Holy Week

April 04, 2020

Holy Week

Maris Stella, cover us with your mantle

St Joseph, pray for our domestic church

St. Joseph, help us make our homes holy places

Father Tommy Wells, intercede for Maryland priests.

Holy Week is next week! Let's dive into it. It is beautiful and exciting and full of opportunities. I have been thinking really hard about some things to do for Holy Week seeing that we won't be able to go to mass in person, get palm branches for our house and have that very special time on Holy Friday to pray in the church. While my "plans" might not be so spectacular here are some thoughts I had:

1. Lent: it is still Lent! I know, one more full week of lent to be courageous to face temptations with an open mind seeing them for what they are. Father Larry Swink stated in this video that temptations often appear as evil looking like good and good looking like evil and to keep that in mind. Temptations to do wrong or think wrong come in so many forms: resentment (I have the right not to forgive), hatred, impatience, selfishness, etc etc. Let's carve those cavities out like cavities rotting a tooth, and ask for healing in of our hearts and minds. Confession: if you can, go. Jesus is waiting there for you to keep you close to Him through this sacrament.

Drive through confession with social distancing.

2. The Home: Well, since churches are officially not celebrating mass in Maryland (and many other places) let's make our home the most beautiful domestic church we can. Would we fight in church? Would we let our church be dirty and disorganized? Or would we want our church to be peaceful, clean and well organized? Let's think about our home as our church and prepare it for Easter to keep Christ in it as His home. Would we want to invite Christ into a church that was plagued with hypocrisy, gossiping about others and dustbunnies? Let's get our homes ready through our hearts and minds.

Dusting off my world.

3. Our Soul: How's your soul doing? It is like a garden that needs to be tended carefully, have weeds pulled occasionally, watered and fertilized. Too much noise is like pollution that will kill the delicate flowers. Do you need more water? More sun? Have the weeds taken over? Take a look at the garden of your soul and see where it needs a little bit of care. You'll see it and even if you don't have a green thumb, you'll see a spot or two that you can invite the Gardener (Jesus) to help you work on.