Saturday of the Third Week of Lent

1. Lectio

Jesus addressed this parable to those convinced of their own righteousness and who despised everyone else:

“Two people went up to the temple area to pray;
one was a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.

The Pharisee took up his position and spoke this prayer to himself,
‘O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity…’

But the tax collector stood off at a distance
and would not even raise his eyes to heaven
but beat his breast and prayed,
‘O God, be merciful to me a sinner.’

I tell you, the latter went home justified, not the former;
for whoever exalts himself will be humbled,
and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”

Luke 18:9-14

For those at the helm of online platforms, this means ensuring that their business strategies are not guided solely by the criterion of profit maximization, but also by a forward-looking vision that considers the common good, just as each of them cares for the well-being of their own children.

A possible alliance

If the Centennial pillar of Communion calls me to seek the common good rather than my own advantage, what position do I take in the digital world—am I contributing to a culture that cares for others as we would our own children, or am I quietly accepting systems that place profit above people?

2. Meditatio

I have always had a favorite position at Mass.

It is toward the back of the nave.

This location gives me the comforting illusion that I am humbler than the man in the front row.

The Pharisee stood boldly before God announcing his virtues.
I, being a modern Pharisee of somewhat better manners, prefer to hide modestly in the back while silently congratulating myself for my modesty.

Humility, it turns out, is a remarkably easy virtue to counterfeit.

Yesterday, Pope Leo XIV invited Christians who bear responsibility for war to examine their consciences.

Now this is precisely the sort of invitation that disrupts my carefully chosen position in the pew.

For it is terribly convenient to believe that wars are fought by governments somewhere far away, while I merely sit peacefully beneath stained glass windows.

But democracy has an awkward habit of involving its citizens in the consequences of their choices.

If my country wages war, I cannot entirely escape the fact that I helped place the people in office who wage it.

I may have voted for reasons I still consider serious and moral—particularly concerning the defense of life—but it does not follow that every bomb dropped somewhere in the desert is therefore morally uncomplicated.

The Pharisee’s greatest mistake was not that he fasted or tithed.

It was that he believed his position exempted him from repentance.

And so today I cannot comfortably stand in the temple thanking God that I am not like other men.

The only honest position I can take is that of the tax collector—
standing at a distance,
beating my breast,
and hoping that mercy travels farther than politics.

3. Contemplatio (Chestertonian Synthesis)

Chesterton once suggested that the one truly remarkable thing about Christianity is that it begins with the confession that we are wrong.

The modern world often begins with the opposite assumption.

The Pharisee prayed because he believed he was right.

The tax collector prayed because he knew he was not.

And strangely enough, it was the latter who left justified.

Perhaps the safest position before God is not the front of the temple or the back pew, but the place where a man finally admits that he needs mercy.

4. Oratio

5. Actio — In Light of Laudato Si’ and Synodality

…many professionals, opinion makers, communications media and centres of power, being located in affluent urban areas, are far removed from the poor, with little direct contact with their problems. They live and reason from the comfortable position of a high level of development and a quality of life well beyond the reach of the majority of the world’s population.

Laudato si’ §49

Authentic human development requires dialogue and responsibility for the common good.

Today I will take one small step toward that spirit of synodality—listening carefully to someone whose view differs from my own rather than defending my position immediately.

6. Song Pairing 🎵

🎶 “War” — Edwin Starr🎵

7. Movie Pairing 🎬

🎬Movie: Platoon (1986)

My Story

• Bishop Matthiesen, who rode the white horse of public activism even as he brought abusive priests into our diocese such as John Salazar—wounds that still mark us today. I spoke with him often, pleading with him to reconsider his “no regrets” about bringing those priests here…
• Bishop Yanta, who sought to enforce the Dallas Charter even when Bishop Matthiesen resisted him, and who bore the personal and pastoral cost of doing so. I met with Bishop Yanta about Bishop Matthiessen’s “no regrets” stance. He listened. He believed me. He acted where he could. And when he retired, he urged me—quietly but firmly—to keep speaking out.
• Bishop Zurek, who told the Diocese of Amarillo he had “no facts” about the Philadelphia report even as Amarillo’s connection to that tragedy was headline news. When I continued to speak out, as Bishop Yanta had once urged me to do, he later wrote that I was not among the faithful and loyal disciples whom the Lord Jesus desires.
• Bishop Daniel Cardinal DiNardo…

While we recognize your thoughtful suggestion for a renewed dialogue on Bishop Matthiesen, the present circumstances do not present an opportunity for it. I think it would foster division not dialogue. We remain confident in God’s providence and hopeful for what the future may bring.

from a letter dated March 5, 2026