The season of Lent is an opportunity for Christians to ensure that their priorities are angled toward God, a Catholic priest from Maine told Fox News Digital this week.
"Time is holy. As a Catholic, this is something I believe very deeply," said Fr. Kyle Doustou.
Doustou is pastor of the Parish of the Resurrection of the Lord, which has locations in Old Town, Orono, and Bradley, Maine, as well as Penobscot Nation. He is also the chaplain for the University of Maine's Newman Center.
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During the Easter Vigil, part of the liturgy states, "All time belongs to him, and all the ages," he also said.
"Yes! We believe wholeheartedly that God acts in time, making every single moment holy. But it goes even farther than this," said Doustou. "Incredibly, we believe that God has entered into time, infusing in it His very presence."
This is true both during Christmas, when God became man in Jesus Christ, and during the liturgical season of Lent.
"In these days of Lent, as we prepare for Holy Week and our annual commemoration of Jesus’ suffering, death and resurrection, we're reminded that He changed all of reality in those actual, real moments He spent with us in human history," he said.
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And while Jesus no longer physically walks among humanity, in Matthew's Gospel, Jesus assured Christians, "I am with you always, until the end of the age."
This, said Doustou, "is very comforting."
"It does not mean that we will not have moments of suffering and pain, but it does mean that in those moments God is still with us, and the key here is to recognize His presence and to trust Him," he said.
Remembering that God is always with humanity, said Doustou, is "where it gets difficult."
He said, "My life is busy, and I can so easily go into automatic, failing to be aware of the amazing presence of God. The urgent and the immediate can become my focus rather than the important and the ultimate."
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This, said Doustou, "is one of the reasons why Catholics observe Lent: to help us shift our priorities back into right alignment."
The three pillars of Lent – fasting, prayer, and almsgiving – all work toward a goal of "having our minds and hearts more open to the all-pervading presence of God," said Doustou.
The Eucharist, he noted, is "another amazing gift to help us with this, though, and we don’t have to wait for Lent to benefit from it."
Catholics believe the Eucharist is the literal body and blood of Jesus Christ, he said.
"In every Catholic Church all around the world, the Holy Eucharist is reserved for us to come before and to adore."
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Said Doustou, "We can leave the hustle and bustle of our daily lives and, for a period of time, silently reconnect with God-among-us. In His Eucharistic presence, we gain perspective, strength and the knowledge of His deep love for us; He chases away our worries and anxieties, reminding us that He is here."
And while all time is holy, said Doustou, time spent with Jesus is particularly so.
"It is one of the most powerful ways in which we can become aware of how God is always present in our lives, at all times," he said.
"How truly amazing it is."
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