Sunday, April 17, 2011

Being Reconciled

     The season of reconciliation is quickly drawing to a close, even though the need for reconciliation in most of our lives never ends.  Lent was/is a time when we focus on our sinfulness and the mercy and forgiveness of God.   God has been most gracious to us.  Here at Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton I added a special Monday evening time during Lent for the reception of the sacrament, in addition to the regular Saturday mornings.  There were two Saturdays this Lent that I missed (funerals in one instance and the Gathering of Catholic Men in Pittsburgh on another).  I heard private confessions every Monday during Lent except for last Monday when our regional penance service was here.  In all, not counting the penance services, I heard about 80 confessions - the smallest number only two ... the highest was twenty.  This could be encouraging or disappointing.  It could mean that we have very holy people in this area.  It could mean that everyone was waiting for the services (four in our area).  It could mean that we have much work to do in educating or re-educating ourselves in the importance and need of this great sacrament.

     A good friend of mine - Mike Ripple - recently commented on his blog "pray-lium"
http://praylium.blogspot.com, on the subject of forgiveness.  Check it out.

     All to many people, both cradle catholics as well as new ones, have a strange fear of this great gift of healing and forgiveness.  I can understand some of that - I too remember the cramped, dark, scary confessionals of old and the occasional "cranky" priest.  The gentle mercy of God found in this sacrament needs to be taught and experienced, and a clearer understanding of sin and its effect in our lives needs to found.  We have our work cut out for us.  Tomorrow we celebrate Reconciliation within our Catholic school and with the last of our regional penance services at Saint Agnes.  May we be open to the power of God tomorrow, and to the grace of our Triduum journey.

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     Last Saturday I encounter Dr. Seuse in the Aquinas Academy Spring Musical and last night I met Peter Pan and Wendy and Tinkerbell and Captain Hook.  We went from the Darling Nursery in London to Neverland, in the Queen of Angels Spring Musical "Peter Pan".  I marvel at the talent in our schools and the dedicated and committed faculties and staffs, parents and families, and of course, the kids themselves.

     The thought came to mind that the popularity of the story is found in the song "I won't grow up".  There is a fascination with always being a kid, of staying young at heart, a child.  We are called to be children - of God.  BUT ... unlike Peter Pan and the Lost Boys, we must grow up.  We must lay aside childish things like pettiness, anger, jealously, spitefulness, revenge and the like.   We must grow up so that we can, as children of God, fly to heights of glory.  We need to find our "mother" not in Wendy, but in the Church.  We need to soar with the eagles, caught up in the Spirit of God.

    I am thankful to the kids at Queen of Angels for helping me realize these things once again.

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