BIG C CATHOLICS

March 1, 2017  "Remember that thou art dust, and to dust thou shalt return." On Ash Wednesday, Catholics receive ashes in the shape of a cross traced on the forehead. The rite evokes Saint Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians: "For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." (1 Corinthians 15: 21 - 22) Adam’s sin condemned man to sin and death. But the instrument of our salvation, the cross, reminds us that in Christ, man is redeemed and the gates of heaven are opened. The original injunction conferring ashes: "Remember, O man, that dust thou art, and to dust thou shalt return," contrasts with the words of the Nicene Creed concerning the Incarnation: "For us men and for our salvation, he [Jesus] came down from heaven: by the power of the Holy Spirit he was born of the Virgin Mary, and became man." In becoming man, Christ assumed our iniquities: offering ...

With Lent just hours away, let us reflect on our lives as disciples of Christ and as members of His mystical body that is the Church on earth. Anyone old enough to remember the election of Pope Saint John Paul II, nearly forty years ago, can recall a Church markedly different from that of today. Growing up in a small New England town, I was blessed to have four native born priests in residence on the alter celebrating Mass each Saturday night. At present, that same parish is administered by a single pastor who is also responsible for the sacramental life of two additional Churches nearby. This is now the norm throughout the diocese. The future priest shortage predicted in the 1970’s and 80’s has come to pass in many dioceses in the United States. Moreover, the forces of secularization, like attacks on Christianity and individual Christians, increase on a daily basis. This Lent, we as Catholics must confront a post-Christian America where-in our Faith and beliefs are persecuted, ...

Here, for your consideration, is our annual compilation of ways to observe the season of Lent. Lent is a time of enormous grace and spiritual renewal. It is a period of solemnity, reflection and repentance in the weeks leading up to Holy Week and the commemoration of Christ’s Passion and Death. Our prayerful sacrifice is a reminder of the self-sacrifice Jesus made to save us from our sins. During Lent, we are called to pray, fast give alms and study the ways of God. 1.) Read Sacred Scripture. 2.) Read spiritual/religious literature for fifteen minutes. 3.) Spend ten minutes in silence. 4.) Pray the rosary. 5.) Pray the Stations of the Cross. 6.) Say the Divine Mercy Chaplet every Friday during Lent. 7.) Attend Mass daily or go once or twice during the week besides Sunday. 8.) Pray a novena celebrating a Lent related saint or event. 9.) Give up dessert. 10.). Go to Confession. 11.) Give up alcohol. 12.) Give up or cut down on coffee, tea or soda. 13.) Gi...

From its earliest days, the Church has urged the baptized and catechumens to observe the threefold discipline of fasting, almsgiving, and prayer as a preparation for the celebration of Easter. Failure to observe individual days of penance is not considered serious, but failure to observe penitential days (Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, and all Fridays of Lent) must be considered serious. The penitential season of Lent begins this year on Ash Wednesday, March 1st. The sixth Sunday of Lent, April 9th, marks the beginning of Holy Week and is known as Passion (or Palm) Sunday. Lenten Regulations are summarized as follows: Abstinence: Abstinence from meat is to be observed on Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, and all the Fridays of Lent by all Catholics 14 years of age and older. It should be noted also that “the Fridays of the year outside of Lent remain days of penance, but each individual may substitute for the traditional abstinence from meat some other practice of voluntary self-denial...

Crucifixion of Jesus icon, Moldovita Monastery, Moldavia, Romania. The First Sunday of Lent, March 5, 2011 By Father Bernard Bourgeois Genesis 2:7-9, 3:1-7; Psalm 51; Romans 5:12-19; Matthew 4:1-11 What are your memories of Lent? Are they of Friday fish sticks, Stations of the Cross, or purple vestments? How about the sacrament of reconciliation? Maybe any or all of these make you think of Lent and its call to holiness. And that’s what Lent really is! It is a call to holiness and a deepening of the unity between the disciple and Jesus. Ultimately the goal of any prayer or liturgical season is unity with Christ, as much as possible while here on earth, and in its fullness in eternal life. Lent is a period of retreat. In it, the faithful are called to walk the path of the suffering and death of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. The second reading for this Sunday (see above) reminds the Church of the focus of Lent. Paul, in his letter to the Romans, says the follow...

Flocknote is offering both daily Lenten text messages and daily Lenten emails leading up to Easter this year! Each day you'll either learn something new about Lent or you'll get a tip or challenge that will make your Lent better. Many readers have benefited from Flocknote's offerings. To sign up go HERE . O gracious Master, infuse in our hearts the spotless light of Your Divine Wisdom and open the eyes of our mind that we may understand the teachings of Your Gospel. Instill in us also the fear of Your blessed commandments, so that having curbed all carnal desires, we may lead a spiritual life, both thinking and doing everything to please You. For You, O Christ, our God, are the enlightenment of our souls and bodies; and to You we render glory, together with Your eternal Father, and with Your all holy, life-creating Spirit, both now and forever. Amen.

Today it is not enough for men and women to be good. Moreover, whoever is content to be nearly good, is not good enough. It is necessary to be 'revolutionary'. Faced by hedonism, faced by the pagan and materialistic wares that we are being offered, Christ wants objectors! - rebels of Love! — St. Josemaria Escriva O God, through the mediation of Mary our Mother, you granted your priest Saint Josemaría countless graces, choosing him as a most faithful instrument to found Opus Dei , a way of sanctification in daily service and in the fulfillment of the Christian's ordinary duties. Grant that I may learn to turn all the circumstances and events of my life into occasions of loving You and serving the Church, the Pope and all souls with joy and simplicity, lighting up the pathways of this earth with faith, hope and love, and living each moment in imitation of Christ. Amen.

Christ Reproving the Pharisees , James Tissot, c. 1890. Fr. Charles Irvin Senior Priest Diocese of Lansing ( Click here for today’s readings ) When we give someone a gift at Christmas, or at a birthday party or anniversary event, we call it a present. Why? Because you are close to that person, that friend, that loved one. Your presence is contained within your gift, your present. When you twitter someone with a tweet, or e-mail that person, you are present to them. When you send someone a hand-written letter you are more personally present than you are when you tweet them. I suppose that’s because sending a letter in your own handwriting requires more effort than reaching you friend or loved one with a few electronic bytes. Isn’t a handwritten letter more personal than an electronic note? Also, there are types of closeness. Think, for instance, of the differences between shaking hands, holding hands, and kissing someone. The qualities of closeness and of presence d...

Attention Big C Catholics readers. We recently received from Pray More Novenas, the following announcement which we submit for your consideration.  *********************************** The Pray More Lenten Retreat is coming up (Lent starts in one week!), and we wanted to let you know more about it... The Pray More Lenten Retreat is an online retreat to help you spend more time in prayer this Lent to prepare to commemorate our Lord's Passion, His Death and Resurrection at Easter. If you sign up for the retreat, you will receive: + 20 Video & Audio Presentations with Transcripts, and + 20 Reflective Study Guides - one for each talk We know how busy you are :) That's why the retreat is self-paced; that means you can watch, listen or read the presentations whenever you have the time to do it. We hope the Pray More Lenten Retreat will help you intentionally work on your prayer life this Lent — wherever you are, and whenever you have the time. The talks a...

As we look forward to the season of repentance and renewal that is Lent, may we live in full the words Saint Ephraim beautifully expressed in his Lenten prayer. O Lord and Master of my life, take from me the spirit of sloth, faintheartedness, lust of power, and idle talk. But give rather the spirit of chastity, humility, patience and love to your servant. Yea, O Lord and King, grant me to see my own sin and not to judge my brother, for You are blessed from all ages to all ages. Amen. Pour into our hearts O Lord, we pray, the Holy Spirit, at whose prompting the Deacon Saint Ephrem exulted in singing of your mysteries and from whom he received the strength and fortitude to serve you and you alone. We ask this in trustful humility through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Ash Wednesday, March 1, 2017 By Father Bernard Bourgeois Joel 2:12-18; Psalm 51; 2 Corinthians 5:20–6:2; Matthew 6:51-6, 16-18 " Rend your hearts, not your garments,  and return to the Lord, your God ." (Joel 2:13)  Ash Wednesday is one of the most significant religious holidays of the year. The faithful will come to church in great numbers to receive ashes on their foreheads. “Remember you are from dust and unto dust you shall return.” These will be the words of the priest or minister as ashes are drawn in the form of a cross on each person. In the heart of the cold of winter, these stark words will draw people from the warmth of their beds and homes. Ash Wednesday inspires more people to come to Mass than many other religious holidays. Why is Ash Wednesday such a draw for so many people? Christians need to hear these words and feel the ashes on their foreheads from time to time. This sacramental is the reminder that each person is in need of redemption...

February’s Catholic blog of note is Catholic Preaching . Its information and insights emanate from the mind of Father Roger J. Landry, a priest of the Diocese of Fall River, Massachusetts, who works for the Holy See’s Permanent Observer Mission to the United Nations. Father's priestly formation is detailed on the "About" page: "After receiving a biology degree from Harvard College, he studied for the priesthood in Maryland, Toronto and for several years in Rome. After being ordained a Catholic priest of the Diocese of Fall River by Bishop Sean O’Malley, OFM Cap. on June 26, 1999, he returned to Rome to complete graduate work in Moral Theology and Bioethics at the John Paul II Institute for Marriage and Family. Fr. Landry writes for many Catholic publications, including The National Catholic Register and The Anchor , the weekly newspaper of the Diocese of Fall River, for which he was the executive editor and editorial writer from 2005-2012." Visitors to C...

"Today, having a clear faith based on the Creed of the Church is often labeled as fundamentalism. Whereas relativism, that is, letting oneself be 'tossed here and there, carried about by every wind of doctrine', seems the only attitude that can cope with modern times. We are building a dictatorship of relativism that does not recognize anything as definitive and whose ultimate goal consists solely of one's own ego and desires. We, however, have a different goal: the Son of God, the true man. He is the measure of true humanism. An 'adult' faith is not a faith that follows the trends of fashion and the latest novelty; a mature adult faith is deeply rooted in friendship with Christ. It is this friendship that opens us up to all that is good and gives us a criterion by which to distinguish the true from the false, and deceit from truth." From the homily of Card. Joseph Ratzinger at the Mass for the Election of the Roman Pontiff ( Pro Eligendo Romano Pon...

"When the pyre was ready, Polycarp took off all his clothes and loosened his under-garment. He made an effort also to remove his shoes, though he had been unaccustomed to this, for the faithful always vied with each other in their haste to touch his body. Even before his martyrdom he had received every mark of honor in tribute to his holiness of life. There and then he was surrounded by the material for the pyre. When they tried to fasten him also with nails, he said: 'Leave me as I am. The one who gives me strength to endure the fire will also give me strength to stay quite still on the pyre, even without the precaution of your nails.' So they did not fix him to the pyre with nails but only fastened him instead. Bound as he was, with hands behind his back, he stood like a mighty ram, chosen out for sacrifice from a great flock, a worthy victim made ready to be offered to God. Looking up to heaven, he said: 'Lord, almighty God, Father of your beloved and blessed...

February 23th, the Church celebrates the optional memorial of Saint Polycarp (69 – 155 AD), the 1st century bishop, martyr and renowned Apostolic Father. Polycarp was widely venerated largely through the accounts of his heroic martyrdom as recorded by the Church in Smyrna. Tradition holds he was born a pagan before being befriended by Saint John the Apostle and Evangelist who catechized Polycarp in the Faith. As Bishop of Smyrna, (a city in Turkey) Polycarp defended orthodoxy and was a staunch opponent of heresy, most notably the Gnostic sects of Marcionism and Valentinianism. He is honored in both the Eastern and Western Church as one of the three chief Apostolic Fathers (together with Saint Clement of Rome and Saint Ignatius of Antioch). His pupil Saint Irenaeus of Lyons praised his personal holiness and great devotion to God. Some scholars contend that Polycarp may have been responsible for compiling, editing and publishing the New Testament. Whatever the case, there is no doubt...

Detail, The Sermon on the Mount , William Brassey Hole, c. 1900. Fr. Charles Irvin Senior Priest Diocese of Lansing ( Click here for today’s readings ) Today’s scripture readings provoke the question: What kind of God is God? Who among us has not pondered the answer to that question? What do we expect God to do for us? As revealing as the answer may be, a further question arises: What does God expect of us? More often than not we don’t want to even begin to answer that one. Nevertheless in moments when we do take time to reflect on life’s bigger questions we ought to face it. Where do we place our trust — in God or in material comforts and success? To what or to whom do I give my heart? Jesus who well knows the human heart clearly warns us that where our treasure is, there we will know what is in our hearts. The danger to our hearts and to our eternal life with God in heaven lies in our ensnarement in the values of this world –power, wealth, fame, and the glitter of...

The Cathedra Petri (Chair of Peter) in the apse of Saint Peter's Basilica. On February 22nd, the Church celebrates the feast of the Chair of Saint Peter during which we remember the papacy and Saint Peter as the first bishop of Rome. This feast recalls Christ giving Peter the special mission of teacher and pastor, an office that has continued across time to the present Pope, Francis. We acknowledge the unity of the Church, founded upon the Apostle Peter, and renew our faithfulness to the Magisterium of the Roman Pontiff, extended both to truths defined ex cathedra , and to all the decrees of the ordinary Magisterium. In Caesarea Philippi, following Peter's profession of faith that Jesus was the Messiah, [Matthew 16: 13-20] Christ declares to Peter: [Y]ou are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heav...

Saint Peter Damian was an 11th century reformer Benedictine monk, cardinal and scholar who advised Pope Leo IX. He was prayerfully pious and strident in his defense of orthodoxy. He observed that "when you spurn this life and its wisdom, you may deserve by happy exchange to be filled with the divine Spirit, who will urge you on to eternal glory." Here is a selection of his wisdom in 12 quotes. Through a woman [Eve] a curse fell upon the earth; through a woman [Mary] as well there returned to the earth a blessing. *** I scourge both flesh and spirit because I know that I have offended in both flesh and spirit. *** And what more should I say since it expels the whole host of the virtues from the chamber of the human heart and introduces every barbarous vice as if the bolts of the doors were pulled out. *** Truly, this vice is never to be compared with any other vice because it surpasses the enormity of all vices.... It defiles everything, stains everything, p...

Please remember the Holy Father Pope Francis' intentions in prayer throughout the month of March: Support for Persecuted Christians. That persecuted Christians may be supported by the prayers and material help of the whole Church. Urgent Intention  For the Pope: “I ask, please, for your prayers for me and my collaborators, who until Friday (3/10) will be on retreat.” -Pope Francis Beginning in 2017, the Pope will present one monthly intention, rather than two. Should an urgent need arise, an additional intention may be added.

The following commentary is excerpted from The Fifty-Eighth Treatise of Saint Peter Damian entitled: Concerning True Happiness and Wisdom, Chapter 6. "And so, beloved, if you cannot yet be content with the life of the spirit alone as your only bride, but are held bound by the evil caresses and allurements of life in the world, at least let the love of everlasting life hold first place in the household of your heart, as befits the first-born; and let concern for earthly things be in a place of subjection, as an inferior to be kept in check. In the Song of Songs [Chapter 2:6] it is said: 'His left hand is under my head, and his right hand doth embrace me.' Now the left hand is said to be under the head when this life is scorned and despised by the mind, which is the head and source of our thoughts. He is held in the embrace of the right hand who at all times takes pleasure in longing for eternal life alone. And because Solomon also says: 'Give a portion to seven a...

An earlier post included this quote from Pope Pius XI in part. Below are the Holy Father's words in their entirety. As Pius XI notes, the Eucharist abounds in grace. "When Christ manifested Himself to Margaret Mary, and declared to her the infinitude of His love, at the same time, in the manner of a mourner, He complained that so many and such great injuries were done to Him by ungrateful men — and we would that these words in which He made this complaint were fixed in the minds of the faithful, and were never blotted out by oblivion: 'Behold this Heart' — He said — 'which has loved men so much and has loaded them with all benefits, and for this boundless love has had no return but neglect, and contumely, and this often from those who were bound by a debt and duty of more special love.' In order that these faults might be washed away, He then recommended several things to be done, and in particular the following as most pleasing to Himself, namely that men...

On February 21st, the Church celebrates the optional memorial of Saint Peter Damian (1007-72), the reforming bishop and cardinal who lived as an ascetic hermit, scholar and advisor to popes. Although the austerities that St. Peter Damian undertook during his life in the 11th century may seem extreme to us in the 21st, they nonetheless prepared him to be one of the great reformers of the Church in an era when it took great holiness and strength of character to prevail against the status quo. He was born in the city of Ravenna, Italy, in the year 1007, and lost both his parents while still a young boy. He was brought in by an older brother who, unfortunately, treated him more like a slave in his household than a member of the family. Fortunately, Peter's brother, the arch-priest of Ravenna, took pity on him and took him into his own household. There, he made sure his younger sibling attended good schools, and Peter, who proved to be an apt student, would became a professor of tre...

February 20th, dioceses in Portugal celebrate the feast of Blesseds Francisco, 11, and Jacinta, 10, the youngest non-martyrs to be beatified in the Church's history. The brother and sister, who tended their families’ sheep herds together with their cousin Lucia Santo in Fatima, Portugal, witnessed apparitions of Mary, known as Our Lady of Fatima. Our Lady urged man to pray the rosary and to return to God. Between May 13 and October 13, 1917, three children, Portuguese shepherds from Aljustrel, received apparitions of Our Lady at Cova da Iria, near Fatima, a city 110 miles north of Lisbon. At that time, Europe was involved in an extremely bloody war. Portugal itself was in political turmoil, having overthrown its monarchy in 1910; the government disbanded religious organizations soon after. At the first appearance, Mary asked the children to return to that spot on the thirteenth of each month for the next six months. She also asked them to learn to read and write and to pray ...

Clockwise from L to R: Pope Pius XI, Pope Paul VI, Pope St. John XXIII and Pope St. Pius X. The Eucharist is the Real Presence of Jesus Christ, His Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity. If not for the Incarnation, there could be no Eucharist. In the words of Servant of God Father John Hardon: "We are to believe that the Eucharist is Jesus Christ - simply, without qualification. It is God become man in the fullness of His divine nature, in the fullness of His human nature, in the fullness of His body and soul, in the fullness of everything that makes Jesus Jesus. He is in the Eucharist with His human mind and will united with the Divinity… That is what our Catholic Faith demands of us… If we believe this, we are Catholic. If we do not, we are not, no matter what people may think we are." Below are quotes on the Most Holy Eucharist, the source and summit of our Faith, from 20th century pontiffs. The faith of the Church is this: That one and identical is the Word of God an...

The Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time, February 26, 2017 By Father Bernard Bourgeois Leviticus 19:1, 2, 17, 18; Psalm 103; 1 Corinthians 3:16-23; Matthew 6:24-34 "But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides." (Mt 6:33) Originally published, February 2011 As I sit to write this column, it is New Year’s Day. What will this year bring? Like everyone who is reading this column, I am a natural worrier. I spend a lot of time and energy worrying about things over which I have little if any control. As a Catholic high school principal, I worry about budgets, enrollment, staffing, strategic planning, and a host of other issues that at times overwhelm me. You who are reading this column can make your own list of issues that worry you. I am sure that primary among your concerns would be employment, the economy, your children and their needs and decisions, and whatever else. Before reading further, it mi...