Dear Parishioners of Mary Immaculate and Saint Rose,
This week is Ash Wednesday. We will begin the discipline of Lent.  On Wednesday we will be marked with a cross of ashes. It is a sign of sacrifice, sorrow, repentance, prayer, penance and death. It marks us as sinners who desire to turn away from our sin and to live in the light of Christ. As the ashes are placed on our foreheads, we hear the powerful words, “Remember that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return.”  These words echo those of the funeral liturgy. . .”We commit his/her body to the earth, for we are dust, and unto dust we shall return.”
During Lent, we are aware of the suffering and death of Jesus, but we are also aware of the suffering and death that come to each of us as human beings. Memento mori. . .remember death, is the unspoken cry of Lent. Prepare for the moment when the Lord will come for you!
During Lent we are encouraged to pray, fast, and give alms. Praying is taking time to spend with God, and during Lent we especially express sorrow for our sins.  So we pray meditating on the sorrowful mysteries of the rosary, or we pray the stations of the Cross. Fasting is denying ourselves the pleasure of things that we enjoy. We eat less than we normally do. We keep meatless Fridays as a reminder of the death of Jesus. We give up some favorite food, or treat, or television or screen time, something that reminds us that we can deny our appetites and cravings.  That denial makes us stronger and reminds us of the suffering of Jesus. We give alms. This helps us to realize that all we have is a gift from God. We can so easily become selfish and grasping. Giving liberates us from the things of this Earth. It reminds us that this life is passing; we get to take nothing with us.
All of this reminds us that time is running out. We do not have an inexhaustible number of days. We have been given the gift of life to give honor, glory and praise to God. We are warned in the Scriptures to be faithful servants. We are to be watching and waiting for the return of the Master.
“We die as we live: if our lives were lived in loving union with God, we will be able to abandon ourselves sincerely and confidently into His hands at the moment of our death. Our Lord frequently tells us to be watchful, knowing that our life in this world is a preparation for the life to come. If we remain close to Him, especially through charity to the poor and solidarity with those in need, we need not fear death, but rather welcome it as the door to heaven and to the joy of eternal life.”             (Pope Francis, 11-7-2013)
Memento Mori!                 
Msgr. Cox

Saint Francis of Assisi in His Tomb, Francisco de Zurbarán 1634.