“Arise and Eat, Else the Journey Will Be Too Great for You.” (I Kings 19:7)

Mass Intentions Week of February 18

Sat.        Feb. 17        5:00 pm      People of the Parish

Sun.       Feb. 18       10:00 am      Fr. Ralph Goman

Hispanic                  2:30 pm      People of the Community

                                6:00 pm      †Jerry Mulvehill

Tues.     Feb. 20         5:30 pm     †Jeannine Zelten

Ash Wednesday

Wed.     Feb. 21       11:30 am     Our School

                                7:00 pm      Peace in Iraq

Thurs.    Feb. 22        5:30 pm      Fr. Ralph Goman

Fri.        Feb. 23         8:00 am      50th Wedding Anniversary                                               of Gene and Jane Clifford

Sat.        Feb. 24         8:00 am      Nawal Ashkar Special                                                         Intention

                                5:00 pm      †Mack Millerbernd

Sun.       Feb. 25       10:00 am      †Fr. Dennis Dunn

Hispanic                  2:30 pm      People of the Community

6:00 pm People of the Parish

 

Readings for the Week

Monday:       Sir 1:1-10; Mk 9:14-29

Tuesday:       Sir 2:1-11; Mk 9:30-37

Wednesday:  Jl 2:12-18; 2 Cor 5:20 — 6:2; Mt 6:1-6,

                     16-18

Thursday:      1 Pt 5:1-4; Mt 16:13-19

Friday:          Is 58:1-9a; Mt 9:14-15

Saturday:       Is 58:9b-14; Lk 5:27-32

Sunday:         Dt 26:4-10; Ps 91; Rom 10:8-13; Lk 4:1-13

WELCOME AND GREETINGS TO ALL 

It is Mardi Gras time!  Try to celebrate in some special way on Tuesday; end the “celebration” by midnight and be ready to enter into a simple and prayerful time during Lent.  Simplifying life in some way or ways (Lenten resolutions) allows us to be filled with the richness of the Lenten

season, to be filled by prayer and good works with the spirit of the Lord Jesus.  Check the Ash Wednesday and Lenten schedule for Mass, Stations of the Cross, simple suppers on Friday with some interesting presentations on topics valuable to our faith and our faith-life.

In today’s Scripture readings we hear one of the most familiar—and perhaps one of the most ignored—teachings of

Jesus:  LOVE YOUR ENEMIES.  Jesus does not exempt anyone from that command.  Most of us find it easy to ignore that command.  We do so even though we know we are loved unconditionally by God at all times, and we depend on that unconditional love.  But can we love that way?  Do we have to love the one who hurts us?  How about those who violate our life, our children, our property, our reputation?  How about those who terrorize our Military Service people

especially in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as those who ravage the people of those countries, who ravage the land and the forests and the air?  The list goes on for any of us.  The list goes on about the difficulty of loving so many.  How can we obey what Jesus commands?  Yet we know that not obeying is abandoning faithfulness to the Gospel.  We must pray for ourselves who are in this dilemma; we must pray about our weakness.  We must pray that we allow God and God’s ways more and more into our lives so that He becomes our strength.  We must admit our difficulty in forgiving and

loving.  We must pray that we grow in our desire and ability to love those who do evil to us and to what we value. 

When we empty ourselves in this kind of prayer, we can trust that God will fill that emptiness with his mercy and love.  That is God’s promise to us through Jesus our Savior.  Even though it is not yet Lent, the Gospel today is a

powerful message for our Lenten reflection and actions.

Have you noticed the Lenten program for soup suppers, presentations and Stations of the Cross?  Our guest presenters are very qualified as well as very interested in sharing their insights with us on some very important and current areas of our faith life.  Sign up on the bulletin board for a “reservation” for soup and the talk—or be sure to call the parish office to let us know you’re coming.  We hate to add water to the soup which we have to do if we are not aware of the number to prepare for. 

I hope to see you often in the days and weeks ahead.        —Father Ralph 

 

Saints and Special Observances

Sunday:         Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time;

                     Lunar (Chinese) New Year 4705

Monday:       Orthodox Clean Monday; Presidents’ Day

Tuesday:       Mardi Gras; Shrove Tuesday

Wednesday:  Ash Wednesday; Fast and Abstinence;

                     Almsgiving

Thursday:      The Chair of St. Peter;

                     Washington’s Birthday

Friday:          St. Polycarp; Abstinence

Am I not destroying my enemies when I make friends of them?

—Abraham Lincoln