WEDNESDAY OF THE FOURTH WEEK OF LENT MARCH 30, 2022

MASS READINGS

Reading a reading from the Book of the Prophet Is 49:8-15

Thus says the LORD: In a time of favor I answer you, on the day of salvation I help you; and I have kept you and given you as a covenant to the people, To restore the land and allot the desolate heritages, Saying to the prisoners: Come out! To those in darkness: Show yourselves! Along the ways they shall find pasture, on every bare height shall their pastures be. They shall not hunger or thirst, nor shall the scorching wind or the sun strike them; For he who pities them leads them and guides them beside springs of water. I will cut a road through all my mountains, and make my highways level. See, some shall come from afar, others from the north and the west, and some from the land of Syene. Sing out, O heavens, and rejoice, O earth, break forth into song, you mountains. For the LORD comforts his people and shows mercy to his afflicted. But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me; my Lord has forgotten me.” Can a mother forget her infant, be without tenderness for the child of her womb? Even should she forget, I will never forget you.

REFLECTION

“I will never forget you“.

We have heard and said these words from a lover to a lover, friend to friend or to a widowed spouse. Our hearts truly meant those words, but with time, life and distance, the emotion is not as strong and we forget the promises made.

God said, “I will never forget you”. And our God keeps His promises.

Jesus gave us His Body and Blood to feed us so we can be united in Him. The Blessed Sacrament is the heart of our faith: Our road and provision to holiness. The priests are the future of the Church, as they are the “persona in Christi” in our sacraments.

PAPA realizes the self sacrifice of the priests in being available 24/7 for the salvation of souls. It can be a hard life and many times lonely. On a pilgrimage in 1847 with priests, St Therese Lisieux realized that though the priests were holy and “a dignity above the angels” they were “weak and fragile men”. She further went on to say that the priests are the “devil’s trophy“.

Without priests, we cannot be fed the Body and Blood of our Lord.

PAPA is unique in that we are a family of kindred spirits whose sole purpose is to pray for priests and recruit all to pray for priests by any necessary means. Pray diligently the PAPA Prayer for Priests. We can also offer rosaries, the Jesus prayer, one hour of adoration, and acts of mercy for reparation.

God has not forgotten us. Join us in praying for priests.

"The Lord is faithful in all his words and holy in all his works."
(Psalm 145).

God bless you.