Saturday after Ash Wednesday

Take care not to perform righteous deeds 
in order that people may see them; 
otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father. 

When you give alms,

do not blow a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets
to win the praise of others.
Amen, I say to you,
they have received their reward.

But when you give alms, 
do not let your left hand know what your right is doing, 
so that your almsgiving may be secret. 
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.

                                                     Matthew 6: 1, 3-4

It is important for Catholic Christians everywhere who take seriously the invitation to make Lent a season of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving to understand the meaning of these practices. While all three are good in themselves, the real value comes in association. The individual does well to answer the question, “What is the purpose of my Lenten penitential practices?" If for example someone is trying to be a little less negative, the extra time of prayer is a time on a daily basis when he or she says, “Lord help me to see the good things today,” or “Lord, help me see the opportunities for good and growth in this situation.” When that same individual feels a bit hungry, but refrains from popping something into their mouth, the physical hunger or perhaps restraint, is a reminder of the sincere desire or “hunger” to be a more realistically optimistic and positive person. And again, that same individual shares their time, talent or treasure in situations that by their very nature causes that same person to be more positive about people and life. In reality, the power of penitential practices lies not so much in the practice itself, but rather in the purpose or meaning attached to it.

In the love of Jesus, 

Father Lenny Zamborsky  

February 20, 2005

For Reflection:

How can you as a Catholic Christian take seriously the invitation to make Lent a season of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving? 

Answer the question, “What is the purpose of my Lenten penitential practices?” 

Friday after Ash Wednesday

So we are ambassadors for Christ, as if God were appealing through us. We implore on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.

Corinthians 5:20

For he says: “In an acceptable time I heard you, and on the day of salvation I helped you.” Behold now is the acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.

Corinthians 6:2

From time to time, we should remind ourselves and reflect upon the idea that life on this earth is only temporary and is a relatively short journey to the kingdom of heaven. Believing in the “resurrection of the body and life everlasting” is part of our motivation to live faithfully the gospel we have received.

In the love of Jesus, 

Father Lenny Zamborsky  

August 11, 1996

For Reflection:

How can you as an individual be an ambassador for Christ in this short journey to the kingdom of heaven? 

Do you truly believe in the “resurrection of the body and life everlasting?” If the answer is “yes,” how can you live faithfully the gospel you have received, thereby enjoying God`s gift of salvation?

Thursday after Ash Wednesday

R. Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.

A clean heart create for me, O God,

and a steadfast spirit renew within me.
Cast me not out from your presence,
and your Holy Spirit take not from me.

Psalm 51: 12-14

Lent can be properly understood as a journey, process, time, conversion, renewal, rebirth, and repentance. Lent can be perceived as an opportunity to do, be, or become all of the descriptors above. It is an opportunity to remind us that each of us can either accept or not accept the possibility of “doing Lent.” It`s an opportunity for us to do and become something more as Christian people.

In the love of Jesus, 

Father Lenny Zamborsky  

February 2, 1996

For Reflection:

I think there is a possibility for ALL of us to “do Lent.” How can you use this opportunity to understand Lent as a “journey, process, time, conversion, renewal, rebirth, and repentance” so that you can receive the joy of His salvation?

Ash Wednesday

Even now, says the Lord,

return to me with your whole heart,

with fasting, and weeping, and mourning;

Rend your hearts, not your garments,

and return to the Lord, your God.

For gracious and merciful is he,

slow to anger, rich in kindness,

and relenting in punishment.

Joel 2: 12-14

Lent is an annual opportunity for the individual Christian person to focus in a very intentional and specific way on some dimension of spiritual renewal and/or growth. (February 26, 2006)

It seems that Advent and Christmas were just a short time ago and yet Christians throughout the world begin the season of Lent this Wednesday. While time seems to go so quickly, there is something quite appropriate about celebrating Advent, Christmas, Lent, and Easter in close proximity. There is in reality one Christ-event one Paschal Mystery. That God in Jesus became human, entered into human history, proclaimed the Good News, suffered, died, and rose, is the essence of Christianity. 

The Paschal Mystery is broken down in order that people might focus on different dimensions of redemption. The time of prophetic anticipation, the Incarnation, the public life of Christ, the death and the Resurrection are all components of the one act of God`s redemptive love. Perhaps during the Lent and Easter season, which follows so quickly upon Christmas, it would be good to reflect on the suffering, death, and Resurrection of Jesus, in the context of the entire redemptive act. 

In the love of Jesus, 

Father Lenny Zamborsky  

February 6, 2005

For Reflection:
The reading from Joel is a little dramatic with the words “fasting, weeping, and mourning.” Then there is “Rend your hearts, not your garments.”  What does that all mean today?

I think we should take Fr. Lenny`s suggestion and return to God with our whole hearts by “focusing in a very intentional and specific way on some dimension of spiritual renewal and/or growth.”

Let us begin our Lent and Easter season by reflecting on the suffering, death, and Resurrection of Jesus.

LIVE ON IN MY LOVE ~ About This Blog

A month after Fr. Lenny Zamborsky’s death on June 11, 2015, a group of his friends and former parishioners met to comfort each other and share memories of this very special man.  Shared remembrances poured forth – of baptisms where babies were immersed but never cried, of Holy Thursday services ending with Taize-infused processions and prayer, of a holy process of grieving the closing of St. Louis Church in Cleveland Heights, OH, in 2010, and many more touching – and sometimes funny -- experiences. Individual recollections of Fr. Lenny’s kindness and understanding in times of personal difficulty also emerged. 

Many of us at that meeting recalled that he had often talked about writing a book to gather lessons he wanted to share with his friends, and that is how the idea for this blog was eventually conceived.  As the writing group discussed possible sources of content, we recalled that some bound books of St. Louis bulletins had been saved – somewhere – when the parish closed.  

Some excellent sleuthing led to the discovery of the books at the Zamborsky family vacation home in Rock Creek, OH.  We decided to begin with a modest goal – to produce a collection of Lenten reflections for 2016 that would be based on the Sunday scripture readings for Cycle C and Fr. Lenny’s pastor columns in the four years of “found” bulletin books – 1996, 1999, 2005, and 2006.

Former parishioners of Fr. Lenny’s parishes, Sr. Marie Manning, Karen Kilbane, Nancy Seeger, Kathy Hazelton (St. Louis) and Beth Greisl (St. Margaret Mary, South Euclid) were the principal writers.  Aggy Nagy helped develop the concept of a Lenten booklet, and Maria Hernandez, working in Boston, provided musical inspiration for our meetings and reviewed our drafts (both Aggy and Maria were St. Louis parishioners).  Nancy Seeger, our blog administrator, is posting the reflections, week by week, throughout Lent.

Please use this blog to create an online community of faith by sharing some of your reflections in the comments section on each entry. As we all enter our first Lenten season in many years without Fr. Lenny among us, we hope that these reflections will help keep him – and the Lord whose death and Resurrection redeem us – present in our lives. May we all hear God’s word with new meaning this year. 

As we at St. Louis told Fr. Lenny at the last Mass before our closing Mass, “You have been the best of shepherds, and your guidance will sustain us as our paths diverge.  We know that God blesses you as you go on to shepherd others.  We will miss you and will keep you in our prayers.“