# Seeking Forgiveness: Lenten Reflections on Grace, Conversion, and Personal Encounters with God
*2017-03-20*

> In this Monday of the third week of Lent, Bill Young reflects on Pope Francis’s teaching about confession as a joyful encounter with Jesus’ mercy, shares personal experiences of divine signs—including Trinity-shaped flower petals—and highlights the call to repentance, forgiveness, and consecration to the Holy Family.

## A Humble Start: Apologies and the Gospel Story

Bill opens the episode with sincere apologies for technical difficulties that caused multiple failed podcast uploads earlier in the day. He explains the challenges—flatlining audio, accidental long recordings, and compression issues—but is grateful the fourth attempt succeeded. He then turns to Sunday’s Gospel, the story of the Samaritan woman at the well, noting how Jesus’ intimate knowledge of her life led her to proclaim Him to her town. Bill reflects that all of us have extraordinary encounters with God worth sharing—not to elevate ourselves, but to invite others to faith, especially those who, like him, sit in the back row of the church.

## Divine Signs: The Trinity in Petals and Birds

Bill shares a personal spiritual experience: while walking to his garage after a Legion of Mary meeting, he noticed two flower petals side by side near his mailbox—then, upon returning, they had settled into a triangular shape resembling the Trinity Shield, an ancient teaching tool. He interprets this as a sign of the Holy Spirit’s presence. He recalls another instance in Orlando, where three birds lined up in a triangle outside a mall, reinforcing the theme. Though he jokes about sounding ‘crazy,’ he notes his family accepts these signs as part of God’s everyday communication—like finding four-leaf clovers, which he says he sees far more often near home than elsewhere.

## Pope Francis on Confession: A Celebration of Mercy

Bill turns to Pope Francis’s Lenten reflection titled ‘Seeking Forgiveness,’ quoting Acts 3:19—‘Repent, therefore, and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out.’ He emphasizes Pope Francis’s teaching that confession is not a ‘torture chamber’ but a joyful celebration: a second baptism that renews our Christian dignity. The priest, Bill notes, does not chastise but represents Jesus waiting to pardon us. Confession helps us keep clean the ‘white garments’ of our baptismal grace. Pope Francis invites us to ask: ‘How might I first seek forgiveness from God and from others today?’ Bill adds his own reflection: just as he forgives and forgets a doctor’s scheduling error, so too must we imitate God’s complete forgiveness.

## Consecration to the Holy Family and the Rosary

Bill invites listeners to join a 33-day preparation for Pentecost, beginning April 10 at St. David’s Church, and encourages online participation. He ties this to the 100th anniversary of Our Lady of Fatima, proposing consecration to Mary as a gift to her. He then leads the Act of Consecration to the Holy Family, noting it was approved by the Vicar of Rome (St. John Paul II) on January 5, 1993. Following the consecration, Bill prays the rosary, focusing on the Joyful Mysteries for Monday: the Annunciation (humility), the Visitation (love of neighbor), the Nativity (poverty of spirit), the Presentation (obedience), and the Finding of Jesus in the Temple (joy in Christ’s name).

## Prayers for Servants of God: Frank Duff and Adele Quinn

Bill shares prayers for the beatification of two servants of God: Frank Duff, founder of the Legion of Mary, and Adele Quinn, a missionary in Africa. He recounts Duff’s life—born in Dublin in 1889, inspired by St. Louis de Montfort, founding the Legion in 1921, and attending Vatican II as a lay observer. For Adele Quinn, he tells the story of her fearless faith—crossing a flooded river trusting Our Lady, establishing the Legion in Africa, and living a life marked by joy, Eucharistic devotion, and trust in Mary. Both causes are underway, with one miracle required for beatification. Bill offers personal petitions, especially for his prodigal son and for the growth of the Legion of Mary in parishes.

*God meets us in our weakness and sin with mercy, often through ordinary signs and sacraments—and He calls us to forgive as we have been forgiven, to seek His face in confession, and to consecrate ourselves to the Holy Family as a path to holiness.*