Dear Fellow Parishioners, The Gospel for this 7th Sunday in Ordinary Time ends with a perfect reminder of what the Lenten Season invites us all to be about as a community of faith: “Be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Mt. 5:48) Of course we need to realize that being perfect is a lifetime process of growing in our own spirituality. We are prefect when we are growing, we are perfect when we keep maturing, we are perfect when we keep moving forward in God’s direction. Growing, maturing, and moving forward in God’s direction means we take the time to listen to the gentle guidance of the Holy Spirit. How is God calling you to grow? Where do you need to grow in your spiritual life? Recently a brother priest told me, “I used to hate Lent. Then I realized it was a time to grow spiritually and everyone else was on the same page. Now I look forward to the opportunity.” This Lent our theme is “Nailed!” On Ash Wednesday you will be asked to take a nail from the dish as you come to receive ashes. Nails are used to build, and improve structures, to hold things together; to make things secure. Where does this symbol apply to your spiritual journey? Again during our Ash Wednesday gatherings we are asking your to assist in the support of the 50 retired priests who have faithfully served our parishes. The letter from Bishop McManus in this bulletin gives more details about this collection. Every so often, members of our community are preparing for their Eagle Scout award. Recently Michael Byrne shared with me his desire to assist children in foster care here in Massachusetts as his Eagle project. We discussed the best time for him to do that and agreed that Lent would be a perfect time to seek our support for these young people. Michael will be presenting his project this Sunday, asking us to “Rise Above!” So, we begin our Lenten Season this Ash Wednesday, it is a communal time of prayer, fasting, and acts of charity. May we encourage each other to grow, mature, and move forward in God’s direction as a community on the journey! Fr. Bill