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Reflections The Pope Meditation Liturgy Parish News

February 2016 (Year C) Vol. XIX No. 2

The Catholic Cathedral of The Immaculate Conception

Parish Bulletin

Liturgy - Relevant Websites:

Fifth Sunday of the Year — 7 February 2016 First Reading (Is 6:1-8). We hear of the call of Isaiah to the ministry of prophecy. Second Reading (1 Cor 15:1-11). Paul energetically defends the doctrine of the resurrection from the dead. Gospel (Lk 5:1-11). This tells the story of a miraculous catch of fish and the call of Peter to share in the work of Christ.

First Sunday of Lent — 14 February 2016 First Reading (Deut 26:4-10). Through the ceremony of offering the first fruits, the Israelites recognized all that God had done for them in the past, especially in the Exodus. Our worship of God is also a recognition of his favours to us. Second Reading (Rom 10:8-13). The core of the Christian credo is that Jesus is our risen Saviour. Anyone who can say that and live by it, will be saved. Gospel (Lk 4:1-13). Jesus was tempted like we are, but did not sin. Through his grace we too can resist tempta-tion and overcome sin.

Second Sunday of Lent — 21 February 2016 First Reading (Gen 15:5-12.17-18). We learn of the solemn covenant God made with Abraham which was the foundation of God’s relationship with the people of Israel. Through Christ we are the heirs to this covenant. Second Reading (Phil 3:17-4:1) Paul urges his converts to remain faithful to Christ, and promises them that one day they will share in his glory. Gospel (Lk 9:28-36). We hear Luke’s version of the transfiguration of Jesus on Mount Tabor.

Third Sunday of Lent — 28 February 2016 First Reading (Ex 3:1-8.13-15). We are shown God’s concern for his oppressed people. Second Reading (1Cor 10:1-6.10-12). What happened to the Israelites in the desert is a warning for us Christians. Gospel (Lk 13:1-9). Jesus stresses the necessity of repentance and tells the people that time is running out.

For meditation, prayer, spirituality — Bible, Prayer & Homiletic Resources (www.frtommylane.com) For on-screen prayer guidance & everyday scripture readings — Sacred Space (www.sacredspace.ie) For Lenten Liturgies — Wellspring-on-the-Web (www.wellspring.org.uk) For Bibile Study Tools — Scripture in different languages plus more (www.biblos.com) For Parish info., Parish Bulletin details, visit the Cathedral website: (www.cathedral.catholic.org.hk) or call: (852)2522-8212 or fax: (852)2521-7957 or email: cathedral@catholic.org.hk

Read the Catechism in a year : We are encouraged to study and reflect on the Catechism of the Catho-lic Church, for daily reading, subscribe for free at www.flocknote.com/catechism

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Take inspiration for your Lenten journey from the pope's message. We are encouraged to raise up the needs of the world in prayer, to sacrifice by giving up food and material wants, and to offer your time, talent and treasure as good stewards of the gifts God has given you.

"…how greatly I desire that all those places where the Church is present, especially our parishes and our communities, may be-come islands of mercy in the midst of the sea of indifference!"

— Pope Francis, message for Lent 2015...

Blessed are you, O Lord our God, the all-holy one, who gives us life and all things. As we go about our lives, the press of our duties and activities often leads us to forget your presence and your love. We fall into sin and fail to live out the responsibilities that you have entrusted to those who were baptized into your Son.

In this holy season, help us to turn our minds and hearts back to you. Lead us into sincere repentance and renew our lives with your grace. Help us to remember that we are sinners, but even more, help us to remember your loving mercy.

As we live through this Ash Wednesday, may the crosses of ashes that mark our foreheads be a reminder to us and to those we meet that we belong to your Son. May our worship and prayer and penitence this day be sustained throughout these 40 days of Lent. Bring us refreshed and renewed to the celebration of Christ’s resurrection at Easter.

We ask this through your Son, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen.

During Lent, the Church asks us to surrender ourselves to prayer and to the reading of Scripture, to fasting and to giving alms. The fasting that all do together on Fridays is but a sign of the daily Lenten discipline of individuals and households: fasting for certain periods of time, fasting from certain foods, but also fasting from other things and activities. Likewise, the giving of alms is some effort to share this world equally—not only through the distribution of money, but through the sharing of our time and talents. Contemplate the meaning and origins of the Lenten fasting tradition in this reflection.

In Lent, the baptized are called to renew their baptismal commitment as others prepare to be baptized through the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, a period of learning and discernment for individuals who have declared their desire to become Catholics.

The key to fruitful observance of these practices is to recognize their link to baptismal renewal. We are called not just to abstain from sin during Lent, but to true conversion of our hearts and minds as followers of Christ. We recall those waters in which we were baptized into Christ's death, died to sin and evil, and began new life in Christ.

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Praying for the PoPe’s Monthly intentions ( february 2016)

Universal: Care for Creation That we may take good care of creation–a gift freely given–cultivating and protecting it for future generations. Evangelization: Asia That opportunities may increase for dialogue and encounter between the Christian faith and the peoples of Asia.

God’s “Love” or “Mercy” (the words are interchangeable) is not “pity,” nor is it just “compassion or for-giveness shown towards someone whom it is within one’s power to punish or harm” (Oxford Dictionary). Mercy is a concept integral to an understanding of God’s dealings with humankind. The word “merciful” describes both a quality of God and one that God requires of his people.

The chief Hebrew (OT) term used in the Bible is hesed, which means “loving kindness.” The chief Greek term (NT) used is eleos (Latin: misericordia). The words signify solidarity, steadfastness, loyalty; and thus hesed is associated with the quality which makes another person dependable and worthy of faith. Later, the theme of God’s mercy is understood in the light of Christ, who is the supreme expression of love, mercy, and grace. In the Magnificat, Mary recalls the mercy of God, God’s hesed love, expressed in his continuing faithfulness to Israel. And 1Pt 2:10 declares, “Once you were not a people; but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.” Applied with special emphasis to the Gentile believers to remind them of their undeserved blessings, the fact is equally true of Gentiles and Jews, that people come into relationship with God only because God shows mercy to them. It is the eleos of God which moves Him to confer life in Jesus Christ (Eph 2:4; 1Pt 1:3).

In human beings, eleos comes very near agape. It is chiefly manifested in the readiness to do good and to for-give. Christians are to be channels of God’s mercy in the church and in the world. The beatitude in Matthew 5:7 indicates that showing mercy is one of the marks of holiness. The absence of mercy is a sign of unbelief

and rejection of God (Rom 1:28,31). God’s mercy is admirably and clearly displayed in the ministry of Christ. Mercy was manifested in practical help, not simply in a consoling message that God was sympathetic to their

plight. Pope Francis, in Misericordiae Vultus, writes: “Jesus Christ is the face of the Father’s mercy. These words might well sum up the mystery of the Christian faith. Mercy has become living and visible in Jesus of

Nazareth, reaching its culmination in him. We need constantly to contemplate the mystery of mercy.” Hence the need for

a daily Lectio Divina!

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Parish News

Reflect ions

14 November 2015

Fulton James Robert Meinrad

3 October 2015

Harper William Alan Huber

Lenten Practice

blessings Bless us, loving Father, with your merciful love, every day of our life. Bless us, compassionate Father, as your prodigal sons and daughters. Bless us, forgiving Father, whose mercy is boundless, and whose patience is never exhausted.

Baptism

Fast from bitterness; feast on forgiveness. Fast from self-concern; feast on compassion for others. Fast from personal anxiety; feast on eternal truth. Fast from judging others; feast on the Christ indwelling in them. Fast from emphasis on differences; feast on the unity of life. Fast from pessimism; feast on optimism. Fast from complaining; feast on appreciation. Fast from worry; feast on trust. Fast from discouragement; feast on hope. Fast from facts that depress; feast on truth that uplifts. Fast from negatives; feast on affirmatives. Fast from relenting pressures; feast on unceasing prayers. Fast from words that pollute; feast on phrases that purify. Fast from discontent; feast on gratitude. Fast from anger; feast on patience. Fast from hostility; feast on nonviolence. Fast from thoughts that weaken; feast on promises that inspire. Fast from lethargy; feast on enthusiasm. Fast from suspicion; feast on truth. Fast from idle gossip; feast on purposeful silence.