the greatest form of alms giving"

This form of prayer can be simple but so powerful. It is a path t transformation and becoming more like Christ. Just one day at a time. Listen, hear, and respond. There may be times you do not hear a response, and that is okay. This is god's time. Then just rest in God's presence, He will speak to you when He wills.

In praying our listening is perfected so that you not only hear the voice of God but obey and act on it. Like Saint Paul said, you will "stand firm" with the Lord, (Philippians 4:1) and be one with Him. This is the purpose of our lives.

Third Sunday of Lent
A Self-Directed Reflection from
The St. Joseph Retreat Center
with Anne Louis De Palo

WHAT IS IN YOUR GARDEN?

           “God called out to him from the bush, "Moses, Moses!"  He answered, "Here I am."  Exodus 3:4.

 Exodus 3:12, "I will be with you."

"Therefore, whoever thinks he is standing secure should take care not to fall."  First Letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians, 10:12.

Luke, 13:8-9 “For 3 years now, I have been in search of fruit but have found none.  So cut it down."  The gardener replied, ‘Sir, leave it for this year. I shall cultivate the ground around it and fertilize it; it may bear fruit in the future."

Is your zeal and enthusiasm for Lent beginning to wane?  The readings today offer encouragement, inspiration, and a wake-up call.

In the first reading of Exodus, God calls out to Moses.  It is time for the great commission. Moses is told to take the Israelites out of  Egypt.  Moses dutifully and emphatically answers God when he calls to him. “Here I am!” Ex 3:4 Moses is "listening" so he hears God’s voice. Moses balks out of fear when he is told what God expects of him.  God assures him He will be with him, and that is all Moses needs. In this reading, we are given the spiritual truth that we must be open to God’s presence and have total dependence on Him not only during Lent but always.  He is there for us.

In the second reading, St. Paul reminds the Corinthians that we can do nothing without God and His grace.  Whenever we think we have it all together in our spiritual life, we are in danger of falling or veering off in the wrong direction. Every day we begin again and ask for pardon for our missteps, and the grace to remain faithful and be a true disciple of Christ. During Lent and every day the spiritual disciplines of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving help us grow and remain closer to Christ. As Pope Benedict XVI, said “We are always in the process of becoming. It is the journey of a lifetime.” There is never a point when we are “done” while we are alive.

The Gospel today is a favorite parable of mine, the fig tree in danger of being cut down.  The fact that Jesus references three years that there was no fruit is significant.  It was during His three years of teaching and being on a mission that Jesus encountered many who turned away from Him and refused to hear Him.  Our Savior, like the gardener, is forgiving and merciful.   Our God is a God of second chances. He is the Mediator for us with the Father. He asks that the fig tree be given a second chance to bloom. Jesus will cultivate the tree (our souls) with grace if we are open and willing to receive his love and mercy.

Whenever I think of the fig tree, I am immediately taken back to my grandfather's garden in Brooklyn when I was a child.  He had a small plot of land with the most beautiful roses, tomatoes, and a fig tree he cherished.  He nourished the ground with fertilizer, made a homemade compost of eggshells, coffee and other food items, used manure, and he weeded and watered his garden daily.  It was a big part of his day and his dedication and hard work reaped a bounty.

 What always confounded me as a child was when the fall came and before the first frost, my grandfather would not only prune the tree by cutting away any dead branches and leaves, and till the soil; he covered the entire tree with a thick plastic. It was a big job and he painstakingly made sure not one inch of the tree was showing when he was done. I asked him why he covered the tree and he replied, "We need to protect it.  The fig tree is delicate.  The wind, the cold, snow, and ice can kill or damage it, and then we will not have any delicious figs."  I answered, "Like the figs in Fig Newtons ?" I exclaimed. They were a favorite of mine and a treat my grandmother always had on hand. We both laughed and he told me to go ask my grandmother for some fig newtons for doing such a good job of helping him.

 Isn't the care my grandfather gave to the fig tree like the care we must give our souls? Avoiding what will kill or damage our souls by sinning, is a turning away from God in the choices we make. Nourishing our soul with prayer, the Eucharist, receiving the Sacraments, particularly the Sacrament of Reconciliation, and going into the desert during Lent. This is what we must do to not be barren like the fig tree but produce fruit that will last and build up the Kingdom of God. Lent is a time of new beginnings.

  Let's begin again today and cultivate our souls so we too can produce good figs that will last.

Fourth Sunday of Lent
A Self-Directed Reflection from
The St. Joseph Retreat Center
with Anne Louis De Palo

MOTHERING SUNDAY. TIME TO COME HOME.

“Now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to life again. He was lost and has been found. Luke 5:32

“Coming to his senses, he thought, ‘I shall go to my father." Luke 15:18.

Today is the mid-point of Lent. It is called Laetare Sunday or Rejoice Sunday. The priest's vestments and the altar candles are a rose color, and flowers are allowed on the altar and in the sanctuary. We can take a deep breath and take comfort in the fact that in three Sundays, we'll be celebrating Easter and the Resurrection, the promise of eternal life. This Easter on April 20th it will be 30 days since the beginning of spring. The trees and flowers will be blooming.

Spring is nature’s celebration of rebirth and new life. This Sunday is also known as Mothering Sunday, especially in the United Kingdom. It is a tradition which began in the Middle Ages. It was a day that the faithful would visit their "mother church" where they were baptized. On this day, the Virgin Mary was venerated, as our spiritual mother and mother of the Church. This is a practice to again bring into our families and parishes.

Today's Gospel reading of the Prodigal Son is a perfect reading for today. The definition of mothering in Webster's Dictionary is to be protective, caring, and kind. To have the characteristics of a mother. These very words describe the father in the Prodigal Son. These attributes are those found in a good father, as well as a good mother.

Even the word “mothering" as recently used and popularized on TikTok is defined as “slaying, which though it is often used to describes celebrities, it means doing what someone does best, serving, or giving life.

The Prodigal Son thought he was better off on his own and in the world. He did not think he needed his father or his home. He also thought money, comfort, and pleasure would make him happy and content. When he squandered his inheritance and hit rock bottom, he went "home". It often takes someone to suffer a loss, be it a loved one, health, relationship, job, money, or wellbeing to search for something more. It is when someone needs mothering that they long for home. Home is God and the Church.

God, our Father, is always there, welcoming us with open arms. He patiently waits for

us, offering His love and mercy. It is a time of rejoicing when we return. There is a celebration in Heaven every time one repents of their sins and comes back to God. Every time someone makes a good confession (just as the prodigal son did) during the Sacrament of Reconciliation we must rejoice. This the way we can come home again and again.

Our God is all. We cannot limit Him by our concepts and language. He is mystery,

goodness, truth, and beauty. He is the perfect mother and perfect father, and he never fails us, as our own human parents may have. Perhaps Juliana of Norwich, a mystic from the Middle Ages, said it best.

"God is our mother, as truly as He is our father; and He showed this in everything, and especially, in the sweet words where He says, "It is I," that is to say, "It is I: the power and goodness of fatherhood. It is I, the wisdom of motherhood. It is I, the light and grace which is all blessed with love. It is I: the unity. I am the sovereign goodness of all manner of things. It is I that make you love. It is I that makes you long. It is I, the

eternal fulfillment of all true desires." ( From Revelations of Divine Love by Juliana of Norwich).

Fifth Sunday of Lent
A Self-Directed Reflection from
The St. Joseph Retreat Center
with Anne Louis De Palo

YESTERDAY IS GONE.

"Remember not the events of the past, the things of long ago, consider not any: See I am doing something new!"  Isaiah 43:18- 19.

For his sake, I have accepted the loss of all things, and I consider them rubbish.  Letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians 3:8.

 "Just one thing, forgetting what lies behind but straining forward to what lies ahead".  3:13

"Neither do I condemn you.  Go and from now on, do not sin anymore."  John 8:11.

On this final Sunday before Holy Week, the readings prepare us for the Lord's coming passion as well as being a call for us to self-reflect on our Lenten journey.  The last three Sundays of Lent are referred to as scrutiny Sundays.  These designated Sundays are for the candidates of RCIA (Right of Christian Initiation of Adults).

This last Sunday focuses on new life, as the candidates prepare for baptism. The Catholic community is asked to pray for the candidates and support them.  It is a period for the "Elect" (the candidates) as well as the entire Catholic community to pray and renew their commitment to grow closer to Christ, examine their place in the Body of Christ, and overcome sin.

The word scrutiny means to examine closely or to scrutinize. Hopefully, your Lentin practices have allowed you to meditate and contemplate where you are in your spiritual life. On this last Scrutiny Sunday ask yourself these questions:

1. Did you see where you may have been or are self-centered?
2. What is mediocre about your faith life?
3. Did you discover where you need a new life?

Christ calls us to a deeper intimate relationship.  To truly live as a Christian, be a disciple, and spread the Gospel, we must live and become it. This is an ongoing process of conversion and something we must continually be open to and aware of.

St. Ignatius of Loyola, the great spiritual master stated, "I wish not merely to be called Christian but also to be Christian."  The question to scrutinize is, "Am I becoming Christ and willing to follow where he leads me?"

The readings beginning with Isaiah, clearly tell us to leave the past behind and to be open to something new.  Isaiah 43:18.

St. Paul in his letter to the Corinthians explains to them that he has left behind what is not of Christ. He advises them he has eradicated what is trivial, meaningless, and what does not bring him closer to God and builds up the kingdom. St Paul always kept his eyes on the prize of eternal life. We must look ahead.

Finally, in Luke's passage of the adulteress woman, Jesus demonstrates his love and mercy telling the woman she is forgiven and to not sin again.  We take heart knowing that if she does sin, Jesus' love, forgiveness, and mercy will be freely given again to her as well as us. Have you gone to the Sacrament of Reconciliation this Lent.? Christ waits for us there and never tires of hearing our missteps even if they recur repeatedly as long as we are sorry and keep trying to do better.

The Beatles' song "Yesterday" always made me sad.  Before my reconversion, I felt for the singer and identified with him lamenting the past, blaming himself, and continuing to live there.

I still feel sad when I hear the song, but for a different reason.  Now I see the singer (like so many others) stuck in the past and cannot see what is new and waiting for him in Christ.

The line, "There is a shadow hanging over me." is particularly haunting.  Whenever I hear this song now, I want to hear another stanza.  For me, it would go something like this:

In my sorrow
I refused to see tomorrow.
I resisted with all my might
Now I see the light
The shadow is gone
It was you all along
For whom I long

Where are the shadows in your life and where do you need Christ's light to reveal them?