Parish of Our Lady, Star of the Sea
Lent 2025
Diocese of Plymouth - Jubilee Lenten Offerings: Week 3
23rd March – Third Sunday of Lent
Ex 3:1-8, 13-15; Ps 18; 1 Cor 10:1-6, 10-12; Lk 13:1-9
A Reflection on the readings for the third Sunday of Lent
by Monsignor Robert Draper
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“What’s in a name? A rose by any name would smell as sweet” asks Juliet all the while knowing that it is precisely Romeo’s name that is the problem, and it is his name that will inevitably bring about a tragic result. The reality is that names are very important – that is why we hate the idea of simply being ‘a number’ in society. The passage from Exodus of Moses at the burning bush is significant precisely because the revelation of God’s name changes the relationship between God and his people. Much has been written by scholars about the actual way of understanding the enigmatic name that God shares with Moses, but the importance is that knowing God’s name puts the people in a unique relationship with him. All human relationships are different when we know the name of the person we encounter, and often we will adopt nicknames or pet names which express something special about that relationship. In the scriptures Abram, Sarai, Simon, and Saul are all given new names to express their new identity as those entrusted with God’s work. So, we should recognise that when we begin Mass or prayer, we begin in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” – something which expresses the very nature of our relationship with the God who comes to us as Trinity.
The gospel is one of the teachings of Jesus in the gospels that is unique to Luke. It is a very appropriate text for Lent as it challenges its hearers to take the call to repentance seriously. At the same time, the parable of the fig tree offers hope that there is still time for that repentance to be effective and produce the fruit required.
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Diocese of Plymouth - Jubilee Lenten Offerings: Week 2
16th March – Second Sunday of Lent
Gn 15:5-12, 17-18; Ps 26; Ph 3:17-4:1; Lk 9:28-36
A Reflection on the readings for the second Sunday of Lent
by Monsignor Robert Draper
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Just as the readings for the first Sunday of Lent always lead us into the wilderness, and just as the wilderness is always the place of the Exodus, where God liberates and accompanies his people, and feeds them with manna, so the readings for the second Sunday of Lent always lead us up a mountain, and the mountain is always a significant theological as well as geographical location. There are many mountains referred to in the scripture, but they always carry a connotation of meeting with God. Mount Ararat where Noah first offers sacrifice to God after the flood, Moriah where Abraham goes to offer Isaac as sacrifice, Sinai where Moses receives the Law, Horeb where Elijah encounters God and is commissioned to carry out God’s work, and mount Zion where David establishes Jerusalem and Solomon builds the Temple. So it is noteworthy that on the mount of Transfiguration two of those key figures, Elijah and Moses, join Jesus and they speak of his “passing (passion) which he was to accomplish in Jerusalem”.
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Moses who received the Law on Sinai and Elijah the great prophet, are presented as representing the Law and the prophets – the whole teaching of the Old Testament. The Sunday readings at the beginning of this calendar year gave us three epiphanies – the revelation of Jesus’ identity to the magi, at the baptism in the Jordan and at the wedding in Cana. Today’s gospel is another epiphany – Jesus is revealed as the fulfilment of Law and the prophets, and the voice from heaven reiterates the words spoken at the Baptism. This incident is unlike any others in the ministry of Jesus, but it is recorded to emphasise the identity of Jesus, and it does so by picking up the scriptural theme that God is encountered on the mountain and when, as disciples, we follow the Lord where he leads, we too will hear the voice of the Father.
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Diocese of Plymouth - 2025 Lent Course
by Fr. Mark Skelton
The talks themselves will begin at 7pm but the Zoom call will be open as from 6.45pm.
Each evening is an independent and free standing talk given by 5 separate individuals and so although you can attend all 5 they are not linked other than seeking to reflect on some of the Holy Father's signs of hope in this Jubilee Year.
This is the 5th year of the Series and it is always lovely to welcome back the virtual family for the 5 weeks we are together and to welcome new members of our extended family.
As we prepare to enter into the wonderful season of Lent I do hope it will be a truly blessed and holy time for you and your parish families.
13th March:- Commitment to others.
20th March:- Debt cancellation.
27th March:- Recognizing Hope.
3rd April:- Peace.
10th April:- Jesus's last Pilgrimage.
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Time: Mar 13, 2025 06:45 PM London
Every week on Thu, until Apr 10, 2025, 5 occurrence(s)
Please download and import the following iCalendar (.ics) files to your calendar system.
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84052447850?pwd=MmPzcp911dTsGJWDxR0vH5H9zYS4e6.1
Meeting ID: 840 5244 7850
Passcode: 043004
A Series of Lenten Reflections
Starting 13th March 2025 - 19:30 – 20:30
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Parish Passover Meal -
Monday 25th March at 7pm -
St Joseph's Parish Hall
Booking Required
SACRED PASCHAL TRIDUUM -
17th-19th April 2025
Children's Stations of the Cross
Good Friday - 11am
Diocese of Plymouth - Jubilee Lenten Offerings: Week 1
9th March – First Sunday of Lent
Dt 26:4-10; Ps 90; Rom 10:8-13; Lk 4:1-13
A Reflection on the readings for the first Sunday of Lent
by Monsignor Robert Draper
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One can make a case for reminding ourselves that we should think of geography in theological terms when we explore the scriptures. The readings of Lent are a case in point. There are of course many areas of wilderness or desert in the middle east, and yet for the scriptural tradition, the desert is always the desert of the Exodus, the place where, above all, God journeyed with his people and the people learnt of God and the things of God. That means if we think of the desert as a place simply of absence, we miss an important point – the wilderness is a place of presence – God’s presence. That is helpful when we reflect on Lent as a journey into the desert – we go there in order to spend time with the God who journeys with us.
We can also use this reflection to explore the places where the three temptations of the Lord take place in today’s gospel. The first temptation is in the desert, and it is, of course, about bread, which resonates with the manna in the desert in the book of Exodus. For the second temptation Jesus is taken up a mountain – and if the wilderness is always the desert of Exodus, a mountain is always Sinai – the place of encounter with God, and there are many instances in the scriptures where the patriarchs and prophets encounter God on a mountain. And finally, the devil tempts Jesus on the parapet of the Temple – the place above all where God had chosen to dwell with his people.
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It is worth reflecting that the temptations of the devil are futile ultimately because their locations are resonant of the presence of God. That should be something which should encourage all of us through Lent. When we are tempted, it is not because God is absent. God is always present, and the gospel today reminds us that such is certainly the case when we too meet with temptation.
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The link to subscribe is as follows if you'd like to share https://email.workwithgusto.co.uk/h/t/A561A3216C433494
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Stations of the Cross and Lenten Lunches
Ash Wednesday
5th March 2025
Lent Retreat - "Who Am I? A Tourist or a Pilgrim?"
Saturday 15th March 2025 - St. Rita's Centre
LENT 2025 - RESIDENTIAL SILENT RETREATS
St. Rita's Centre
Light of Truth - Online Lenten Retreat: The Sacrament of Hope
Starting 6th March 2025 - 19:30 – 20:30
6 Lenten sessions to reflect together on the Sacrament of reconciliation as the Sacrament of hope, to mark the 2025 Jubilee 'Pilgrims of Hope'.​
Mar 6, 2025 07:30 PM
Mar 13, 2025 07:30 PM
Mar 20, 2025 07:30 PM
Mar 27, 2025 07:30 PM
Apr 3, 2025 07:30 PM
Apr 10, 2025 07:30 PM
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Register below to attend the online course.
Suggested donation: £5 per session per person.
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https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZcodOioqzMqEtRSwTVbmGB0dGAHitoIReVy#/registration