Unless plans change, by the time you are reading this bulletin Pope Francis will be in Iraq. He would be the first Pope to visit that country.  His trip is taking him to various historical biblical sites with meetings planned with political leaders, prominent Muslim clerics and several Catholic bishops. Pray for his continued safety and that his message of peace will be accepted by all who will be part of this historic trip.
 
Each year we enter into the 40 days of Lent. Why 40 days? This number is very symbolic and has deep ties to multiple biblical events. First there is the 40 days from the Book of Noah. God send rain upon the earth for 40 days and nights to wash away a sinful people. Only Noah and his family were saved.Then we see that 40 was the penance and punishment imposed on the people of Israel for disobeying God. They had to wander in the desert for 40 years to clean them of their disobedience.

The prophet Elijah, before he encountered God on Mount Horeb, traveled for 40 days. Before he started out he had to eat and drink for 40 days to prepare himself for this spiritual journey. Of course, we begin Lent with the reading of Jesus in the desert of 40 days of fasting and prayer before he began his public ministry. There he combated temptation to prepare for the proclaiming of the Gospel.

How are you doing with your 40 days? If you haven’t started some
spiritual discipline or if you have already grown lacked in your efforts, we can always begin anew. It is never too late to enter into Lent, even if we are less than the actual 40 days. The 40 days are symbolic for us, the reality is preparing to let God cleanse us and change our lives. Happy Lent!