Isaiah 43: 19....

The Lenten period continues as we cross the halfway mark with Laetare Sunday last week.

With the months that went by as we make our way towards the great feast of Easter, we were given experiences that spoke of the work of God that would want to instil in us a proper sense of the dynamics of God's activity - He is still actively working in our world, as I write, and continues in His unique and mysterious manner that always circumvents all human machinations and motives.

The recent ordination of His Grace Archbishop Coadjutor William Goh at the Max Pavilion of the Singapore Expo, offers the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Singapore (clergy, religious and lay faithful) an opportunity to move into the year ahead with renewed vision to face the challenges ahead, with the values of His Grace that spoke of passion and compassion. This stems from his motto of his coat of arms, "Ut Vivant", i.e. "that they may live..." (Jn 10: 10 - 11). Our archdiocese need to sorely return to basics and know how to care for the flock like how the father in the prodigal son parable of 4th Sunday of Lent gospel reading did, when he dealt very magnanimously and with love as well.

Be Kind!

I have let the weeks slip by without much of an entry from me!

It's the added work and responsibilities involved in dealing with the formation for an added member into the Seminary's community - Justin Yip (Star of the Sea) - our 1st. year student, that had occupied most of my activities, among other things (e.g. Priestly Life)

Still Lent carries on regardless and we are now almost reaching the into the 4th Week of Lent, where this coming Sunday's Lent celebration has been named as Laetare Sunday. Just for that Sunday, the vestments will be rose colored!

In our journey of this 40 days in preparation towards Easter, we also speak and be impressed upon by the following great and traditional works of mercy: prayer, fasting and almsgiving. That is fine and well. However, for most of the time we tend to just stay on the superficial level of doing them and doing them well, without much reflection as to what it really is taking us all into. We can also feel rather elated and proud to have achieve some level of accomplishment when we have completed them or, at least, attempted them to some satisfactory degree. It is all about giving up something - chocolates, TV, movies, etc. With the proliferation of smartphones and the ubiquity of the iPhone, giving up something doesn't seem at all fantastic any more, unless one also will consider these items - in that we let go having these items controlling our lives where we have to go to sleep with them on our beds!

Hence, the video above is the most down-to-earth advice on  how we can truly observe Lent and be able to  take this with us for the rest of our lives, for this is really the real fruit after all our prayer, fasting and almsgiving - be kind, people! Be kind!

Half Way There!

Image by jezobeljones via FlickrWe just went past Laetare Sunday (or Rose Sunday) and the Lenten journey is effectively half completed!

A few more weeks and we will have that grand celebration of Easter and the use of the Alleluia again after 40 days being in confinement. In fact, with the Easter season the Alleluia would be use with such frequency and gusto that after it is back to normal or Ordinary Times, you'd want to stay away from it again!

This Lent and the Holy Week celebrations, moving into Easter, I shall find myself out of a parish and would have to figure out where and which parish to place myself to join in those main masses and services accordingly. It would be interesting from this point of view as an 'outsider' to participate as a concelebrant. I don't have to worry myself unnecessarily with the preparations and the responsibilities in seeing to the proper and orderly unfolding of the event in the church premises.

Nonetheless, for what I am 'missing' in the parish environment, the seminary is more than capable to make up for the workload that I have to undertake since my posting here about 6 months ago. It is not that I have 'nothing' to do here. The environment here is different and the priorities are of another nature. So far, I am not complaining as most of what is needed to live and work and to fulfil my responsibilities here are available and functioning.

What is most interesting about this part of the world is that I get to see for myself the changing landscape of the area where I am staying (Punggol) every time I make trip out from here. There is the ongoing works being done at Punggol End where a new waterfront park and pavilion will be situated. I have already been to the newly opened Punggol Promenade a few times and taken a few shots of the scenery by the Sengkang River.

It has been a quiet and peaceful Lent thus far, away from the crowd and the bustle that is of the parish. Mother Nature has been around more often as my neighbour with the other denizens of the forest nearby, which, by the way, is slowly dwindling away.

How is your Lent thus far?

note - Blogger has come out with a new scheme of viewing blogs in a more creative manner. Try looking at alongcorner through their new view at www.alongcorner.blogspot.com/view!

Related articles

• Through Lent to Easter (brighthub.com)
• Christ gives strength to conquer evil through grace of Baptism, says Pope (catholicnewsagency.com)
• 4th Sunday of Lent (savedbygodsgrace.wordpress.com)