A Message from Fr. Jay
Dear Friends,
In this Jubilee year of Hope, we aspire for many graces of Our Lord in our personal and family lives. As I type this message, Pope Francis is still in critical health. Let us continue to pray for the Holy Father and for our Catholic Church.
I came across a story about a Bishop boarding a cruise ship. When he reached his cabin, he found out that he had to share the cabin with another person. So, the bishop went to the purser’s desk and asked with a little bit of nervousness, if he could leave his gold watch, chain and some other valuables in the ship’s safe. To ease his apprehension, he explained to the purser why he was doing it. He explained that the man in the shared cabin, did not seem to be trustworthy due to his appearance. The purser replied to him by saying, “It’s ok Bishop, I will take care of your items for you. By the way, the other roommate was also here to leave his valuables for the same reason”.
Sometimes, we carry wooden beams in our eyes but are bothered by splinters in other’s eyes. Self- discipline and morale are very important needs for bearing fruit. We need to watch what we perceive. Society around us, especially the media, tries to feed and push everyone to the pressures of evil, namely through opinion, debates, survey or commercials. In the second reading, St. Paul says, “therefore, my beloved brothers and sisters, be firm, steadfast, always fully devoted to the work of the Lord.”
We start our Lenten journey of this Jubilee year with Ash Wednesday. The Lenten season is a time of grace. Let us pay special attention during this time, to work on personal sanctification, integrity and not yield to the worldly evils and sin.
God Bless,
Fr. Jay Raju
Reading 1: Sirach 27: 4-7
Reading 2: 1 Corinthians 15: 54-58
Gospel: Luke 6: 39-45
