Catholic Diocese of LexingtonThe Catholic Center

Office of the Bishop

1310 West Main Street ✠ Lexington, Kentucky 40508-2048 ✠ 859/253-1993 ✠ Fax 859/254-6284

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I write these words on the Solemnity of the Annunciation (March 25), that day when we interrupt our observance of Lent to focus on the mystery of the Incarnation. �e promise and ful�llment of God’s promise of Emmanuel is normally more a focus of our Advent and Christmas re�ections, but the need to be reminded of “God with us” is especially pertinent now as we continue to confront the Corona virus. God is indeed in our midst, the Word became Flesh and dwelt among us, Jesus has entered our human history and willingly shares in all of our trials and su�erings.

In the Incarnation, Jesus makes God accessible and near to us. �rough the sacraments, the Church makes Jesus accessible and near to us. It is especially di�cult for us at this moment to lose our normal access to that Divine Presence, to be deprived of the opportunity to come together as Church and to receive the Bread of Life and the Cup of Salvation in the Eucharist. We can hope that our fasting, albeit involuntarily, from the Eucharist, may help us to value and appreciate it even more when we can once again be physically fed at the table of the Lord. Our awareness of missing this crucial ingredient in our life of faith might also make us more sympathetic towards those places that rarely have access to the Eucharist and other sacraments because of the lack of priests. But the Lord has promised to never abandon us, to not leave us orphans. So we �nd ourselves trying to emphasize the other ways that God’s nearness and presence are felt.

First among these, for many of us, is the experience of the domestic church- the family. I hope and pray that the di�erent pace and the greater togetherness that the pandemic has forced upon us might become the occasion to strengthen our family life. Can we rediscover the joy of just being in each other’s company? Can we share our stories, our hopes and dreams, stories from our family’s history? Drag out the old photo albums and scrapbooks if they still exist. Watch old family videos together. Play games that bring out healthy competition and are really about having fun. Work at making each other laugh.

A Christian family can never be closed in on itself. In our present circumstances, families might discuss how they might reach out to those who are alone with a phone call, a letter, using social media. Maybe it’s delivering food or some small gi� in a safe way that will help someone feel less alone. Our prayers as a family should always include a sense of widening the family to be more inclusive towards those who are le� out.

We know that every crisis is felt more acutely by the poor. Many, many people are su�ering a loss of income from not being at work or being able to run their business. Too many people in our nation today do not have even a small safety cushion to fall back on. Very few can even a�ord to get sick. Maybe a good use of our time would be to learn about the legislative process and to contact representatives and senators about the importance of expanding health care and unemployment bene�ts so that they can be accessed by those who need them most; about compre-hensive immigration reform so that those whose work is vital to our country can live here without fear, and about other essential aspects of human life that are not available to everyone and will become even scarcer as a result of this crisis.

Above all, I hope that this pandemic will remind our ever-more secularized society of our need for God. No matter how good the stock market was doing or how invincible we might have once felt, we were still dependent upon God for all that we have and all that we are. It is easy to forget that dependence in times of prosperity, it is much harder to forget in times of crisis and need. �e season of Lent is always about our need for conversion, about turning back to the Lord with all our hearts as we were invited to do on Ash Wednesday. Maybe we are paying a little more attention to the need for God because we don’t know what will happen next.

�is day of the Annunciation recalls Mary’s unconditional “yes” to God. Her example is a model for us all. Mary experienced many hardships and great su�ering as a result of her cooperation with God’s plan, she shared more intimately than anyone in the redemptive su�erings of Jesus, her Son. She is given to us as an intercessor, a com-forter and consoler, and an example of complete trust and surrender to God. She knows our reality and she knows our pain because she has shared in it. Although her earthly life was not exempt from su�ering, she now shares fully in the abundant life of her Risen Son and can tell us most convincingly that God can do the impossible and that God loves us supremely.

�is day recalls God emptying Himself and becoming one with humanity. In the womb of the Virgin Mary, God took on human �esh and shared in our likeness. God drew near and became a brother to us. God experiences all that we experience just as we experience it in the person of Jesus. Jesus is God’s answer to the “why” of su�ering in the world- not an explanation, but sharing in it with us and transforming it into glory.

�is Lent and Holy Week are and will be quite di�erent. But the love of God manifest perfectly in Jesus Christ His Son, who bears our su�erings, is the same. His victory over sin and death should be all the more hope-�lled and promising in the midst of the turmoil of this pandemic.

May we never forget, and may we encourage each other with, the words of Saint Paul’s letter to the Romans: “If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but handed him over for us all, how will he not also give us everything else along with him?” (Romans 8:32)

Peace and all good,

Most Reverend John Stowe, OFM Conv.Bishop of Lexington

March 25, 2020

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I write these words on the Solemnity of the Annunciation (March 25), that day when we interrupt our observance of Lent to focus on the mystery of the Incarnation. �e promise and ful�llment of God’s promise of Emmanuel is normally more a focus of our Advent and Christmas re�ections, but the need to be reminded of “God with us” is especially pertinent now as we continue to confront the Corona virus. God is indeed in our midst, the Word became Flesh and dwelt among us, Jesus has entered our human history and willingly shares in all of our trials and su�erings.

In the Incarnation, Jesus makes God accessible and near to us. �rough the sacraments, the Church makes Jesus accessible and near to us. It is especially di�cult for us at this moment to lose our normal access to that Divine Presence, to be deprived of the opportunity to come together as Church and to receive the Bread of Life and the Cup of Salvation in the Eucharist. We can hope that our fasting, albeit involuntarily, from the Eucharist, may help us to value and appreciate it even more when we can once again be physically fed at the table of the Lord. Our awareness of missing this crucial ingredient in our life of faith might also make us more sympathetic towards those places that rarely have access to the Eucharist and other sacraments because of the lack of priests. But the Lord has promised to never abandon us, to not leave us orphans. So we �nd ourselves trying to emphasize the other ways that God’s nearness and presence are felt.

First among these, for many of us, is the experience of the domestic church- the family. I hope and pray that the di�erent pace and the greater togetherness that the pandemic has forced upon us might become the occasion to strengthen our family life. Can we rediscover the joy of just being in each other’s company? Can we share our stories, our hopes and dreams, stories from our family’s history? Drag out the old photo albums and scrapbooks if they still exist. Watch old family videos together. Play games that bring out healthy competition and are really about having fun. Work at making each other laugh.

A Christian family can never be closed in on itself. In our present circumstances, families might discuss how they might reach out to those who are alone with a phone call, a letter, using social media. Maybe it’s delivering food or some small gi� in a safe way that will help someone feel less alone. Our prayers as a family should always include a sense of widening the family to be more inclusive towards those who are le� out.

We know that every crisis is felt more acutely by the poor. Many, many people are su�ering a loss of income from not being at work or being able to run their business. Too many people in our nation today do not have even a small safety cushion to fall back on. Very few can even a�ord to get sick. Maybe a good use of our time would be to learn about the legislative process and to contact representatives and senators about the importance of expanding health care and unemployment bene�ts so that they can be accessed by those who need them most; about compre-hensive immigration reform so that those whose work is vital to our country can live here without fear, and about other essential aspects of human life that are not available to everyone and will become even scarcer as a result of this crisis.

Above all, I hope that this pandemic will remind our ever-more secularized society of our need for God. No matter how good the stock market was doing or how invincible we might have once felt, we were still dependent upon God for all that we have and all that we are. It is easy to forget that dependence in times of prosperity, it is much harder to forget in times of crisis and need. �e season of Lent is always about our need for conversion, about turning back to the Lord with all our hearts as we were invited to do on Ash Wednesday. Maybe we are paying a little more attention to the need for God because we don’t know what will happen next.

�is day of the Annunciation recalls Mary’s unconditional “yes” to God. Her example is a model for us all. Mary experienced many hardships and great su�ering as a result of her cooperation with God’s plan, she shared more intimately than anyone in the redemptive su�erings of Jesus, her Son. She is given to us as an intercessor, a com-forter and consoler, and an example of complete trust and surrender to God. She knows our reality and she knows our pain because she has shared in it. Although her earthly life was not exempt from su�ering, she now shares fully in the abundant life of her Risen Son and can tell us most convincingly that God can do the impossible and that God loves us supremely.

�is day recalls God emptying Himself and becoming one with humanity. In the womb of the Virgin Mary, God took on human �esh and shared in our likeness. God drew near and became a brother to us. God experiences all that we experience just as we experience it in the person of Jesus. Jesus is God’s answer to the “why” of su�ering in the world- not an explanation, but sharing in it with us and transforming it into glory.

�is Lent and Holy Week are and will be quite di�erent. But the love of God manifest perfectly in Jesus Christ His Son, who bears our su�erings, is the same. His victory over sin and death should be all the more hope-�lled and promising in the midst of the turmoil of this pandemic.

May we never forget, and may we encourage each other with, the words of Saint Paul’s letter to the Romans: “If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but handed him over for us all, how will he not also give us everything else along with him?” (Romans 8:32)

Peace and all good,

Most Reverend John Stowe, OFM Conv.Bishop of Lexington

Catholic Diocese of LexingtonThe Catholic Center

Office of the Bishop

1310 West Main Street ✠ Lexington, Kentucky 40508-2048 ✠ 859/253-1993 ✠ Fax 859/254-6284

Queridos Hermanos y Hermanas en Cristo,

Escribo estas palabras en la Solemnidad de la Anunciación (25 de marzo), ese día cuando interrumpimos nuestra observancia de la Cuaresma para enfocarnos en el misterio de la Encarnación. La promesa y el cumplimiento de la promesa de Dios de Emmanuel normalmente es más un enfoque de nuestras re�exiones de Adviento y Navidad, pero la necesidad de recordar a "Dios con nosotros" es especialmente pertinente ahora mientras continuamos confrontando el Coronavirus. Dios está en medio de nosotros, la Palabra se hizo carne y habitó entre nosotros, Jesús ha entrado en nuestra historia humana y voluntariamente comparte todas nuestras pruebas y sufrimientos

En la Encarnación, Jesús hace a Dios accesible y cercano a nosotros. A través de los sacramentos, la Iglesia hace que Jesús sea accesible y lo acerca a nosotros. Es especialmente difícil para nosotros en este momento perder nuestro acceso normal a esa Presencia Divina, ser privados de la oportunidad de unirnos como Iglesia y recibir el Pan de Vida y la Copa de Salvación en la Eucaristía. Podemos esperar que nuestro ayuno, aunque involuntaria-mente, de la Eucaristía, pueda ayudarnos a valorarlo y apreciarlo aún más cuando podamos ser alimentados físicamente una vez más en la mesa del Señor. Tal vez el estar consciente de nuestra perdida de este ingrediente crucial en nuestra vida de fe también podría hacernos más comprensivos con aquellos lugares que rara vez tienen acceso a la Eucaristía y otros sacramentos debido a la falta de sacerdotes. Pero el Señor ha prometido nunca abandonarnos, no dejarnos huérfanos. Entonces nos encontramos tratando de enfatizar las otras formas en que se siente la cercanía y presencia de Dios.

La primera de ellas, para muchos de nosotros, es la experiencia de la iglesia doméstica, la familia. Espero y rezo para que el ritmo diferente y la mayor unión que la pandemia nos ha impuesto puedan ser la ocasión para fortalecer nuestra vida familiar. ¿Podemos redescubrir la alegría de estar solo en la compañía del otro? ¿Podemos compartir nuestras historias, nuestras esperanzas y sueños, historias de la historia de nuestra familia? Saquen los álbumes de fotos y álbumes de recortes antiguos si todavía existen. Miren viejos videos familiares juntos. Jueg-uen juegos que generen una competencia saludable y que realmente se trate de divertirse. Háganse reír los unos a los otros.

Una familia cristiana nunca puede cerrarse en sí misma. En nuestras circunstancias actuales, las familias pueden discutir cómo pueden comunicarse con aquellos que están solos con una llamada telefónica, una carta, usando las redes sociales. Tal vez mediante la entrega de alimentos o algún pequeño obsequio de manera segura que ayudará a alguien a sentirse menos solo. Nuestras oraciones como familia siempre deben incluir una sensación de ampliación de la familia para que sea más inclusiva con los que quedan fuera.

Sabemos que cada crisis se siente más agudamente por los pobres. Muchas, muchas personas están sufriendo una pérdida de ingresos por no estar en el trabajo o no poder administrar sus negocios. Demasiadas personas en nuestra nación hoy en día no tienen ni siquiera un pequeño colchón de seguridad al que recurrir. Muy pocos pueden darse el lujo de enfermarse. Quizás un buen uso de nuestro tiempo sería aprender sobre el proceso legislativo y contactar representantes y senadores sobre la importancia de ampliar la atención médica y los bene�cios de desempleo para que puedan acceder a quienes más los necesitan; sobre una reforma migratoria integral para que aquellos cuyo trabajo es vital para nuestro país puedan vivir aquí sin temor, y sobre otros aspectos esenciales de la vida humana que no están disponibles para todos y que serán aún más escasos como resultado de esta crisis.

Above all, I hope that this pandemic will remind our ever-more secularized society of our need for God. No matter how good the stock market was doing or how invincible we might have once felt, we were still dependent upon God for all that we have and all that we are. It is easy to forget that dependence in times of prosperity, it is much harder

back to the Lord with all our hearts as we were invited to do on Ash Wednesday. Maybe we are paying a little more attention to the need for God because we don’t know what will happen next.

-forter and consoler, and an example of complete trust and surrender to God. She knows our reality and she knows

in the abundant life of her Risen Son and can tell us most convincingly that God can do the impossible and that God loves us supremely.

the world- not an explanation, but sharing in it with us and transforming it into glory.

promising in the midst of the turmoil of this pandemic.

May we never forget, and may we encourage each other with, the words of Saint Paul’s letter to the Romans: “If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but handed him over for us all, how will he not also give us everything else along with him?” (Romans 8:32)

Peace and all good,

Most Reverend John Stowe, OFM Conv.Bishop of Lexington

Sobre todo, espero que esta pandemia le recuerde a nuestra sociedad cada vez más secularizada nuestra necesi-dad de Dios. No importa que tan bien hubiera estado el mercado de valores o cuán invencibles nos pudiéramos haber sentido alguna vez, aun así dependíamos de Dios para todo lo que tenemos y todo lo que somos. Es fácil olvidar esa dependencia en tiempos de prosperidad, es mucho más difícil olvidarlo en tiempos de crisis y necesi-dad. La temporada de Cuaresma siempre se trata de nuestra necesidad de conversión, de volver al Señor con todo nuestro corazón como nos invitaron a hacer el Miércoles de Ceniza. Tal vez estamos poniendo un poco más de atención a la necesidad de Dios porque no sabemos qué sucederá después.

Este día de la Anunciación recuerda el incondicional "sí" de María a Dios. Su ejemplo es un modelo para todos nosotros. María experimentó muchas di�cultades y un gran sufrimiento como resultado de su cooperación con el plan de Dios, compartió más íntimamente que nadie en los sufrimientos redentores de Jesús, su Hijo. Nos es entregada como intercesora, reconfortante y consoladora, y un ejemplo de completa con�anza y entrega a Dios. Ella conoce nuestra realidad y conoce nuestro dolor porque lo ha compartido. Aunque su vida terrenal no estuvo exenta de sufrimiento, ahora comparte plenamente la vida abundante de su Hijo resucitado y puede decirnos de manera más convincente que Dios puede hacer lo imposible y que Dios nos ama supremamente.

Este día recuerda a Dios vaciándose y convirtiéndose en uno con la humanidad. En el vientre de la Virgen María, Dios se convirtió en carne humana y compartió nuestra semejanza. Dios se acercó y se convirtió en un hermano para nosotros. Dios experimenta todo lo que experimentamos tal como lo experimentamos en la persona de Jesús. Jesús es la respuesta de Dios al "por qué" del sufrimiento en el mundo - no una explicación, sino com-partiéndolo con nosotros y transformándolo en gloria.

Esta Cuaresma y Semana Santa son y serán muy diferentes. Pero el amor de Dios se mani�esta perfectamente en Jesucristo, su Hijo, quien carga con nuestros sufrimientos, es el mismo. Su victoria sobre el pecado y la muerte debe llenarnos aún mas de esperanza y ser prometedora en medio del disturbio ocasionado por esta pandemia.

Nunca nos olvidemos y animemosnos mutuamente con las palabras de la carta de San Pablo a los Romanos: "Si Dios está con nosotros, ¿quién puede estar en contra de nosotros? Él que no escatimó en su propio Hijo, sino que lo entregó por todos nosotros, ¿cómo no nos dará todo lo demás junto con él también? (Romanos 8:32)

Paz y todo bien,

Reverendísimo John Stowe, OFM Conv.Obispo de Lexington