Bishops' Schedules: Bishop Robert C. Morlino Friday, April 2, 2004 10:00 a.m. -- Preside at Morning Prayer, Clergy Day of Sanctification, Bishop O'Connor Catholic Pastoral Center, Madison 7:00 p.m. -- Preside at Evening Prayer, St. Thérèse of Lisieux Lecture Series, Bishop O'Connor Catholic Pastoral Center, Madison Saturday, April 3, 2004 Guest Presenter, Annual Deacon Day for the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, Archbishop Cousins Catholic Center, Milwaukee Sunday, April 4, 2004 10:00 a.m. -- Preside and Preach at Celebration of the Eucharist, Palm Sunday, St. Raphael Cathedral, Madison Tuesday, April 6, 2004 7:30 p.m. -- Preside and Preach at Celebration of the Eucharist, Chrism Mass, St. Raphael Cathedral, Madison Thursday, April 8, 2004 5:30 p.m. -- Preside and Preach at Mass of the Lord's Supper, St. Raphael Cathedral, Madison Friday, April 9, 2004 3:00 p.m. -- Preside and Preach at Celebration of the Lord's Passion, St. Raphael Cathedral, Madison Saturday, April 10, 2004 8:00 p.m. -- Preside and Preach at the Celebration of the Easter Vigil Eucharist, St. Raphael Cathedral, Madison Sunday, April 11, 2004 10:00 a.m. -- Preside and Preach at Celebration of the Easter Eucharist, St. Raphael Cathedral, Madison Bishop William H. Bullock, Bishop Emeritus Sunday, April 4, 2004 7:45 a.m. -- Preside and Preach at Celebration of the Eucharist, Palm Sunday, Valley of Our Lady Monastery, Prairie du Sac 10:30 a.m. -- Preside and Preach at Celebration of the Eucharist, Bless New Parish Fellowship Hall and Administrative Office Building, St. Francis Xavier Parish, Cross Plains Monday, April 5, 2004 11:00 a.m. -- Preside and Preach at Celebration of the Eucharist, Valley of Our Lady Monastery, Prairie du Sac Tuesday, April 6, 2004 11:00 a.m. -- Preside and Preach at Celebration of the Eucharist, Valley of Our Lady Monastery, Prairie du Sac 7:30 p.m. -- Concelebrate, Chrism Mass, St. Raphael Cathedral, Madison Wednesday, April 7, 2004 11:00 a.m. -- Preside and Preach at Celebration of the Eucharist, Valley of Our Lady Monastery, Prairie du Sac Thursday, April 8, 2004 4:00 p.m. -- Preside and Preach at Mass of the Lord's Supper, Valley of Our Lady Monastery, Prairie du Sac Friday, April 9, 2004 3:00 p.m. -- Preside and Preach at Celebration of the Lord's Passion, Valley of Our Lady Monastery, Prairie du Sac Saturday, April 10, 2004 8:30 p.m. -- Preside and Preach at the Celebration of the Easter Vigil Eucharist, Valley of Our Lady Monastery, Prairie du Sac Sunday, April 11, 2004 11:00 a.m. -- Preside and Preach at Celebration of the Easter Eucharist, Valley of Our Lady Monastery, Prairie du Sac

During Lent: Accept Christ's grace that heals hearts

		Under the Gospel Book + Bishop Robert C. Morlino

Dear Friends,

All of us, I believe, at the beginning of Lent, knew that Easter would quickly rush upon us, and so it is as Holy Week begins next week with our Palm Sunday observance. I have had to depart from my Lenten themes for several weeks to address in greater depth a very pressing issue as you well know. At the same time I am happy to be able to return to thoughts of Holy Week.

The Gospel for the procession with palms this year concludes with the Pharisees telling Jesus to restrain his disciples who are overwhelmed with sentiments of praise and worship of God and are crying out without restraint, "Blessings on Him who comes in the name of the Lord!" Jesus' response to the Pharisees is most powerful: "If they keep silent, the very stones will cry out."

"To Jesus through Mary let us go with all that we can muster during these closing days of Lent."

God was to be praised in Christ at this moment and his Spirit overcame the disciples so that they would participate without restraint in glorifying God for the mighty deeds which He had done. We cannot help but recall the beautiful words of Mary in her own song of praise, "The Lord who is mighty has done great things for me; holy is His name."

Tortuousness of the human heart

It is so interesting that many of these same people who are overcome by God's Spirit so that they rejoiced in praising God without restraint on that Palm Sunday were the same ones to cry out on Good Friday morning, "Crucify Him, Crucify Him!" The Spirit of God who provoked their praise was somehow eclipsed on Good Friday morning. They found themselves abandoned to a kind of a mob psychology that preferred the release of Barabbas the murderer rather than the deliverance of the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords from His suffering and death.

But God's eternal Plan called for Jesus freely to mount that cross and to suffer for us until He could cry out, "It is finished! Father into your hands I commend my spirit."

The mystery of human freedom in being open or not to God's Spirit is again so clearly revealed: one minute, "Blessings on the King who comes in the name of the Lord," and just a few days later, "Crucify Him, Crucify Him." Scripture speaks about this truth as the tortuousness of the human heart. It is so hard to understand, it is a puzzle, it is inscrutable.

In so many ways we are a puzzle to ourselves as we proceed along that winding path of falling and rising again, of faithfulness and unfaithfulness. Of course this is precisely why the Lord freely mounted the tree of the cross to suffer and die for us - to open the possibility that the division within our own human hearts, that tortuousness, might be open to healing through grace.

It took the death of the Son of God and nothing less to open for us and for our hearts that wonderful possibility. And yet our freedom has to be engaged, with Mary, like Mary - let it be done to me according to your Word. Although our yes can never be as perfect as was hers because of the special privilege of her freedom from original sin, nonetheless we are to grow in this regard, and in so many ways that is what our Lenten journey has been all about.

Passion of the Christ reveals price paid

The film The Passion of the Christ has enabled many of us to realize more profoundly the price that the Lord paid for this healing of our human hearts. The film has made us realize more profoundly the price that Mary, His mother, paid to carry out with faithfulness her own vow; let it be done to me according to your word. The healing of our hearts was bought at the greatest possible price, the price of the blood of Jesus Christ, our God. Mary was His faithful mother and companion in sharing that suffering with Him in the most intense way. Her perfect openness of heart to Her son, her perfect act of freedom, meant the perfect healing of her heart, and in that she is unique.

Follow Christ with Mary, like Mary

As we enter the days of Holy Week, let us follow close to our Lord, with Mary, like Mary but in our limited way trying to make ever more full our acceptance of that grace of Christ which alone can heal our hearts.

Even if we have neglected our Lenten observance or even almost forgotten it, God never gives up on us. Let us turn to Jesus through Mary during these final days of Lent, keeping our eyes fixed on Him "Who for the sake of the joy which lay in the future endured the cross disregarding the shamefulness of it all."

To Jesus through Mary let us go with all that we can muster during these closing days of Lent. The unreasonable generosity of God's mercy will as usual make up for whatever is lacking in us if we hold our hearts wide open rather than harden them.

Thank you very much for reading this. May God bless you and yours with a consoling and fruitful Holy Week journey. Praised be Jesus Christ!

Bishop's Letter

Dear Friends in Christ:

On Good Friday of each year the Church in the United States traditionally takes a special collection to support the maintenance of the sacred shrines and historic sites in the Holy Land. They have been places of pilgrimage and prayer for centuries and are both spiritually and historically of considerable value.

On this day when we read the Passion of Our Lord and venerate the cross on which he hung as the savior of the world, their importance and value are even more apparent.

The many years of war and the constant threat of terrorism have reduced the number of pilgrims visiting the Holy Land, whose donations over the years have been among the main financial support for these shrines. The Franciscans and others who are stewards of these special places need our help and encouragement. Please be generous so that the historic and spiritual treasures of the Holy Land may be maintained for generations to come.

Let us also pray for peace, for justice, and for greater understanding among the peoples of the Holy Land and throughout the world. Thank you for your thoughtful generosity.

Faithfully yours in Christ,

Most Reverend
Robert C. Morlino
Bishop of Madison