Adult Initiation & Sacrament Preparation

February 2nd is the date chosen by the Church to celebrate the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord.  Since this date falls on a Sunday this year, we take a break from our readings for Ordinary Time to celebrate with these special readings: The Word for the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord Malachi 3:1-4 Psalm 24:7, 8, 9, 10 Hebrews 2:14-18 Luke 2:22-40 or Luke 2:22-32 While the Catholic Church today refers to this day as the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, traditionally it has also been called the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple, Candlemas, the Feast of the Purification of the Virgin, and the Meeting of the Lord.  Prior to the Second Vatican Council, Candlemas was a time where beeswax candles were blessed for use throughout the year.  Today the celebration focuses more on the prophecy of Simeon, and Pope John Paul II chose it as a time for renewal of religious vows (not to be confused with priestly renewal of vows, which usually takes place on Holy Thursd...

As we near the end of the Liturgical year the church takes a pause to focus on the most basic of questions:  “what’s all this for anyway?”  The simple answer is, eternal life… but to me that answer is kind of a cop-out, because life itself is rarely simple, especially when you consider that our lives our played out in the context of our environment.  For some people, that environment is so difficult that all hope can be lost.  It is out of that reality that divine justice is best understood:  That all will be made right in the end. The Word for the 33rd Sunday of Ordinary Time Malachi 3:19-20a Psalm 98:5-6, 7-8, 9 2 Thessalonians 3:7-12 Luke 21:5-19 This week’s readings continue our topic of the afterlife, reminding us that God, the just judge, will make everything right in the end.  Those who do evil in this life will be destroyed, and those that are on the side of light will be saved.  , Starting with a short reading from the prophet Malach...