Category: Lent

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Fasting for the Unborn and the Planet

footOne of the main themes in the documentary No Impact Man (which I referred to in an earlier post) is the family’s daily struggle to give up the things they are used to, do away with the luxuries, and do without the conveniences.

That got me thinking about what I could fast from during 40 Days for Life (forty days of peaceful prayer and fasting to end abortion). At the time I saw the film, I hadn’t yet decided what to fast from, but this movie gave me so many great ideas. Buying new clothes? Beef? Individually packaged treats? My car?

One thing that impressed me was that the man and his wife decided to conserve electricity by no longer using elevators. Picture walking up nine flights of stairs with three bags of groceries and a toddler, and you get the idea. So I decided that I too would refrain from using elevators for the next forty days, if not beyond.

My trip to the tenth floor is certainly strenuous, but with each step I can pray for a mother who is considering ending her child’s life by abortion and I can also feel good knowing that I’m not draining electricity from the grid. If you’d like to fast or do something that is both spiritually powerful and eco-friendly, follow the link for more ideas from the No Impact Man blog.

If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land. 2 Chron 7:14

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Holy Thursday – Late Evening at the Mount of Olives

 If you have never been to the Holy Land and to the Mount of Olives and the Garden of Gethsemane here is a video that gives you an idea of what it looks like today including the Church built over the traditional site of the Agony in the Garden. Pray with Jesus this evening as he suffers a lonely agony in the garden.

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Holy Thursday

TODAY IS HOLY THURSDAY, which marks the beginning of the sacred Triduum, or “three days.” Earlier today Jesus had given instructions to the disciples on how to prepare for this most holy meal, which will be his last supper. Through the day they make these preparations (cf Mt 26:17). This evening Jesus celebrates the first Mass and Last Supper with his apostles. In the Mass of the Lord’s Supper conducted at our parishes, we remember and make present that Last Supper. We are in the upper room with Jesus and the Apostles and do what they did. Through the ritual of washing the feet (Jn 13:1) of 12 parishioners, we unite in service to one another. Through our celebration of this first Mass and Holy Eucharist (Mt 26:26), we unite ourselves to Jesus and receive his Body and Blood as if for the first time. At this Eucharist, we especially thank God for his gift of the ministerial priesthood. After the Last Supper (First Mass) the apostles and Jesus made a short journey across the Kidron Valley to the Garden where he asks them to pray and he experiences his agony (cf Mt 26:30). We too will process in Church with Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament to a garden (the altar of repose) which has been prepared. The liturgy ends in silence. It is an ancient custom to spend an hour before the reposed Blessed Sacrament tonight. We are with Jesus in the Garden and pray as he goes through his agony. Most of our parish churches remain open until close to midnight. It was near Midnight that Jesus was betrayed by Judas, was arrested and taken to the house of the High Priest (cf Mt. 26:47).

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Making Holy Week Holy–Preparing Your Heart

“A clean heart create for me, God: renew in me a steadfast spirit.”

 

Taken from Psalm 51, it is the prayer of repentance and sets the tone for our entry into the celebration of the Triduum(the three day celebration of Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Vigil). It is a reminder that God’s grace is like a river of cleansing water. It is not too late to receive the grace of forgiveness in the sacrament of reconciliation. Your local parish probably has special times posted. The Shrine of the Immaculate Conception is offering the sacrament from 10:00 a.m-6:00 p.m. on Wednesday and Thursday with four priests available. See www.nationalshrine.com. The Franciscan Friars have confessions on the hour between 9:00 and 4:00 p.m. See www.myfranciscan.org.

 

Another practice of the heart is to calculate how much money you saved if you “gave up” something for Lent. In my case that daily cappuccino adds up to about $135.00. That makes a very nice contribution to my favorite charity or the poor box at church. I read something very interesting today. The fast of the Triduum is not so much the fast of a penitent but rather the fast of anticipation—of looking forward and readying ourselves for the celebration of Easter. It made me ask myself what should change in how I fast the next couple of days. What does an anticipation fast look like?  If God is promising a steadfast spirit, what might a steadfast spirit look like for me?

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A special tradition follows the celebration of the Lord’s Supper on Thursday. It is a period of adoration inviting people to do what the disciples who were with Jesus in the garden could not do—to stay and pray with him. Can we be different and pray with our Lord? Most churches will be open until 9:00 p.m. or 10:00 p.m. Why not plan to stay? There was a practice a generation or so ago to visit seven churches on Holy Thursday evening. Why not choose two or three near you to visit?                                     

 

This blog began as part of our campaign to extend invitations to people we know who have been away from the Church to come back to Mass. If you’ve been meaning to ask someone, why not consider inviting that person to one our Holy Week services.

 

“Restore my joy in your salvation; sustain in me a willing spirit.”

 

 

 

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Making Holy Week Holy-Preparing your Mind

In the Gospel from St. John that we heard at the beginning of Mass on Sunday, it is written,” His disciples did not understand this at first, but when Jesus had been glorified they remembered that these things were written about him…” (John 12:16). In the moment the disciples were not able to make sense of what Jesus was saying. Do you sometimes feel this way at Mass when you hear the readings? Do you sometimes wish you could hit a pause button and think about what you just heard?

 

The Scripture for the liturgies of the Triduum celebration are rich in imagery and meaning. Why not plan to read through them before you go to church. You can find the readings at www.usccb.org. There is another service during Holy Week called the Tenebrae. It is a celebration of Word of God that sets the perfect tone for Holy Thursday and Good Friday.

 

Tenebrae is a Latin word that means “darkness.” The service is an ancient monastic  tradition that uses darkness and light to tell the story of Jesus’ conquering the darkness of sin. The service includes the chanting of Psalms and the music of the Lamentations of Jeremiah as he wept for the children of Jerusalem. It is a gorgeous liturgy. Tenebrae services are scheduled on Wednesday evening at St. Matthew’sCathedral :

http://www.stmatthewscathedral.org/Lenten_Schedule.pdf.

or at Dominican House of Studies in North East. You can get a taste of the service by viewing the video below. Let us know what you think!

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Making Holy Week Holy

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Fr. Bill Byrne, Pastor at St. Peter’s on Capitol Hill sure had good news to share at Mass yesterday. In his homily, he said that if we’ve come to these final days of Lent disappointed with our failure to keep our Lenten fast or we gave up on the practice we took up in the early days of Lent, all is not lost. There is plenty of God’s mercy and grace to be received in the days ahead!

 

To receive those graces, we need to set aside time in our schedule for prayer and for participation in our parish services. I suggest you begin by making a visit to the Blessed Sacrament in the quiet of these first few days of Holy Week.

 

Pope Benedict XVI in his book The Spirit of the Liturgy writes that with the presence of the Blessed Sacrament, our churches are never empty, lifeless spaces. “Jesus is always there, waiting, watching, wanting to make us Eucharist.” Take a few minutes today or tomorrow or Wednesday to stop in and spend some time in the quiet of the church or chapel asking the Lord to help you enter into the holiest days of the Church year open to all he is waiting to share with you.

 

Christ bore our sins in his own body on the cross so that we might die to sin

 and be alive to all that is good.

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The Centurion’s Anguish

Here is another video based on the Passion of the Christ. It is a powerful though imaginary account of the the reflection of the Centurion who was ordered to crucify Christ. As the account goes on he becomes anguished in his cry: “Why Am I killing this man?!?”  In the end he accepts Jesus’  request  that God forgive us and the Centurion comes to faith.

Watch this video! It is long (13 minutes) but well worth the time. If you can’t watch it now, come back later in Holy Week. But watch it. It is very well done.