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Join young adults for a series of lectures at Metro 53 Bar and Restaurant, 307 East 53rd Street, between 2nd and 1st Avenues. The event is from 7pm-8:30pm.

The second lecture of 2009 is on March 2, 2009, by Fr. Dan O’Reilly, Director of University Apostolate for the Archdiocese of NY. The topic for this night is “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?” On this night, find out if you know the basic tenets of our faith and why it is so hard for Catholics to stick to those basics.

For more details, visit www.totnyc.org.

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As a participant in this program, the Church of St. Vincent Ferrer will extend its usual time for Confession from 1:00 PM to 5:30 PM on Friday, March 6.  Click the image above for other locations and times.

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When you fast, do not put on a gloomy face, like the hypocrites.

Today the Church begins her forty-day pilgrimage to Calvary.  With crosses upon our shoulders and also on our foreheads, we set out to follow Christ on his long via crucis.  Golgotha is the goal to be sure, but already we fix our eyes too on the nearby tomb that still sits empty.

The apostles were the first to walk this road with Christ.  St. Mark tells us in his Gospel that Jesus and his disciples made a long and winding journey through Galilee en route to Jerusalem.  Along the way he confounded them by retelling over and again the fate that awaited him in the Holy City: “The Son of man will be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him; and when he is killed, after three days he will rise” (9:31).  That first Lent seemed to bear little fruit for the apostles.  Only one of them stood with Christ atop Golgotha.

In our day, the Church leads us to Calvary not through Galilee but through the desert, where Christ spent forty days in prayer before bearing the rigors of his mission.  There, in anticipation of his preaching to the multitudes, the poor, humble, and hungry Christ vanquished Satan and redeemed us from the power of his deceitful tongue.  Still hallowed by Christ’s victory, the desert provides us the straightest path to Calvary.  Traveling through its ashen landscape, we receive the lush graces of Christ’s victory over temptation, which when properly received through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving transform us and free us to endure both Golgotha’s horrors and Easter’s joys.  In the desert, we are prepared by Christ to die and rise with him.

Even sensually, however, the Lenten desert is not completely barren.  A couple of years ago I wrote a short article in which I reflected on the opulent feast this season serves our eyes.  What I didn’t say then is that our ears too are treated to sensuous luxury.  Lenten hymns, and especially Lenten chant, contain some of the richest melodies of the entire liturgical year.

One of my favorite Lenten chants is the Media vita, which is the responsory to the reading proclaimed at Compline.  Sung only on the Sundays of Lent and during Holy Week, the Media vita‘s text and melody coalesce into the perfect Lenten prayer—a rich plea for salvation from the barrenness of sinful death.  Tradition has it that St. Thomas Aquinas wept in choir while singing this chant.  Listen for yourself and ponder the reason for his tears.  Was it delight?  Or fear?  Or both?  More importantly, what are the reasons for our tears this Lent?  What crosses do we carry through the desert?  And how will Christ’s victory bring us safely to the shadow of his cross and the brilliance of his tomb?

Media vita

Media vita in morte sumus: quem quaerimus adiutorem nisi te, Domine, qui pro peccatis nostris iuste irasceris? Sancte Deus, sancte fortis, sancte et misericors Salvator, amarae morti ne tradas nos.

V. Ne Proicias nos in tempore senectutis; cum defecerit virtus nostra, ne derelinquas nos, Domine. Sancte Deus . . .

[In the midst of life we are in death; of whom may we seek help but you, O Lord; who for our offenses are justly displeased? Yet, O God most holy, O holy and mighty, O holy and merciful Savior, give us not over unto bitter death.

V. Cast us not away in the time of age; forsake us not, O Lord, when our strength fails us. Yet, O God most holy . . .]

Media Vita Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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From Sr. Lucy Marie, SV, at the archdiocesan Family Life / Respect Life Office:

Join SNM New York, with Founder, Georgette Forney, on Feb 26th at which time we will be “Silent No More” as the City Council meets (the City Council will be meeting at 1pm that day).

The Silent No More Awareness Campaign is an effort to make the public aware of the devastation abortion brings to women, men, and their families. The emotional and physical pain of abortion will no longer be shrouded in secrecy and silence, but rather exposed and healed. This effort is a key to make abortion unthinkable and persuade society that women deserve better than abortion.

The NY City Council is in the process of passing the “Clinic Access Bill” (http://www.ny-archdiocese.org/news-events/news-press-releases/index.cfm?i=9668) which they say ” strengthens safeguards for women who are faced with harassment and other hostile acts as they enter and exit local reproductive health care clinics.”

In truth, it is a bill to harass anyone counseling outside of the clinics and allows any person to press charges against demonstrators and have them arrested for harassment; even clinic employees!

A couple of months ago a group of people went to testify against this bill before the city council. The council, which is extremely pro abortion, went to lunch after the pro abortion testimonies, and aside from one person did not even see fit to return to hear the pro life side.

Sr. Lucy Marie
Respect Life Coordinator
Archdiocese of New York
1011 First Ave., 7th Floor
New York, NY 10022
212-371-1011 X3192
Mon-Thurs 9:30am-4:30pm

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