Lent, Stations of the Cross, Sacramentals

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Opening prayer:

Seeking and Finding God

Faithful God, You give us forty days of Lent to quiet ourselves and explore the inner chambers of our hearts. Let these sacred days be a time when we seek and find you there. Passionate God, May we find you even in our tears and in our pain and in whatever troubles our hearts. Keep us from all that separates us from You. Be with us and in us. Amen

Lent

Show Ash Wednesday, Lent in two minutes video

Compared to a person in training. Each year before the season, she must "train" and exercise. In some sense, Lent is the same routine each year: forty days. fasting and abstinence, more time in church, increased devotion, alms giving. St. Paul tells us we are in a race

Do you not know that the runners in the stadium all run in the race, but only one wins the prize? Run so as to win. Every athlete exercises discipline in every way. They do it to win a perishable crown, but we an imperishable one. Thus I do not run aimlessly; I do not fight as if I were shadowboxing. No, I drive my body and train it, for fear that, after having preached to others, I myself should be disqualified. and we compete for a prize in Christ Jesus. (1 Cor 9:25).

2 Tm 4:7)

  • Starts with Ash Wednesday. Ashes are a sign of repentance humility and renouncing pride.
  • Ashes - In both the Old and New Testaments, ashes are associated with mourning and repentance (Est. 4:1-3; Jb 42:6; Ps 102:9; 21
    • "Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel", "Remember man you are dust, and to dust you will return".
    • Old testament reference Job 42:5-6
  • “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty deeds done in your midst had been done in Tyre and Sidon,* they would long ago have repented in sackcloth and ashes (Mt 11:21.)
    • We don't wear ashes to proclaim our holiness but to acknowledge that we sin and are in need of repentance and renewal.
  • Significance of 40 days
    • Moses and the Israelites wandered for 40 years in the desert as they prepared to enter to promised land of freedom and life (Nm 14:33-34). Jesus fasted for 40 days prior to beginning his public ministry (Lk 4:1-14)

1 Filled with the holy Spirit, Jesus returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert 2 for forty days, to be tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and when they were over he was hungry. 3 The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.” 4 Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone.’” 5 Then he took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a single instant. 6 The devil said to him, “I shall give to you all this power and their glory; for it has been handed over to me, and I may give it to whomever I wish. 7 All this will be yours, if you worship me.” 8 Jesus said to him in reply, “It is written: ‘You shall worship the Lord, your God, and him alone shall you serve.’” 9 Then he led him to Jerusalem, made him stand on the parapet of the temple, and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, 10 for it is written: ‘He will command his angels concerning you,to guard you,’ 11 and: ‘With their hands they will support you, lest you dash your foot against a stone.’” 12 Jesus said to him in reply, “It also says, ‘You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test.’” 13 When the devil had finished every temptation,i he departed from him for a time. 14 Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news of him spread* throughout the whole region. (Lk 4:1-14)

Thus 40 days became the standard of the Christian period of preparation.

  • Count the days


  • Penitential Practices
    • Lent is a season for turning away from sin and living a life more conformed to the will and plan of God. Like diet and exercise for the athlete, prayer, mortification, (the voluntary practice of self denial, resulting in a freedom from sinful inclinations and a closer conformity to the suffering Christ. It promotes penance and enables one to become detached from material pleasures, so as to focus on the spiritual rhelm. and almsgiving are ways for the Catholic to grow in faith and get closer to Jesus.
      • Fasting -
        • Depriving ourselves of a basic necessity reminds us of our utter dependence on God
        • abstaining from something good and legitimate for the sake of something better and more important. A person fasts to imitate in some small way to the suffering of Jesus
        • Eating pancakes or donuts on Shrove Tuesday developed because that day was the last opportunity before Lent to enjoy foods made with milk and butter. Also explains the origin of the tradition of Easter Eggs. After a lent without eggs, those enjoyed on Easter tasted especially good!
        • Fasting only required on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday
      • Abstinence one form of fasting is the abstaining from meat of Fridays. At the time of the regulation, meat was the flesh of warm-blooded creatures. Cold-blodded creatures such as fish were not included because they are cold-blooded.


  • Prayer,
  • alms giving - What we're given by god is not meant just for us, but for us to share with others, for the service of others

Sacramentals

Sacramental: Definition: Sacred signs (such as holy water and a crucifix) that bear some resemblance to the sacraments, but which do not carry the guarantee of God's grace associated with the seven sacraments. (Catholic Faith Handbook for Youth)

Symbols and rituals used in the church besides the sacraments.

  • holy water
  • Paschal Candle
  • votive lights
  • crsses/crucifixes
  • medals and statutes of the saints
  • blessed palm branches
  • blessed ashes
  • icons (special pictures of the saints)
  • Incense
  • Stations of the Cross

A special type of sacramental is a blessing, a prayer that calls on God's power to care for a person, place, thing, or undertaking. A prayer of blessing usually includes praise for God and his gifts and a request that those gifts be used in the spirit of the Gospel.

The Scrutinies are a blessing: A form of a sacramental - Handout on the Scrutinies. Includes an Exorcism.

Stations of the Cross

  • A popular devotion was to "walk the Passion with Jesus", by traveling the same route that Jesus had taken to Calvary. Along the way, the individual would stop at places of significance to spend a time of prayer and reflection.
  • In the middle ages the practice arose of establishing these "stations" of the passion of Jesus in local churches. Individuyal stations would depict a specific scene or event on the walk to Calvary.
  • The devotion has particular significance in Lent as the faithful anticipate the celebration of Christ's passion during Holy week.
  • Christ directed each disciple to "take up his cross and Follow him (Mt. 16:24). The stations of the cross allow the believer to do that in a literal manner, while striving to me more intimately united with Christ in his Passion.

Resources

the Catholic Faith Handbook for Youth. Brian Singer-Towns, St. Mary's Press, 2004 Catholic Customs A Fresh Lok at Traditional Practices, Regis J. Flaherty, Servant Publications, 2002

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