The Fifty Day Feast

Saint Athanasius, one of the great Fathers of the early Church, said, “The fifty days from the Sunday of the Resurrection to Pentecost Sunday are celebrated in joy and exultation as one feast day, indeed as one ‘great Sunday.’”

It is important that we continue to celebrate the joy, the peace, and the hope that Easter brings. Unfortunately, reminders of Easter in the secular world do not last long. There are no more Easter greeting cards or decorations in the stores, and Easter does not have familiar “carols” associated with it in our secular culture, as Christmas does. How, then, do we continue the celebration?

The most important way we continue it is with our faithful participation in the Mass. Every time we participate in the Mass, we encounter the Risen Lord just as really and truly as the first Christians did in the gospel readings we hear during this season. By bringing our heart and soul completely with us to the Mass, we continue the Easter experience.

Another way to continue the Easter celebration is by being messengers of hope to those around us. Easter is the final victory of God over sin and death; we have nothing to fear if we are united with him. Let’s spread this awesome news and tremendous hope to everyone we meet. Alleluia!

Gratefully Yours,

Springtime

Last Tuesday, March 21st, was the official first day of Spring. Although California needs water, I suspect most of us hope for an end to the cold and rainy winter weather. It would be nice to be able to count on sunny skies and moderately warm temperatures.

The word “Lent” comes from the Old English word , which means

“springtime.” Lent, then, is our spiritual springtime: a time of new life and new growth. Hopefully, our Lenten season has brought us spiritual life and growth: that’s the purpose of the various practices of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving that we carry out during this time. This weekend, as we begin the last two weeks before Easter, it’s a good time to assess how our spiritual life is going. If it’s necessary to hit the “reset button” for our Lent, we should do so.

The new life we celebrate with the Lord is so great on Easter; but we know that the Lord does not force his grace on us. Let’s cultivate our hearts and souls to receive that grace and cooperate with it in our daily lives.

Gratefully Yours,

Academic Decathlon

As you know, I am a huge fan of St. Edward the Confessor Parish School. The school is a huge ministry of the parish; and when I speak of our mission to celebrate, serve, and evangelize, I see these three actions going on in our school on a daily basis. Of course, another important activity that is always going on is learning. Our students learn in the classroom as well as outside of it.

On March 4th, our students showed how far learning can go as they competed in the Diocese of Orange Academic Decathlon Competition at Santa Margarita Catholic High School. It was a day of intense academic competition between middle school students from schools throughout the Diocese. The students competed individually in subject content areas – science, math, literature, English, social studies, fine arts and religion, and as a team in logic and super quiz.

Their months of hard work paid off with strong individual and team performances. Most especially our varsity Academic Decathlon Team placed first among all the schools present. The Monarchs are Number One! We are so proud of these students, and we are grateful to their coaches and their parents for all their hard work of preparation. As our varsity team prepares to participate in the State Academic Decathlon on March 25th, let’s help them along with our prayers and encouragement.

Gratefully yours,