Rejoice, Jerusalem, and all who love her.

Be joyful, all who were in mourning;

Exult and be satisfied at her consoling breast. (Is 66:10:11)

Today, the Fourth Sunday of Lent, is also known as Laetare Sunday.  It gets this name from the first word of the Entrance Antiphon used at Mass without music; you will see it quoted above.  In Latin, the antiphon begins with the word “Laetare,” which, as you see above, translates into “Rejoice.”  As we quickly approach the end of Lent – next week […]

Each year, the Gospel for Ash Wednesday sets out three practices – prayer, fasting and almsgiving – which we are called to perform with greater intensity and intentionality during Lent.  Like a three-legged stool, all three of these practices are necessary for a stable Christian life and so, we are called to focus on them, once again, during this Lenten Season as we renew our commitment to following our Lord through his death to his Resurrection.  As we approach the halfway mark for Lent, allow me to offer some reflections […]

The predominant Christian Church in central and Eastern Europe is the Orthodox Church.  You may recall that the Orthodox Church resulted from the schism between the East and West in 1054.  The Catholic Church continues to serve the faithful in these countries too, however, often with great difficulty.  The annual collection for the Church in Central and Eastern Europe, which we will take up next weekend, provides much-needed funding for the Catholics living in 28 countries from Albania to Uzbekistan.  In Ukraine, one of these countries that has been so […]

From northernmost Mexico to Tierra del Fuego at the southern tip of Argentina, as well as throughout the islands of the Caribbean, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishop’s annual Collection for the Church in Latin America supports fellow Catholics as they grow in their faith and share God’s love.  Last year, this collection supported 252 projects funded by the $6.2 million that Catholics in the United States gave to the annual fund.  For more than 50 years, this annual collection has been a powerful way for us to unite […]