From Fr. Mark-March 1, 2026

From Fr. Mark

I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to all of you, the parishioners of Holy Childhood and St. Liborious, for all your prayers and support during my recent hospitalization. After enduring health challenges for some time, I had reached a point where medical attention was necessary, leading to an ER visit and hospital stay.  As I return, I must follow my doctors' advice, to make important lifestyle changes to ensure that I can continue my dedicated service to our parish communities. While I remain committed to my ministry, I will be adopting healthier boundaries to maintain my well-being. This message comes as an honest update to all of you, acknowledging your concerns many have shared and preparing everyone for potential adjustments in my schedule or workload. I thank you for your continued prayers and understanding during this time

Lent is a 40-day season of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving that begins on Ash Wednesday and ends at sundown on Holy Thursday. It's a period of preparation to celebrate the Lord's Resurrection at Easter.

Just a few short weeks ago, we celebrated his birth, and now the Church begins our preparation to join him on his journey to Calvary. The church scene becomes somber, more intense, and such terms as contrition, conversion, penance, almsgiving, fasting and abstinence dominate the liturgy.

The Sacrament of Confession is a vital practice during Lent, offering Catholics an opportunity for spiritual renewal and reconciliation with God.

Lent is a time of deep spiritual reflection, prayer, and preparation to celebrate Christ’s Resurrection. One of the most important spiritual practices during this season is Confession—a sacrament that offers us the opportunity to seek God’s mercy, acknowledge our sins, and experience true renewal.

Lent is a journey of purification and transformation. Just as we fast and abstain from food, we are also called to fast and abstain from sin, renewing our hearts through repentance. Confession plays a central role in this renewal, allowing us to turn away from sin and embrace God’s grace.

Jesus calls us to repentance: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 3:2) Confession is not about fear or shame but healing and restoration. Through the sacrament, we receive the grace to overcome sin and grow in holiness.

But can’t I just spend time in prayer and asking God to forgive me without speaking to a priest? Confession is deeply rooted in Scripture. Christ granted the Apostles the authority to forgive sins: “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained” (John 20:23) The early Church practiced confession, as seen in the Acts of the Apostles: “Many of those who believed came forward confessing and disclosing their deeds” (Acts 19:18) Therefore the Sacrament of Confession is a sacred encounter with Christ, who works through the priest to extend His mercy and forgiveness.

During the Season of Lent through prayer and spiritual reading grow in your understanding Sin and Repentance. Sin distances us from God, but through the Sacrament of Confession, we are reconciled with Him. Catholic tradition emphasizes not only seeking forgiveness but also true repentance—metanoia, a complete change of heart. St. John Chrysostom reminds us: “Be ashamed when you sin, not when you repent.” God’s love is infinite, and He always welcomes us back, no matter how far we have strayed.

It’s certainly true that those who have not received the Sacrament of Confession for a long period of time often find it difficult to receive the Sacrament, and in many ways, this is understandable: it is humbling to tell your sins to another person. But we can and must take solace in the fact that this sacrament is in fact a gift from God to us.

Just a brief moment of self-reflection is often sufficient to show us we do not live as we ought to, and in many cases, we cannot change ourselves… becoming the men and women we ought to be is impossible without the grace of God. And this sacrament in particular is given to us as the means by which we might be freed from the sins that weigh us down, that prevent us from being what we can be. It’s for this reason it has been the practice of Catholics for many, many centuries to receive this sacrament in order to have each and every sin wiped away.

So instead of seeing the practice of going to confession as a burden, ask God for the gift of seeing it as it really is: a great gift from Him. This sacrament is the means He has given to us, his beloved daughters and sons, as the normative means by which we might restore our relationship with Him when we’ve done it harm, and as the means by which we can in fact deepen that relationship.

Preparation is key to making a meaningful Confession. A thorough examination of conscience helps us recognize our sins and areas for growth. Calmly and honestly ask yourself what you have done with full knowledge and full consent against God and the Church’s commandments.

Do I pray to God every day? Have I thanked God for His gifts to me?

Did I put my faith in danger through reading material that is hostile to Catholic teachings? Have I been involved in non-Catholic sects? Did I engage in superstitious practices, such as palm-reading or fortune telling?

Did I take the name of God in vain? Did I curse, or take a false oath?

Did I miss Mass on Sundays or holy days of obligation through my own fault? Am I attentive at Mass? Did I fast and abstain on the prescribed days?

Did I disobey my parents or lawful superiors in important matters?

Did I hate or quarrel with anyone, or desire revenge? Did I refuse to forgive? Was I disrespectful?

Did I get drunk? Did I take illicit drugs? Did I consent to, recommend, advise, or actively take part in an abortion?

Did I willfully look at indecent pictures, watch immoral movies, or read immoral books or magazines? Did I engage in impure jokes or conversations? Did I willfully entertain impure thoughts or commit impure acts, alone or with others? Did I use artificial means to prevent conception?

Did I steal or damage another’s property? Have I been honest in my business relations?

Did I tell lies? Did I sin by gossiping about others? Did I judge others rashly in serious matters?

Have I envied other people?

By way of conclusion, consider the words of the great saint and spiritual writer St. Francis de Sales in his classic work, Introduction to the Devout Life, regarding the gift of this sacrament: “In confession you do not only receive absolution for your venial sins, but you also receive great strength to help you in avoiding them henceforth, clearer light to discover your failings, and abundant grace to make up whatever loss you have incurred through those faults. You exercise the graces of humility, obedience, simplicity and love, and by this one act of confession you practice more virtue than in any other.”