Seven Dolors Church recently issued the following announcement.

The desert and the parched land will exult; the steppe will rejoice and bloom. They will bloom with abundant flowers, and rejoice with joyful song. The glory of Lebanon will be given them, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon; They will see the glory of the Lord, the splendor of our God. Isaiah 35: 1 - 2 To say that we are living in difficult times is quite an understatement. It's also fairly obvious that we are facing problems on every side. 

The arrows of anger and frustration are out there - always on the lookout for new targets. How can we find hope? How can we share some good news with people who are being inundated with "pretend news" geared to make political statements? Our world needs messengers of hope. First of all, nothing is new, really. Humanity has faced the choice of hope or despair again and again. At Saint Vincent, we often have monks and students from Brazil coming for studies. They arrive after Christmas because, in Brazil, the academic year follows the calendar year. 

The seasons are the opposite since we are in the northern hemisphere and they in the southern. They look out at the scenery - no leaves, no grass, no flowers - and believe they are in the ugliest place on earth. But, when spring comes, they see the glorious rebirth of everything and they often comment that they get a new insight into the meaning of Christ's resurrection. The above reading from Isaiah the prophet represents the words of hope given by Isaiah to the people of Israel. Now is the time to look beyond the problems of the present moment and open our hearts to the work of God's Spirit. The gift of hope is there for us! Let's say yes to it!  Fr. Richard, OSB

Original source can be found here.