Monthly Newspaper • DIOCESE OF BRIDGEPORT

We’ve finally made it. It’s the Triduum! These next three days are some of the most powerful, sacred days in our calendar. These are the days when our salvation was accomplished by Our Lord and Savior on the Cross! “But before his arms were outstretched between heaven and earth, to become the lasting sign of your covenant, [Jesus] desired to celebrate the Passover with his disciples” (Eucharistic Prayer for Reconciliation I). Before winning for us our salvation, Christ celebrated the Last Supper with his disciples.

Knowing full well what he was going to do the following day, Jesus sat down with the disciples to eat with them and, indeed, to feed them, for he truly is “the bread of life” and whoever comes to him “will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty” (Jn 6:35). Even those that ate of the bread from heaven, the Israelites in the desert, experience death; through the body and blood of Christ, however, we have the promise of eternal life (Jn 6:41-51).

This is the great gift of the Last Supper, which we celebrate today on Holy Thursday: the Eucharist. Jesus Christ, knowing what was to come, gave us a way in which we could have him with us forever, a way in which he could nourish us, heal us, and sanctify us. Before ascending to Heaven after his Resurrection, Jesus promises his apostles – and, indeed, each of us too – that he will be with us always, even to the end of the age (Mt 28:20). The Eucharist, instituted on this holy day, is Jesus’ way of keeping that promise to each of us.

So, tonight, when we celebrate our receiving this amazing gift of the Eucharist, let’s grow in our love for Christ, present in the Eucharist. Let’s remind ourselves of His great love for us, shown us on the Cross as well as in the Eucharist. And, after assuring that our souls are ready to receive him, let’s run to receive this incredible gift of love!

Consider Jesus in the Agony in the Garden. Weighed down with fear and anxiety, crippled with weariness and pain, He puts Himself in the one place where He can find true rest: the embrace of the Father in prayer. And Jesus cries out to the heart of His Father, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me.” Could it be that Jesus no longer accepts the will of the Father? No, this is not the divine heart that cries out for relief. It is the human heart, trapped in the crucible of sin, so full of sorrow that Jesus’ sweat turns to drops of blood.

But immediately, the Sacred Heart of Jesus erupts, “Yet, not as I will; but as you will.” This is the triumph of love! The love that flows from Jesus’ Sacred Heart is the only thing strong enough to overcome our human resistance to suffering – even suffering for the sake of redemption.

More often than not in the Gospels, we are told that Jesus prayed – but not the exact words of His prayer. When those words are given to us, we must pay close attention. In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus is showing us that when our hearts are laden with pain and suffering, we can cry out to Him and He will hear us. More importantly, Jesus proves that His love is the only thing strong enough to transform our weakness: “Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy burdened, and I will give you rest.”

In today’s Gospel, we hear Saint John’s account of Judas’s early departure from the Last Supper. Saint John remarks that, “After Judas took the morsel, Satan entered him.” Judas was tempted by the devil to derail the plan for salvation. In Blessed John Henry Newman’s Mediations on the Stations of Cross, at the Ninth Station (Jesus falls a third time), Cardinal Newman mentions the three falls of Satan: the first, being the great battle between the Archangel Michael and the devil; the second, when the Gospel and the Kingdom of Heaven are preached to world; and the third fall, at the end of time. These three falls of Satan led him to tempt Judas into betraying Jesus. As Cardinal Newman notes, “Satan knew his time was short, and thought he might use it to good effect. But little dreaming that he would be acting in behalf of the world’s redemption…”

In these final days before Easter, we need to remind ourselves of the paradox of Holy Week: only through the darkness of the Cross do we reach the light of the Resurrection. We must also remember the very thing that Judas forgot: the saving power of our Lord. Through an act of betrayal, humanity’s salvation is won. No matter what our Cross may be, what our sins against the Lord are, we should not imitate Judas with a lack of remorse, but rather be like Peter after his denial of Christ. In these final days of Lent, we should try our hardest to make a good confession to free ourselves from the bonds of death, so we can join the angels and saints in the Triumph of Easter.

And so we enter into Holy Week.  Yesterday, we celebrated Our Lord’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem, greeting Him with palms, excitement, and joy!  But today, we hear of the Lord’s servant who, like a “lamb led to the slaughter” (Is 53:7), did not cry out, who did not make His voice heard in the street.  We hear of the servant coming to establish justice on the earth who will not break a bruised reed or quench a smoldering wick (Is 42:2-4).  We hear of Christ’s burial, that Christ will not always be with us (Jn 12:7-8).  What a shift, from the triumphant entry to predictions of the Passion!

Today, we begin to shift towards Holy Week, towards the mysteries of our salvation!  And as we look forward to what is coming later this week, we should begin to prepare our hearts for these sacred mysteries.  In just a few days, we will be celebrating the institution of the priesthood and of the Eucharist.  In no time at all, our Lord’s Passion and Death will have been celebrated and we will have been reconciled to the Father.  And only three days after that, we will celebrate Our Lord’s rising from the tomb.  What a packed week!

As we transition in this week to these solemn, sacred mysteries, let’s begin to prepare our hearts.  Let’s begin to open them up to the Lord, who suffered and died for our sake, out of an incredible love.  Let’s let Jesus into our hearts in a special way this week, as we let Him into Jerusalem.  And let’s prepare to walk the Way of the Cross with Him.

Each day, two desires contest with each other within us.  The first is a desire for satisfaction, in a selfish way.  The second is a desire for purification, in a humble way.

Every instinct of our fallen human nature rebels against the idea of purification.  To the “old man,” as St Paul calls him (Eph 4:22; Col 3:9), the world seems made for enjoyment and that is why we are put into it.  I have the desire to enjoy, to be satisfied (selfishly), as Cardinal Newman wrote, and world supplies the means. The pull in this direction is strong, and it can be especially so when we are hurt, alone, or confused.

Then comes the encouragement and clarity of Christ:  “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” (Mt 5:8)  This is a divine promise:  a pure heart, a Christ-like heart will see—will possess—God…and so will be joyful.  This Beatitude summarizes the entire Gospel.  Joy follows purity of heart…a heart purified in a particular way:  by the Cross of Christ.

The faithful disciple of the Master knows that the Passion fulfills perfectly the life of the God-Man…that it is in perfect harmony with everything Jesus said and did.  That disciple knows that the Cross is Our Lord’s most vigorous expression of His philosophy of life, as Fr Edward Leen said.  Jesus did not live to please Himself.  He lived to please the Father and to give Himself to others; if we are to do the will of God as Jesus did, we should desire to please the Father by giving ourselves to others as well.

The Cross rests in the loving and good hands of Our Father in Heaven as an instrument—His chosen instrument—for the purification of the human heart.  Our joy depends not in overcoming the disorder outside of ourselves in the world—and even in the Church—but by conquering, through the grace of the Cross, the disorder inside our hearts, the disorder brought on by selfishness. (cf. Rom 7:19)

“I do as the Father has commanded me,” Jesus said.  “Rise, let us go hence.” (Jn 14:31)

Somehow we find ourselves in the fifth week of Lent, just days away from the start of Holy Week. At this point in the season, some of us are feeling worn down by our Lenten sacrifices and commitments, while others are regretting the resolutions we didn’t keep and spiritual revelations we haven’t quite reached. Nevertheless, Holy Week is beginning and in spite of the temptation to give up, slack off, or try again next year, our Lord Jesus is still patiently waiting for us to accept His invitation to go deeper in our relationship with Him. Now is the time to pray a little more each day, even if we haven’t been faithful to the standards that we set for ourselves on Ash Wednesday. We still have opportunities to die to self, to choose the good, and to unite ourselves to Christ as He journeys to Calvary.

“and Jesus wept…”

Jesus, upon finding that his friend Lazarus died, wept.  He didn’t just feel a solitary tear roll down his cheek; he didn’t just feel sad; he didn’t just cry.  Jesus wept.  The Son of God, the second person of the Blessed Trinity wept over the death of his friend, Lazarus.

Perfectly human, Jesus experienced the emotions that you and I deal with every day.  Remember his experience with the money changers in the temple?  I’d say he got pretty angry there, though he was justified, but that’s another reflection.  And here, in today’s Gospel, Jesus experiences a level of sorrow that far too many of us experience in our fallen world.

But here’s the good news in all this: we as Catholic Christians have a God who knows all too well what it means to be human.  Our God can relate to us when we experience that level of sorrow.  Jesus Christ knows what we mean when we tell Him of our heartbreak, sorrow, and all the other trials that we face in this life.

And not only does He know and understand all of these things, but He sanctifies them in Himself.  The Church Fathers very often would use the phrase, “that which is not assumed is not saved,” when speaking of Christ.  Because Jesus assumed our human nature, He has saved it; He sanctifies it.  Rather than shy away from humanity or the emotions that come with it, He took them on, experienced them in their intensity, and perfected them in Himself.

So, my friends, we have hope.  We have hope in the One who wept at the tomb for His friend.  We can trust in His incredible love for us that led Him to take on our human nature, even with all the emotions that come with it.  We can hope in Him who takes our human condition and elevates it with His grace.

So the next time you find yourself in a less-than-ideal spot, experiencing the sorrows of a fallen world, turn to the One who assumed our humanity so as to perfect and sanctify it.  Turn to Jesus.

André Escaleira, Jr.

Seminarian, Diocese of Bridgeport

Social Media Associate

As with any journey we may be on, whether a holiday trip, a much-needed vacation with family and friends, or a shopping excursion that promises to give us the best deal, we may tend to ask the question, “Are we there yet?”  The same can be true as we journey through Lent.  We start out with our final destination in mind: being in a different place than we are now by passing through Christ’s passion, death, and resurrection and utilizing the much-needed road maps of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.  And we know exactly what the final outcome will be…or do we?

What we think the outcome will be and what actually happens is truly the opportunity for conversion in us, not necessarily the final destination.  Let’s take a great example from 1 Chronicles 28:11-19, where David thought he was tasked with making arrangements to build the first temple in Jerusalem.  So he began his journey…so he thought.  God, however, had other plans and actually desired David’s son, Solomon, to build the temple.  Although this was not what David thought the final outcome of his journey would be, he accepted the role that God had assigned to him with a grateful heart and supported all those in their efforts to complete this great feat!

As our Lenten journey slowly comes to a close, are we still asking ourselves the question, “Are we there yet?” or are we allowing God to amaze us with His wonderful detours to our road map, making our final destination better than we ever could have imagined?

Rose Talbot-Babey, Coordinator of Childhood Faith Formation

“So you just…sit in your office and tweet all day?”

I have worked for the Diocese of Bridgeport for more than two wonderful years, serving an incredible Bishop, and reporting on events with enormous spiritual significance, yet I must hear this quote once a day. I don’t hold it against people. Social media is so new, so dynamic, and so immersive that many people choose either to ignore it, or to view it with outright hostility. And who can blame them? There have been times when I myself can’t stand social media – even my personal accounts are updated infrequently, because the last thing I want to do when I get home is more social media.

Though there is a lot “wrong” with social media, I believe this ministry is vital to the Catholic Church. I can sit here and cite our statistics, or examples of how social media has succeeded in our Diocese, but that still wouldn’t capture the main reason social media is so important to the Church.

In the cesspool that can be one’s Facebook or Twitter feed, there is a lot that can cause one to be anxious. Through the barrage of constant negativity, we the Church need to get our voice out there too. Yes, there are innumerable people suffering. Yes, people seem to be quick to judge these days. Yes, it seems we are divided more than ever. But there is a remedy to all of that. There is a person upon whom we can place all our sufferings, all our wants, and all our cares. His name is Jesus. His love is beyond description. And our goal is to re-introduce you to Him, one Facebook post at a time.

So yes, it is nice to sit in my office and Tweet/Facebook/Instagram/Snapchat all day for Jesus. In fact, it is the best job in the world. I have the incredible privilege to wake up every morning and speak to thousands of people about how amazing the Catholic Church is and how fortunate we are to have this fantastic Diocesan community. Every day begins with new opportunities to bring people closer to Jesus and His Church. How amazing is that?

By John Grosso
Social Media Leader, Diocese of Bridgeport

Here are the things that have consumed my heart and mind in the last week: shop; finish talk outlines; do last minute prep for our Life Teen Winter Retreat with 30 teens and 10 leaders; organize our Life Teen Pancake Dinner that feeds about 50-60 families on Mardi Gras; plan and finish details for the FOCUS Mission Trip I am directing to Colombia that starts two days after Mardi Gras!
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St. John Chrysostom in the 4th century preached, “Whenever…you see a poor believer, imagine that you behold an altar.  Whenever you meet a beggar, don’t insult him, but reverence him.”  Spiritually speaking, the poor person becomes a living altar on which we can offer our charitable sacrifices to God.

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When I was maybe eight or nine, I gave up TV for Lent. At the time, it seemed nearly impossible, and I was proud of challenging myself.

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Growing up in a Catholic family, Lent was not particularly my favorite time of year.  The idea of giving up something that I like was rather harsh in my eyes.  But as I’ve grown up, the true meaning of Lent has started to become more apparent to me.  Jesus sacrificed his entire life for the sins of every person, for you and for me, yet I can’t go 40 days without giving up ONE thing?

As I continue to grow in my faith and as I prepare for the season of Lent, I will take more time to think of the significance of sacrifice.  Most people, including me, ask the question, “What should I give up during Lent?”  The thing is, we don’t have to give something up for Lent if we don’t want to, though there is a lot of merit in that. There are so many other things that we can do during Lent, like saying an extra prayer every day, praying for a specific issue every day, or even starting a new, good habit.  For example, this Lent, I’ll be saying an extra prayer for a deeper respect for the value of human life.

So if you are not keen on the idea of giving something up for Lent, there are many other ways to sacrifice during Lent, the season of sacrifice when we begin to unite ourselves more concretely to Christ on the Cross.

By: Daniel Gardella

February 5^th was the BIG Day.  It was SUPER BOWL Sunday.  It was the opportune moment for family gatherings and fun times even if the favorite team did not reach our expectations.

So, let’s try some Monday morning quarter backing in a rather different sphere.  February, with its 28 days, invites us to get up to the line and tackle those waning cold days and snowstorms that still persist.  It directs us to step up to the line of scrimmage to see the new vistas that await us as we go forward on our daily journey with the Lord as our guide.

Think about it!  We have just left behind some joyous memories from Christmas and yet, very soon we are to delve into the Lenten season and the challenges it presents through prayer, fasting, and service.

Once again, the playing field is long and wide with Jesus as our companion.  After all, 40 days is long yardage to cover.  We require all the graces the Lord will disperse to us if only we listen attentively to his voice as he directs the play we are to follow.  Are you ready?

By: Sr. Helen Kieran, OP