By Sr. Yvonne Marie Loucks
Special to The Catholic Weekly
Pope Benedict XVI, in his message to the whole Church about the season of Lent, said, “This is a favorable time to renew our journey of faith, both as individuals and as a community, with the help of the word of God and the sacraments. This journey is one marked by prayer and sharing, silence and fasting, in anticipation of the joy of Easter.”
In the Diocese of Saginaw, we find ourselves entering into a very new journey into Lent that we have not known before. As we go through the traditional practices of giving up favorite foods, going to the Stations of the Cross and other Lenten practices, we also are walking together as a local Church into an unknown course of planning for our future, which is a far more intense and demanding form of Lent. (more…)
This is one in a series of Lenten reflections.
By Fr. Robert Byrne
Special to The Catholic Weekly
One of the most powerful moments in the liturgy on Good Friday is the showing of the Holy Cross and the repeated chant, “Behold the wood of the cross, on which hung the salvation of the world.” Everyone in the assembly is then invited to come forward and reverence the simple wooden cross, a kind of “sacrament” of the cross on which Jesus Christ died for our salvation. I am always moved by this humble expression of our belief in God’s great love for us.
Hopefully, the Good Friday liturgy is not the only time during the year that Christians remember and honor the cross and meditate on its profound meaning.
By Debbie Oglenski
The Catholic Weekly
HARBOR BEACH — To become holier today, according to Ralph Martin, we need to bring what we can to the table and let God do the rest.
The theologian talked about holiness and mission during “The Challenges of Being Catholic Today,” offered Saturday, Feb. 25, at Our Lady of Lake Huron Parish.
Martin, who also hosted the “The Choices We Face” on the Eternal Word Television Network, broke his talk into two sessions, “The Call to Holiness” and “The Call to Mission.” (more…)
This is one in a series of Lenten reflections.
By Sr. Chris Gretka
Special to The Catholic Weekly
Have you ever had a strong desire to meet a certain person? Perhaps you asked a friend to introduce you to someone at one time or another in your life. Or maybe you sought out the individual yourself.
We seek out other individuals for any number of reasons: sometimes as mentor or teacher, or sometimes as one who can perform a service for us (sell our house, help us get a job, etc). Maybe it is someone whom we admire and whose virtues we want to emulate. In other instances, we seek to meet a person because we want to join an organization, obtain funding for a project, solicit the endorsement of a group for an important cause, etc. The list could go on. In some cases when we desire to meet another, our motives are noble and in other cases they are not; we may be sincere, or we may be trying to manipulate a situation. (more…)
This is one in a series of Lenten reflections.
By Fr. Steve Gavit
Special to The Catholic Weekly
French anthropologist René Girard has done the most extensive work on the cross from an anthropological standpoint and he says it is the most important moral event in history.
Everything we do centers around the cross. It is something we are still absorbing through the centuries. We don’t quite have the full meaning of it yet, but we are slowly getting it. For example: It took 1,800 years to finally see slavery was wrong. It took 2,000 years before the equality of the sexes happened with respect to voting. It took 2,000 years before any pope (John Paul II) finally spoke out and said capital punishment is wrong. (more…)
Fr. Chester Smith talks to those attending the Saturday, Feb. 25, Black History Month workshop at St. Joseph Church in Saginaw.
By Sandra Burch
The Catholic Weekly
SAGINAW — In school, the Three Rs stand for reading, writing and ‘rithmetic. In church, according to Fr. Chester R. Smith, they stand for reshape, rebuild and reconciliation.
Fr. Smith and his twin brother, Fr. Charles A. Smith Jr., S.V.D., helped mark Black History Month at St. Joseph Parish with a visit the weekend of Feb. 25-26. (more…)
Draw strength from abstaining from what we enjoy
By Sr. Yvonne Marie Loucks
Special to The Catholic Weekly
The holy season of Lent approaches each year and a certain dread or reluctance accompanies its arrival in many Catholics.
During Lent we participate in a time of solemn fast and abstinence for 40 days, by following certain regulations concerning this form of penance. (more…)
One in a series of Lenten reflections.
Bt Fr. Andy Booms
Special to The Catholic Weekly
Some of us might be feeling like we are in the middle of a marathon. We are not yet at the mid-point of Lent’s 40 days. The increased attention we give to prayer, fasting and almsgiving can be tiring if we are running the course alone.
Our spiritual practices of Lent are meant to prepare us for the communal celebration of Easter. So we do not have to go it alone — stubbornly bearing each day of Lent as a personal test of endurance or proudly keeping track of how much time we have spent praying, fasting or giving alms. (more…)
The new leadership team for the Dominican Sisters of Grand Rapids is (from left) Srs. Sandra Delgado, Maureen Geary, Lucianne Siers and Mary Ann Barrett. Courtesy photo
GRAND RAPIDS — The Dominican Sisters of Grand Rapids have elected a new four-person leadership team to a six-year term, which takes effect Sunday, July 1.
The election was Sunday, Feb. 26, with nearly 100 sister delegates casting votes for a prioress, vicaress and two councilors.
The team is responsible for the congregation’s governance and administration. It is led by the prioress (meaning “first among equals”) as the primary authority, with the vicaress serving as the official representative in the event of the prioress’ absence. The new team, based at the 34-acre Marywood campus on Fulton Street in Grand Rapids, includes: (more…)
By Sr. Laura Hammel
Special to The Catholic Weekly
The most common question we, as members of Poor Clare Sisters, also known as Sisters of St. Clare, are asked is: “What do we do?”
“We are a community of contemplative Poor Clare Nuns.”
“And what does that mean?”