Arrupe Division Reflection

“What it is like to be at the Arrupe Division during Lent and Easter. How does my faith grow?”

During my time in Arrupe religion class, I have gained a new appreciation for participating in my services. Antiochian liturgies are filled with beautiful choir music that lifts up your spirit, no matter how you are feeling. I wanted to give back to my community, so I decided to sing in my church’s choir. Learning about Vatican II helped me learn that the laity can and should participate in the liturgy.

I have also gained a new fascination with fasting, and the celebration that follows. I celebrate Lent by observing the Lenten Fast and doing community service during that time. I love the excitement of Easter morning when we go to church and celebrate the Resurrection; the joy of the moment when “Christ is Risen!” is unparalleled. Religion class has helped change my spirituality. Without it, I would still be stuck in the fixed mindset that I can’t do much for my church. Now that I have opened up to new ideas and my life has been enriched, I would do it again and again.

-Peter Bezzerides '27

February 22 - Ash Wednesday

Reflection by Michael Clancy '03, Bowman House, Social Studies

Mt 6:1-6, 16-18

Gospel Passage:

Jesus said to his disciples: When you give alms, do not blow a trumpet before you to win the praise of others.

When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street corners so that others may see them.

When you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, so that they may appear to others to be fasting.

And your Father who sees what is hidden will repay you. "

Reflection:

“What are you paying attention to?” At the heart of it all, Jesus is asking his followers to consider this simple question. If we live our lives, and practice our spirituality, to draw attention to ourselves then we are missing the point. When the focus is on appearances, the focus is on the self. What we focus on orients us. If, as Jesus teaches us, we focus on our self, we are separating ourselves from the mystery of God’s universal love.

When I think of the people in my life who most genuinely reflect this universal love, these are the people who deeply will never really find what we seek. There is an emptiness and a neediness in attending.

Why are you paying attention?”

These questions are central to of every great lesson. Humility, often said, is not thinking less of yourself but thinking of yourself less

February 26, First Sunday of Lent

Reflection by Joshua M. Solomita '26, Day House

Matthew 4:1-11

Gospel Passage:

At that time Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil.

He fasted for forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was hungry.

Then the devil took him up to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in their magnificence, and he said to him, "All these I shall give to you, if you will prostrate yourself and worship me. " At this, Jesus said to him, "Get away, Satan!

It is written: The Lord, your God, shall you worship and him alone shall you serve."

Reflection:

Three times, Satan puts God to the test, tempting him to use his power in pursuit of worldly gain Jesus denies him twice, before proclaiming “Get away, Satan!” Pushing away Satan and bringing angels to his side.

Satan believes that Jesus, with his infinite power, would exert it for his own worldly gain What he doesn’t understand is that, it is exactly because of that power that Jesus found his glory solely in living out the words of God.

While we are presented with great temptations, Jesus has empowered all of us with the ability to follow in his example and live in service to God

March 5 - Second Sunday of Lent

Reflection by John-Paul Haber '23, Ciszek House Mt 17:1-9

Gospel Passage:

Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them; his face shone like the sun and his clothes became white as light. And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, conversing with him.

While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud cast a shadow over them, then from the cloud came a voice that said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him."

Reflection:

In Matthew 17:1-9, we see the transfiguration of Jesus. Jesus shows his true Godliness, and transfigures into a form his disciples can not even comprehend, because they are in such fear. This passage shows us both Jesus’s humanity but also his divinity and Godliness, and reminds us that Jesus was not just a person, but our God. This Gospel passage teaches us to remember who Jesus is, and to serve him and live as he taught us Jesus calls us to not be afraid, but to give ourselves fully and live out as true followers of Christ.

March 12 - Third Sunday of Lent

Reflection by Cason Chu '23, Faber House

Jn 4:5-15, 19b-26, 39a, 40-42

Gospel Passage:

"Jesus came to a town of Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of land that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there. Jesus, tired from his journey, sat down there at the well. It was about noon. A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” The Samaritan woman said to him, “How can you, a Jew, ask me, a Samaritan woman, for a drink?”

Jesus answered and said to her, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again; but whoever drinks the water I shall give will never thirst; the water I shall give will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I may not be thirsty."

Reflection:

Jesus and the Samaritan woman lived in a time when Jews and Samaritans had a history of hate towards one another, as well as a time when a man talking to a woman so casually was looked down upon.

Jesus and the Samaritan woman are different. Yet those differences are suddenly washed away when Jesus talks about “living water”, or salvation, for all, and when the Samaritans of that town begin to believe in him

This goes to show that despite our perceived differences, we are inherently similar; anyone and everyone can be a “true worshiper”. Of course, it’s easy to assume otherwise. After all, we ’ ve evolved to sniff out difference. Yet, our interactions with others are what we make of it. It is vital to try to understand and humanize the people around us instead of characterizing them based on shallow, incomplete interactions. There will always be a side of others that you do not get to see, no matter how well you know them So, go and ask someone for some Gatorade

March 19 - Fourth Sunday of Lent

Reflection by Andrew Mozinski '26, Gonzaga House

JN 9:1, 6-9, 13-17, 34-38

Gospel Passage:

As Jesus passed by he saw a man blind from birth. He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva, and smeared the clay on his eyes, and said to him, "Go wash in the Pool of Siloam" which means Sent . So he went and washed, and came back able to see.

They brought the one who was once blind to the Pharisees. Now Jesus had made clay and opened his eyes on a sabbath. So then the Pharisees also asked him how he was able to see. He said to them, "He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and now I can see. " So some of the Pharisees said, "You were born totally in sin, and are you trying to teach us?" Then they threw him out.

When Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, he found him and said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?" He answered and said, "Who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?" "I do believe, Lord," and he worshiped him.

Reflection:

John chapter nine or “The Man Born Blind” is a powerful chapter that speaks to the theme of faith and the power of God. It tells the story of a man born blind who is healed by Jesus and given his sight back. The chapter begins with Jesus and his disciples encountering a man who had been blind from birth. The disciples ask Jesus if the man ' s blindness was a result of his sins or those of his parents. Jesus responds by saying that the man ' s blindness was not a punishment for sin, but rather an opportunity for God to show his glory This statement is significant because it challenges the belief that suffering and illness are a result of sin It also reminds us that God is not a vengeful deity, but rather a loving God who desires to reveal his glory to the world. The healing of the blind man is a powerful demonstration of God's power and love. It shows that nothing is impossible for God, and that even the most difficult situations can be overcome through faith.