Lenten Reflection:  by Pat Dorsi

A few months ago, I had lunch with a friend. While we were waiting for our food to come, we were chatting with each other and occasionally, someone sitting near us would join in our conversation. I noticed an elderly woman with a very kind face and a twinkle in her eyes, sitting alone but taking in her surroundings and smiling. When the kind woman had finished her lunch and was leaving, she stopped by our table to say hello and ask how we were doing. My friend asked me where I knew her from and I answered “I did not know her, I thought you did!” She left, our lunch was delivered, and the woman was forgotten … or was she? Later that afternoon, I went to the Shop-Rite to pick up a few things. As I was leaving, once again I saw the “elderly woman with a very kind face and a twinkle in her eyes.” This time she approached me, and leaned in close enough to whisper this message to me: “We are all God’s children!” Is life too daily? Do our days become so routine that we fail to notice the sights, sounds, and people that surround us? Lent is a good time to take a seat on the back porch of life, away from our normal activity and dailyness, to reflect on who we are in the eyes of God. My Lenten challenge this year is to remember that “we are all God’s children.” To recall it when I am doing laundry or cleaning the house, to ponder it when I enter a room filled with strangers, to meditate on it when I have been hurt or have caused another to be upset, to rejoice in it when I experience community. Yes, life is daily but if we strive to keep our faith alive we may become messengers along with the “elderly woman with a very kind face and a twinkle in her eyes—We are all God’s children!”

Have you ever paged through the popular children’s book “Where’s Waldo” and not been able to locate Waldo in each scene? Methodically, you begin your search of the picture scanning left to right, then up and down. You know that Waldo is there somewhere, and yet, he is sometimes very difficult to find! Waldo is not actually hiding, but our eyes are distracted by the small details in the picture. He is there standing shoulder to shoulder with all his friends, looking very similar to them and yet he is unique and different. During the liturgical season of Advent, amid all the seasonal distractions, our faith gently asks us “Where’s Jesus”? The word “advent” when translated from Latin means “coming to”. For many years, I observed Advent in anticipation of Jesus’ birth. I believed that all I had to do was to focus on preparing and purifying my heart so Jesus would come and dwell within me. However, I always seemed to fail at this. Recently, I have been wrestling with the idea that maybe Jesus is the one waiting…waiting for us to come to Him! Perhaps Advent is a season to focus on seeing the multitude of ways that we can be present and available to Jesus. Can you find Jesus amid the dailyness of your life? Is he standing in line with you as you wait to purchase a gift for a loved one? Is he helping you carry the extra groceries you plan to donate to the local food bank? Perhaps he is waiting with you at the Doctor’s office, or sitting beside you at a funeral, or even nestling up next to you as you read a book or watch TV with the family. When you can find Jesus in another person, you can also find him within yourself. Jesus is the smile you share with a stranger, the concern you feel for a sick friend, he is in the tears you wipe from another’s eyes, and he is even in the stress and busyness of the Christmas season. Jesus is the “Word made flesh who dwells among us”. He is here standing shoulder to shoulder with all of us. Can you find him? 11/27/18 

Session 3 of our parish small faith group experiences with ‘Be My Witness’ focuses on the Holy Spirit. As Catholics our minds seem to associate the Holy Spirit generally with the reception of the sacraments. Rightly so, the Holy Spirit does have an effectiveness within us during Baptism and Confirmation. But what about our daily life. What about the ongoing conversion God desires for us? Have you ever felt that tug in your heart? A certain prompting that has led you to discovering something new about your relationship with God? The stories heard and the scripture read during our session on the Holy Spirit shares experiences how the Spirit works within our lives and converts our hearts closer to God. Newly canonized Saint Paul VI said, “the Holy Spirit is the principal agent of evangelization.” Evangelization is the conversion of the heart through the message [‘Good News’] of the messenger [Jesus Christ]. Let us remember that ‘evangelization’ is not a term used by certain religions, it is the proclamation of the Gospel. The very mission of Jesus Christ. “The Church is an evangelizer, but she begins by being evangelized herself. And she always needs to hear the proclamation of the "mighty works of God" (Acts 2:11) which converted her to the Lord.” Saint Paul VI—Evangelii Nuntiandi [15]

Prayerfully Darrin Nelson
Evangelization and Adult Faith Formation
St Mary’s Stony Hill

Reflection question: How have you experienced the movement of the Holy Spirit in your life?