I am writing you this reflection from our pilgrimage in Italy on Thursday morning, October 13. This is the third day we will spend the day in the city of Rome. We have already visited three of the major basilicas in the city: St Peter, St John Lateran, and St Mary Major. The first day in Rome, we celebrated Mass at the Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus located in the Prati neighborhood in Rome. That church is also dedicated to the souls in purgatory. As we celebrated Mass at St Mary Major yesterday, I thought about how I celebrated Mass in that basilica back in 2010 with Cardinal Law when he was rector of that basilica when I visited Rome with the St Richard youth choir. As most of you know, Cardinal had started out as a priest in our Diocese in Mississippi prior to becoming the Archbishop of Boston. Coming here to Rome on pilgrimage helps connect me as a priest to the universal Church, seeing people from all over the world come to Rome on a journey of faith. Tomorrow, we will journey to Assisi to visit the sites connected to St Francis of Assisi.
Our Gospel today calls us to prayer and persistence, as we hear of the widow who never gives up against the unjust judge. No matter who we are, we can sometimes struggle with persistence on our journey. But faith is not really faith if it is not tested. Faith is not having faith only in the good times and the easy times, but also in times of struggle and challenge. In our prayers, when we pray for others and focus on the needs of others, we can get out of our own selfishness and self-centeredness, which can also help us in our persistence, knowing that it is not always just about us.
Blessings to all of you. I look forward to getting back to the Jackson area and being with all of you. Father Lincoln.
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