Doorway into the Heart of God

Someone recently asked me for the date of the Feast of the Sacred Heart. I began to explain that it's a moveable feast, coming at the end of a whole series of moveable feasts, which begin with Pentecost... no, with Easter... no, Lent... Ash Wednesday... And as I heard myself describe this liturgical continuum, something within me broke into a gleeful little dance. Wow, I thought... Wow... from Ash Wednesday to the Sacred Heart, in one unbroken movement! 

From the day when we turn to God with all our hearts, seeking grace and forgiveness and mercy... through Lent and Easter and Pentecost... to the day when we celebrate the Heart of God, the fathomless source of that tender, overflowing, compassionate and merciful love.

In his pastoral letter for today, Cardinal Vincent Nicholls writes that Ash Wednesday is the doorway into this season of renewal. And so it is... And it's also a doorway into God's wide-open Heart, a sure companion on our journey. And this is the hope and the assurance which strengthen me as I enter this time of growth and renewal, and this Lent which promises to be like no other Lent - a promise which holds as much blessing as it does challenge.

Have a happy, grace-filled Lent, everyone!


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