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Are you afraid to approach God?

Jesus says, “When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street corners so that others may see them… But when you pray, go to your inner room, close the door, and pray to your Father in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.” Matthew 6:5-6 

Fr. Mike reminds us that God sees us, notices us and cares for us. Don’t be afraid to approach the throne of grace.

A B.C. Catholic reader and frequent letter writer reached out to us “with astonishment” over last week’s obituary of Sister Dorothy Bob, a Sister of St. Ann who died in Victoria at the age of 92.

Marianne Werner noted that Sister Dorothy Bob had discerned becoming a sister of St. Ann while she was at the Kamloops Indian Residential School. 

Yes, the Kamloops Indian Residential School.

Werner wondered whether Sister Bob had ever been interviewed about her experiences at the school. “Working as a young woman cook at the Kamloops Indian Residential School, she must have seen and heard how students were treated there,” said Werner.

 For many, the Kamloops Indian Residential School has become the embodiment of cultural, if not literal, genocide, to the point that the federal government is thinking about making it a crime to “deny” the veracity of any allegation made by anyone about the school.

Yet, Sister Bob was “impressed sufficiently by the work of the Sisters to become a Sister of St. Ann herself,” notes Werner, and she went on to work in other residential schools.

Above, Sister Dorothy Bob in 1996, and at right in 1959. (B.C. Catholic files)

With a little research, it turns out there is more information about Sister Dorothy Bob’s upbringing. Born on the Fountain Reserve, now the Xaxli’p Band, near Lillooet, Dorothy Bob was an Interior Salish of the Lillooet tribe. 

She attended Kamloops Indian Residential School as a young girl but left after four years to care for her sick mother. She later worked as a cook at the school. Determined to complete her education, she undertook private study in Victoria, finishing Grades 5–10 in one year and then completing Grades 11 and 12 the following year at Camosun College.

She told The B.C. Catholic in 1990 that she recalled searching for a religious community but not knowing how to begin the process. “I kept looking for a community, but I did not know how to become a sister,” she said.

It was only when a Sister of St. Ann approached her and asked if she had ever wanted to be a sister that she took the next step.

“I said ‘yes,’ and that’s how it started,” she recalled, admitting to feeling “a small amount of fear” about the application process. With the guidance of a supportive sister and her trust in God, she overcame the hurdle and embraced her vocation. And so, in her early 20s, Sister Bob entered the Sisters of St. Ann, becoming the first Indigenous girl to do so in the congregation’s hundred-year presence in British Columbia.

On a chilly February morning with light snow falling, hundreds of parish representatives gathered in Coquitlam at Our Lady of Lourdes Church for a planning meeting over coffee and conversation. Volunteers shared their hopes and strategies for this year’s 40 Days for Life campaign, energized by a shared commitment to prayer, witness, and defending life. 

“We’re not organizing an event for one day but a movement that takes place over 40 days and involves hundreds of people,” said Father Larry Lynn, pro-life chaplain for the Archdiocese of Vancouver. “It is certainly unique in that regard.”

The meeting set the stage for what Father Lynn says has been an encouraging start to the campaign. As the largest coordinated pro-life effort in the world, 40 Days for Life unites people from all walks of life in a mission to affirm the dignity of human life and resist cultural forces threatening to dehumanize it.

“It is a stand against the killing of innocent human life in all its forms, starting with abortion and euthanasia,” said Father Lynn. “But it also includes actions that reduce the dignity of human life through torture, murder, human trafficking, slavery, and any other form of violence or neglect.”

Unfortunately, many see abortion or euthanasia as “positive, even necessary actions,” he said. “If you have a basic understanding of Catholic social justice teaching, you would be able to respond that we are the Imago Dei. We are made in the image and likeness of God, and we are all equal in dignity, no matter our circumstances.”

Over the past several decades, a “politics of progression” influenced by philosophers who deny the existence of God has taken hold, he said. “Their ideas have been infused into how society thinks and speaks about human life.” Talk about “reproductive rights” fails to acknowledge that life in the womb “is as worthy as any other.”

Statistics bear out his point. According to the World Health Organization, about 73 million abortions are performed worldwide each year. In Canada alone, there were 97,211 abortions in clinics and hospitals in 2022, according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information. Meanwhile, euthanasia accounted for 15,343 deaths in Canada last year, representing five per cent of all deaths. Since euthanasia was legalized in Canada in 2016, there have been 60,301 deaths by assisted suicide.

That’s why prayer is at the centre of pro-life efforts, Father Lynn said. “It’s about changing hearts and minds.”

A focus of this year’s campaign is shedding light on how modern medical and technological advances, such as commercial surrogacy, fetal farming, in vitro fertilization (IVF), gamete donation, and cryopreservation (freezing embryos), increasingly commodify human life.

Sebastian Lai, son of Hong Kong Catholic democracy advocate Jimmy Lai, said this week his father is “still fighting for his beliefs” while he remains imprisoned in “inhumane” conditions and his national security trial drags on. 

Lai, the founder of the pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily and a human rights activist, has been on trial since December of 2023 for allegations of colluding with foreign forces under a national security law put in effect by the communist-controled Chinese government. 

He was originally arrested in 2020 and has been convicted on several other charges over the course of his detainment. 

The 77-year-old has been in solitary confinement in Hong Kong for more than four years, where “he doesn’t get to see anybody. He doesn’t get natural light, and he’s denied the Eucharist as well,” Sebastian Lai said at a press conference on Tuesday in Washington, D.C. 

Vancouver Archbishop J. Michael Miller is among a group of Catholic leaders from around the world who in 2023 called upon the government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to release Lai.

Noting the situation in Hong Kong “greatly concerns” Vancouver Catholics, especially in the Asian Catholic community, Archbishop Miller said there is an obligation to help those unjustly persecuted.

“Christian charity leads us to pray and do all we can from a practical perspective to help those who are facing persecution,” he said. 

“Mr. Lai is a person of faith who is being silenced and imprisoned for his pro-democracy convictions. Justice demands that we speak up for them and give them a voice.”

His son said the trial had just finished cross-examinations. In the courtroom, Lai was reported to be “skinnier,” but “still very sharp.”

The trial was supposed to last 18 days, Sebastian said, but has now run for well over 100. “He’s not going to get sentenced until either end of this year or the start of next year,” he said. 

The lead of Jimmy Lai’s international team, Caoilfhionn Gallagher, further explained the trial timeline and the anticipated outcome.

“We’re waiting for the closing submissions, and disgracefully, there’s a very, very long delay until early August before the closing submissions,” Gallagher said. “That’s a gap of almost five months in the middle of a trial when you’re dealing with an elderly man who’s diabetic, who’s already been in prison and in solitary confinement for over four years.”

“After that, there’ll be a pause, we don’t know how long before the judges give their verdict. But we think that’s only going one way,” she said. “We think it’s going to be a guilty finding, because he’s being tried under a law which essentially criminalizes dissent.”

“My God, my God why have you abandoned me?” Psalm 22:1 Are you praying everyday but still suffering? Are you doing all the right things but your heart is still broken?

Fr. Mike shares with us today that God doesn’t promise all our desires, but promises that He will be with us through our sufferings. He reminds us that we are never abandoned by Him.

You need to know yourself in order to find the best ways to live Lent. Take some time to consider who you are and what your relationships need.

It’s important to know yourself well when you decide how you will fast, pray, and give alms this Lent.

If you do, then maybe you can combine all three in ways that are tailor-made to improve the most important relationships of your life.

Let’s start with your relationship with God.

We all have a different problem here. 

Maybe you are overwhelmed. Are you exhausted by your many devotions? Maybe you do rosaries, chaplets, and novenas  — and rosary novenas and chaplet novenas —  along with daily Mass, feast day activities, daily podcasts, and parish events, and you’re drowning in it all.

Or maybe you are presumptuous. Maybe you do all of those things and you actually keep up with it all. Your inbox provides the novena for next week’s feast each morning, you are on the second half of a 54-day rosary novena, you get a chaplet in most afternoons at around 3, and you are going through Bible in a Year for the third time. Maybe you are pretty sure that even God is impressed with you.

Or maybe your spiritual life is on hold. Maybe you did many of these things for much of your life, but you are just really, really busy right now. You totally plan to pray again — when you have more time. Maybe in late spring?

Whether you are overwhelmed, presumptuous, or on hold —  you can do something about it this Lent. Give up worrying about anything but daily prayer, Sunday Mass, and regular confession — but put more into each of those. At your daily prayer, picture Jesus sitting across from you, lean forward, and say, “Can we just talk for a change?” He would love to hear from you.

Then comes your relationship with your spouse.

Again, let’s be clear where we are starting. 

Are you walking on eggshells with your spouse? Maybe you’re fine, totally fine, as long as you can steer the conversation away from two or three or, well, maybe 10, touchy topics that set you off. If you talk about any of those you get angry fights or silent funks. So you don’t talk about those. And you’re fine.

Are you being maternalistic or paternalistic with your spouse? Maybe your husband complains that you don’t let him do anything he likes and that you shut down every plan he tries to make — but of course you do because his priorities are all wrong. Or maybe your wife complains that you don’t listen to her — but you most certainly do listen, on the rare occasions she actually has something important to say.

John Paul II Pastoral Centre staff lined the balcony and crowded the ground floor to welcome Archbishop Richard Smith for his first official visit to Vancouver, his soon-to-be home and archdiocese.

After flying in from Edmonton and navigating Vancouver morning traffic, Archbishop Smith told pastoral workers he was deeply touched by their welcome.

As part of his visit, he sat down for an interview with Archbishop J. Michael Miller and Deacon Zak Santiago, a Vancouver actor and permanent deacon at Holy Rosary Cathedral.

During the 30-minute conversation, the two archbishops shared their thoughts on topics ranging from evangelization and parish renewal to truth and reconciliation with Indigenous peoples.

For his part, Archbishop Miller introduced the Archdiocese and its unique character, praising the Proclaim Movement as an engine for evangelical formation, reviewing the Sacred Covenant signed with the Tk̓emlúps First Nation, and describing some of the ways parishes are embracing renewal through innovative approaches to co-responsibility and parish leadership.

“What’s really important is to learn from the local people here and members of the local Church,” Archbishop Smith said. “What really are the dynamics at play here in Vancouver?”

It’s important, he said, “that we don’t rush forward with answers to questions that people aren’t asking,” adding he wants to get “a better sense, a deeper sense of what is going on here [in Vancouver].”

Archbishop Smith emphasized that truth and reconciliation should move the Church not only to listen to Indigenous peoples but to learn from them as well. He praised their focus on the Creator and their tradition of beginning gatherings with prayer.

Vancouver’s new shepherd is also eager to learn more about parish renewal initiatives in the Archdiocese.

“I want to keep to the fore the idea of co-responsibility,” he said. “We all have these God-given gifts that come to us through baptism. How do we work together, collaborate, and grasp the co-responsibility that we all have for the mission [of evangelization]?”

Archbishop Smith and Archbishop Miller both received their episcopal appointments in  2007, and they were asked about leaving their episcopal appointments.  

For Archbishop Smith, leaving his longtime home of Edmonton comes with some sadness, but he said he is ultimately excited about the opportunities the Church in Vancouver offers.

Archbishop Miller, on the other hand, said he has had time to process the emotions of the change.

Pope Francis had an uneventful night in Rome’s Gemelli Hospital and continues to rest, the Holy See Press Office said Thursday morning.

“The night passed quietly; the Pope is still resting,” the press office said.

On Wednesday evening, the press office released a statement providing the daily medical update on Pope Francis’ health.

“The Holy Father remained stable today as well, without any episodes of respiratory insufficiency,” said the statement.

“As planned, he utilized supplemental, high-flow oxygenation, and non-invasive mechanical ventilation will be resumed tonight.”

Pope Francis “increased his respiratory and active motor physiotherapy” and spent the day in his armchair.

“Given the complexity of the clinical situation, the prognosis remains guarded,” the statement continued.

On Ash Wednesday, in a private apartment on the 10th floor, “the Holy Father participated in the rite of the blessing of the Sacred Ashes, which were imposed on him by the celebrant. He then received the Eucharist.”

The Pope later “engaged in several work activities,” including making a call to Father Gabriel Romanelli, the parish priest of Holy Family Church in Gaza.

“In the afternoon, he alternated between rest and work,” the press office said.

Pope Francis has been receiving treatment for bilateral pneumonia at Gemelli Hospital since he was hospitalized on Feb. 14.

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2nd Sunday of Lent, Year C
First Reading: Gn 15:5-12, 17-18
Second Reading: Phil 3:17–4:1
Gospel Reading: Lk 9:28b-36

In this Sunday’s readings, Jesus is transfigured, and St. Paul tells us that Christ will “transform the body of our humiliation that it may be conformed to the body of his glory.”

The Church confirms it in the Preface: God filled “with the greatest splendour” the bodily form Jesus shares with us, to show us how what first “shone forth” in the Church’s Head “is to be fulfilled” in his Mystical Body, the Church.

Almost universally, non-Christians oppose Christian faith in the resurrection of the body, St. Augustine noted. Many believe vaguely that the soul survives death, but Christians believe that at the end of the world, Christ will raise even our bodies.

To the Sadducees, who denied it, Jesus said unambiguously, “You are badly misled, because you fail to understand the Scriptures or the power of God.” To Martha, he said, “Your brother will rise again.” When she replied, “I know he will rise again, in the resurrection on the last day,” Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life.”

When the risen Jesus first appeared to his apostles, “they thought they were seeing a ghost,” and they panicked, but Jesus showed them the holes left by the nails that had held him to the cross and said, “Look at my hands and feet: it is really I. Touch me, and see that a ghost does not have flesh and bones as I do.” Since the apostles were still incredulous for sheer joy and wonder, he asked, “Have you anything here to eat?” and they gave him a piece of fish, which he took and ate in front of them.

Clearly, therefore, Jesus’ risen body was recognizably his own. However, he did not return to his previous earthly life. For example, he was, occasionally, hard to recognize, and could appear and disappear, even through locked doors.

That is what we can “look forward” to. We say we believe it in the Creed every Sunday. However, we still wonder how the dead will be raised and what kind of body they will have.

St. Paul explains: “The seed you sow does not germinate unless it dies…. So it is with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown in the earth is subject to decay; what rises is incorruptible. What is sown is ignoble; what rises is glorious. Weakness is sown, strength rises up. A natural body is put down and a spiritual body comes up.”

If “spiritual body” suggests something more like a gas than a solid body of “flesh and bones,” read C.S.

Do your Lenten practices feel arbitrary? Do your penances seem ineffective? If you’re feeling this way, you might be wondering, “what do you want from me this Lent, God?” 

You might hear the answer as you receive cruciform ashes on your forehead this Ash Wednesday: “Repent, and believe in the Gospel.” 

Fr. Mark-Mary wants you to transform your Lent with one simple idea: repentance. There is a better way to do this, and it’s not complicated. We hope you have a blessed Lent this year!

©AscensionPresents