Thank you to everyone who supported the mission and ministries of our parish during the month of March. Our average weekly collection was $21,711. You also generously donated to various important causes in our March Second Collections in the amount of $34,712! As you know, we are totally dependent upon you all our parishioners for our livelihood. We are so grateful for the sacrifices you make so that the work of St. Francis of Assisi Parish may continue to impact the lives of so many.

And so, there is just one question that I would like all of us to ponder. It is a question that was first asked by three women, a very, very long time ago: Who will roll away the stone?   For us, here tonight, we speak not of the stone that stood guard over the entrance to the tomb, whose sole purpose was to hold back the lifeless body of the Lord Jesus.   No, for us, the stone, we speak of is that stone which holds us back; the stone which prevents those from coming forth from darkness, despair, and discouragement— into the light of a new day.

In the name of Love, we know, Jesus embraced the Cross. And yet, the Cross is not the point – it is His love. The Cross only makes it even more evident how much Jesus loves us. And it is the Cross that frees us to love.

Oh, yes, how could we forget? In the listing of the apostles whose feet Jesus washed, we left off one name. Oh, yes, how could we forget that Jesus also washed the feet of Judas? He could have skipped over him to prove a point. He could have embarrassed him by passing him over. He could have unveiled before the eyes of the Eleven that this was the one who would betray him.  

Today we celebrate Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem. The beginning of his journey to the hill of the three crosses, where, obedient unto death, he would accept death, even death on a cross, for the salvation of the world-- for you and for me.   For Christians, Holy Week is not just another seven days. There is no "business as usual." The celebrations of this week form the heart of our Christian life, and their timing should cause us to pause, and perhaps, even rearrange our normal schedules to make time to celebrate with one another the liturgies of the Easter Triduum.  

Our Gospel on this 5th Sunday of Lent, turns to the 11th chapter of John. For John, this is the moment, the miracle, the final sign that Jesus would work— because those whose very existence he threatened would be tolerant no more.