15th of March 2010

Dear Friends,
Here we are in Lenten time, a time “in the desert”. It is a special time to rediscover a greater intimacy with our Lord.
Each one of us has a special path to walk upon with God. God has given to each one of us a mission and a special vocation. Do we dare to believe in this?  Do we take seriously this unique friendship with God which we invent with him day after day?  If it is not possible for al of us to take a time of retreat during Lent, we will all be able to find ways to come back to our heart where God dwells. We can find ways that are adapted to our situation, to our schedule and to our spiritual needs.  We accompany you all on this path towards Easter.

Lenten time is explained by the liturgy and the steps that prepare the catechumens for their baptism. The 21 catechumens who will be baptised here at the Basilica during the Easter Vigil will take part in this ultimate preparation over the next few weeks.
The first step which takes place on the 1st Sunday of Lent is that of the “tradition of the creed”.  The Church gives the creed to those who will soon become one of her members. At the beginning of Lent it is good to renew the faith which we have received at our own baptism. Am I faithful to the sacrament which I have received? Do I accept God’s will in my life or do I want to control everything and do things my way?  If I have questions or difficulties in my faith, do I try to seek help or guidance?

The second step takes place on the 2nd Sunday of Lent and is called the “tradition of our Lord’s prayer”. The Church gives to the catechumens the prayer which our Lord gave to us. We are so blessed to have this prayer which should help us in our daily life. If I have problems in my prayer life, do I try to seek guidance from a priest?

The next 3 steps are orientated toward penance.  On the 3rd Sunday of Lent we hear John’s Gospel (chp4) when he relates Jesus’ meeting with the Samaritan women. For us who are already baptised, it is perhaps a good moment to start thinking about our next confession before Easter.
On the 4th Sunday of Lent we hear the story of the man who was born blind (Jn9). This passage is a foretaste of the resurrection. Our Lord wants to give us new enlightenment during this Lenten time which will help us along the path towards holiness.  The 5th Sunday of Lent brings us the recital of the resurrection of Lazarus (Jn11).  It is a promise of eternal life that God gives to us through the celebration of Easter.

The preparations for our 125th anniversary are now well under way. We are going to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the perpetual adoration here in the Basilica (it began on the 1st of August 1885). It is going to be a jubilee year for the Basilica and we have received from Rome the official document that grants the grace of a plenary indulgence for all those who will come on pilgrimage here during this jubilee year. We are starting to build up the program for these celebrations; here are a few dates to give you an idea of what is going to happen.

The celebrations will be opened by a special anniversary: the 30th anniversary of Pope John Paul II’s visit to our Basilica. We will unveil a marble plaque on the wall of the Basilica and the Bishop of Versailles who will preside all these celebrations will give us a conference in the evening.
We will then open up the official novena which will help us to prepare the Feast of the Sacred Heart.
On the 4th of June, our Cardinal Archbishop of Paris, Mgr Vingt-Trois, will come to preside the solemn mass at 3pm and the eucharistic procession which will follow this mass. If you are not able to join us, you will be present through your prayers.
On the 6th of June, Feast of Corpus Christi, our Archbishop will gather together here in Montmartre all the altar boys from the diocese of Paris.  We will also reunite on this same day all the adults (322) who will be baptised in the diocese of Paris during the Easter Vigil.
On the 10th of June we will have an evening which will be consecrated to prayer for our priests and for priestly vocations.  On the 17th of June, all the Polish people who live in Paris will get together for their annual mass here in our Basilica, and on the 26th, we will have a special prayer vigil on the eve of the priestly ordinations at our cathedral.

That is just a foretaste!!  We will keep you up to date which the other celebrations as time goes on. We would be delighted to welcome you to come and take part in these celebrations, or other groups that you may know. As we have already said, please don’t hesitate to send us the addresses of your local parishes that are consecrated to the Sacred Heart, or who could be interested in coming on pilgrimage during this jubilee year. We want as many people as possible to make the most of all the graces and blessings that our Lord offers to us during this coming year.

Don’t hesitate also to go and visit our website (www.sacre-coeur-montmartre.fr)
You will find a new video which we have just created to help people to discover the Holy Week celebrations here.  They are so beautiful!
You will also find a new option to keep in touch…We hope to send out across the world by  e-mail a newsletter which will keep you up to date with what’s going on. You can subscribe to that newsletter on our website.

Thank you for your prayers for us, and know that we are praying for you.  Have a holy Lenten time, and a happy and joyful Easter.

May God bless you all and all those who are dear to you,

Sr Marie Mechtilde
For Prayer and Penance