Today is Palm Sunday and the beginning of the most important week of the entire year, the week we call Holy Week. Those of us who love Jesus Christ and believe in him as the Lord and Savior of our lives are so blessed by the memory of the last days of the life of the Master. Do your best to walk with Jesus these coming days as you try to schedule your time this week by being prayerful, by meditating and by attending as many of the Holy Week services as you possibly can.  We will have Mass at 7:15am on Monday and Tuesday; we will have Mass on Wednesday at 5:30pm followed by the Way of the Cross. For me, one of the most engaging and most fulfilling devotions we have as Catholics is the Stations of the Cross.  I heartily encourage you to pray the Way of the Cross at least once during these days of Holy Week. You can do the Stations here in Church or you can do them at home.  The Way of the Cross book we use here at St. Elizabeth Seton is ‘Everyone’s Way of the Cross’ by Clarence Enzler.  This Way of the Cross brings the passion and the suffering of Jesus right into our own lives and in our own struggles and personal problems that we face. Let Jesus the Savior and Teacher help you face your daily crosses with faith, hope, courage and patience.

Holy Thursday morning, we will not have a 7:15am Mass. The only morning Mass will be the Mass of the Holy Chrism at St. John’s Cathedral at 10:30am. The Mass will be celebrated by Bishop Douglas Deshotel and concelebrated by all the Priests of the Diocese of Lafayette. During this beautiful liturgy, Bishop Deshotel will bless the holy oils used in the celebration of the Sacraments throughout the coming year in the 121 Church Parishes of the Diocese of Lafayette. At this special Mass, the Bishop and all the Priests renew their priestly ordination and promises.  Priests celebrating special anniversaries will be recognized. One of our Priests, Father O’Neil Landry will observe his 70th Anniversary as a Priest and our former Bishop, Bishop Michael Jarrell, will celebrate his 50th Anniversary.  May the Lord bless all of our Priests on Holy Thursday.

On Holy Thursday, we will have the Lord’s Supper at 7pm. At that Liturgy we will remember how the Lord Jesus shared with his disciples at the Jewish Passover, how he blessed bread and wine for the first time with his disciples. The memorable words of the Master, “Do this in remembrance of me,” continue to move, inspire and empower us who believe in Jesus to share his beloved memory whenever we gather to share the Lord’s Supper. Also at the Lord’s Supper we remember how the Lord began the sacred Priesthood with his Apostles. The Priesthood of the Savior is the daily source of all the graces that are the foundation of the Church and the source of all the graces that are shared in the celebration of the Sacraments and in the rituals of our Church. How wonderfully blessed we are through the infinite graces that are ours through the sacred Priesthood of Jesus Christ who is the true, eternal, merciful and gentle High Priest.

Also on Holy Thursday at the Lord’s Supper, we have the great humble gesture of Jesus and the washing of the feet. The verses of John 13:1-17 are for us a reminder of what Jesus did as he washed the feet of his disciples. On Holy Thursday, we will have twelve parishioners participate in the ritual of the washing of the feet. All of us who believe in Jesus are called to be like our Master and our Teacher, who came to serve, not to be served.  May the powerful example of the humility of the Lord be a daily inspiration for us as we live and practice our Catholic faith within the relationships of our family and friends. May we serve one another according to the amazing and humble example of Jesus, our Teacher, Savior and Shepherd.

Our Good Friday Service will be at 3pm. During this simple service, we have readings from Isaiah and Hebrews, the reading of the Passion from the Gospel of John. Also, we have special intercessions for the whole Church, the veneration of the Cross and Holy Communion. May our hearts be open to the love of Christ that enabled him to endure his passion and death on Calvary.  As we share in the infinite mercy and the healing grace of Jesus, may we come to have a truly clean heart and a free and clear conscience.  Jesus Christ is the perfect Lamb of God who alone can take away the sins of the world – mine and yours.

My love, prayers, best wishes and gratitude to you and to your loved ones for who you are and for all you do for the Lord and for the good of St. Elizabeth Seton Church. May Holy Week be a blessed, prayerful, faithful and healing time for all of us.

SHALOM! Fr. Gary

Homework for the week of April 9 – April 15
Hebrews 4: 14
Hebrews 5: 9