From the bulletin for the First Sunday in Lent (Mar 09, 2025)
First Sunday in Lent
Great movies, especially those of epic scale, often weave together various storylines, each with their own protagonists and plotline. Think of 2017’s Dunkirk, portraying the 1940 evacuation of British forces from the French mainland from the perspectives of soldiers on the land, in the sea, and in the air.
Lent is like that. At least, at this parish it will be. What are the major plotlines? Well the primary one, in which the focus is on the male lead, is the story of the Church accompanying Jesus on His way through the desert, up to Jerusalem, of the Cross, into the depths of hell, and ultimately to the right hand of the Father in Heavenly glory. Though the negro spiritual says that “Jesus walked this lonesome valley” by Himself, it is not true that we must walk through it alone. We follow in His footsteps, shoulding the Cross He bears with us, strengthened by His grace and example. Here, progress in the journey is not only the liturgical progression from Exodus, to Temptation in the desert, to Transfiguration, to Passion & Resurrection. It is Christ growing to (more) perfect stature in each one of us as, through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, we die to ourselves and are freed to fulfill the Father’s loving will in our lives.
A second major plotline is that traced by our OCIA catechumens and candidates. This year we are blessed with seven of the former category preparing to become Christians this Easter Vigil and three baptized brothers and sisters preparing to become Catholic that same night (with a few other enquirers still in the holy hopper). It’s a young and diverse group, with folks coming from near (like Woodbury and Wyoming, MN) and far (Alabama, Palestine, Myanmar) to embrace the Catholic faith and receive the gift of eternal life in our parish community. After this Sunday’s Rite of Election, these seekers will enter a period of more intense prayer and preparation, passing through the (not so) dreaded Scrunities and leading up to the always epic Easter Vigil. I encourage you to introduce yourself to these fellow disciples and make them feel at home at St. Mark’s as they journey into Christ.
Another major subplot is evangelization. Our Lenten Speaker Series “Sharing the Good News: The How, The Why, The Who” is all about finally “walking the walk” after all the talk we have been doing about “becoming a parish of saints that evangelizes Merriam Park and beyond” as we live out our parish mission. We hope to motivate, equip, inspire and then actually accomplish (or at least attempt!) real, live Gospel-sharing before Easter’s arrival. It all culminates in what we are calling “St. Mark’s in the Parks,” which, whether it takes place in the many parks of our parish territory or not (how many can you name? Union, Merriam, Desnoyer, Aldine, the Monument…), will involve a sending of parishioner teams to public spaces with plans to engage strangers in evangelizing encounters of one sort or another. And perhaps inaugurate a life-long habit of giving that most precious of alms, the one true Faith!
Surely, there are other plotlines that God will weave into His master story, both at the parish and in your own lives. My encouragement, however, is that we try to remain mindful of these principle strands and to engage them with our Lenten practices. Pray for OCIA participants, that they “repent and believe” with vigor, receive an outpouring of grace this Easter, and persevere in the life of the Church. Pray and fast, too, for our evangelization efforts, knowing that we can do nothing without the favor of the Almighty, let alone communicate saving faith. Above all, pray, fast, and give alms in such a way as to dive deeper into the mystery, the life, and the death of Jesus this Lent. If we are going to share him with others, either in the parks or at our parish, we must possess Him! Better yet, we must be possessed by Christ our great Protagonist who weaves all things together well for the glory of God the Father.
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