I Invite You, in the Name of the Church, to the Observance of a Holy Lent.

Today is Ash Wednesday; we begin Lent. In the liturgy for today, the Book of Common Prayer invites us to participate in this season in a meaningful way:

Dear People of God: The first Christians observed with great devotion the days of our Lord’s passion and resurrection, and it became the custom of the Church to prepare for them by a season of penitence and fasting. This season of Lent provided a time in which converts to the faith were prepared for Holy Baptism. It was also a time when those who, because of notorious sins, had been separated from the body of the faithful were reconciled by penitence and forgiveness, and restored to the fellowship of the Church. Thereby, the whole congregation was put in mind of the message of pardon and absolution set forth in the Gospel of our Savior, and of the need which all Christians continually have to renew their repentance and faith.

I invite you, therefore, in the name of the Church, to the observance of a holy Lent, by self examination and repentance; by prayer, fasting, and self denial; and by reading and meditating on God’s holy Word. And, to make a right beginning of repentance, and as a mark of our mortal nature, let us now kneel before the Lord, our maker and redeemer. (BCP, p. 264-5).

I don’t know about you, but sometimes I feel overwhelmed by the ever changing world of technology. Just when I get accustomed to the idea of cell phones getting smaller and smaller, I’m introduced to the idea of bigger and bigger so I can watch TV on my cell phone. I am surrounded by more and more information with no place to put it. The world around me moves much faster than I can run to keep up with it; my world moves so rapidly that my vision becomes blurred. Then Lent comes, and the Ash Wednesday liturgy bids us to slow down and to refocus and become centered, to sort out what really matters. On Ash Wednesday, we are reminded in a very concrete way that our time on earth is limited; that we should use our time wisely to concentrate on what is important, something that lasts longer than 2G, 3G and 4G technology. It is a time to center on our relationship with the eternal, on our relationship with God. Our relationships with loved ones outlast technology. Lent is a time to concentrate on what is truly important in life, our relationships with God, our neighbors and and even ourselves.

So I invite you, in the name of the Church, to the observance of a holy Lent.

THANK YOU TO THE TAYLORS FOR A WONDERFUL MARDI GRAS CELEBRATION! Yesterday, we inaugurated a new tradition at St. Augustine's for Fat Tuesday, a true Mardi Gras celebration. A good time was had by all!

CALENDAR REMINDERS

Ash Wednesday, 9 March at 7 P.M.: The Ash Wednesday Liturgy with the imposition of ashes. The ashes this year will be taken from the Palm Sunday crosses from St. James the Fisherman and given to us by Bob Newding.

Lenten Program: We will have a combined Lenten program with Grace Episcopal on Wednesday evenings as we have had in years past. It will begin with the Stations of the Cross, Eucharist, a light meal and then a teaching.

Saturday, 12 March, work day in the Community Garden.

PLEASE REMEMBER EVERYONE ON OUR PRAYER LIST, especially Roylene Lemons and pray for the family of Juanita Mack, who was buried yesterday.

Your servant in Christ,

Fr. Chester J. Makowski+
St. Augustine of Hippo Episcopal Church
Galveston, Texas 77550