90 Good Days
Did you know that there was a
blind man who was given the power to see? A troubled woman in
Samaria who was healed? And a dead friend, Lazarus, who walked out
of his own tomb?
The three stories lie behind
Jesus prayer, “May they be
ONE, Father, as you are in me
and I am in you.” (Jn 17: 20-21) He knew how human nature tries to
keep blind and troubled and dead people out of the way. Lots of
people just don’t fit in.
But Jesus thought differently.
When He and His Father made these
people, He said that they were “Good.”
Nobody is supposed to be left out. As Jesus went on to say at his
Last Supper, “may people be so completely one that the world knows
that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.” (Jn. 17: 23)
Because it takes so much
effort to treat each other respectfully Catholics take ¼ of the
year, 90 days, to “walk with Jesus.” The first 40 days are called
“Lent” when Catholics pray more often, fast and give up meat on
Fridays, and donate to needy causes. This Lent 2008 will recall at
Mass the three stories in which Jesus saw that the three strange
people were good.
The Lenten prayer reads,
“Give us a spirit of loving reverence for you, Father, and of
willing service for our neighbors.” It concludes, “As we recall the
great events that gave us new life in Christ, bring the image of
your Son to perfection in us.
Khét ‘yam…”
So then we take 50 more days,
making the 90 days total, to celebrate that Jesus is, “the true Lamb
who takes away the sins of the world. Dying He destroyed our death,
rising He restored our life.” Easter means we’ll join with all the
choirs of angels from heaven to proclaim unending glory and praise.
Khét ‘yam…”
Uncle Plao and
his daughter Anna visit Nam Ho Tai, Laos
