Bob Jensen

What Are You Doing for Lent?

The three traditional practices of Lent are Prayer, Fasting, and Almsgiving. Many of us can remember as a child being taught to choose something to “give up” for Lent. What is more important than what we “give up” is why we give something up: why we fast, why we pray, why we give alms. The aim of these practices is our continuing conversion to Christ, our growth in knowledge of Him, and doing His will.

If you would like to do a little more prayer this Lent, consider praying the Liturgy of the Hours, which is done on Mondays and Tuesdays at 9:00 am. Weekday Mass is celebrated on Wednesdays and Fridays at 9:00 am and on Thursdays at 6:30 pm. Stations of the Cross are prayed on Fridays at 7:00 pm. Get started with Lent at our Parish Retreat on Saturday, February 17 starting at 9:00 am. Fasting can be from certain foods. It can also be from things that inhibit your ongoing conversion to Christ. Maybe you can consider fasting from screen time. Work at overcoming a fault, a bad habit or particular vice with which you struggle. Replace the bad action with its opposite good action.

Almsgiving incudes your charitable giving to the church and to the needy. It could also include an increased generosity of compliments, “thank-yous,” and words of encouragement. Your almsgiving could include a little extra help offered to a friend or family member.

A great opportunity for Lent is to participate in a small Faith Sharing Group. Join members of our parish for a weekly meeting to break open the scriptures, dialogue, and pray together during Lent. This will be a five-week journey with the options of an in-person group on Tuesday or Wednesday evenings or Zoom meetings on Thursday mornings. Sign up at sjtbcc.org/lent-encounter/ or call the parish office.

Let your Lent lead you closer to Christ. Pray, fast, and give alms.

A New Family

This weekend we are finding out who will be in our new Parish Family. This re-organization, taking place across the Archdiocese of Seattle, is meant to re-invigorate and renew our local Catholic Church. Fewer priests and lay ecclesial ministers, rising costs of running a parish, and changing practices among some of our Catholics show us that the status quo is no longer an option.

After significant research and discussion with other dioceses, our Archdiocese selected the parish family model for restructuring, which combines two or more parishes under the leadership of one pastor and one or more parochial vicars (assistant priests). The archdiocese spent most of the last year in consultation with priests, deacons, parish and school staffs, lay leaders and parishioners. This feed back resulted in some changes, including our originally proposed parish family. We held a second round of listening sessions regarding the change that was proposed. I want to thank all our parishioners who shared their insights and concerns.

The parish families will go into effect July 1 of this year. Over the next three years, the parish families discern on the local level how best to become one canonical parish. This does not necessarily mean having only one site or campus. Prayer, creativity, and sensitivity will help us look at ways of being a vibrant faith community, faithful to the command of Christ to bring the Gospel to all people.

For more information, go to archseattle.org/partners/

Catholic Schools

I am grateful that I had the opportunity to go to a Catholic grade school. Not only did it give me a strong start in my education, but it also fostered a bond between my parish and my family and taught me to love my Catholic faith. I believe our Catholic schools are valuable and effective tools for nurturing faith in families and in children. Unlike state-run schools, our school helps educate the whole child: intellectual, spiritual, and moral. Standards set and achieved by Catholic schools are well known and highly respected. The high quality of instruction in our schools, innovative approaches to the use of the latest technology, and a challenging curriculum prepare our students for every educational and vocational challenge they will face as the years go by. Our Catholic schools also respect the role of parents and work in close collaboration with them.

While our parish does not have a school, some of our parishioners attend Holy Family School in Auburn or St. Anthony School in Renton. Our parish tries to assist these families, helping to make up the difference between in-parish and out-of-parish tuition. The cost per pupil in our Catholic schools is less than in the state-run schools. However, those state-run schools are supported by federal, state, and local taxes. It is our parents who make the sacrifice to be able to send their children to Catholic schools.

The Fulcrum Foundation tries to ensure that an excellent Catholic education is accessible to any family that wants it. You can support Catholic education through your donation to the parish. To further support Catholic education, consider a donation to Fulcrum: fulcrumfoundation.org/donate/ form/