Deacon Ward's...Musings of our Catholic Faith

  Palm Sunday of the Lord's Passion   Essentials and Expressions Deacon Ward Nolan St. Mary Star of the Sea St. Edward the Confessor St. Benedict Labre St. James the Greater For the latest update of events, Holy Week Masses, and hours of confession, please go to the parish website:  materdeivermont.com   or give us a call at the St. Mary's rectory:  334-5066 🌹🌹🌹🌹 Palm Sunday is the final Sunday of Lent. ..   ...the beginning of Holy Week, and commemorates the triumphant arrival of Christ in Jerusalem, days before he was crucified. Palm Sunday is known as such because the faithful will often receive palm fronds which they use to participate in the reenactment of Christ's arrival in Jerusalem. In the Gospels, Jesus entered Jerusalem riding a young donkey, and to the lavish praise of the townspeople who threw clothes, or possibly palms or small branches, in front of him as a sign of homage.  This was a customary practice for people of great respect. P...

The Third Week of Lent   Alms Giving, Prayer, Abstinence and Fasting Essentials and Expressions Deacon Ward Nolan St. Mary Star of the Sea St. Edward the Confessor St. Benedict Labre St. James the Greater For the latest update of events, Holy Masses, and hours of confession, please go to the parish website:  materdeivermont.com   or give us a call at the St. Mary's rectory: 334-5066 🌹🌹🌹🌹 "Even now, says the Lord, return to me with your whole heart, with fasting, and weeping, and mourning: Rend your hearts, not your garments, and return to the Lord, your God. For gracious and merciful is he, slow to anger, rich in kindness, and relenting in punishment." Joel 2:13 In this period of forty days we devote our time and energies to not worrying or concerning ourselves with our own needs, but we turn our attention to the needs of others.  We make the effort to be more repentant, more humble...more giving. We make ourselves to be a new creation...a true people o...