A few days before the celebration of Easter, a group of priests (me included) arrived at the local Catholic High School this morning in order to provide an opportunity for the students to celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation. There used to be a time when the children and adolescents in our schools would come to the churches to celebrate this Sacrament, but modern times, the demands placed on our time, and issues of safety and transportation have changed that practice. Also, the truth is that many of the students in our schools don't often get a chance to become familiar with the life of the Church because of the influences of individualism.
Especially during the season of Lent and as we prepare for Easter, we have an opportunity to bring the mountain to Mohammed, in an attempt to remove the barriers that might stand between the students and the opportunity to celebrate this great gift of God's mercy.
In a world which is more and more influenced by materialism, the Sacrament of Reconciliation is rarely spoken of, but the value of an opportunity to celebrate the gift of forgiveness, and to re-discover the power that this Sacrament carries left me remembering the opening scenes of Victor Hugo's masterpiece Les Misérables. Translated into many languages, this story of redemption has been transformed into a stage production and been put onscreen.
The theatre production is currently running in 42 countries across the world, and a re-release of the movie which hit theatres just a few weeks ago is testament to the fact that the story of redemption never grows old.
One of the opening scenes of the play places the main character - Jean Valjean - in the home of the local bishop. Valjean has recently been released from prison, and thus struggles with the temptation to steal, even from the bishop. When he is discovered, re-captured and brought back to the bishop, with the loot in his hands, the bishop responds by forgiving him. What's more, he presents him with two silver candlesticks (to complete the other silver he had stolen), and counselled him:
Through the witness of the martyrs, like Saint Pedro Calungsod, and the prayers of the people of faith, God waits for us to come to him ... but if by chance we should be impeded from coming toward Him, he finds ways to remove the walls; he finds ways to come to us. If Mohammed won't come to the mountain, the mountain will come to him.
Especially during the season of Lent and as we prepare for Easter, we have an opportunity to bring the mountain to Mohammed, in an attempt to remove the barriers that might stand between the students and the opportunity to celebrate this great gift of God's mercy.
In a world which is more and more influenced by materialism, the Sacrament of Reconciliation is rarely spoken of, but the value of an opportunity to celebrate the gift of forgiveness, and to re-discover the power that this Sacrament carries left me remembering the opening scenes of Victor Hugo's masterpiece Les Misérables. Translated into many languages, this story of redemption has been transformed into a stage production and been put onscreen.
The theatre production is currently running in 42 countries across the world, and a re-release of the movie which hit theatres just a few weeks ago is testament to the fact that the story of redemption never grows old.
One of the opening scenes of the play places the main character - Jean Valjean - in the home of the local bishop. Valjean has recently been released from prison, and thus struggles with the temptation to steal, even from the bishop. When he is discovered, re-captured and brought back to the bishop, with the loot in his hands, the bishop responds by forgiving him. What's more, he presents him with two silver candlesticks (to complete the other silver he had stolen), and counselled him:
... remember this my brother. See in this some higher plan. You must use this precious silver to become an honest man. By the witness of the martyrs, by the passion and the blood, God has raised you out of darkness. I have bought your soul for God.What an amazing image of redemption! God has already purchased our souls through the blood he shed on the cross. When we realize this truth, we run to Him in the sacraments. We willingly celebrate the gift of his mercy, because his love for us is infinite, and no matter how wayward we might be, he is always waiting to welcome us home.
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| Saint Pedro Calungsod |
Through the witness of the martyrs, like Saint Pedro Calungsod, and the prayers of the people of faith, God waits for us to come to him ... but if by chance we should be impeded from coming toward Him, he finds ways to remove the walls; he finds ways to come to us. If Mohammed won't come to the mountain, the mountain will come to him.
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