Judy Principe

As I grasped the humeral veil and prayed silently from my heart, I felt motionless, overcome by the presence and power of the Lord in the Eucharist.

What I need now from God is the grace to come to terms with the inevitability of pain and suffering, and the challenges of aging. I need infinite patience with myself and my current physical ineptness.

This Lent, consider your own "fasting-feasting" program. What is it you want to do, or be? What do you need to feast on to accomplish that? What is it you want to let go of, or change? What may you need to fast from?

I lost my beloved pet Chloe on Oct. 27, 2021, but she is alive and well in the lessons she taught me. With gratitude to her and to God for the blessing of Chloe, I would like to share those lessons with you.

As I prepared for Pentecost, I asked: How is the Holy Spirit enlightening, guiding and strengthening me to live a Christian life of love and unity when I feel so many forces pulling me away from doing just that?

Sacramental ashes are only an outward sign to remind me of its deeper purpose and meaning: my need for renewal, repentance, conversion and transformation through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.

As I contemplated poor Scrooge and his sad life as revealed by the spirits, I began to see how he suffers from himself, ignorant of want and need in others, while coveting his money and all he thinks will make him happy.