St Brigid Parish Bulletin for Sunday February 4, 2024 by Fred Brown

The Roman Catholic Community of ST. BRIGID PARISH, (St. Francis Xavier Church, Friendsville, Pa. St. Augustine Church, Silver Lake, Pa.)

PARISH MISSION STATEMENT

Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time

(St. Brigid’s Cross)

February 4th, 2024

-mail: sfxc@epix.net Facebook: St Brigid Parish Rev. Augustine Thomas—Administrator Father Augustine—1 (570) 909-7819 Deacon Paul J. Brojack

O come, let us worship God! MASS SCHEDULE Church - VIGIL: 5TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME INTENTIONS OF OUR PARISHIONERS St. Francis Church - 5TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME ANDY POTOCEK by Friends St. Augustine Church - JOE & MARY BETH ADAMS by Judy Adams NO MASS St. Francis Church -SPECIAL INTENTIONS OF GARY & HELENA ARBOSHESKI by Bill & Barb Pichette St. Augustine Church- VIRGINIA (GINNIE) MCCORMACK by Diane Archer St. Augustine Church - HELGA WALZ by Bob & Susie Reichlen St. Francis Church - MAUREEN MILLER by Mike Griffin & Cathy O’Reilly St. Francis Church - VIGIL: 6TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME JOSEPH & HELEN GRIFFIN by Mike Griffin St. Francis Church - 6TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME MARGARET FLAHERTY by Jeff & Rosanne Williams St. Augustine Church - INTENTIONS OF OUR PARISHIONERS

Sat. Feb.

4:30PM St. Francis

Sun. Feb.

8:00AM

Mon. Feb. Tue. Feb.

10:30AM 5 6 12:00NN

Wed. Feb.

Thur. Feb. Fri. Feb.

8 8:30AM 9 12:00NN

8:30AM

Sat. Feb. 10

4:30PM

Sun. Feb. 11

8:00AM 10:30AM

CONFESSION SCHEDULE—(BEFORE ALL WEEKEND MASSES) Saturday—St. Francis Xavier—before 4:30PM Mass—3:30 to 4:15PM Sunday—St. Francis Xavier—before 8:00AM Mass—7:30 to 7:50AM Sunday—St. Augustine—before 10:30AM Mass—9:45 to 10:20AM STEWARDSHIP REPORT Our weekend collection total was $ 3,196.00. Your generosity is greatly appreciated. LIFELINES “A society is all the more human to the degree that it cares effectively for its most frail and suffering members, in a spirit of fraternal love. Let us strive to achieve this goal, so that no one will feel alone, excluded or abandoned.” ~ Pope Francis, Message for the 29th World Day of the Sick 2021 © 2020, Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Used with permission. All rights reserved.

FEAST OF ST. BLAISE/BLESSING OF THROATS Blessing of Throats will be held at all Masses this weekend. SECOND COLLECTION TODAY The Second Collection today is for the Care & Education of Priests. THANK YOU—COLLECTION FOR THE CHURCH IN LATIN AMERICA Thank you for your generosity to this collection. Our collection total was $ 534.00. 2023 FUND RAISER UPDATES The 2023 Lottery Calendars were all sold again this year and our profit was $ 10,000.00. The Annual Parish Picnic went very well again this year. Our profit was $ 12,413.72. The Fall Fund Raiser also did well with a profit of $ 3,185.09. These fund raisers are a huge help in paying our insurance bill as well as other expenses throughout the year. Thank you for helping to make all these fund raisers huge successes!! PARISH LOTTERY CALENDARS Parish Lottery Calendars are available in the back of our Churches. They are $ 20.00 each and run from April 1st thru December 31st, 2024. Each family is asked to take at least (5) calendars to sell. There are both packages of (5) calendars and loose (single) calendars. (Please do not break up the packages.) Please sign the calendars out on the sheet provided. NEW VOLUNTEERS ARE NEEDED New volunteers to be Lectors, Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion, and Altar Servers are always needed. To be eligible—Lectors & Extraordinary Ministers must have received the Sacrament of Confirmation. If you are a student who has received the Sacrament of First Holy Communion, you are eligible to be a Server. Any adult who would like to serve is also welcome. If you are interested, see Father Augustine, Deacon Paul or call the Rectory (570-553-2288). RCIA—RITE OF CHRISTIAN INITIATION OF ADULTS The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) is the process, established for the universal Church, for individuals to become Catholic and receive the sacraments of initiation – Baptism, Confirmation, and the Eucharist. If you or anyone you know would like to begin the process to become full members in the Catholic Faith, please contact the Rectory (570)553-2288 / sfxc@epix.net or see Fr. Augustine or Deacon Paul. COMMUNION FOR THE HOMEBOUND If you or someone you know is homebound and would like to receive Holy Communion, please call (570-553-2288) or email sfxc@epix.net the parish office. WORLD DAY OF PRAYER FOR CONSECRATED LIFE In 1997, Pope Saint John Paul II instituted a day of prayer for women and men in consecrated life. This celebration is attached to the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord on February 2nd, Candlemas Day, the day when candles are blessed symbolizing Christ who is the light of the world. So too, those in consecrated life are called to reflect the light of Jesus Christ to all peoples. The celebration of World Day for Consecrated Life is transferred to the following Sunday in order to highlight the gift of consecrated persons for the whole Church. World Day for Consecrated Life was celebrated in the Church on Thursday, February 2nd, and in parishes this weekend. Please pray for all those who have made commitments in the consecrated life, and be sure to thank them on their special day. May they continue to be inspired by Jesus Christ and respond generously to God's gift of their vocation. WORLD MARRIAGE DAY World marriage day is next Sunday, February 11th. The 2024 theme is “Love Beyond Words.” WORLD DAY OF THE SICK 2024 World Day of the Sick is celebrated on February 11th. The theme: “It is not good that man should be alone”. Healing the Sick by Healing Relationships.

MINISTRY SCHEDULE Saturday, February 10—4:30PM—St. Francis: Lector—Betty Ellen Hardy; Ministers—Mike Griffin & Sean Kelly; Server—volunteer; Rosary—Tom Curley; Greeter—volunteer Sunday, February 11—8:00AM—St. Francis: Lector—Rosanne Williams; Ministers—Joyce Barnum & Karen Glowa; Servers—volunteers; Rosary—Debbie Purtell; Greeter—volunteer Sunday, February 11—10:30AM—St. Augustine: Lector—Julie Perlick; Ministers—Sr. Bette & volunteer; Servers—volunteer; Rosary—volunteer; Greeter—volunteer DECEASED Please pray for the deceased, especially Armand Fizzano, father of Joe (Donna) Fizzano; Barbara Ann Lanza of Endicott, NY; Rev. Clarence J. Cerwonka, Maine, NY; Edward H. Luecke, Jr, Montrose; and Harold Carr Craige, Montrose. May they all rest in peace. Amen. PRAYER LIST Lord, hear our prayers for the sick of our Parish & Community listed below and for those who are not listed and in need of our prayers, especially all suffering from cancer, Lyme disease, or Covid-19. Kaitlyn Andre, Michael Haefner, Bill Jones, Jr., Ruth King, Kyle Stoddard, Sam Miner, Sophie Padula, Tom Wenman, Toni Colardino, Madigan Gow, Emily D., Amanda Branning, Daniel Gavin, Tommy Williams, Kathy Holt, Linda Hollenback, Don Zaleski, MaryLou Fahs, Elton Carr, Jim Raftis, Bub Davis, Tyler Fletcher, William Chaney, Joe Grindel, Chelsea Judson, Trisha, Mary Guido, Hallie Brooks, Mark Kovach, Brooke Arnold, “D”, Robyn Lawson, Ned Offner, Ethel Reid, Butch Rosencranz, Shawn Burns, Quinn Seymour, Marie Donahue, Barbara Mahoney, Rusty Carmen, Adam Price, Greg Lasgowka, Terry, Cameron & Levi White, Natalie Dawn Abell, Tom Ellison, the Reed Family, Don Higgins, Raub Family, Todd Legg, Ryan Hayes, Sean McMahon, Thomas McWilliams, Marty Mosher, Chad Grindel, Cathy Ballogg, Mary Ann Casterline, Janice Jacobs, Patricia Charpinsky, Jay Gurn, Diane Holleran, Kineer Worgen, James Dughi, Peg Broadwater, Christopher Dauber, Adrian Stephens, Millie, John, Reilly, Sophia ILichishin, Alice Walsh, Josh Zaleski, Caleb Scepaniak, Dana Marsh, Mary Joan, Lori Rawlins, Brendan Merritt, Mark Pasteka, Tim Fruehan, Linda, Gloria, Lori Hammerly Coleman, Brendan Kelly, Pat Walsh, Angelo Scarfalloto, Emily Graves, Cathy Albert, Robert Nemcek, Wink, Wayne Hibbard, Laura Nelson, Garrett Farr, Dr. Silversti, Mary Keenan, Everly Hausmann, George Coleman, Sally Saunders, Dennis Byerly, Marie Cavalarro, Sully & Patty Cavallaro, R.C.M., Evelyn Ferro, Briana Grisdale, Gregory Diorio, Mike Coleman, Nicholas, Alex, Alice, Mike & Pat Stelacio, Fr. John Victoria, Joseph Santora, Carol Garcia, Jay S., Carl, Jessica Lawrence, Sophie Holgash, Nellie Manarchuck, Monica Gibson, Diane Coffee, Bill Noldy, Jr., Cathy Edsell, Patricia Hutchinson, Chris Mortensen, Clyde & Mary Tims, Louise Darrow, Diane, Aaron Fredendall, Louise Eastman, Niki Rogers, Wade Leach, Shirley Conboy, Mark, Joseph Olszewski, Curtis Edwards, Matthew Gatto, Madigan, Marge Murphy, Kris Kiesly, Ellen Bieleski, Kylie Keenan, Sara Kelly Price, Tucker White, Terri Grindel, Jerry Wells, Fred Brown, Rosa Prieto, Carl Whitehead, Ed Snee, Cliff & Anita James, Pete Strojny, Jay C., Shirley McWilliams, Mary (Jones) Edsell, Mike, Eileen Maruschok, Sue L., Shirley Rockefeller, Tony McHugh, Val Mosier, Hunter Allen Sapp, A.J. Pass, Leonard Howell, Bryce Histand, Deacon Tom Hartley, Ken Warner, George Thrasher, Norma Volk, Kathy Conklin, Gary Fisher, Joan Middendorf, Marie Mirabelli, Clint Wise, Carol Jarnigan, Brian, Kevin Pierson, Anne, Madeline Barno, Evan Small, Megan Hale, Ben Naylor, Tammy Volk Jennings, Rosemary Stewart, Margaret Zernone, Owen, Bucky Russell, Kathleen, Gerry, Delores Sinchak, Carolyn Doolittle, Tom Murphy, Eileen, Leah Walters, Linda Burrell, Jane Borelli, Jake Warner, Chuck Bullock, Tom Krupinski, and Susie Reichlen. Please pray for all the needs in our Parish & Community. Our Lady of Good Health, pray for us. Amen. ARMED FORCES LIST Please pray for those in our Armed Forces, especially those from our Parish & Community, Ryan Gor m ley, Christopher Reichlen, Mike Griffith, Matthew Kramer, Ryan Neville, Shane Kalpokas, Dustin Ryder, Steven Shelp, Ricky Trowbridge, A. Jay Tewksbury, Lukas Crisman, Ryan Newberry, Mark W. Gregg, Lisa Phillips, Andrew Muscarelle, Adam Barziloski, Marty Conboy, Wayne M. Bennett, Joseph Elliott, Bradley J. Bryant, John Baltsley, Mara Redding, Michael Redding, James Hemmerly, Amberlynn Villanella, Jacob Balchikonis, Rip VanWinkle, Jonathan Green, Cameron, Garrett Kiehle, and all who serve with them. May they be protected & safe from harm & return home safely and soon. Amen.

The Roman Catholic Community of ST. BRIGID PARISH, (St. Francis Xavier Church, Friendsville, Pa. St. Augustine Church, Silver Lake, Pa.)

PARISH MISSION STATEMENT

Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time

(St. Brigid’s Cross)

February 4th, 2024

-mail: sfxc@epix.net Facebook: St Brigid Parish Rev. Augustine Thomas—Administrator Father Augustine—1 (570) 909-7819 Deacon Paul J. Brojack

Sat. Feb.

4:30PM St. Francis

Sun. Feb.

8:00AM

Mon. Feb. Tue. Feb.

10:30AM 5 6 12:00NN

Wed. Feb.

Thur. Feb. Fri. Feb.

8 8:30AM 9 12:00NN

8:30AM

Sat. Feb. 10

4:30PM

Sun. Feb. 11

8:00AM 10:30AM

Deacon’s NOTE This scene brings up the importance for us of availability. As a faith community we are invited to be available to those who are in genuine need. At the same me, there is what we might call the ‘shortage of availability’. We need to ﬁnd a balance between people’s needs and our limited resources. We do not help people by working ourselves to the point of ‘burnout’. Having ‘quality me’ with God, to pray, reﬂect and renew our energy is central. Jesus gives us an excellent example here by going away to a deserted place to pray. Let us remember to stay close to the source of all love Deacon Ron Maida—dorronto@protonmail.com

SANCTUARY & DEVOTIONAL CANDLES ~ A Devotional Candle at St. Francis Xavier b u r n s for a Special Intention offered by Joe Purr. ~ A Devotional Candle at St. Francis Xavier b u r n s for peace in Ukraine, Israel, and Middle Eastern area. ~ A Devotional Candle at St. Francis Xavier b u r n s for a Special Intention. ~ A Devotional Candle at St. Francis Xavier b u r n s in Memory of Armand Fizzano, Died January 1st, 2024. May he rest in peace. Offered by Donna & Joe Fizzano ADORATION Please consider spending an hour with Our Lord. New volunteers (fill-ins and permanent) are needed. Many hours are available. Call Rosalynd Perlick (570-663-2212) to volunteer. SPECIAL PRAYERS Please continue to pray for vocations to the Priesthood in our Diocese. PARISH PRAYER CHAIN If you would like to respond to prayer requests, or if you have a prayer request, please contact Rosalynd Perlick (570-663-2212) or Susie Reichlen (570-553-2618). Many prayers will be offered for your intentions. Please call when the person you put on this Prayer List can be removed, either because of their return to health or because they have passed away. CHURCH CLEANING St. Augustine: February 5 to 11—Anne & Sally Hawley; February 12 to 18—Sr. Bette Brown; February 19 to 25—Sr. Bette Brown & Barb Pichette; February 26 to March 3—Barbara Gow & Jen Henry; March 4 to 10—Barb & Bill Pichette; March 11 to 17—Barb & Bill Pichette; March 18 to 24—Susie Reichlen; March 25 to 31—Cathy O’Reilly St. Francis cleaner for the month of February is Kay Keenan. NEW VOLUNTEERS are always needed to help clean our Churches. There are openings throughout the year that need to be filled at both Churches. If you would like to volunteer, please call Kay (570)553-2288. DIOCESAN ANNUAL APPEAL Our goal for 2023 is $ 22,000.00. We have raised $ 32,550.00 (147.95 % of our goal from 109 donors/ 35.97 % of our Parishioners). We are over our goal by $ 10,550.00. All donations are still very welcome. 75% of all money raised over our goal is returned to St. Brigid Parish. Thank you again to all of our very generous supporters!! SOUP’ER BOWL COOK-OFF Mom’s House Soup’er Bowl Cook-Off will be held on Thursday, February 8th from 5 to 7:30PM at Our Lady of Sorrows Café, 801 Main Street, Vestal, NY. Cost: Adults - $15.00, ages 5-12 - $10.00, Under age 5 – Free. Please join us for a fun and delicious soup cook-off! Sample savory soups and enjoy bakery bread and homemade desserts! Bottled water and soda will also be provided. Area restaurants and “aspiring” chefs will be serving up a sample of their most popular soup for all to try! Then cast your vote for the following categories: *Favorite Soup * Healthiest * Spiciest * Heartiest * Best Table Presentation. Voting closes at 7:00PM. There will be entertainment, games of chance, Silent Auction Gift Baskets, and 50/50. All proceeds benefit Mom’s House! Tickets available at the door, at Mom’s House, or on-line at: www.momshouseny.org - click on “Upcoming Events”! Ezra 10:4: A Retreat for Men Discerning the Priesthood This preached retreat will involve talks, discussion, Mass, Reconciliation, Adoration, and time to connect with other men discerning God’s call in their life. The retreat will be held March 1-2 at Holy Family Spiritual Renewal Center, 151 Old Newport Street, Nanticoke, Pa. Check in is Friday, March 1st between 6 and 7PM. Check out is Saturday, March 2nd after the Vigil Mass. The retreat is FREE to attend.

FAITH AND FAMILY FEBRUARY 2024 NEWSLETTER Happy Feast of Saint Brigid Day! The link to the February Newsletter is https://www.smore.com/098da THANK YOU NOTE FROM GIVING TREE FAMILY To “Santa’s Elves” (Earth Angels) Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your compassionate act of kindness. Without you, our Christmas would’ve been impossible. We were hit hard with illness, reduced hours, and struggled just to pay the bills. Your gifts were magical—an answer to my prayers. My children were so excited and still believe in Santa—because of you. Your act will never be forgotten. God Bless, Love, a very grateful Mom. THANK YOU NOTE FROM SHEILA MCMAHON To the Altar & Rosary Society of St. Brigid’s Parish, I would like to thank all of the Ladies (and gentlemen) who helped put on the luncheon for the Funeral of Tim McMahon. It was such a warm welcome home, I cannot express the peace it brought to me. The food was all “homemade”. What a unique Parish! I have not seen this kind of commitment anywhere else. Thank you all for making my family feel so much “at home.” Love and Prayers, Sheila McMahon

Message of His Holiness Pope Francis for Lent 2024 Through the Desert God Leads us to Freedom Dear brothers and sisters! When our God reveals himself, his message is always one of freedom: “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery” (Ex 20:2). These are the first words of the Decalogue given to Moses on Mount Sinai. Those who heard them were quite familiar with the exodus of which God spoke: the experience of their bondage s ll weighed heavily upon them. In the desert, they received the “Ten Words” as a thoroughfare to freedom. We call them “commandments”, in order to emphasize the strength of the love by which God shapes his people. The call to freedom is a demanding one. It is not answered straightaway; it has to mature as part of a journey. Just as Israel in the desert s ll clung to Egypt – o<en longing for the past and grumbling against the Lord and Moses – today too, God’s people can cling to an oppressive bondage that it is called to leave behind. We realize how true this is at those moments when we feel hopeless, wandering through life like a desert and lacking a promised land as our des na on. Lent is the season of grace in which the desert can become once more – in the words of the prophet Hosea – the place of our first love (cf. Hos 2:16-17). God shapes his people, he enables us to leave our slavery behind and experience a Passover from death to life. Like a bridegroom, the Lord draws us once more to himself, whispering words of love to our hearts. The exodus from slavery to freedom is no abstract journey. If our celebra on of Lent is to be concrete, the first step is to desire to open our eyes to reality. When the Lord calls out to Moses from the burning bush, he immediately shows that he is a God who sees and, above all, hears: “I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyp ans, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey” (Ex 3:7-8). Today too, the cry of so many of our oppressed brothers and sisters rises to heaven. Let us ask ourselves: Do we hear that cry? Does it trouble us? Does it move us? All too many things keep us apart from each other, denying the fraternity that, from the beginning, binds us to one another. During my visit to Lampedusa, as a way of countering the globaliza on of indifference, I asked two ques ons, which have become more and more pressing: “Where are you?” (Gen 3:9) and “Where is your brother?” (Gen 4:9). Our Lenten journey will be concrete if, by listening once more to those two ques ons, we realize that even today we remain under the rule of Pharaoh. A rule that makes us weary and indifferent. A model of growth that divides and robs us of a future. Earth, air and water are polluted, but so are our souls. True, Bap sm has begun our process of libera on, yet there remains in us an inexplicable longing for slavery. A kind of aJrac on to the security of familiar things, to the detriment of our freedom. In the Exodus account, there is a significant detail: it is God who sees, is moved and brings freedom; Israel does not ask for this. Pharaoh s fles dreams, blocks the view of heaven, makes it appear that this world, in which human dignity is trampled upon and authen c bonds are denied, can never change. He put everything in bondage to himself. Let us ask: Do I want a new world? Am I ready to leave behind my compromises with the old? The witness of many of my brother bishops and a great number of those who work for peace and jus ce has increasingly convinced me that we need to combat a deficit of hope that s fles dreams and the silent cry that reaches to heaven and moves the heart of God. This “deficit of hope” is not unlike the nostalgia for slavery that paralyzed Israel in the desert and prevented it from moving forward. An exodus can be interrupted: how else can we explain the fact that humanity has arrived at the threshold of universal fraternity and at levels of scien fic, technical, cultural, and juridical development capable of guaranteeing dignity to all, yet gropes about in the darkness of inequality and conflict. God has not grown weary of us. Let us welcome Lent as the great season in which he reminds us: “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery” (Ex 20:2). Lent is a season of conversion, a me of freedom. Jesus himself, as we recall each year on the first Sunday of Lent,

was driven into the desert by the Spirit in order to be tempted in freedom. For forty days, he will stand before us and with us: the incarnate Son. Unlike Pharaoh, God does not want subjects, but sons and daughters. The desert is the place where our freedom can mature in a personal decision not to fall back into slavery. In Lent, we find new criteria of jus ce and a community with which we can press forward on a road not yet taken. This, however, entails a struggle, as the book of Exodus and the tempta ons of Jesus in the desert make clear to us. The voice of God, who says, “You are my Son, the Beloved” (Mk 1:11), and “You shall have no other gods before me” (Ex 20:3) is opposed by the enemy and his lies. Even more to be feared than Pharaoh are the idols that we set up for ourselves; we can consider them as his voice speaking within us. To be all-powerful, to be looked up to by all, to domineer over others: every human being is aware of how deeply seduc ve that lie can be. It is a road well-travelled. We can become aJached to money, to certain projects, ideas or goals, to our posi on, to a tradi on, even to certain individuals. Instead of making us move forward, they paralyze us. Instead of encounter, they create conflict. Yet there is also a new humanity, a people of the liJle ones and of the humble who have not yielded to the allure of the lie. Whereas those who serve idols become like them, mute, blind, deaf and immobile (cf. Ps 114:4), the poor of spirit are open and ready: a silent force of good that heals and sustains the world. It is me to act, and in Lent, to act also means to pause. To pause in prayer, in order to receive the word of God, to pause like the Samaritan in the presence of a wounded brother or sister. Love of God and love of neighbour are one love. Not to have other gods is to pause in the presence of God beside the flesh of our neighbour. For this reason, prayer, almsgiving and fas ng are not three unrelated acts, but a single movement of openness and self-emptying, in which we cast out the idols that weigh us down, the aJachments that imprison us. Then the atrophied and isolated heart will revive. Slow down, then, and pause! The contempla ve dimension of life that Lent helps us to rediscover will release new energies. In the presence of God, we become brothers and sisters, more sensi ve to one another: in place of threats and enemies, we discover companions and fellow travelers. This is God’s dream, the promised land to which we journey once we have le< our slavery behind. The Church’s synodal form, which in these years we are rediscovering and cul va ng, suggests that Lent is also a me of communitarian decisions, of decisions, small and large, that are countercurrent. Decisions capable of altering the daily lives of individuals and en re neighbourhoods, such as the ways we acquire goods, care for crea on, and strive to include those who go unseen or are looked down upon. I invite every Chris an community to do just this: to offer its members moments set aside to rethink their lifestyles, mes to examine their presence in society and the contribu on they make to its beJerment. Woe to us if our Chris an penance were to resemble the kind of penance that so dismayed Jesus. To us too, he says: “Whenever you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fas ng” (Mt 6:16). Instead, let others see joyful faces, catch the scent of freedom and experience the love that makes all things new, beginning with the smallest and those nearest to us. This can happen in every one of our Chris an communi es. To the extent that this Lent becomes a me of conversion, an anxious humanity will no ce a burst of crea vity, a flash of new hope. Allow me to repeat what I told the young people whom I met in Lisbon last summer: “Keep seeking and be ready to take risks. At this moment in me, we face enormous risks; we hear the painful plea of so many people. Indeed, we are experiencing a third world war fought piecemeal. Yet let us find the courage to see our world, not as being in its death throes but in a process of giving birth, not at the end but at the beginning of a great new chapter of history. We need courage to think like this” (Address to University Students, 3 August 2023). Such is the courage of conversion, born of coming up from slavery. For faith and charity take hope, this small child, by the hand. They teach her to walk, and at the same me, she leads them forward.1 I bless all of you and your Lenten journey. Rome, Saint John Lateran, 3 December 2023, First Sunday of Advent.