April 4, 2025

Friday of the Fourth Week of Lent

Pastor’s Message – Church of Saint Benedict

 

By your help, we beseech you, Lord our God,

may we walk eagerly in that same charity

with which, out of love for the world,

your Son handed himself over to death.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

who lives and reigns with you in the unity

of the Holy Spirit, God forever and ever. Amen

 

Collect for the Mass on the Fifth Sunday of Lent

 

Brothers and Sisters,

For the final Sunday prior to Holy Week, we return to the penitential purple on the altar and for the vestments of the clergy. The sacred art in the sanctuary is covered over in the final preparations for sacred time beginning on Palm Sunday leading to Easter. We begin the home stretch of our Lenten observance.

Although the visual images at Mass this Sunday are somber, the Psalm Response that we will proclaim states that “The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy” (Psalm 126). 

The source of this joy is expressed in the Scriptures for Sunday Mass. In them we see the beauty movement from slavery to sin to freedom through new life in Christ. Jesus looks with compassion on the woman caught in adultery (John 8:1-11). He neither condemns nor excuses her sin. He simply forgives by telling her “Go and sin no more”.

St. Paul speaks of that new life in Christ that has taken possession of him. In his former life the apostle’s self-righteousness justified in his mind the use of violence against Christians. But having experienced mercy and forgiveness in Jesus he remembers not the past. He focuses on attaining eternal life (Philippians 3:8-14).

God is indeed doing new things. We are to focus not on the things of the past but upon the new life God is creating in us (Isaiah 43:16-31).

This new life is offered in the Cross and Resurrection of Jesus the Lord. Our Lenten observance has been preparing us to recognize this gift of new life in Christ. As we enter the final stretch, let us finish strong.

 

Our Parish

The Stations of the Cross this evening will be led by the youth of the parish. They portray the Stations in the church starting at 6pm. A meatless meal is being served in McGuire Hall immediately afterwards. All are welcome.

Our final Friday Lenten Meatless Meal will be on April 11 following the Stations of the Cross. It will be a Fish Fry hosted by the Men of Saint Benedict and the Knights of Columbus. Given the cost of this meal, there is a $5 suggested donation per person with a limit of $20 per family. Please register for the Fish Fry in the church commons this weekend. Registrations are due no later than 10am on Monday, April 7.

Thank you to the volunteers of the parish Landscape Committee for their work last Saturday to prepare our garden areas for Holy Week.

Audio recordings of the homily at our 9:00am Sunday Masses are now available on our parish’s Facebook page and YouTube channel.

Parish Retreats

This weekend our parish is again hosting two retreats. The first is the TYME Retreat for 5^th and 6^th grade youth taking place on Friday and Saturday.

The second is the Women’s ACTS retreat which began on Thursday. It will finish on Sunday at the Noon Mass. Please keep all the participants of both retreats in your prayers.

Sacrament of Reconciliation

At St. Benedict we will continue with our regular weekend and weekday confession times, with additional times during Holy Week.

Two neighboring parishes are hosting Reconciliation Services next week: St. Clement Parish in Bixby, Tuesday, April 8, starting at 6:30pm, and St. Bernard Parish in Tulsa, Thursday, April 10, from 5:30-7pm. Several priests will be available at each service for individual confessions.

ACTS Retreats

There is still space available for the Men’s Retreat on Thursday, April 10 to Sunday, April 13. Registration is available in the church commons. There will be extended hours of Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament in the St. Scholastica Chapel to pray for those in the retreats. You can sign up in the church commons for adoration times.

First Friday & First Saturday

Mass on First Friday will be on April 4 at 6:30am and 8:30am. Mass on First Saturday will be on April 5 at 8:30am. All are welcome.

We will have extended hours of Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament in the St. Scholastica Chapel from Thursday, April 3 starting at 9am and continuing through 9am on Sunday, April 6. A primary intention for the First Friday and Saturday Adoration is for those participating in the Women’s ACTS Retreat.

Jubilee Year of Hope

The next Jubilee Year of Hope Pilgrimage Site is St. John University Parish in Stillwater. Bishop Konderla will celebrate First Saturday Mass there tomorrow at 10am. All are welcome.

Lenten Speaker Series

Our next Lenten Speaker will be Dr. Joey Spencer on Wednesday, April 9. His topic will be the Role of Angels. We will start with a potluck dinner in McGuire Hall at 6:00pm with the presentation beginning at 6:30pm. All are welcome.

Palm Sunday & Holy Week

Weather permitting, the 9am and Noon Masses on Palm Sunday will begin outside at the bell tower. After the blessing of the palms there will be a procession into the church for the Palm Sunday Mass. A complete schedule for our Holy Week liturgies can be found in the parish bulletin, our website and social media accounts. The schedule will also be included in next week’s Pastor’s Message.

On Palm Sunday a Tenebrae Prayer Service will be held at Holy Family Cathedral starting at 7:30pm. All are welcome.

Please reach out to those who have not been to Mass in a while, as well as those with no church home, to be at St. Benedict for Holy Week.

 

God bless and keep you safe.

Fr. Bryan