Fr. Simon's Letter - March 2, 2025

We will begin the season of Lent this Wednesday, March 5, as the sun takes a little longer each evening to settle beyond the horizon and the weather (hopefully) grows warmer. Life emerges once more and reminds us that Lent can be our connecting point to the season of life.

But this is a messy season. As the snows of winter lie on the ground, things get covered, trampled and windblown. Winter brings with it chilling winds that push things over, mess things up and even break things. As the snow melts we are left to discover the trash, the litter, the mud and the branches hidden beneath the snow.

It’s much like our lives. Over time, our hearts and souls, when left unattended, get messy. Lent invites us to deal with the mess. This is not about quickly cleaning things up and pretending they were never there, nor is it about ignoring the mess. Lent invites us to roll up our sleeves and sort through the debris of our lives.

We are confronted with our mess on Ash Wednesday when we mess up our foreheads with a little dirt. The ashes are a symbol that is blunt, primal and speaks the language of the soul. Something inside each of us knows exactly why ashes are such a powerful symbol: “Dust you are and to dust you shall return!” Ashes are dust and dust is soil, humus; humanity and humility come from the word. It is no accident that ashes have always been a major symbol within all religions. To put on ashes, or to sit in ashes, is to say publicly and to yourself that you are reflective or in a penitential mode. Ashes remind you that this is no “ordinary time,” that you are not in a season of celebration, but are grieving some of the things you have done and lost, and that some important work is going on silently inside you. 

Pope Francis, in his Lenten message to the whole Church in this Jubilee Year as we journey as Pilgrims of Hope, reminds us that our forty days of Lent are rooted in certain biblical narratives—these were times of preparation for an encounter with the divine. The people of Israel spent forty years in the desert making a journey from slavery to freedom. Moses spent forty days and forty nights fasting as he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant – the Ten Commandments. Elijah traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached the mountain of God. Jesus fasted and prayed in the desert for forty days and forty nights before he began his public ministry. 

Pope Francis invites us to reflect on the fact that we are all pilgrims on a journey; that we are called not only to journey together, but to journey together in hope. He offers us a few questions to help us through the Lenten season. Firstly, “A first call to conversion thus comes from the realization that all of us are pilgrims in this life; each of us is invited to stop and ask how our lives reflect this fact. Am I really on a journey, or am I standing still, not moving, either immobilized by fear and hopelessness or reluctant to move out of my comfort zone? Am I seeking ways to leave behind the occasions of sin and situations that degrade my dignity? It would be a good Lenten exercise for us to compare our daily life with that of some migrant or foreigner, to learn how to sympathize with their experiences and in this way discover what God is asking of us so that we can better advance on our journey to the house of the Father. This would be a good “examination of conscience” for all of us wayfarers.”

Pope Francis also reminds us that we are in this journey together. “The Church is called to walk together, to be synodal. Christians are called to walk at the side of others, and never as lone travelers. The Holy Spirit impels us not to remain self-absorbed, but to leave ourselves behind and keep walking towards God and our brothers and sisters. Journeying together means consolidating the unity grounded in our common dignity as children of God. It means walking side-by-side, without shoving or stepping on others, without envy or hypocrisy, without letting anyone be left behind or excluded.” So, we should ask ourselves, “whether we show ourselves welcoming, with concrete gestures, to those both near and far. Whether we make others feel a part of the community or keep them at a distance.”

Finally, we journey together in hope, “to trust in God and his great promise of eternal life. Let us ask ourselves: Am I convinced that the Lord forgives my sins? Or do I act as if I can save myself? Do I long for salvation and call upon God’s help to attain it? Do I concretely experience the hope that enables me to interpret the events of history and inspires in me a commitment to justice and fraternity, to care for our common home and in such a way that no one feels excluded?”

As we enter this most solemn season, I invite you to be part of our Lenten journey together in hope with your fellow parishioners, and join our Parish Mission on Monday and Tuesday evenings, March 10 & 11. Who knows, there may be a surge in your heart to return to the Lord and let your mind, heart and life be renewed by God. 

Blessings!!
- Fr. Simon