News from the USCCB
Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo, President of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Releases Easter Message Encouraging Joy Over Fear  - WASHINGTON—Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo, Archbishop of Galveston-Houston and President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), has issued the following Easter message as we celebrate the joy of Christ's Resurrection.....Read More

News from the Pope:
Pope Francis to pay tribute to modern day martyrs - (Vatican Radio) Pope Francis will celebrate a Liturgy of the Word in memory of the martyrs of the 20th and 21st centuries on Easter Saturday. The commemoration is to take place in the Rome Basilica of St. Bartholomew together with members of the Community of Sant’Egidio who look after the Basilica’s Shrine to the memory of modern martyrs...Read More

News from the Church:
Niece Reflects on Sanctity of Soon-to-be-Canonized Fatima Visionaries - The niece of Blesseds Franciso and Jacinta Marto has voiced excitement for the May 13 canonization of her relatives, sharing stories of the time of the Fatima apparitions and personal memories of what it was like growing up in a family with saints among its members. “My family, my grandparents, my parents — all of us always accepted it as a gift from God,” Jacinta Pereiro Marto told CNA in an interview. “God chose my uncle and aunt because this is what he wanted, so much that my grandfather used to say that the Virgin wanted to come to Fatima, and she chose his children, but that we didn’t deserve anything,” she said.....Read more

Praised be Jesus Christ! We celebrate Divine Mercy Sunday, formerly known as “low Sunday.” Maybe you’ve been praying the beautiful novena that began on Good Friday or will be attending one of the Divine Mercy devotions offered in the area. Christ the King is hosting Divine Mercy from 1:00 until 3:00 p.m. and you’re of course invited to attend. For those who are not sure about this devotion, the Diary of Saint Faustina can be summarized by the phrase “Jesus, I trust in You.” I read the Diary during Lent in 2006 and I barely finished just before the Easter Vigil. It is a long book but very instructive in how Jesus generously reaches out to heal a broken world. The main vice of the 20th century, according to Saint Maximilian Kolbe, was indifference. One might rightly claim that the dominant vice so far for the 21st century is ignorance. For example, most do not recognize the frailty of the human condition and sadly turn to material things to numb the pain. It’s interesting to note the countless painkillers available at the omnipresent Walgreens which can be found in every town and seemingly on every corner of the bigger cities. Truly we are afraid of suffering and the world does all it can to assure us that we don’t have to. But that is not the Gospel that Jesus preached and certainly not the message conveyed to the world through St. Faustina. Her testimony reveals a God who is intimately aware of the hurts we carry and He wants to help us find redemption in offering them to Him. I think of all the pain I hear in the confessional and in counseling people and I hope I’ve been able to teach people the old tradition of “offering it up” to Jesus. So many times in our lives suffering leads us away from God because we wonder if He cares and why He’s not doing anything to help us. The offertory during Mass is when the gifts are brought to be sacrificed to the Lord and we naturally think of water, wine, hosts, and money. But there is nothing more valuable to God than our suffering. If we could lay our pain on the altar with the bread and wine, it would slowly but surely be turned into something spiritually fruitful. It is sad to hear, for example, that people going through a divorce feel ashamed and no longer feel worthy of coming to Mass. Their pain is visible to God and He wants them to unite it to His Son’s sacrifice on the altar so that He can heal them by giving them the grace of forgiveness. The crucifix is a constant reminder that we were saved by suffering; Archbishop Fulton Sheen frequently lamented that so much suffering is wasted because it is not given to God through prayer and trust in the Lord. Divine Mercy is a feast that calls us to lay our broken hearts on the altar with the firm belief that God can heal them and that we too shall rise again. You can be a part of this by being vulnerable yourself and by inviting people who are hurting in any way to come and put their trust in Jesus. Especially for the hurts that bring ongoing shame, such as any kind of abuse, addiction to pornography, alcohol or drugs, and unforgiveness – these are the hurts that lead to the deepest darkness. As the senior quote I saw years ago in a yearbook put it, “If in life you reach a hopeless end, turn to God and you’ll have an endless hope.”

Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us and on the whole world!
Your friend in Christ, Father Martin

Praised be Jesus Christ! Some years ago there was an article about a city in Turkey (Malatya) that equipped their local morgue with the latest motion detector gadgetry in case any of the bodies stored there had been declared dead by mistake. Given that today is Easter, one does wonder what such technology would have recorded had it been available the night of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. However, for those who think this would be sufficient evidence to convince our fallen world, recall Abraham’s words in Jesus’ story from the 16th chapter of Saint Luke’s Gospel: “If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if someone should rise from the dead,” (Luke 16:31). By the way, a very Blessed and Happy Easter to you and your loved ones! Because we’ve had a rigorous series on the Ten Commandments, you’ve earned a briefer column this week. Easter made the Sacraments possible because Jesus conquered sin and death by His Resurrection. Now we are blessed to be able to go to Mass every Sunday and even every day if we’re able and inclined to do so. As the great Jacques Bossuet once wrote, “Nothing is greater in the universe than Jesus Christ, and nothing is greater in Jesus Christ than His sacrifice.” Therefore, assisting at the Mass is the greatest human activity you can engage in during this lifetime. It’s too bad we fail to realize this and some of it is because even priests do not always believe it. There used to be a plaque in sacristies that priests were invited to read just before offering the Mass – it said, “Oh, priest of God, celebrate this Mass as if it were your first Mass, your last Mass, your only Mass.” Well, we priests are human and sometimes we are tired, distracted, or just not emotionally engaged. Your job is to pray for us – God knows I pray for you all the time and it’s wearing me out! Jesting aside, let me encourage you to have Masses said for your loved ones, both living or deceased. Nothing is more powerful in helping people get to Heaven than to offer a Mass for them. You can do so by calling the office and scheduling one. Keep in mind that the calendar fills quickly; we are happy to have a retired priest offer the Mass or to send them on to the missions. There is a $10.00 offering that the priest can keep or give away (many give these “stipends” away as they are taxable income). For the record, there are recommended offerings for a couple of the Sacraments: $10.00 for Baptism, and $75.00 for a Wedding Mass. These fees are put into the “Custodial Account” and are used for charitable works, such as gas and food vouchers for the needy or as donations to the Hannah Center or St. Vincent de Paul. We also use this account to help people pay for their annulments. You might be surprised at how much good your parish is doing in this community. And it all begins with the holy Mass! As G.K. Chesterton once remarked, “The Mass is long and boring, unless you really love God.”

May God bless you with the unshakeable hope of His Risen Son this Easter!
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Your friend in Christ, Father Martin 

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