A Letter from Fr. Paul - Sunday, March 26th

Our first reading is a selection from Ezekiel’s vision of the “dry bones.”  He was writing during the Babylonian captivity, when things looked very bleak for the Jewish people.  They were captives in a foreign land, Jerusalem and the temple had been destroyed, and there seemed to be no way forward.  They had broken the covenant with God and this was their punishment.

In the vision, God led Ezekiel out into a huge plain filled with dry bones. The bones started to move, rattling like thunder, and joined together.  Then they were covered with sinews, followed by flesh, and finally skin.  But they were lifeless until the breath of God entered them, giving them life, as God had breathed life into Adam. The point was that they should have hope, that God would breathe life back into them, despite the direness of their situation. That is what happened: eventually they were able to return to their 
homeland, rebuild Jerusalem and the temple, and become a nation again.

The message to us is to trust in God’s goodness and mercy, no matter what we have done or how dire things might seem to us. God loves us, wants the best for us, and offers us forgiveness.  God’s forgiveness is always there: we just have to accept it. 

Lent is a special time in which we are invited to turn back to God, accepting His love and forgiveness.  He is always ready to breathe life back into our dry bones.  A special opportunity is Tuesday, March 28th.  We will have a communal reconciliation service at 7:00 pm, with three priests available for individual confession.  If that does not work for you, on Wednesday, March 29th, confessions will be held at St. Margaret Mary parish from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm. I will be one of the priests hearing confessions from 2:00 to 4:00 pm.

We are soon entering into our remembrance of the suffering, death, and resurrection of the Son of God, actions that clearly demonstrated that He loves us and wants us to be close to Him.  I urge you to avail yourself of one of these opportunities to allow God to breathe life back into any dry bones. God bless.

Church sign of the week: Please don’t say mean things about yourself. That’s God’s child you’re talking about.