ASH WEDNESDAY 2015 GOSPEL / MASS SCHEDULE

ASH WEDNESDAY

February 18, 2015

Schedule of Masses

Morning

5:30, 6:30, 7:30, 8:30 AM

Afternoon / Evening

12:15, 5:00, 6:00, 7:00 and 8:00 PM

GOSPEL [Mt 6:1-6, 16-18]

Jesus said to his disciples:

“Take care not to perform righteous deeds in order 
that people may see them; 

Otherwise, you will have no recompense from your Heavenly Father.

When you give alms, do not blow a trumpet before you, 

as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets 

to win the praise of others.

Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.

But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know 

what your right is doing, so that your alms-giving may be secret.

And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.

“When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, 

who love to stand and pray in the synagogues 

and on street corners so that others may see them.

Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward. 

But when you pray, go to your inner room, 

close the door, and pray to your Father in secret.

And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.

“When you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites.

They neglect their appearance, so that they may appear 

to others to be fasting.

Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.

But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, 

so that you may not appear to be fasting, except to your Father 

who is hidden.

And your Father who sees what is hidden will repay you.”

LENTEN 2015 MESSAGE: WE ARE WHAT WE LOVE

WE ARE WHAT WE LOVE

Are you hungry for God and do you thirst for his holiness? God wants to set our hearts ablaze with the fire of his Holy Spirit that we may share in his holiness and radiate the joy of the gospel to those around us. St. Augustine of Hippo tells us that there are two kinds of people and two kinds of love: "One is holy, the other is selfish. One is subject to God; the other endeavors to equal Him." WE ARE WHAT WE LOVE. God wants to free our hearts from all that would keep us captive to selfishness and sin. "Rend your hearts and not your garments" says the prophet Joel (Joel 2:12). The Holy Spirit is ever ready to transform our hearts and to lead us further in God's way of truth and holiness.

Why did Jesus single out prayer, fasting, and alms-giving for his disciples? The Jews considered these three as the cardinal works of the religious life. These were seen as the key signs of a pious person, the three great pillars on which the good life was based. Jesus pointed to the heart of the matter. Why do you pray, fast, and give alms? To draw attention to yourself so that others may notice and think highly of you? Or to give glory to God? The Lord warns his disciples of self-seeking glory - the preoccupation with looking good and seeking praise from others. True piety is something more than feeling good or looking holy. True piety is loving devotion to God. It is an attitude of awe, reverence, worship and obedience. It is a gift and working of the Holy Spirit that enables us to devote our lives to God with a holy desire to please him in all things (Isaiah 11:1-2).

What is the sure reward which Jesus points out to his disciples? It is communion with God our Father. In him alone we find the fulness of life, happiness, and truth. May the prayer of Augustine of Hippo, recorded in his Confessions, be our prayer this Lent: When I am completely united to you, there will be no more sorrows or trials; entirely full of you, my life will be complete. The Lord wants to renew us each day and give us new hearts of love and compassion. Do you want to grow in your love for God and for your neighbor? Seek him expectantly in prayer, with fasting, and in generous giving to those in need.

The forty days of Lent is the annual retreat of the people of God in imitation of Jesus' forty days in the wilderness. Forty is a significant number in the scriptures. Moses went to the mountain to seek the face of God for forty days in prayer and fasting. The people of Israel were in the wilderness for forty years in preparation for their entry into the promised land. Elijah fasted for forty days as he journeyed in the wilderness to the mountain of God. We are called to journey with the Lord in a special season of prayer, fasting, alms-giving, and penitence as we prepare to celebrate the feast of Easter, the Christian Passover. 

The Lord gives us spiritual food and supernatural strength to seek his face and to prepare ourselves for spiritual combat and testing. We, too, must follow in the way of the cross in order to share in the victory of Christ's death and resurrection. As we begin this holy season of testing and preparation, let's ask the Lord for a fresh outpouring of his Holy Spirit that we may grow in faith, hope, and love and embrace his will more fully in our lives.

"Lord Jesus, give me a lively faith, a firm hope, a fervent charity, and a great love of you. Take from me all lukewarmness in the meditation of your word, and dullness in prayer. Give me fervor and delight in thinking of you and your grace, and fill me with compassion for others, especially those in need, that I may respond with generosity."

A meaningful and sincere Lenten Season to you

Rev. Fr. Victor Y. Apacible

Parish Priest / Rector

NATIONAL SHRINE OF THE SACRED HEART

PILLARS OF LENT

PRAYER, FASTING, ALMSGIVING are the pillars of LENT. They are integrated parts of a whole-disciplines that pull our spirit and body together.

PRAYER is good for our souls, FASTING for our bodies and ALMSGIVING for the good of our neighbor.

PRAYER is not meant as a detachment from the world but is an integration of the Gospel message with our daily human experience. Prayer is not only vocal prayers, reading the prayers or devotional prayers. It means putting our prayers into practice.

For example read the Gospel for the day and decide what it calls you to do in relation with your neighbor, your household, your family, your workplace, and your community. It is good practice specially for Lent to spend quality time reading the Scriptures. Contemplating and reflecting on the Word of God nourishes our soul and strengthens our spirit.

FASTING OR SELF DENIAL is completed beyond the self in its reinvestment of service and ministry to others. It does not just mean giving up some kind of food or your favorite dessert or drinks or smoking during Lent.

It means going out of your way, giving up some of your time/effort/or money or going out of your comfort zone to help someone in need like visiting a friend or relative who is elderly, sick, lonely, or having difficulties. Rather than just giving up something, it must be accompanied by a positive and resolute action on one's part.

ALMSGIVING is not just a monetary paying off of our guilty conscience but a challenge to love our neighbor with unselfish concern. It means practicing the corporal works of mercy such as:

1. Feeding the hungry

2. Clothing the naked,
3. Giving drink to the thirsty,
4. Welcoming the stranger.
5. Visiting the prisoners or the sick,
6. Sheltering the homeless,
7. Burying the dead,
8. Kind acts in selfless service to others.

PILLARS OF LENT

What is the purpose of Lent one may ask? Foremost, the purpose of Lent is the intimate renewal of our baptismal vows which were acquired as a child but were not spiritually aware of.

Lent is the time to assess our faith and experience the relevance of the Life, Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ in the form of self-denial and voluntary sacrifice as it relates into our own personal life.

Lent immerses us in God, just as in Baptism, we are immersed in water to cleanse us from original sin to be reborn to a new life in the Spirit. The following three pillars of Lent puts our relationship with God ahead of pleasure, property and power.

PRAYER

Through prayer, we humbly admit our need for a power that is greater than ourselves. We acknowledge our human limitations and let go of the drive to control everything within our realm. In the process, we spiritually open ourselves to all that God offers us.

FASTING

According to St. Augustine, prayer without fasting is pale. Fasting expresses our desire to find ultimate happiness in God rather than in the satisfaction of our physical needs. The discipline and control we gain over our insatiable appetites helps to recognize the true and lasting pleasure coming from God.

Through fasting, our relationship is more focused and re-oriented towards God. Without fasting, we are full of self, in fasting God enters us. We must learn to rid self and let God in. Pope Benedict XVI describes fasting as the "detoxification of our soul from the poison of sin." Fasting brings us to doing good, cures our selfishness and promotes social justice.

On Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, fasting of one full meal only with no meat is required for every Catholics from age 18 to 59. Abstinence means no meat consumption during all Fridays of Lent.

ALMSGIVING

Again St. Augustine says that Prayer and Fasting without Almsgiving is lame. It falters, it is weak, it lacks vitality. Almsgiving helps us recognize that God is the true source of our security. It is a way of bringing our relationship into the essence of Christ's love by sharing and helping others in need. It is also an affirmation of His Commandment to love your neighbors as yourself.