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Jesus looked so weak on that hill that day. He had no sword and no spear, not even one soldier on His side. All of the cards were stacked against Him The only thing He could do was pray, depend on God, forgive His enemies, and then die. Has the world ever witnessed a more pitiful display of weakness than that?

This Sunday is the last Sunday in Lent. We reflect upon the 40 days to repent and believe in the Gospel. Lent will end in Holy Week. It is strange that we call it that, Holy Week, because it was seven days of political corruption, moral cowardice, religious hypocrisy, and physical violence. And we have named this week Holy…. we Christians have a strange vocabulary.

Today is St. Patrick’s Day! Most people think of this day as a time for wearing green, drinking green bear, eating corned beef and cabbage, and that’s about it (unless you’re Irish!). St. Patrick gets relatively little attention on his day, so I thought I might offer a few thoughts in his honor, including a prayer that is attributed to him.

The preface for the Mass at the start of Lent refers to this “Joyful Season.” Many of us are startled by this reference. For most, Lent has always been a season of sacrifice, of penance, a time when we focus on the Cross. As you look at the Cross, did you ever ask yourself the question, “Why did Jesus die like this?” If He had been a mere man, it would have made sense. He could not avoid it. He was up against impossible odds, and the cards were stacked against Him. But, it is different for the Son of God.

What is Lent all about? What is the passion and death of Christ all about? It could be summed up in one word, a well-used word, so well used that is has become trite. The word is love. Only love makes Christ believable. Only love makes sense out of Lent, out of the passion and death of Christ.

The Friday fish fry is a well-known and beloved New Orleans tradition with deep roots. While it is a popular Friday tradition all year long, it is especially popular during Lent. But where did this tradition come from? Why are we the keepers of the best Fish Fries? Well, besides being located on the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico, the answer is rooted in several parts including the Catholic Church and our city’s history of European immigration.

The Catholic Faith when it finds itself in a culture that does not know or has forgotten God, it does not castigate, but rather, Catholicism helps the culture to find Him. By finding seeds of goodness in what already exists, baptizing, and even preserving important holidays and cultural elements by imbuing them with new Christian meaning, Catholicism elevates and presents as a sacrifice to God the best elements and the Love of the people! Since “taking back” presents a valid method of restoring worthy traditions to God, let us call for and practice the re-Christianizing of the ancient Catholic tradition of Mardi Gras!