Visit to Indonesia
Our missionary sisters from the Philippines are currently on a visit to Indonesia. The purpose of this visit is an information campaign in parishes and schools about our congregation and charism. The sisters went there at the invitation of Fr. Tadeusz Gruca, a Polish missionary who has been working in Indonesia for nearly 60 years. Thanks to his hospitality and great kindness, the sisters have more than two weeks of very intensive work visiting many parishes and meeting extremely kind people who help the sisters in this mission in various ways. Today (March 19) the sisters hosted a parish in Roe on the island of Flores. The church was packed and people were very interested in the sisters' message. After Mass, many people approached the sisters asking and inviting the sisters to stay in their parish. It was a profound experience for our missionaries. Tomorrow they move on to the next diocese for more meetings. Please pray for their mission and for the people they meet with.
Sunday 19 March
4th Sunday of Lent (Laetare Sunday) First reading - 1 Samuel 16:1,6-7,10-13 “God does not see as man sees: man looks at appearances but the Lord looks at the heart”. How wonderful this is! The Lord looks at the heart and not at appearances. Imagine, how much time we spent to make our appearances appealing to others. In many circumstances, our only worry is about the judgement of others. The Lord looks at the heart because it is through the heart He works. We can become His instruments only if our heart permits Him to work through us. In the reading we read, after the anointing “the spirit of the Lord seized on David and stayed with him from that day on”. That is what happens when our heart is ready for the Lord. The Lord seizes on us and works through us. So, let’s prepare our heart in humility, in caring the other, in looking after the weak. Our heart becomes ready to the Lord when we try to love, when we love. The capacity to love is the capacity of the heart to be an instrument of the Lord. This we understand when we see as God sees and not as men see. Let’s reflect: Lent calls us to see as God sees us and others.
Saturday 18 March
Saturday of the 3rd week of Lent Saint Cyril of Jerusalem, Bishop, Doctor First reading - Hosea 5:15-6:6 “what I want is love, not sacrifice; knowledge of God, not holocausts”. We can know the Lord when we set ourselves to know the Lord. “Let us set ourselves to know the Lord; that he will come is as certain as the dawn his judgement will rise like the light, he will come to us as showers come, like spring rains watering the earth”. The first step before knowing the Lord is the faith that He will let Himself known to us. The certainty that Lord will help us to know Him. This certainty is the steppingstone to know him more. Before His certainty we fill find our uncertainties. “This love of yours is like a morning cloud, like the dew that quickly disappears”. Our love is a passing love, and we try to compensate our passing love with the sacrifices. That is why the Lord is saying, ““what I want is love, not sacrifice; knowledge of God, not holocausts”. The Lord wants our love and not our meaningless devotions which we do to compensate our uncertainties. The knowledge of God is better than rituals because knowledge of God results from relationship, whereas the rituals could be an expression of our selfishness. God can be related to only by love and not by rituals. Let’s reflect: Lent is relating with God in love and not with rituals.