Bishop Kevin Farrell

The Chief Shepherd of the Catholic Diocese of Dallas

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The light is on for you

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The light is on for you

The season of Lent during this Jubilee Year should also be lived more intensely as a privileged moment to celebrate and experience God’s mercy.
Pope Francis, ‘Misericordiae Vultus’ 17

There is no more personal experience of God’s mercy than the Sacrament of Reconcili-ation. The Holy Father reminds us, “God is always ready to forgive, and he never tires of forgiving in ways that are continually new and surprising … all of us know well the experience of sin.” (MV 22)

Sin separates us from God. It also separates us from the Body of Christ through which we encounter Jesus and through which we are strengthened by the Spirit. That separation alienates us. We feel cut off. We have cut ourselves off.

When we seek to be reunited through the Rite of Reconciliation, the priest, acting as Christ, reconciles us with the Body of Christ and with the Father. The priest and the Church offer the prayer of Christ that we be reconciled and that prayer of Christ is always responded to by the Father. Although we confess to the priest, the agent of the ministry of reconciliation is the Holy Spirit.

In the words of Pope Francis, “The Jubilee year makes it possible for many of God’s sons and daughters to take up once again the journey to the Father’s house.” In order to make that journey possible, every church in the Catholic Diocese of Dallas will participate in the Light is ON for You initiative in which the Sacrament of Reconciliation is offered at every one of our parishes in the Diocese of Dallas on Wednesday March 16 and Wednesday March 23. I hope you will come home and experience the mercy of God.

The light is on for you.

The Light is ON for You

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The Light Is ON for You

 

The light of welcome and the grace of reconciliation will be waiting in every parish of the Diocese of Dallas on Wednesday, March 25th and Wednesday, April 1st. Confession is difficult for many, particularly those who have been away from the Church or the sacrament for a long time. I know of nothing better on this topic than the recent words of encouragement and welcome from Pope Francis.

Speaking to a crowd in St. Peter’s Square, Pope Francis said, “When was the last time you went to confession? If a long time has passed, do not waste another day. Go,the priest will be good. It is Jesus who is there, and Jesus is better than a priest. Jesus will receive you. He will receive you with love. Be courageous and go to confession! … Every time we confess, God embraces us, God celebrates! Let us go ahead on this path. May God bless you!”

The Holy Father continued, “It is not enough to ask for the Lord’s forgiveness in our own minds and hearts, but rather it is also necessary to humbly and trustfully confess our sins to a minister of the Church. …The priest does not only represent God, but rather the community as a whole. Anyone who seeks to confess only to God should remember that our sins are also committed against our brothers and against the Church, which is why it is necessary to ask forgiveness from them too… the priest receives this confession with love and tenderness, and forgives in the name of God.”

“The forgiveness of our sins is not something we can offer to ourselves; it is not the result of our efforts, but rather a gift from the Holy Spirit, which fills us from the wellspring of mercy and grace that surges endlessly from the open heart of Christ, crucified and risen again. … It reminds us that it is only by allowing ourselves to be reconciled through the Lord Jesus with the Father and with our brothers that we may truly be at peace.”

Recognizing that fear can often keep us from confession, the pope added, “From a human point of view, to unburden oneself, it is good to speak with a brother and to tell the priest those things which lie so heavily upon our hearts. And one feels unburdened before God, with the Church, and with a brother. Do not be afraid of confession!”   The Holy Father went on to note,   “A priest’s heart is a heart that is able to be touched. … If it is true that tradition suggests the dual role of doctor and judge for confessors, we must never forget that the doctor cures and the judge absolves… Confession is not a sentencing court, but rather, an experience of forgiveness and mercy!”

The Light is on for You

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The light is on for you

Lent is not just the season of repentance; it is the season for reconciliation. Playwright Eugene O’Neill wrote that we are born broken and spend our lives mending. The grace of God is the glue. That grace comes to us in many ways but particularly through confession, the sacrament of reconciliation.

Sin is real. It distances us from Jesus, but it also separates us from others. Guilt disrupts our relationships with others. We feel out of sync. We know that we are broken and yearn to be made whole. Our separation from the Body of Christ, the Church, is very real when we are separated from the Eucharist.

Confession, the Sacrament of Penance, the Rite of Reconciliation is not so much about sin as it is about reconciliation. Sin is our Good Friday and Reconciliation is our Easter.

Once again this year the parishes of the Diocese of Dallas are all participating on The Light is on for You, an initiative to welcome Catholics to reconciliation with God, the Church and yourself. On the evenings of Wednesday March 20 and Wednesday, March 23 all parishes in the Catholic Diocese of Dallas will have their “lights on” for confession and quiet prayer so that Catholics can come to or return to this incredible source of God’s grace, mercy and healing. Check with your parish for the times.

Forgiveness is priceless and it is yours for the asking.