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Wednesday, March 4, 2026: The Fifth Station:  Simon Helps Jesus Carry His Cross Scripture: Mark 15:21 And they compelled a passer-by, Simon of Cyre’ne, who was coming in from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross. Reflection: What is your cross? What burdens you? Each of us needs to share our burdens and there are loving people around you to accompany you on your way. Know you are not alone. The Spirit lives. Prayer:  Loving God, you brought Simon of Cyrene to help carry the cross of Jesus, offering a brief respite from the crushing weight and showing him solidarity and compassion in his darkest hour. We pray for all the advocates in our network like Courtney, who, in the way of Simon of Cyrene, accompany their clients through the most difficult times in their lives, showing them the love of God. Story: Brought to this country as a preschooler by his parents, my client J. lived in Texas for many years without any lawful status. He had a difficult a...
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Tuesday, March 3, 2026L 4: Jesus meets his mother Mary,  and both are filled with grief. PRAYER:   Oh Jesus, you saw your beloved mother once more on your way to the cross. Both of your hearts were pierced with sorrow in beholding the grief and suffering of the other. We ask you to fill our hearts with compassion for the parents and children who are affected by injustices and legal hurdles which have separated them. May you feel near them in their pain Reflection: Mary knew from the very beginning that her son would suffer–but did she really understand just how bad it would be to watch it unfold right in front of her?  Mary, what were you thinking and feeling that day? Did those images stab your heart every day for the rest of your life? Did you wake in the night sweating from the terror of reliving those moments in nightmares? Pray for us, Mary. Teach us to prayerfully endure the struggles in our own lives and to comfort others when they suffer. Story: Inez is a Venezuel...
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Monday, March 2, 2026: Stations of the Cross:  Jesus falls for the first time Station of the Cross: III  Jesus Falls the First Time:  Weakened by torture and pain, Jesus falls beneath his cross. Prayer:   Lord Jesus, your falls under the weight of the cross further weakened your aching body and spirit. So many of our immigrant brothers and sisters make it to the United States where they think they will be safe, only to find repeated torture within our systems that oppress, detain, and abandon them. May we recognize your suffering face in their pleas for help and mercy. Scripture: John 19:1-3 And the soldiers plaited a crown of thorns, and put it on his head, and arrayed him in a purple robe; they came up to him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and struck him with their hands. Reflection: The enormous weight on his shoulders–we did that and we still do. With our thoughts, words, actions or inaction, we put more weight upon his shoulders. But even with all of this we...
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 Sunday, March 1, 2026: Station of the Cross: Jesus willingly accepts and patiently bears his cross. PRAYER: Lord Jesus, you did not fight or flee as you were forced to take up an unbearably heavy cross after torture and abandonment by many of those you loved. Today, many of our immigrant brothers and sisters must endure exhausting, long legal cases to seek safety after already experiencing horrific violence and abuse. We pray for a more merciful system, and for strength for them as they wait. Immigrant story from one person from the African country of Cameroon: John is a Cameroonian man who believes in equality and dignity for all people in his country. In October 2018, he joined a peaceful protest calling for equal rights for English-speaking Cameroonians. During the protest, government forces opened fire, and one of John’s friends was killed right in front of him. John was arrested and taken into government custody.  He was held in an overcrowded detention center for days w...
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Saturday, February 28, 2026: Reflection by Bishop Felipe Pulido Auxiliary Bishop, Diocese of San Diego | CLINIC Board Member   Today, our nation finds itself in the midst of a profound immigration crisis. Much of the conversation unfolds in political debates, family gatherings, and on social media, yet too often the human face of the suffering Christ is lost. Jesus continues to suffer in the lives of our immigrant brothers and sisters — women, men, and children who carry fear, hope, and deep faith as they seek safety and dignity. Catholic social teaching calls us to respond with hearts shaped by the Gospel: to welcome, protect, promote, and integrate migrants, honoring their God-given dignity, while also recognizing the responsibility of nations to secure their borders in ways that respect human rights.  The Church, through her many ministries, walks alongside immigrants with compassion — offering shelter, legal assistance, medical care, pastoral support, and advocacy. St...
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 Friday, February 27, 2026:  What if the mightiest word is love? Legacy reflection by Brother Toby: I learned a very valuable lesson from Charles “Sparky” Schulz (1922-2000), the magnificent cartoonist of “Peanuts.” He told me never to read a newspaper first thing in the morning or last thing at night. And Sparky was absolutely right!  I often forget that the night is part of the day. If the daylight hours have been difficult and there are very unhealthy things going on in our country or in the world, the night is a time of purity. Sometimes I sit beside my cat listening to the crickets, there are so many of them at this time of year. It is really a choral fantasy. And, of course, there are the toads. They care nothing at all about what goes on in Washington, D.C. They travel happily down the gravel paths and at least one is almost always outside my bedroom window. What is the world like to a cricket, a toad, the occasional owl that flies by, or the gray fox that makes he...
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Wednesday, February 25, 2026:  And that last line, lead us not into temptation! Strange and captivating phrase! A Reflection for the First Week of Lent, By Joe Hoover, S.J. The Lord’s prayer. The “Our Father.” Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done.…  You can say it while sleeping, mowing the lawn, scuba diving, eating Grape Nuts. You can probably say it while you are saying other things. The “Our Father” is a thing that is. It is out there. In the culture.  With the “Lord’s Prayer” we are back to King James. I imagine because it is comforting, it is what everyone prays. And that last line, lead us not into temptation! Strange and captivating phrase! Why would God lead us into temptation! Does God actively do that? Take us directly into temptation such that we need to ask God not to lead us into temptation. No! Of course not!  But yes, yes, he does lead us into temptation. Why? Because it says here he does; in the “Our ...
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