For families ready to push it forward, add in one new prayer each week until you have a complete decade. Follow the outline:
Hold the Crucifix in your right hand. Make the Sign of the Cross properly, using the right hand only.

Still holding the Crucifix, state what you believe as a Catholic by saying the Creed.

Move to the first bead. Pray one Our Father.

Move to the next beads. Pray the Hail Mary three times, once on each bead.

Move to the next bead and pray one Glory Be.

Stay on the same bead. Announce the Mystery by saying these words: The Fifth Sorrowful Mystery, The Crucifixion. For three hours our dear Lord hung on the cross. He was taking on Himself the punishment for our sins. After some time, He knew that God had forgiven our sins. Once more, we had the right to enter Heaven. So He dropped His head and died. ​God, His Father, allowed this punishment. We praise and thank Jesus and God our heavenly Father for the glorious victory the Christ gained for us through His death and resurrection: Father, although this glorious triumph was completed more than 2000 years ago, it is still as potent and powerful in the lives of believers today as it was when the angels declared, "He is not here - He is risen." Keep me ever looking to Jesus, knowing that this glorious victory has not lost any of its ancient power, but is the single means of overcoming the world, the flesh and the devil. I pray that I will run the race that is set before me looking to Jesus, and that I may finish the course that You have given to me, as I yield through word and deed to the working of the Holy Spirit within. This I ask in Jesus' name, Amen. (Source)
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Stay on the same bead. Pray one Our Father.

Move through the next ten beads, praying the Hail Mary on each one.

Move to the next bead. Pray one Glory Be.

Stay on the same bead. Pray the Fatima Prayer.

Make the Sign of the Cross using the Crucifix. AMEN!

Dear holy families,

Through your meditations of the Sorrowful Mysteries over the past five weeks, you have encountered the Passion in the Scriptures several times. On Palm Sunday, we will participate in the Gospel reading that recounts the events of the Passion, Mark 14: 1 through Mark 15: 47.

Starting with Mark 15: 34, we are told that Jesus speaks while He hangs on the Cross. I invite you to use this resource to meditate on the Seven Last Words of Christ, words of great meaning that I want you to know. This devotion may be spread out over a week, commemorating one of the Seven Last Words each day (different links are available for each day), or you may pray it as a whole devotion in a single day. As always, you choose what is best for your family, but I encourage you to participate fully.

Please, bless your Lent with prayer and meditation.

​In Christ's Love,
Mary Acevedo, Director of Religious Education

There are two figures that really pop out of this scene because they are so bright. Can you point to them? One is a man, the other is a woman. Can you tell me their names?

Read the title of this painting. Do you know what is happening here? I'm sure you remember the story we've been reading the past few weeks: Jesus was in Jerusalem celebrating the Jewish holy day of Passover with His friends. On Holy Thursday, He knew that the time had come to fulfill His purpose. While He was in the Garden of Gethsemane, He was arrested. He was brought to many places and accused of many things; while He was there, He was beaten in many ways.

Pontius Pilate, the Roman authority in the Holy Land, presented Jesus to the crowd and asked them, "Should I free Jesus, or should I free Barabbas?" Barabbas had committed horrible crimes; Jesus committed no crime. It didn't matter to the people in the crowd. They shouted that they wanted Barabbas to be set free.

This painting shows the moment when the soldier broke the crowd apart to make room for Jesus to walk forward to pick up His Cross. 

There are so many people in this crowd. It would take us a long time to count them all! But we could do it if we wanted to. I would count pretty slowly because I would want to look carefully at each person. Can you see how each one is so distinct, so set apart from the rest of the crowd? Each one is his or her own individual, reacting to the judgment of Jesus in his or her own unique way. There's also a lot of moving: running, falling, talking, jostling. Take a minute to just look at the people. Talk about some of the people you see. Who are they? How do you know? What are they doing? Can you see their faces? How do you think all of these people feel?

I see a man holding the cross. How do you know that he's not Jesus? Who is walking with Jesus? How do you know who he is?

The only calm faces in this emotional scene are those of Our Redeemer and His Blessed Mother. This surprises us because they are the ones who are suffering the most here-- they should be the ones crying out, pushing to escape! But they don't because they have complete faith in this work of God. Jesus and Mary look noble, dignified, and perfect.

Do you remember how we talked about Jesus' glow when we studied our Advent art? Jesus is glowing here, too, isn't He? Jesus' body seems unusually long to me. The artist may have chosen to draw Jesus this way to emphasize Jesus' supernatural and divine quality.  

​Let's look at a statue now.

I enjoy sculpture even more than I enjoy painting because I find it so amazing that artists can turn a solid slab of hard, cold stone into something that looks lifelike, soft, warm, and human, so I am really excited about sharing this one with you! Look at the hands and fingers, hair, and muscles that the artist Michelangelo was able to carve! It all looks so real! Everything looks so respectful of God's creation!

Two weeks ago I told you about the symbol for St. Mark's Gospel. Do you remember what it is and why? The lion, because it is powerful and noble. Jesus looks powerful, noble, and perfect here. This statue shows Christ carrying the cross, but there is no evidence of the wounds Our Savior suffered at the scourging or crowning. Both Michelangelo and Doré, who painted the work above, chose to show Jesus without wounds because they wanted to focus on Christ's nobility, dignity, and perfection as well as His perfect sacrificial offering of Himself so that we could be redeemed (or saved) from our sins.

Jesus is not only carrying the Cross in this depiction; He hugs it, reminding us that He was happy to do this for us. How grateful we need to be for that! We must show our gratitude and love by improving ourselves every day and by participating in all of the sacraments of the Church: being baptized into God's family, going to Confession and receiving Communion as often as we can, being confirmed, being married in the Church-- or maybe becoming a deacon, priest, or religious-- and asking for God's healing oils when we are sick or dying.

If you look carefully, you will see a rope wrapped around a staff. The rope indicates that the devil is now bound and under the feet of the risen Christ. The wooden staff that you see the Good Shepherd holding originally had a cloth banner attached to it: Jesus rose from the dead and is the King of the Universe!

Jesus was arrested, then He was questioned over and over by different authorities. A judgment was made: everyone then knew that He would be crucified. Behind the scenes, the torture continued. Do you know where we are now? Here He is, in a prison, being made fun of with a crown of thorns.

This painting is dark, isn't it? I wouldn't be surprised if you needed to step a little closer if you were in the Museum-- or zoom in here on your phone or computer-- to see all the details. But wait. Let's look from a distance first. I see seven people with Jesus. All of them look really worked up. Despite that agitation, the dark colors that the artist Anthony van Dyck uses cause a very quiet pause. We hear nothing, we might feel our souls reaching out, as we reverently look at our exhausted Jesus, Whose Heavenly Father bathes Him in light. That light isn't coming from the window, is it? Look out the window; it's still twilight outside. God is always with Him, and us.

Let's lean in.

Jesus is surrounded by five men. They are probably soldiers who just finished scourging Him. Now they are jeering Him; they are making fun of Him.

Do you remember the Jusepe de Ribera painting called The Adoration of the Shepherds painting that we looked at during Advent? One of the shepherds was genuflecting as he recognized God in the Holy Infant. His hands are held in prayer, and his knees and feet are respectfully placed.

The man who helped torture Jesus is genuflecting in front of Him, too, in the same exact position and the same exact placement on the canvas as that shepherd, but this genuflect is not sincere. He is in bare feet, and one of those dirty soles is shown directly to us. This was a common technique Renaissance and Baroque artists used to show rudeness and disrespect. ​How different their attitudes are! The man makes fun of Jesus while he hands Jesus a pretend scepter before he yells, "Hail, King of the Jews!"

o Jesus.... He is so weak from the scourging. Through it must be painful beyond imagination, He does not scream, groan, or even show pain on His Face. He just sits there as the soldier dressed in a suit of black armor places the crown of thorns upon His divine Head. We can see how painful the thorns must be because the soldier is wearing iron and heavy leather gloves rather than using his bare hands to drive the thorns into Christ's Head. 

Soldiers living in the Holy Land during Jesus' lifetime did not wear suits of armor. So why is this soldier wearing something that was invented a thousand years after Good Friday? There are several possibilities why the artist chose to include this anachronism. Sometimes artists include contemporary items to remind us that we are a part of the ancient Christian scene. Sometimes artists include objects that viewers are familiar with to express an abstract idea; here, van Dyck may have wanted to remind us of the constant fight between good (symbolized by the innocent, loving, accepting Jesus) and evil (symbolized by the cold, hard, unyielding armor). The battle axe held by the man behind Jesus is also an anachronism. In religious art the battle axe is used as a symbol of martyrdom.

Hello to all families who are walking with me this Lent! ​

Speaking of walking ... What about the Stations of the Cross?

The Stations of the Cross, also known as Via Crucis, Via Dolorosa, and Way of the Cross, is a devotion that began in the 1600s to commemorate the Christ's last day on Earth as a man. It mimics the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem that many modern-day Catholics walk nowadays. That pilgrimage was reverently mapped under the Emperor Constantine and has been walked by pious Catholics since the earliest times. Catholic Pilgrims stop at 14 places where 14 significant events happened to Jesus on Good Friday while they walk the same path that Jesus walked from the praetorium to Calvary.

Local Catholic parishes have made the Via Dolorosa accessible to their parishioners by creating a path on parish property with 14 stops along the way. While the original Via stops at 14 buildings and gates, parishes have some form of art depicting each scene from that day. Most churches have plaques, but some have statues or paintings. Participants move from artpiece to artpiece. They stop at each one and say a series of prayers; as they walk to the next artpiece, they sing the "Stabat Mater" hymn (linked below). The stations are most commonly prayed during Lent on Wednesdays and Fridays, and especially on Good Friday, the day of the year upon which the events actually occurred. 

At Holy Family, we have Stations plaques inside the main church, inside the chapel, and outside near the gazebo. You may pray these with our community; times are on the website, and you'll receive a little booklet of prayers on your way in.

Alternatively, you can pray these on your own time with just your family. If you don't have a Stations booklet, you could use these Stations of the Cross written for families.

Kids and grown-ups of all ages are able to pray this devotion. I encourage you to be creative and active with your prayers!

​Blessings,
Mary Acevedo, Director of Religious Education

Sing this ancient hymn as you walk between plaques. In this video, it is sung in Latin first followed by English. Lyrics are on the screen, and you only need to choose just one to sing:

Can you find Jesus two times in this painting? Point to Him. Yes! We see Jesus two times because this one painting shows two different events happening in the same place on the same night.

This story from Jesus' life happened on what we call "Holy Thursday." Many things happened on Holy Thursday. Look carefully at the painting. Can you name the three things you see going on in the painting? If you need help, answer these questions:  

The scenes in this painting show what happened before Jesus' arrest.

To the left, we see the Apostles. How many can you count? Who is the twelfth one who is missing? His name starts with a J-U-?-?-?. Do you know why he isn't painted here? Do you know where he is and what he is doing? If you don't, read the Gospel of Luke, chapter 22, verses 1-3 and 21-23 and you will find out.

The middle scene shows Jesus begging the Apostles not to go to sleep. He wants and needs them to stay awake and pray with Him. (Luke 22: 39-46) He has to wake them up and ask them this favor more than once. This must have made Him very, very sad. All of us want our friends to show us they love us by paying attention and supporting us. Even Jesus wanted that attention and support from His friends.

In the right corner, we see the third scene. You can see Jesus praying alone here. His knees must have been really hurting because they are balancing His body's weight on a hard, bumpy stone. He was in such distress that He was sweating blood instead of water. (Luke 22: 44)

But His friends are not helping Him; they are sleeping.

Remember that Jesus is fully human and fully divine. In His human nature, He begs God like we do: "If it's possible, please don't let this happen to Me. Please take this suffering away from Me." But Jesus knows that there is no other way for us sinners to get into Heaven and that His purpose is to set us free and open the Gates of Heaven. Because He knows this, He also tells God, "Not My will, but Your will be done." (Luke 22: 42) And do you know what God did when Jesus told God how He was feeling? God sent Him a Guardian Angel. (Luke 22: 43) God sends us Guardian Angels, too. You have a Guardian Angel.

Lent starts on Wednesday!

Time moves so quickly, doesn’t it? That’s why I want to make a post about Lent a few days early. I know when I wake up on a particular Wednesday in February or March and realize, “Today is Ash Wednesday?!” and I haven’t prepared, I always feel behind schedule. I never really feel caught up when I’m not ready for Ash Wednesday, and I never feel my Lent season is experienced well when I’m not ready.

I repeated that thought of “not ready,” did you notice that?​ Lent is a period of preparation. It requires reflection and action. It’s hard for me to follow through if I’m not prepared for my preparing. I know that sounds a bit controlling, but the change I strive for during Lent seems to happen at a better quality when I have the time to prep for it.

Let’s take some steps back and look at the bigger picture.

How long is Lent?
Lent is a period of serious reflection before the joyous celebration of Easter Sunday. Easter Sunday is the day that Jesus rose from the dead: Resurrection Day. If you counted the days between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday, you’d count 46 days, yet we are taught that Lent is just 40 days. Why? Because every Sunday is a celebration of Jesus’ Resurrection, so the Sundays between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday are not Lenten days.

The calendar is … what?!

Lent begins on Ash Wednesday and ends on the Wednesday before Holy Thursday.

Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday are called the Triduum (pronounced as 3 syllables: “Trid-do-um”). Holy Thursday commemorates the day Jesus and the 12 Apostles celebrated their Passover meal, followed by time in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus’ arrest and trials, and the start of Jesus’ torture.

Good Friday remembers Jesus’ torture, judgment, death, and entombment.

Holy Saturday is a day of meditation and quiet, as the Blessed Virgin, Apostles, and friends mourned; this is the time Jesus descended to hell to gather those in the Bosom of Abraham and delivered them to Heaven.

Easter Sunday commemorates the day that Jesus appeared to His Mother and friends, having risen from death.

Mardi Gras is French, and it means Fat Tuesday in English. It is the day before Ash Wednesday. Traditionally, Christians cleaned all indulgent foods from their pantries, which is why it’s called Fat or Gras. In many cultures (Brazilian, Italian, and Creole from New Orleans in Louisiana, USA) developed community celebrations based on this cleaning out; carnivals and parades have become common. Some faith traditions call Mardi Gras Shrove Tuesday. Shrove means to confess your sins. Traditionally, we are called to be introspective and examine ourselves at the start of Lent in order to determine what we need to work on during Lent to bring ourselves into a closer relationship with our Lord. We are invited to spend a substantial amount of time during Lent reflecting God’s holiness and all of the ways we turn away from our call to be holy. It is a time of awareness and promise. By recognizing our sinfulness, we are led to repentance (which is the turning away from sin) and real change.

For Catholics, fasting does not mean starving yourself and eating nothing. Fasting means that we eat three very small meals. We eat simple, whole, and humble foods. We drink only water or something with nutrition (broth, pureed soups, milk, etc.). There should be no sugar consumption (no sodas, no desserts, no junk).

Remember that you fast only two days a year--you can do this! When we fast, we practice self-denial and learn to lead a life of moderation and generosity. When we learn to not take for ourselves, we deepen our compassion for people who are in need, and that leads us to develop a deeper hunger and thirst for God.

Fasting applies to:

• Children (anyone younger than 18) are not required to fast.
• Adults 18 and older are required to fast, with exceptions:
  • The Catholic Church does not want pregnant or breast-feeding moms to fast.
  • Adults with a health condition that will be negatively impacted by fasting should not fast.
• Adults 60 years and older are not required to fast.

 
About abstinence:
The Church asks us to abstain on Ash Wednesday, all Fridays of Lent, and Good Friday. Abstinence means not eating meat, including poultry, pork, beef, and other types of red meat (lamb, veal, buffalo, venison, etc.). Dairy products are discouraged (milk, cheese, yogurt, etc.). On the other hand, fish and seafood is allowed. Fasting and abstaining from meat reminds us of our reliance on God, who is the source of all abundance and nourishment. When my children were preschoolers, I started training them in abstaining from meat and from indulgent foods like treats. 

Supporting your parish at least once during Lent by going to the Friday Fish Fries makes a fun family tradition. At home, try to keep your seafood dishes simple; we are fasting and abstaining from extravagance, not simply from certain animals. If your family members do not like any kind of fish, legumes (lentils, black beans, white beans, etc.) are a good source of protein, too. ​

Another prayer habit you could engage during Lent is actually praying for the people you tell on social media, “I’ll pray for you.” Take out a calendar and, on each of the days between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday, write the name of one family member, friend, coworker, neighbor, acquaintance, … or even someone you don’t really like. As each day arrives, offer your prayers and petitions, frustrations, joys, and sufferings for that person’s intention. If you wanted, you can tell that person that you are praying for him or her on that day and ask him or her if he or she has any specific intentions he or she wants you to pray for. Knowing their struggles, their hopes, spiritual life, family relations, health, and whatever else brings you into closer communion.
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A Prayer Table in a prominent place in your home will help highlight that “in this family, we pray.” You can practice the prayers we ask your kids to memorize, or you can start your own prayer devotion there, or you can complete the Family Liturgy there, or you can even have the kids do their Religious Education Program homework in that area—in any case, it signifies a quiet, meditative place. Your prayer table could be an end table or coffee/cocktail table in your living room, a section of your kitchen counter or dining table, or a piece of furniture you buy just for this purpose. You can make this a permanent place in your home, a sacred space that will change with the seasons and with time, as the members of your family grow and change.  Basics that should always be on your Prayer Table are

1. a placemat, cloth napkin, or tablecloth,
2. a candle,
3. a crucifix,
4. a Bible,
5. an empty bowl or other container to collect prayer requests
6. slips of paper and pens to write prayer requests

Optional items include:

1. statues of a patron saint, or a saint whose feast day is coming up (St. Patrick and St. Joseph are celebrated during Lent),
2. vase and bouquet of flowers,
3. prayer books and/or poetry books and/or a hymnal (or a Kindle or old smart phone that can access resources from the web),
4. storybooks for children,
5. postcards or print-outs of sacred art relevant to the season,
6. a beautiful container for your family’s Rosaries,

For Lent and Advent, purple will be the main color (tablecloth, candles, and/or flowers).

Gather your family around the table on a certain day at a certain time. While lighting the candle, say something like, “We light a candle to remind us that God is with us in this place, at this time.”

Some good storybooks for Lent include  The Tale of Three Trees, The Donkey that No One Could Ride, and The Colt and the King.

You should also choose a good Stations of the Cross book. An electronic format is useful if you come to our parish parking lot and pray the Stations together as a family, outside. Or you can join other parishioners inside (materials will be provided). Times are listed on our parish's homepage.

Donate your Money: You had the option of taking the Operation Rice Bowl, sponsored by Catholic Relief Services, the last time you came to classes. You might donate goods or money to Holy Family’s St. Vincent de Paul. If money is tight in your family, you can always buy the supermarket “BOGO” and give your free one away. You might also ask each family member to find three to five high-quality, useful items in their bedrooms, family room, or kitchen that would be appreciated by those who are less fortunate. Donate the items to the Holy Family Thrift Shoppe, GoodWill, or the Salvation Army. After you donate the items, pray together at your prayer table for those who will receive them.

​Donate your Talent: Become involved in a parish activity that ministers to others. Children and teens can join Altar Servers, Ushers, and Young People’s Choir among other youth ministries. Moms and Dads can always use your talents and time here in the Religious Education Program. We would love to work with you!

Do you want to celebrate the different days in the Lenten season? Here are some ideas:

Mardi Gras: Clear your pantry. Get rid of foods and beverages that do not honor the body that God designed for you. Instead of gorging on them, consider donating unopened packages and bottles to the St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry here in our parish. Your body is God’s gift to you. How well are you treating it—with foods and with other choices? How are you abusing your body (your intellect, your physical body, your emotions and your psychology, etc.)? Are you using your body  to abuse others (yes, this is a question of morality)? How? These unhealthy choices and habits are also things you want to clear out and get rid of. It’s ok to feast today. Say this grace before your meal. 

Ash Wednesday: Today is not a Holy Day of Obligation, but many Catholics happily choose to start the Lenten season by going to Mass and then receiving ashes on their foreheads. I feel going to Mass and receiving ashes is important for our children, who respond well to physical expressions and rituals. This resource provides details on the Ash Wednesday tradition. Our Mass schedule is here.

St. Patrick's Day (March 17), St. Joseph's Day (March 19), and the Annunciation (March 25): Everyone likes to claim that they are Irish on St. Patrick's Day and Italian on St. Joseph's Day. And why not? It's fun to celebrate these saints and their contributions to our faith Tradition. The secular party, though, might be more than what we should be doing during Lent, even if these days don't fall on a Friday. Go ahead and celebrate, but within reason. Take note, though: if St. Patrick's Day falls on a Friday, you are not permitted to eat meat unless the Bishop gives a dispensation, so check the Diocesan website. But if St. Joseph's Day or the Annunciation falls on a Friday, you may eat meat. What's the difference? Read this article to find out. 

Can preschoolers celebrate Lent?
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YES! You probably can see children of all ages being able to participate in some way in all of the activities listed above. Children love to help, and teens want to “give back.”

Have a blessed Lent! We are here to support you in your Lenten efforts, so please let us know what you need!

Mary Acevedo, Director of Religious Education​

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