Time out: time to be recharged and renewed
Dear Parishioners,
Last week I took one week from my annual leave for a break travelling to visit Perth for the first time.
On my breaks I look forward to being re charged having time torest, to slow down, to spend quiet time with God, to see a new part of his creation and people, to read, to reflect on the 6 months passed and the 6 months ahead, to exercise and walk, and this trip to catch up with some brother priests. The sign in the photo captures a what a good break is about especially the Peace.
In visiting Perth I realised that as yet it is not as fast and big as
Sydney so people did not seem as rushed and stressed and had time to say hello as you passed by. I went down history lane visiting Freemantle the first Australian port many of our ancestors first touched base on in Australia on their way to Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney.
I think the importance of a holiday and break is that you bring back not just some new energy that can fade once you return to the fast pace of our lives, but also renewal from good things you noticed and and values and purpose you re- learned from the place you visited and to commit to live these out days ahead in a better way with God and each other.
I had a chance to finish reading A. Lincoln, a 670 page biography (by Ronald C. White, Jr.) of President Abraham Lincoln, a man who lead his country through the most difficult time of the 5 year Civil War. The Book recounted the family background and life journey of this humble, self-educated lawyer, Congressman, President and family man who, lost two young sons, and served his Country according to his growing faith. The writer shows through Lincoln’s handwritten notes and speeches how he always deeply searched for God’s will and purpose in his situation and decisions.
In his last speech of 701 words, his second inaugural as President, Lincoln mentioned God 14 times, quoted the Bible 4 times and invoked prayer three times unprecedented by any president before or after him. He spoke of the suffering of the war as the penance necessary for the sin of slavery and he called all to forgiveness and reconciliation. It was the beginning of Lent. Six weeks after this speech, on Good Friday night, Lincoln was shot. It was Good Friday 14 April 1865 and died on Holy Saturday.
Homilies in the Churches on Easter Sunday all spoke of his sacrifice for his people modelling on Jesus. This was a powerful reminder to me of what Lent should mean for us, a spiritual Journey to Good Friday and Easter, a extra special time of reflecting on God, His Word, invoking prayer, recognizing, naming and confessing our sin, asking for forgiveness, doing penance, working for reconciliation and to be ready to sacrifice for others.
CELEBRATING THE LOVE OF
The Maronite Church around the world sings with praise and joy to God the Father for giving us St Maroun, Patron Saint of our Maronite Church in Lebanon and around the world. This great and monastic Saint remained faithful to the teachings of Christ and to His Gospel despite persecutions. He lived according to Christs’ words that he was “the salt of the earth and light of the world.” St Maroun, like the salt, preserved the Word of Christ and helped to teach others about Jesus, thus building a strong and supportive spiritual family.
Like a light in the dark, St Maroun’s love for Christ and Christians shone amidst all the darkness of persecutions and martyrdoms, thus grounding this spiritual family firmly in the faith. This spiritual family was so strong and faithful that they later became known as Maronites or followers of St Maroun and has grown to be the Maronite Church around the world today.
Married couples who are committed in faith and love are like pillars in our Maronite Church and Parish and this week, we celebrate the Feast of St Valentine, the Patron of married couples, who like St Maroun was “salt of the earth and light of the world.”
Yes, although the secular world has made a day out of St Valentine and everyone rushes off to buy roses and attend dinner with the love of their life, it is very important to remember and understand who St Valentine was and why he is so special. St Valentine was a Roman Priest who had a special place for young couples. (Refer to Saint of the week for more information).
St Valentine strongly believed in the Sacramental bond of Marriage. He understood that marriage is a light which helps us to see the loving intimacy between the Holy Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit that gives life to all. A married couple in their intimacy are called to be this light also: The husband gives of himself totally to his wife, as she responds with her own gift of self to him and from this union springs new life.
Husbands and wives therefore, you are called to great responsibility to each other and to your children. Your marriage is a gift from God and just as God called St Maroun and St Valentine, He also calls you to be a ‘light to the world’ – a beacon of hope, witnessing to the reality of the intimate union of Father, Son and Holy Spirit – the living manifestation of Love and source of all love in the world.
So as we celebrate the feasts of these two great Saints, let us remember that God calls us all to be “salt of the earth and light of the world” let us not get caught up in the commercial and secular context of the feast. When you take your loved one for dinner or you buy them roses, remember the true reason for the Feast, to be witnesses to the love of the Trinity.
It would also be beautiful to come to Church on that Feast day with your family or loved one and thank God for all the love He shows us and to thank Him for these Saints before attending dinner or other engagements. See below for some tips for your valentine:
- Make a commitment to set aside 10 mins a day to share time together
- Thank your spouse, fiancé or girlfriend for their love and self-giving.
- Make St Valentine’s day last all year.
Monsignor Shora Maree
PREPARING FOR THE FEAST
Dear Parishioners,
Next Sunday is the Feast of St Maroun, the Patron of our Maronite Church around the world and as well our Maronite Diocese of Australia.
In our Diocese the main celebration will be the Solemn Mass this Friday night 7pm at St Maroun’s Cathedral Redfern celebrated by His Excellency Antoine-Charbel Tarabay our Maronite Bishop of Australia. The Priests of our Diocese along with invited Religious and Government Dignitaries will join the Bishop and all our parishioners who can attend for this Solemn Mass and Feast.
St Maroun’s Cathedral Parish are holding their Annual Parish BBQ on the Saturday Night to which we are also all invited to attend.
Here at Our Lady of Lebanon and in our Mass Centres we will also celebrate the Mass for St Maroun’s Feast at all our Sunday Masses. We are preparing some new Holy Cards with a reflection and prayer through Family Committee members which will be distributed at all our Masses next Sunday. After our 9:30am English Family Mass we will be having a brunch and a children’s presen-tation about St Maroun in the Recreation room.
In preparing and reflecting for the Feast of Saint Maroun and on his life, we can’t help but be amazed. The reason why is that through the grace of God, in the life of St Maroun and his response to this grace and his determination to evangelise, 1600 years later and all around the world, members of a particular Church community within the Universal Catholic Church, carry his name, as Maronites, not only in Syria his place of origin and mission but also through his followers, in Lebanon and all the Middle East, the Americas, Africa, Europe and Australia.
St Maroun’s life with his prayer and preaching, is a powerful testimony to the power of the grace of God in the Holy Spirit in spreading and shining the light of Christ throughout the world. Pope Francis’ words that “Being a Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person, Jesus, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction” would apply to St Maroun and his mission. It reminds us today that God’s grace is present and we are called, like St Maroun, to be trusting in prayer and witnessing in our families and society.
