Dear Brothers and Sisters,

As I write, it is January 24, 2008. Believe it or not Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the season of Lent, is February 6. I am addressing two things in this letter: 1)the season of Lent itself, what it is about; and 2) our Parish Pictorial Directory.

Lent: I ran across one of my old newsletter articles that contained a very brief explanation of what Lent is all about for you and me. This is the perfect time to present it again:

"Lent is a time (40 days) of turning to the Lord with our whole being. For the Catechumens this movement toward the Lord during Lent is profound. They have been preparing themselves for baptism(for union with Jesus and union with the Church, through the waters of baptism) for months. But now during Lent, as this great event approaches, their prayer life intensifies and they repent of anything that is standing in the way of this union. To help, they pray, fast, and abstain. This is truly their season.

But how about the rest of us? Those who are already baptized? Hopefully we are there supporting the Catechumens with our prayers and through word and example. But there is much more going on deep inside. Lent, this season or preparation for new birth in the waters of baptism for the Catechumens, calls us back to our own birth in the waters of baptism. It calls us back to that pristine love relationship between ourselves and God, when we became members of the Body of Christ, the Church, the Bride of Christ, and rejoiced in our new love. Everything was fresh and clean and pure.(br>

During Lent we see how far we have separated ourselves from this love-how we have distanced ourselves-how we have failed in our part of the relationship-how we have failed to love God and neighbor-how we have grown complacent, taking it all for granted-how we have not resonded to Jesus with the attention necessary to keep the relationship alive and thriving.

Then we pray. We repent. We fast. We abstain. We give alms (helping the needy). We sacrifice. We give things up. But the things we give up are merely signs of what we are giving up at a much deeper level- signs of change that is taking place in our lives- restoring that first deep live relationship with our God. Change:

Thus when the holiest days of the year arrive, the Easter Triduum (Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter) we are able to fully celebrate and rejoice in the new life, Christ's life, we share with those who are baptized at the Easter Vigil."

Parish Pictorial Directory: As most of you know we are in the process of creating a new parish directory. Many of you have already made your appointments to have your pictures taken. If you haven't you may make your appointment after Mass on weekends or through the parish office on weekdays. The last appointments will be on Feb. 23. Everyone who has their picture taken will receive a free pictorial directory and a free 8x10 photo.

The reason a parish pictorial directory is so important is that it lets us get to know our parish family by sight and by name. Very often we see our brothers and sisters serving in various ministries, groups, committees, etc.. However, because the parish is so large, we don't know how to contact one another.

Since each member is part of the Church, the Body of Christ, with gifts and talents that are to be used for the good of the entire body, it is very important that we know one another and are able to communicate with one another.(br>

A parish pictorial directory also helps our new members become familiar with our various ministries, etc., and with those of us who have been here for some time now.

All in all, the directory is a tool that we can all use to further expand our love of God and love of neighbor. Therefore making sure we are all included in our pictorial would be a very good thing for us to do during Lent.