PARISH LENTEN RETREAT:

February 28, (Thur.) - March 2, (Sunday), 2008
by Rev. William Marshall - Retreat Master


FEBRUARY 28
Thurs. - 8.00am & 6.00pm - Holy Masses, followed by the conference.


FEBRUARY 29
Fri. - 8.00am & 6.00pm - Holy Masses, conferences &
Stations of the Cross.
10.00AM - (Home schooling Families) Mass, conference and Station for children.


MARCH 1
Sat. - 8.00am & 10.00am - Holy Masses & conferences.
12.00NOON - Holy Mass for the Sick with Conference & Anointing of the sick.
4.00pm - Penitential Service with Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament & Confession
5.00PM - Vigil Mass with Conference


MARCH 2
Sun. - 8.30AM, 10.30AM & 12.30PM--all Holy Masses with conferences.
5.00PM - Bitter Lamentations (Lenten Vespers with Special Sermon
5.45PM - Holy Mass with Conference.


PARISH RETREAT - What is this?

A retreat is a time of stillness away from usual activity for one or more days or for couple hours when we seek to draw nearer to God. It is usually held at a "getaway" conference or retreat center, or in the parish facilities. The purpose is to:


  • Provide a time for spiritual renewal for participants.

  • Pull away from the busy world and let God take over.

  • Receive new insights about our relationship with God and other people.

  • Make us more aware of the power of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in our lives.


This event will be held for our parishioners and other people of the diocese.  The Christian retreat has been practiced for many centuries in the life of the church. Jesus said to His disciples, "Come ye apart into a desert place and rest awhile". Everyone needs to get away occasionally from pressure, from abrasive contacts and from the strain of life. We need to take stock of our lives and rearrange interests, putting first things first. A retreat then is a withdrawing from usual occupations and concerns for God centered prayer and meditation. It is a time of silence when each participant can seek to hear what God has to say to him. More and more Christians are taking the time to make a retreat and as a result have found God's grace and love flowing into their lives with sustaining power. They have come away with new strength to serve Him in this demanding world we live in.


The Sacrament of Confession during Retreat.

Part of "Easter Duty" is the Sacrament of Reconciliation (Confession). Confession is one of the least understood sacraments in the Catholic Church. In reconciling us to God, it is a great source of grace, and all Catholics are encouraged to take advantage of it often.

The Sacrament of Penance, commonly called Confession, is one of the seven sacraments recognized by the Catholic Church. Catholics believe that all of the sacraments were instituted by Jesus Christ himself. In the case of Confession, that institution occurred on Easter Sunday when Christ first appeared to the apostles after his Resurrection. Breathing on them, he said: "Receive the Holy Spirit. For those whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven; for those whose sins you retain, they are retained" (John 20:22-23).

Catholics also believe that the sacraments are an outward sign of an inward grace In this case, the outward sign is the absolution, or forgiveness of sins, that the priest grants to the penitent (the person confessing his sins); the inward grace is the reconciliation of the penitent to God (which is why the sacrament is also sometimes called the Sacrament of Reconciliation).

That reconciling of man to God is the purpose of Confession. When we sin, we deprive ourselves of God's grace. And by doing so, we make it even easier to sin some more. The only way out of this downward cycle is to acknowledge our sins, to repent of them, and to ask God's forgiveness. Then, in the Sacrament of Confession, grace can be restored to our souls, and we can once again resist sin.



Necessary conditions to make a Good Confession
To make a good confession five things are necessary:

1. Examination of Conscience;
2. Sorrow for having offended God;
3. A resolution of sinning no more;
4. Confession of our sins;
5. Satisfaction or penance.




How Often Should You Go to Confession?:
While Catholics are only required to go to Confession when they are aware that they have committed a mortal sin, the Church urges the faithful to take advantage of the sacrament often. A good rule of thumb is to go once per month. (The Church strongly recommends that, in preparation for fulfilling our Easter Duty to receive communion, we go to Confession even if we are aware only of venial sin.). The Church especially urges the faithful to receive the Sacrament of Confession frequently during Lent, to help them in their spiritual preparation for Easter.


Why Is Confession Necessary?:
Non-Catholics, and even many Catholics, often ask whether they can confess their sins directly to God, and whether God can forgive them without going through a priest. On the most basic level, of course, the answer is yes, and Catholics should make frequent acts of contrition, which are prayers in which we tell God that we are sorry for our sins and ask for His forgiveness.

But the question misses the point of the Sacrament of Confession. The sacrament, by its very nature, confers graces that help us to live a Christian life, which is why the Church requires us to receive it at least once per year. Moreover, it was instituted by Christ as the proper form for the forgiveness of our sins. Therefore, we should not only be willing to receive the sacrament, but we should embrace it as a gift from a loving God.