Bishop Solis' Lenten Message

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Greetings of Christ’s peace and love! Ash Wednesday, which is Feb. 22 this year, ushers in the beginning of Lent, when we embark on a 40-day spiritual journey with Christ leading us through the celebration of his Passion, death and resurrection. This is a time to reflect on our lives, our relationship with God, and our salvation.

Pope Francis beautifully describes Lent in one of his messages as “a new beginning, a path leading to the certain goal of Easter, of Christ’s victory over death.”

He further said this season urgently calls us to conversion. Christians are asked to return to God “with all their hearts. … Jesus is the faithful friend who never abandons us. Even when we sin, he patiently awaits our return; by that patient expectation, he shows us his readiness to forgive.” He further said this season urgently calls us to conversion. Christians are asked to return to God “with all their hearts. …  Jesus is the faithful friend who never abandons us. Even when we sin, he patiently awaits our return; by that patient expectation, he shows us his readiness to forgive.” (Lent 2017)

Ash Wednesday signals the call for our faith renewal, in the words of the prophet Joel, to “return to the Lord with all our heart” (2:12). The ashes from the palms blessed at last year’s Passion Sunday, a celebration leading to Jesus’ death and resurrection, express our repentance for our sins; that repentance opens the door to our reconciliation with God and his gift of newness of life won by Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross. The words “Remember, you are dust and to dust you shall return,” said while our foreheads are marked with ashes, are a reminder that we are just humble mortal beings, and death is part of our existence, which gives us a sense of urgency. There is no time for procrastination; we need to act now.

Repentance and conversion of heart are not easy. The Church’s Lenten disciplines of prayer, fasting and almsgiving are wonderful means to strengthen our resolve to overcome sinful desires, to turn our hearts more to God and less on ourselves. That is why our Holy Mother Church invites us to put more of our attention on the cross of Christ, the sign of God’s infinite and unconditional love, to remind us that again and again, in spite of our sins, there is hope in our salvation.

The world may think this is unbelievable; it is too good to be true that God would die for us sinners, who are worthless dust of the earth. But we are truly precious in his eyes. He loves us no matter what. Even when we fall flat on our faces because of our sins, God does not push us away, nor even think less of us. Rather, he picks us up, dusts us off and assures us that his only desire is that we rise and begin again. As St. Jose Maria Escriva would put it: “God’s love is insane.”

This is the message of Lent. The Good News is that we still have another chance, and now is the acceptable time “to return to the Lord with all our heart.”

May the holy season of Lent fill our hearts with his blessings!