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Bishop announces “The Light is on for You” planned for March 6
archived from: 2013-02-01
by: Robert P. Lockwood

Catholics encouraged to seek God’s forgiveness

Bishop David Zubik has launched "The Light is on for You," a campaign aimed at calling Catholics to the sacrament of penance.

In a letter to all priests and deacons of the diocese, the bishop asked "for every parish in the Diocese of Pittsburgh to have their doors open and their lights on Wednesday, March 6, from 6-9 p.m. to welcome those seeking the sacrament.

"My hope and prayer is to attract those who might have been away from the church for a long time to take advantage of this special night of grace. At the same time, I hope that you and I can appeal as well to Catholics who attend Mass regularly but have avoided confession, not receiving the grace of the healing forgiveness of Jesus for a long time," Bishop Zubik wrote.

The Byzantine and Maronite Catholic churches in the region also will participate in "The Light is on for You" campaign.

In his "Bridging the Gap" column in this week's Pittsburgh Catholic, Bishop Zubik describes the goal of "The Light is on for You" in every parish, that "on the evening of March 6, priests will be in every one of our parishes with the lights on, ready to hear confessions. I'm inviting you to come to take part in the sacrament of forgiveness. Whether you are a regular church-going Catholic or if you drifted away many years ago, I'm asking you to be there."

"The Light is on for You" campaign is taking place in many dioceses throughout the country this coming Lent.

The national initiative has been developed from a similar campaign that was created in the Diocese of Pittsburgh in Advent 1999 as a means to prepare for the coming of the new millennium.

On the diocesan website (www.diopitt.org/light), there are a number of resources available now explaining the rite of the sacrament of reconciliation, including a pamphlet, "A Short Guide to Confession."

Additional material on the website will answer the most frequently asked questions about the sacrament, guidelines for examining conscience, an article stressing the importance of confession for young adults and an article written for those Catholics who have gone many years without confession.

There are also lesson plans for children that can be used in families, Catholic schools and religious education programs at the elementary and high school levels. Lesson plans for children with learning needs are also posted. All this material is available to download and print.

Much of the material on the website also will be published in the Pittsburgh Catholic in the weeks leading up to March 6.

"Don't be hesitant," Bishop Zubik writes in his column this week. "Don't be uncertain. If your last confession was three weeks ago or 30 years ago (or 50 years ago) we -- the priests of the Church of Pittsburgh -- are ready to welcome you. We, forgiven sinners ourselves, are ready to help you toward a moment of incredible grace during this Lenten season."

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