r e f l e c t i o n s

Preparing for the Jubilee

Sister Margarita Bareika belongs to the order of The Sisters of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a Lithuanian order in Putnam, Connecticut. She is also the Chairperson of the Religious Affairs Council for the Lithuanian-American Community, Inc.

With the approaching millenium, Pope John II has requested that all Catholics throughout the world begin to prepare and celebrate the coming of the year 2000.

Last year we stressed the importance of Christ in our lives. We focused on the person of Jesus Christ and the renewal of our commitment to a life of faith. Faith is a free gift of God. One of the most touching scenes in the gospel is the Baptism of Jesus. It is here that He comes to the water with the sinners and outcasts, ready to have His own life changed from being a village carpenter to becoming a preacher and a healer.

As Jesus came up from the water, He heard His Fatherҳ loving words, "You are my beloved Son, in You I am well pleased." (Mark 1, 11).

This marked the beginning of a new stage in Jesus's faith, the start of a new life.

Our Baptism is also the beginning of our Christian faith, and the start of a new life in the Lord's Church. We were asked to experience a deeper understanding of the Incarnation and of Jesus' birth from the Virgin Mary, and to renew our interest in the Bible and the Sacrament of Baptism.

This year of 1998 is dedicated to the Holy Spirit and to His sanctifying presence within the Community of Christ's disciples. It means, appreciation of the Presence and activity of the Spirit who acts within the Church.

With the help of the Holy Spirit, members of the Church will evangelize our society with Gospel and bring new hope for the gift of eternal life.

The third year 1999, is dedicated to God, the Father. It will be aimed at broadening the horizons of believers; so that they will see things in the perspective of Christ, and in the perspective of the Father, who is in heaven. The sense of being on a journey to the Father should encourage everyone to hold fast to Christ, the Redeemer of man.

Jesus did not invite people just to receive from Him messages, but to learn from Him to do likewise.

Many Christians have thought that Jesus is only interested in the salvation of souls after their death. The promises expressed by the event of Jesus in our history are at the same time invitations and demands.