This Second Sunday of Lent recounts the Transfiguration of Jesus. I find it interesting that the disciples don't experience a strong reaction when the Lord converses with Moses and Elijah, who represent the great tradition of the Law and the Prophets of the Old Testament. However, they do react strongly and become frightened when a cloud appears and they can no longer see what's happening right in front of them. God the Father speaks directly into their fear with the powerful words, "This is my chosen Son; listen to Him."

When I pray with this situation, I remember the statistic that over half of all automobile accidents occur within five minutes from home on bright, sunny days. The gift of being close to home when everything around us seems to be going alright can actually mislead us into a false sense of security. We can miss the miraculous that is right in front of us (like Jesus speaking with Moses and Elijah...yep, that Moses and that Elijah!). However, when we are in a strange place or in inclement weather, we tend to be more alert. Our lack of vision, our uncertainty, even our fear can make us pay more attention to what is right before our eyes. The cloud cast over the disciples opens their hearts to hear the Father's voice revealing who Jesus is ("my beloved Son") and what to do with Him ("listen to Him").

With the fear and uncertainty we understandably face with the war in Ukraine, and with the destruction and hardship it is bringing to families near and far, we all need to open our hearts to hear the Father's voice. We need Jesus, the beloved Son of the Father, the bringer of peace and healer of souls. The Father's words in today's Gospel are addressed to every person in the entire world - all of us need to listen to Jesus so that we may have life and work for His kingdom of peace and love.

Eastern Europe Collection (March 19-20)
We will take up a collection the weekend of March 19-20 for Eastern Europe. The USCCB will utilize our donations to help those affected by the war in Ukraine with emergency food and water, hygiene supplies, and other necessary humanitarian services. You can use your Eastern Europe envelope or write a check with memo “Eastern Europe” and drop it into the normal Sunday collection or bring it to the parish office this month. Thank you for your support to our suffering brothers and sisters.

Evening of Confessions
The Diocese of Cleveland is hosting an Evening of Confessions in our parish churches this Wednesday, March 16 from 5:00 - 8:00 pm. Fr. Spisak and I will be hearing confessions at St. Mary Parish during this timeframe. Exposition of the Holy Eucharist which begins after the noon Mass will continue throughout this time until a simple reposition takes place at 8:00 pm. I encourage you to come to confession at St. Mary's if you haven't been for awhile, and to come pray with Jesus in the Eucharist for peace in our world. You may consider visiting
FORMED.org and watching the "Forgiven" series on the Sacrament of Confession in preparation for your Lenten confession. Since Fr. Spisak and I will both be hearing confessions at St. Mary's in Chardon, there will not be confessions at St. Pat's this Wednesday.
Catholic Charities Annual Appeal - THANK YOU!
Thank you to all who participated in Catholic Charities In-Pew weekend! Because of your support, nearly 400,000 individuals will receive help and hope through the programs and services made possible by your generosity. If you have not had a chance to make a gift, please visit CatholicCommunity.org/donate, mail your donation to the Catholic Community Foundation at 1404 E. 9th St, Cleveland OH 44114, or text CCHOPE to 41444.

Validity of Sacraments
You may have heard in the news recently about a Phoenix priest whose baptisms were declared invalid because he used an invalid baptismal formula, "We baptize you..." instead of the valid formula "I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." The change of that one word from "I baptize" to "We baptize" may seem inconsequential, but it in fact changes the very nature of the theology of the Sacrament of Baptism since it is not the community that baptizes but rather the minister acting in the person of Christ. Some have argued that the intention of the priest to baptize was there so why does this one word matter so much? This is a reasonable objection I would like to address.

The Church's sacramental theology is true as a science (like geometry or physics) is true. If a scientist wants to turn water into steam but places it in the freezer instead of on the stove, he's going to get
ice, despite his best intentions! Calling the ice "steam" because that's what he intended to happen would be a rejection of the scientific principles we expect from him. The language we use in our Sacraments is precise, and words that change the very nature of what we are doing matter for the sake of the Sacrament's validity. It would be the same if the priest deliberately changed the words of consecration to "This is a symbol of Christ's body" or the words of absolution to "We absolve you from your sins" - despite his best intentions, he is no longer doing what Christ has asked him to do in celebrating the Sacrament and there is doubt about the validity of the Sacrament received. This is exactly the case in the baptism scenario above. It is nothing new, and the Church throughout the centuries has responded to invalid sacramental formulations such as this with the same clarity and theological precision as given here. I really think we would expect this kind of clarity and precision from any credible and trustworthy source, so why not also from our Church?

It's hard to appreciate the anxiety this doubt about validity causes in the hearts of the faithful unless we've experienced this in our own lives. Therefore, the Church presumes invalidity in such cases and works to offer a valid Sacrament to the faithful affected. Presuming invalidity in these cases does not mean that God has not still given grace and salvation where there is doubt about a Sacrament received, but rather that the Church doesn't become unscientific and whimsically say "close enough, we're just going to step back and let God sort this one out." God indeed has a lot to sort out, and as His Church He calls us to help heal and rectify the errors our nature is prone to commit, sometimes despite our best intentions.

If you would like to read more about the Church's science of sacramental theology, I invite you to read the Word on Fire article at the link below: https://www.wordonfire.org/articles/contributors/intention- matters-baptized-by-the-water-and-the-right-words/