Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

The papacy is a tremendous blessing to us. Pope Benedict XVI is a tremendous blessing to us, as Blessed Pope John Paul II was to us. It is interesting to think about the difference between the two, most especially in how they dealt with suffering and frailty. As a casual observer, when I witnessed Pope John Paul II, the word, "natural" comes to mind. It seemed that he handled the duties of the supreme pontiff with ease. So when his health declined, it was important for us to witness his suffering. It was the final lesson of a great teacher. Pope Benedict XVI, on the other hand, did not seem as natural, preferring the study of our faith and contemplation. He definitely was not as accessible and I believe that much of the "celebrity" status of the papacy was a tremendous burden and cross. So in the end, the word, "logical" comes to mind about how each of them dealt with the deterioration of health. One showed us how to suffer on the public stage. The other showing us that at the end of life, contemplation, prayer and penance need to be our focus.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Lent has officially begun! I can remember as a child that Lent was a time of misery and suffering because I no longer was able to watch television and eat candy. As a child, I perceived Lent as that time of year when we would have to give enjoyable things up. Many years later, I have a much different take on Lent. I realize now that my childhood understanding was only partially correct. There is much more to Lent than just "giving things up".

Lent is a hope-filled season that offers us a time to clean up our souls with Our Lord's help. As we "purge" our lives by getting rid of the stuff we don't need i.e., sin, we make room for Our Lord… we make room for love. If we do allow Lent to be a time for us to get rid of sin, then we can focus on what truly matters. We can focus on God. Through our penance and prayer, alms giving and other works of virtue and charity we come to experience the love of God for us precisely through the Cross of Christ. Lent is less about giving up sweets and more about focusing on Our Lord. Lent is a time to recall God's infinite love and mercy for us, as seen in the life, death, and Resurrection of Christ.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Can you believe that Ash Wednesday is this week? Fr. Greg and I just took down the Christmas tree?!?! Whether we are ready or not, Lent begins this Wednesday.

I was recently reminded of the Pope Alexander VII monument, one of the most haunting artistic masterpieces in St. Peter's Basilica. Created by Bernini, a skeletal figure representing death emerges from drapery at the bottom of the scene holding an emptying hourglass while Alexander fervently prays without noticing that his time is up. The story behind the image goes something like this… When Alexander VII was elected pope, he had his casket made and placed it beside his bed. He said, "I will be a good Pope, if I think of death." The same could be true for us—that we will be good Catholics if we think of death!

So the ashes we receive are our yearly reminder of death. Apparently, in the Middle Ages the dying were laid on the ground on top of sackcloth sprinkled with ashes. The priest would bless them with holy water, saying, "Remember that thou art dust and to dust thou shalt return." (Sounds familiar?) After the sprinkling, the priest asked, "Art thou content with sackcloth and ashes in testimony of thy penance before the Lord in the day of judgment?" To which the dying person replied, "I am content." The symbolism of mourning, mortality, and penance could not be more clear.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

As St. Paul reminds us…

"Strive eagerly for the greatest spiritual gifts. But I shall show you a still more excellent way. If I speak in human and angelic tongues, but do not have love, I am a resounding gong or a clashing cymbal. And if I have the gift of prophecy, and comprehend all mysteries and all knowledge; if I have all faith so as to move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

This week we commemorated the 40th anniversary of Roe. v. Wade in which the United States Supreme Court handed down a decision that legalized abortion. With no legislative input, the justices removed legal protection from unborn children right up to the moment of birth. 55,881,760 unborn children have been put to death since 1973. If we were to observe a second of silence for each one of them, it would last twenty-one months.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

An important part of the Year of Faith includes deepening our understanding of issues concerning life, marriage and religious liberty. A person who is seeking holiness will include pro-life efforts, the sanctity of marriage, and the protection of our religious freedom in their daily prayers. The United States Catholic Bishops have come up with essentially five Catholic resolutions for 2013 that are meant to help us make the most of this Year of Faith.

Each year, January has been a month devoted to Respect Life Awareness, and this being a Year of Faith, I thought it fitting that you hear from Karen Williams, Chair of our Respect Life Team here at SJA….

God Bless, Father Kline

Cada año, el mes de Enero es el mes que es dedicado a la sensibilización de Respetar a la Vida, y siendo el Año de la Fe, lo vi apropiado que escuchen unas palabras de parte de Karen Williams, la presidente del comité de Respeto a la Vida de nuestra parroquia Santa Juana de Arco...

Que Dios los bendiga,
Padre Don Kline

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Epiphany. What exactly is an epiphany? Some would say that it is a sudden, profound realization of something important; a breakthrough; a deep and profound understanding of something once mysterious. The Church uses the term to describe God as being made manifest in Jesus Christ. On Christmas we focused on Jesus' humanity. On Epiphany we turn our attention to Christ's divinity. We pause here today, just like the wise men, to pay this Divine Child homage and adoration as only a true King deserves. Next week we celebrate the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, a dramatic leap forward in Jesus' life when we celebrate the initiation of Jesus' public ministry. After his Baptism in the waters of the Jordan, we ponder that Jesus walked among us, teaching us by his words and example-as God and as man.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

There is no question for many of us that this has been a difficult year, one of the hardest in memory. There was a difficult and divisive election; there has been an ongoing assault on religious freedom; our economy has yet to overcome the recession and secularists continue to push us to "live as though God does not exist." During the time when we are supposed to be focusing on "peace on earth and good will," we hear stories about a fiscal cliff and the end of the world according to the Mayan calendar.

And in the midst of all of this, the Church calls us to embrace the New Evangelization? Our current difficulties beg the simple question, "Why go to the trouble of evangelizing during the New Year when we collectively seem to be going down to despair?" Why? Because our faith does not call us to a naïve optimism that "things will work out," but to authentic Christian hope!

The Holy Father has allowed the granting of Plenary indulgences for the faithful during the Year of Faith at places and dates determined by the local bishop.

An indulgence is the remission before God of the temporal punishment for sin the guilt of which is already forgiven, which a properly disposed member of the Christian faithful obtains under certain conditions. (Canon 992) A Plenary indulgence totally frees the soul from temporal punishment due to sin. (Canon 993).

Between now and the end of the Year of Faith (Feast of Christ the King, 2013), plenary indulgences can be obtained by members of the faithful in the Diocese of Phoenix by visiting one of the following historic Churches and praying for the intentions of the Holy Father (an Our Father and a Hail Mary). Indulgences may also be obtained by attending Mass or the Liturgy of the Hours at any sacred place in the diocese and making a Profession of Faith on feast days of American saints listed below. The person seeking the indulgence must have received sacramental confession and Holy Communion within a week of the visit. Further, in order for the indulgence to be Plenary and not partial, the individual must be free from sin (even venial). Only one Plenary indulgence may be gained on a day.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

This Sunday we lit the third candle of our Advent Wreath. You probably noticed that it has a different color: rose, instead of violet or purple. The rose color signifies "rejoicing."

St. Paul tells us to "rejoice in the Lord always." He doesn't say, "rejoice when things go your way." Or "rejoice when you are feeling good." No, he simply says, "rejoice always." Before saying how this is possible, I would like to first address why it is necessary for a Christian to always rejoice.

We are celebrating the Year of Faith. This year is a special year given to us to help us to live as committed followers of Christ. Part of being committed followers of Christ means sharing the faith. How? St. Paul reminds us today: "Your kindness should be known to all." Inner joy leads to kindness. The person who goes around sullen, angry and bitter has a hard time treating others with kindness. On the contrary, the angry person often treats others harshly. St. Paul presents joy, constant joy, as not just a good thing, but as a duty. Rejoice always, he says.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

As I child, (not so long ago) I can remember counting down the days until Christmas. Mom would put up the felt Advent calendar that had one piece of candy tied to it for each day of Advent. It was a form of torture… the waiting for the days to pass seemed like forever. I wished that if I could untie them two at a time then Christmas would somehow arrive sooner. It never did. The Advent season seemed like forever.

Today we learn from Sacred Scripture that Our Lord's timing may be different from ours. Since God doesn't always give us what we want exactly when we want it, we can grow impatient with God. Patience is such an important virtue. It means waiting and sacrificing some immediate satisfaction for the sake of a greater good. Impatience is the unwillingness to wait or to sacrifice. These are words we don't like to hear since we are so used to immediate gratification.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Many people have trouble accepting Jesus' teaching about the final judgment. Our Lord's teaching is difficult to believe for various reasons but one reason seems most difficult for many to understand. Our Lord's judgment is final. I'll admit, it is difficult for many to believe that something could be final and forever.

Sadly, many people live with the incorrect belief that there are "do overs" in the after we die. Many people hope for a series of "do overs" after they die until they get it right. While this may be their hope… it is not the reality. "Do overs" will not be part of the final judgment. This is why we seek to please God now by seeking to become saints now BEFORE we die. Becoming a saint means that we need repent of our sins while we are still on earth.