Dear Brothers and Sisters,

“Lent is a privileged time of interior pilgrimage towards Him Who is the font of mercy. It is a pilgrimage in which He Himself accompanies us through the desert of our poverty, sustaining us on our way towards the intense joy of Easter.” (Pope Benedict, XVI, Lenten Message, 2006) We all need a “spiritual tune up” from time to time. Lent provides God’s faithful a time for conversion and an opportunity to grow in one’s faith.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

The Lenten Season begins on Ash Wednesday, Feb 22. On Ash Wednesday, St. Bernadette parish will offer a 6:30am Mass, 8:30am Mass, a 12:00pm Liturgy of the Word and 5:00pm Mass. Everyone who comes to Mass or the noonday Liturgy of the Word will receive ashes on their foreheads. The symbolism is powerful. The ashes are reminders that each one of us came from dust and will return to dust one day. The ashes on our foreheads are in the shape of a cross. Wearing this sign on our foreheads proclaims to others "I live for Christ".

For non-Christians, the Lenten season means nothing. But for those who would like to grow in their relationship with Our Lord, Lent is a time to offer personal sacrifices by giving something up like a favorite food, doing greater works of charity, and praying more intently. The Apostle Paul gives us words of encouragement: "We entreat you not to accept the grace of God in vain.... Behold, now is the acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation" (2 Cor 6:1-2).

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Like the early disciples, we too, are a faithful community that seeks to love the Lord with our whole hearts. We too are invited to be in close relationship with Jesus. We too have been called to a unique mission of bringing hope to the hopeless, comfort to the sorrowful, and love to the lost. Sharing your blessings, your gifts and talents, brings the light of Christ to those who have known much darkness.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Our Lady’s statue arrived at the parish over 8 years ago. This statue of Our Lady of Lourdes once adorned our church space high above the altar on top of the baldacchino. Our Blessed Mother has been reverenced by thousands of parishioners for several years here at St. Bernadette. Since the parish beautification project included an image of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception on the apse in the sanctuary, it was decided that the statue would be better seen and venerated in the grotto along with a statue of St. Bernadette to represent the apparitions in Lourdes.