March 5, 2023

Dear Friends in Christ,

I hope and pray that these early days of Lent are already touching your lives and making you more aware of the saving presence of Christ’s love. One of the spiritual disciplines which deepen that awareness for us is prayer. Lent invites us to make more time for prayer in our everyday lives. That’s a challenge for modern people who often find daily life busy and demanding. Lent invites us to make prayer a greater priority in our lives, remembering that prayer is essentially our relationship with God, nurtured by particular forms and rituals to guide us.

One simple and easily accessible prayer form is to focus on the refrain of the responsorial psalm that follows the first reading at Mass. The refrain for the second Sunday of Lent is as follows; Lord, let your mercy be on us as we place all our trust in you. (Ps. 33). These few short and easy-to-remember words, in their own simple but powerful way summarize the scriptures, prayers, and ritual actions of the entire Mass. They are rich food for thought to take with us as we leave Mass, or give us a bit of spiritual nourishment if we couldn’t make it to Mass. I encourage you to return to these words often in the coming week. They will nourish and strengthen you when you perhaps really need it.

Lord, let your mercy be on us as we place all our trust in you!

Blessings of peace,

Fr. William Heric, Pastor