Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
On Ash Wednesday 17
February, the Church all over the world will begin 6 weeks of Lent in
preparation for the Easter celebrations. Our faith in God is being tested by
this pandemic which continues to threaten our health and daily lives. The mass
vaccination plan for this year is a medical intervention which is aimed at
stopping the infection from spreading and hopefully will help bring it to an
end. Since the pandemic began last year, we had to isolate ourselves,
businesses and churches closed, many lost their jobs, and our health services at
times were overwhelmed by the sick and dying.
Lent is always understood by
the Church to be a season of repentance and contrition for our own sins in
order to enjoy a deeper and more faithful relationship with God and with one
another. The pandemic has forced us to examine and to sift out what is selfish
and unimportant in our lives and to strengthen the values of faithfulness in
marriage, of cultivating healthy family relationships and personal unfeigned prayer
and of obeying the commandments of God in good conscience. The pandemic is not
a meaningless mistake in our lives but a remarkable unexpected crisis calling
us to repentance of our sins and to renew our Christian faith and life in line
with our vocation made possible through the grace of Christ and the Holy
Spirit. It is a burning hope of God for his Church that after the pandemic has
come to an end, we will prove to be a more faithful and honest people in Christ
and help restore our nation anew which our sins and greed and violence have
been pulling apart before the pandemic. This Season of Lent gives meaning and
purpose to our lives as we struggle in this pandemic.
Because of the Covid-19
restrictions, the Bishops’ Lenten Appeal Office has tried to explore some
options to promote the 2021 Lenten Appeal collection. One such way will be to
use our available digital platforms to the fullest of our ability. We are
therefore asking for the fullest cooperation from our brother priests and
people in the different parishes, to make everyone aware of the different
options to support the Bishops Lenten Appeal. As you know, the importance of
the Bishops Lenten Appeal is to support the works of the church, the poor and
the needy and to build a self-reliant local church. This need has grown as a
result of the pandemic and most certainly there will be a greater need this
year. Let us not just depend on the usual methods of promotion but let us speak
about it to the fullest of our ability in parishes and in our small Christian
communities, during these next 6 weeks. We are all going through difficult financial
times, but let us remember that as a diocese we have agreed that apart from the
normal Sunday collection, the only other special collection during the six
weeks of Lent is this Lenten Appeal. Let us kindly remain committed to this
practice and entrust ourselves to the providential care and guidance of God our
Father who will never abandon us in our needs.
May God’s
blessing remove all anxiety from your lives and bring healing to the sick
through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Blessed Joseph.
Bishop Joao Rodrigues
