Dear Friends,
I am writing after the closing celebration of our Forty Hours devotions which ended on our parish feast day, the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. Having grown up in Holy Cross Parish, Springfield, I have an attachment to this particular feast that is rooted in memory with my childhood.
Of course, the feast is foundational for all of us as disciples of the Lord Jesus, who did not hesitate to suffer and die on the cross for our salvation. Jesus, who is risen from the dead! Thus, we celebrate the exaltation of the Holy Cross. These words from Morning Prayer for the feast day struck a chord within me, “How radiant is that precious cross which brought us our salvation. In the cross we are victorious, through the cross we shall reign, by the cross all evil is destroyed, alleluia.”
We often shy away from the crosses in our life. Yet, Jesus has told us to embrace them with the help of His grace in order to bring forth the fruits of redemption for ourselves and our world. When we lift up our sufferings and join them to His, we open the doors of heaven and all of God’s graces.
May I publicly share my deep gratitude for everyone who made our Forty Hours devotions so special this year. My heartfelt thanks to Father Giardini and his meticulous work with the ceremonies, our Deacons, our altar servers, Elizabeth Calabro who produced the worship aids and arranged all the music, our cantors and organists, our parish staff, Brad Papciak and the maintenance crew, Phil Nicolo, our adorers, and all of you who participated in the evening devotions and Masses either in person or via livestream. A word of special thanks also to our preacher, Father Keith Chylinski, who helped us ponder the vastness of God’s mercy and love through the spiritual qualities in the acronym “v-a-s-t” ~ vulnerable, acceptance, surrender, trust.
The day after our parish feast, the Church celebrates the feast of Our Lady of Sorrows. Devotion to the sorrows of our Lady increased at the time of the Protestant Reformation. Mary is truly the mother of Jesus, the mother of God, the most faithful disciple. And she is the one who shared in the sufferings of her dearly beloved Son as she followed Him carrying His cross and stood at the foot of the cross as He died, when so many others fled.
From the cross, Jesus looked at Mary and entrusted her to the Apostle John and John to her. In doing so, Jesus entrusted each of us to His beloved Mother. She is our spiritual Mother. That is why in the midst of our own sufferings, struggles, worries and fear we can turn to her, ask her help and intercession, and confidently know that she will bring our needs to Jesus. What a powerful and loving ally we have in Mary. May we turn to Mary each day as we lift up to Jesus our sufferings, knowing that her prayers accompanying our surrender to Jesus will bring forth much grace and blessing personally and for our world.
God bless you, God love you,
Monsignor McCulken
