Today is not just the 5th Sunday of Lent. It is also a different kind of Sunday; the First Sunday of COVID-19 when the doors of the church are closed and thus, not open to the public for private prayer. I will be saying Mass by myself and will keep you in my thoughts and prayer.
Each of us knows that the world is such a different place as to what it was last year. Staying at home and maintaining a physical distancing has become a new mode of life. While this might not be the way many of us used to live our lives, this new mode of life, however, provides an opportunity for each individual to keep up with our private prayer.
Private prayer is not necessarily easy or comfortable, as it may strip away busyness and entertainment. In private prayer one is confronted with oneself; one’s thoughts, voices, temptations, fantasies, all that one is and all that one is not.
Yet, private prayer is an opportunity of repentance, turning around and going in a different direction, an invitation to reflect upon life, to be thankful, to never take for granted anything that life has provided, to learn to gracefully appreciate everything, even the lowly toilet paper and sanitizers that have suddenly become an important commodity, in fact, as important as visas and banknotes.
This way of finding and worshipping God is evident in the Scriptures. Elijah found God in “a sound of sheer silence” (1 Kings 19:12). Jesus often went off to be by himself, to a lonely and deserted place, to pray (For example, Mark 1:35).
As we pray privately and watch live Mass in our different homes, may we also ponder on the words of the psalmist “For God alone my soul in silence waits” (Psalm 62:1, 6), as it truly reveals the truth of our human existence; the fact that our sufficiency is not found within ourselves but in God alone, the One who created us in His own image and likeness, the One who called Lazarus, as we heard in today’s gospel, back to life and asked him to come towards Him.
May we keep in mind that the practice of private prayer is also an act of self-offering, of showing up and making oneself available to God and resting in Him. It is my hope that our private prayer becomes the place and space from which the creative voice speaks to us in this challenging time. Have a blessed week
Mass Times & Intentions 29th March – 5th April
Sunday: 5th Sunday of Lent
Tuesday: Lent Feria
Wednesday: Lent Feria
Thursday: Lent Feria
Friday: Lent Feria
Saturday: Lent Feria
Sunday: Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord
For Office Hours, please consider using the telephone. While we must all support each other in these times, we must also try and do our part in lessening the spread of this disease.
Due to the current health situation the Buntingford Christian Meditation Group is now having their meetings online instead of meeting in person. This takes place on MONDAY and FRIDAY evenings 8pm – 9pm. Everyone welcome. No previous experience needed. The details of how to logon and join the meetings (using the Zoom on-line meeting platform) will be on the website: www.buntingfordmeditation.com
Sunday 29th March 2020: Rededication of England as the Dowry of Mary
We are inviting you to take part in the Rededication wherever you are. They will be led by our Bishops and priests across the country through the internet. Check your Diocesan and parish websites for timings so that you can be united with our Bishops and priests in prayer at this time.
At the National Shrine of Our Lady in Walsingham, the Rededication will take place at noon, at the beginning of our midday Pilgrim Mass which will be livestreamed. To find out more about the Rededication and to download the prayers visit www.walsingham.org.uk/rededication.