Lenten Weekly Update (Week 3!)
March 17, 2021 | Fr. Claude Lombardo, MC
Dear friends!
Greetings during this Holy Season of Lent! I hope you have been enjoying my Lenten updates. I hope they have helped you to grow closer to our Lord this season.
In my previous emails, I shared stories about a young man that I met on a plane, as well as Edna, a 91-year-old retreat participant. This week’s story, although a bit different from the setting of a retreat, will give you a glimpse into another part of my priestly life: A Beef Plant Blessing! Allow me to introduce you to Eric…
Eric is the CEO of this beef plant in Brawley, CA. Eric, a strong supporter of Miles Christi, asked for a blessing of his Plant. Not only did I get to bless his business, but I got a hands-on experience!
Eric showed me all the details of the process and all the corners of the plant. One of the most heartwarming moments for me as a father and priest was to see how Eric engaged with his employees – he greeted each person one-by-one. As we continued to greet them, some of his team asked me for prayers, or particular blessing. I loved this!
The plant blessing itself was going to take place in a big dining room, but right in the middle of the tour, it was decided to not only bless the facility, but to bless the team as well. So, we went up on a higher ledge so I could bless everyone. His team’s reaction was amazing as you can see HERE in this video.
At the end I did another blessing for the administrative team, non-plant workers, etc. Eric wanted to make sure that everyone was blessed – what a great leader! And at the end of all of it, we finished with an outstanding lunch: beef, of course! Beef, it’s what’s for LUNCH! 😉
I hope this story enables you to see another side of us priests (and I hope it encourages you to get your home or place of business blessed!).
And as a friendly reminder, let me once again encourage you to…
1) Go to daily Mass at least 3 extra times this week.
2) Watch our videos (from Advent) on the Holy Eucharist.
3) PRAY – ask our Lord for the grace of a Eucharistic Awakening. As Eric can attest to, your life will never be the same when you do…
4) TUNE IN to our YouTube Live videos.
5) Give to our Lenten Appeal efforts.
I will be back in touch again soon, and in the meantime, I do hope that you will be able to join us for tonight’s YouTube Live, as well as support our Lenten efforts. Thank you in advance for your consideration, and thank you for all that you do on behalf of our Lord’s Church
For His Church,
Fr. Claude, MC