Day 73 – 3 hours                   355.5 to go

Tuesday of Holy Week – the Chrism Mass – if you have not attended this Mass, try & do so some year – it is a beautiful ritual as well as the day to honor our priests

Yesterday’s psalms cautioned us to be careful not to be influenced by the world and those we know that do not make decisions with God in mind; “the wicked man  plots against the just and gnashes his teeth against him.”  The reading from Hebrews encouraged us to walk boldly into the struggle with Christ as our leader and welcome the discipline that comes our way; “7 Endure your trials as "discipline"; God treats you as sons. For what "son" is there whom his father does not discipline? 8 If you are without discipline, in which all have shared, you are not sons but bastards. 9 Besides this, we have had our earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them. Should we not (then) submit all the more to the Father of spirits and live? 10 They disciplined us for a short time as seemed right to them, but he does so for our benefit, in order that we may share his holiness. 11 At the time, all discipline seems a cause not for joy but for pain, yet later it brings the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who are trained by it. 12 So strengthen your drooping hands and your weak knees. 13 Make straight paths for your feet, that what is lame may not be dislocated but healed. 14 Strive for peace with everyone, and for that holiness without which no one will see the Lord.   Again, the theme of trusting God, being obedient to His Word, and practicing humility and meekness.  The reading from evening prayer was another lesson in humility and giving all credit to God; 1Corinthians 1: 27 Rather, God chose the foolish of the world to shame the wise, and God chose the weak of the world to shame the strong, 28 and God chose the lowly and despised of the world, those who count for nothing, to reduce to nothing those who are something, 29 so that no human being might boast before God. 30 It is due to him that you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, as well as righteousness, sanctification, and redemption, 31 so that, as it is written, "Whoever boasts, should boast in the Lord."

The DI chapter appropriately was The Meek Lamb.  The prayer at the chapter end started like this: “O Lord of my soul, how quick we are to offend You!  But how much quicker are You to forgive us!  What am I saying, Lord!  The sorrows of death have encompassed me. Alas!  What a great evil is sin, since it could put God Himself to death with such terrible sufferings!  And these same sufferings surround You today, O my Lord!  Where can You go that You are not tortured?  Men cover You with wounds in all Your members.  I really think it’s time that I stop covering my Lord with wounds.  I profess to being Christian and Catholic – I answer YES to the question of, have I been saved.  I consider myself born again.  Its time I start to act like it – I’m sorry Jesus!

My chaplet was for the people of Haiti & Chile and my rosary was for the priests of the Diocese of Norwich.

Peace