The Chrism Mass will be Tuesday, April 15, at 11:00 am at the Cathedral. At this special Mass, the Oil of Chrism is consecrated, the Oils of Catechumens and the Sick are blessed, and the priests within the Diocese of Burlington recommit themselves to the Priesthood of Jesus Christ. Free parking is available along Elmwood Avenue and at Burlington pay lots/garages (first two hours are free in city-owned parking garages). Carpooling is highly encouraged.

This two-week period begins on the Saturday before the fifth Sunday of Lent, formerly called Passion Sunday. In the past, church statues and crosses and crucifixes were covered with veils, usually purple, simple and unadorned. Our churches today still may cover statues and crosses, or leave them revealed until Holy Thursday, when they may be hidden by purple covers. The veils are removed before the Easter Vigil Mass. Various authors describe different reasons for the veiling: shielding these beloved images helps us fast, in a sense, from images of God and his saints, and hunger for their return at the great Easter Solemnity. The shrouds also connote death, as the Church will journey through the Lord’s passion and death soon, and wait in silent vigil for the Resurrection at the end of the upcoming Holy Week. We also may view this allusion to death as a symbol of our own Lenten struggle to die to sin and be born anew at Easter. A Gospel of Passiontide in the Traditional form speaks of Jesus hiding himself, as we hide these images. Veiling statues also calls to mind Jesus’ hiding or veiling his divinity during his Passion. Another author likens the removal of these statues from our sight as one of the steps taken during this time in Lent, to hide and reduce more aspects or our faith, just as we had earlier put away the Gloria and Alleluia, and soon lose bells and the Mass itself at the end of Holy Week. Soon we will enter Holy Week, when we hear, read, and dwell on the Passion, Crucifixion and Death, and Resurrection of our Lord.

Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are the most important penitential days of the liturgical year. They are both days of fast and abstinence. The rule of fasting states that only one full meal a day can be taken. Two small meals, “sufficient to maintain strength”, are allowed, but together should not equal another full meal. Eating between meals breaks the fast, but drinking liquids does not. The rule of fasting obliges all Catholics from 18 to 59. Abstinence refers to the eating of meat. The common estimation of the community is used to determine what falls under the category of meat. The rule of abstinence binds all Catholics 14 years or older. The substantial observance of the laws of fast and abstinence is a serious obligation. · Self-imposed fasting on the other weekdays of Lent is recommended. Abstinence on all Fridays of the year is also highly recommended. Parents and teachers should see to it that, even those who are not bound by the laws of fast and abstinence because of age, are to be brought up in an atmosphere that is conducive to a sense of penance.

Today, we begin this year’s Holy Week. We may walk in procession with the familiar blessed palm branches, and chant praise to Jesus, remembering his triumphant entry into Jerusalem, riding a donkey. Our readings begin with the Old Testament prophet Isaiah, and well-known references to Our Lord’s Passion: “I gave my back to those who beat me …” The Psalm continues the theme of suffering: “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me? …They have pierced my hands and my feet.” St. Paul’s Letter to the Philippians strikes a note of hope amid the despair: “He humbled himself, becoming obedient even to the point of death, death on a cross. Because of this, God greatly exalted Him.” Then we stand for the long Passion reading, this year from St. Luke. We hear the story of Jesus’s arrest, His appearance before various authorities, their abuse of the Savior, Peter’s denial, Judas’s recanting, and the Way of the Cross, and the Crucifixion and death of Our Lord.

We invite you to bring a monetary donation or nonperishable food item to binrg to the sanctuary at the collection. Your generosity is much appreciated.

Today’s readings are hopeful. First, the prophet Isaiah quotes the Lord, “See, I am doing something new! Do you not perceive it?” The Psalm agrees: “The Lord has done great things for us.” St. Paul tells the Philippians how he is leaving behind all the things he used to know. “I consider them so much rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him…. I continue my pursuit in hope … straining forward to what lies ahead.” The glory of Easter Sunday lies ahead for us. First, however, we must struggle through the rest of Lent, and the darkness and grief of Holy Week before we arrive at our goal. Finally, we hear the Gospel reading of the women taken in adultery and Our Lord's wise pronouncement of mercy.

Parishioners are invited by the Cathedral Knights of Columbus Council to bring non-perishable food items for the North End Food Pantry to Stations of the Cross in the upper church each Friday at 5:30 PM. Containers for the food are at the back of the church.

Monsignor Routhier and Deacon Moore will lead Stations of the Cross Fridays at 5:30 PM upstairs in the main church, with soup and bread served in the parish hall after the devotions. Here is the schedule of groups who will read stations meditations each week: Mar 28 - Confirmation Class and Youth of the Parish April 4 - Youth Ministry April 11 - CCD Group Those assisting should arrive by 5:15 PM to be assigned a Station For more information, contact the Parish Office at 802-658-4333.

Grades 1 through 5 classes meet Sundays at 11:15 AM, usually in the Parish Hall, sometimes in the Blue Room. Classes run until 12:15 PM. Family Catechesis is the program for this year's religious education at the Cathedral. Parents attend classes with their students.

Following the closing of the La Salette Shrine in New Hampshire, Fr. Harlow, pastor of Corpus Christi Parish and past Cathedral rector, is asking Our Lady of La Salette for drug addiction healing at First Saturday Masses at his St. Johnsbury church. Fr. Harlow invites parishioners to send him names of addicts or communities afflicted by drug use, drug overdoses, and drug sales. All names will be kept secret and not mentioned at these Masses, but Father will pray for them to Our Lady. Please email names to corpuschristi@vermontcatholic.org. Father asks that no one send money for this cause. The Enfield, NH shrine dedicated to the 1846 appearance in France of the Blessed Mother to French children, is giving its property back to the Shakers who donated it to the missionaries in 1927.

The Cathedral's Bishop DeGoesbriand Council will serve a pancake breakfast in the parish hall Sunday, April 6 from 9:00 to 11:30 AM. Come feast on all of your favorites: blueberry pancakes, bacon, sausage, scrambled eggs, French toast and more. Coffee, juice, and real maple syrup included. The cost is $ 10 per person and $ 25 per family of four. Take-out containers available. Hope to see you there!

This devotion grew popular after Our Lady of Fatima spoke of it during her appearances to the shepherd children in that small Portuguese town in 1917. The Blessed Mother asked us to perform these devotions as reparation for sins against her Immaculate Heart and for the conversion of Russia: go to Confession within eight days before the First Saturday; attend Mass and receive Holy Communion; pray five decades of the Rosary; meditate on the Mysteries of the Rosary for 15 minutes. The Mother of God promised her help at the penitent’s death if these promises were kept.

First Friday devotions date from long ago, and center on the Sacred Heart of Jesus. In the seventeenth century, Our Lord asked French nun, now Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque, to honor His Sacred Heart on nine consecutive first Fridays, by attending Holy Mass and receiving Holy Communion. Jesus said, “I promise you in the excessive mercy of my Heart that its all-powerful love will grant to all those who receive Holy Communion on nine first Fridays of consecutive months the grace of final repentance; they will not die under my displeasure or without receiving their sacraments, my divine Heart making itself their assured refuge at the last moment."

Today, we celebrate Rejoice Sunday, as we near the momentous feast of Easter Sunday. What a relief to hear those words, “Rejoice!”, as we journey through Lent, perhaps discouraged at our failure to keep our Lenten promises, of giving up a luxury, praying more, attending daily Mass, going to Confession more often, or we merely feel the strain of our struggle. Today, we can let down our burdens for a day, and express pure joy. Our priest wears a rose-colored vestment, or may choose to continue with penitential violet. We may decorate the church with flowers. Our first reading has the Lord give relief to His people: “Today I have removed the reproach of Egypt from you.: The Psalm invites us to “Taste and See the Goodness of the Lord,” as we praise Him. St. Paul implores us to be reconciled to God. Finally, we hear the familiar story of the prodigal son, and rejoice in God’s overflowing kindness to the repentant sinner.

Raffle tickets are on sale to raise funds for Joseph's House. Tickets are $25. Please see Joseph's House Director Deacon Dennis Moore to buy tickets. The prize is an Italian dinner for six diners, with five course prepared by Cathedral pastor Monsignor Peter Routhier.

Father in heaven, may the faith you have given us in your son, Jesus Christ, our brother, and the flame of charity enkindled in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, reawaken in us the blessed hope for the coming of your Kingdom. May your grace transform us into tireless cultivators of the seeds of the Gospel. May those seeks transform from within both humanity and the whole cosmos in the sure expectation of a new heaven and a new earth, when, with the powers of Evil vanquished, your glory will shine eternally. May the grace of the Jubilee reawaken in us, Pilgrims of Hope, a yearning for the treasures of heaven. May that same grace spread the joy and peace of our Redeemer throughout the earth. To you our God, eternally blessed by glory and praise for ever. Amen.

Monsignor will lead pilgrims to holy sites in Rome, Venice, Florence, and Assisi. Group members will pass through the Jubilee Holy Doors at St. Peter's Basilica and at the other Holy Door locations. The tour leaves from Boston. Please contact Dorothy Barewicz at the parish office for more information: sjvt@comcast.net. or 802-658-4333.

The Diocese of Burlington has created a simple “passport” for parishioners to record their pilgrimage to the diocese's four Jubilee Churches. Throughout the Jubilee Year, which runs through December 28, pilgrims who visit the Jubilee Churches may have their passports stamped at the churches with the name and place of the Jubilee Church. Passports are available in the back of the church. The passport has space for six visits, so it can be filled for the Lenten Season and culminate during Holy Week. Two weeks can be a visit to any parish or even special time spent in prayer here in our own parish while the remaining four weeks can be visits to the Jubilee Churches. This six-week project is suitable for Lent and Holy Week, but can be accomplished anytime throughout the Jubilee Year. As a reminder, a Jubilee Indulgence can be gained by making a pilgrimage to any of the 4 Jubilee Churches. Here is the link for information on the Indulgence and Jubilee Churches: https://www.vermontcatholic.org/about/jubilee-year-2025/. The four Jubilee Churches are: Cathedral of Saint Joseph (Burlington); St. John the Evangelist (St. Johnsbury); St. Michael the Archangel (Brattleboro); Christ the King (Rutland). Passports for the Cathedral of St. Joseph can be found at the back of the church. Stamps are available after each Mass and at the Parish office during weekday office hours, Monday through Thursday, .

This week, we hear the famous story from Exodus of Moses and the burning bush. God establishes his identity and authority but also tells the patriarch, “I have come down to rescue them”, His people. The Psalm confirms, “The Lord is kind and merciful.” In his letter to the Corinthians, St. Paul alludes to the early Israelites and Moses, saying of their trials in the desert, “These things happened as examples for us, so that we might not desire evil things, as they did.” In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus talks about sinners, and their need to repent, lest they perish.

Monsignor Routhier invites the parish to a potluck supper in the parish hall after the 5:30 PM Mass Wednesday, March 19, the Solemnity of St. Joseph, spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Mass at 5:30 PM in the upper church celebrates the feast day of good St. Joseph, guardian of the Word Incarnate. Please bring a dish to share. There is no 12:05 PM Mass that day.