Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, In light of our present time with division, cancel culture, etc. it is easy to loose sight of the hope we have in Christ. It is hard to see that while things are bad now, people leaving the Church, faith in Christ is on the decline in so many peoples lives, with the idols of sports, technology, etc. at the fore it can be quite daunting to face day to day. In the midst of darkness there is always hope in Christ. The mystery of the Cross is the dramatic transformation of evil into good, from death to life, from destruction to resurrection, from damnation to redemption. Throughout the centuries we as the Christian Church have faced countless daunting realities. If we look at it from the beginning Jesus' disciples all but one abandoned him, the odds are always seemingly stacked against God and His Church. We are constantly fighting on what seems to be the loosing side. Yet the reality is that God uses this loosing to turn us towards him sometimes in a deeper way. Our weakness causes us to seek help, to seek a higher power, that we might be lifted out of our self sufficiency and pride. I have reflected on this reality in my own life as I struggled with depression early it gave me reason to seek God. We are being purified, shown that we need to become better Christians laying aside our pettiness and giving over our lives to Christ. In the book of Judges we see how the Israelites fall away from the Lord he allows them to be oppressed. I cant help but see at least some parallel between our situation and Israel as they both go astray from the Lord and come back to him through his saving power. Like Israel we need to turn all the more back to the Lord. Seeking holiness like our spiritual lives depended on it, because in reality they do. Everything we do shapes us into the people we will become. Every action good or evil brings us closer to God or further away, and forms us in virtue or vice. This goes for all vocations, married, priesthood, diaconate and religious alike. In every age there has been difficulty, tragedy and even plagues, but those are the times when we find great hero?s and Saints that God raises up. I think of the heroic St. Charles Borromeo who despite a plague in his own day he stayed and ministered to the people when almost every other church, city and state official left and abandoned ship. God raised up St. Francis of Assisi in very difficult times calling him from the San Domiano Cross, "Francis rebuild my Church." How did they do it? At the core was their commitment to prayer and love for Jesus and his Church. Prayer is the healing balm for our hearts. First to hear the call and then to find strength to answer the call. God is so powerful yet he loves to work in and through us. The only thing he lacks is people willing and open to his power. We cannot do it on our own we need God and we need each other. "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!" (Phil 4:13)