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4th -- FIRST SUNDAY OF LENT
For those who are near death this day,
that by our care and compassion,
we may demonstrate the infinite value of life,
especially in its last and most precious moments;
We pray to the Lord:
11th -- SECOND SUNDAY OF LENT
For teenage mothers,
and especially for those
who feel alone and confused,
that through the presence of new life
in their wombs,
God might lead them to peace, hope and joy;
We pray to the Lord:
18th -- THIRD SUNDAY OF LENT
For the forgiveness of sins,
and especially in repentance
for our sins against life,
that by our words and our actions
we might defend the right to life
from birth to natural death;
We pray to the Lord:
25th -- FOURTH SUNDAY OF LENT
For all who are sick,
and especially for those who are dying,
that we might cherish their wisdom
and learn from suffering
the meaning of the cross of Christ Jesus;
We pray to the Lord:
Bulletin Briefs
The immortal genius of Michelangelo portrayed on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel the moment when God the Father communicated the gift of life to the first man and made him "a living being." Between the finger of God and the finger of man stretching out to each other and almost touching, there seems to leap an invisible spark: God communicates to man a tremor of his own life, creating him in his own image and likeness. That divine breath is the origin of the unique dignity of every human being, of humanity's boundless yearning for the infinite.
We cannot but recall today that shadows of death threaten people's lives at every stage of life, and are especially menacing at its earliest beginning and its natural end. The temptation is becoming ever stronger to take possession of death by anticipating its arrival, as though we were masters of our own lives or the lives of others. We are faced by alarming signs of the "culture of death", which pose a serious threat for the future.
Of humanity as it approaches the new millennium, You, Lord Jesus, born for us at Bethlehem ask respect for every person, especially the small and the weak; you ask for an end to all forms of violence! To wars, oppression, and all attacks on life! O Christ, whom we look on today in the arms of Mary, you are the reason for our hope!
However dense the darkness may appear, our hope for the triumph of the Light which appeared on this Holy Night at Bethlehem is stronger still. So much good is being done, silently, by men and women who daily live their faith, their work, their dedication to their families and to the good of society. Encouraging too are the efforts of all those, including men and women in public life, striving to foster respect for the human rights of every person....