What do you do for Lent?
As we approach the Season of Lent I am trying to find ways to make it more meaningful for my family. It seems we have all these things reminding us of the Christmas Season. We also seem to have so many traditions linked with Christmas. Easter is much more important. I am going to try to make it so.
I’ve been looking up ideas for the season and I’ve also asked friends what they do as families. I thought I’d share some of these ideas.
Fat Tuesday: eat up all the sweets in the house, have King Cake, have a party, make and eat paczkies (a polish donut), each member of the family writes down something they’d like to work on during Lent and places in a special container to look again at when Easter arrives, create a Lenten paper chain with things to do to prepare for Easter
Ash Wednesday: attend Mass, receive ashes, day of fasting and abstain from meat, start lenten sacrifice, start work on relationship with God and start improving relationship with others, plant seeds that will bloom by Easter
Throughout Lent: Pray, try to get rid of things and actions that distract us from God, clear out house, sacrifice favorites such as foods and entertainments, give alms, give more time to others, focus more on God, pray the Stations of the Cross, attend Adoration, attend 1-2 more weekly masses, celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation, keep home plain, make and eat pretzels or hot cross buns for dessert, add Works of Mercy to your daily life
Fridays: abstain from meat
Maundy Thursday: attend Mass, share a Passover meal
Good Friday: pray the Stations of the Cross, attend services, my husbands’ family makes homemade Polish sausage and colors Easter eggs
Holy Saturday: attend the Easter Vigil, get Easter baskets filled with food for Easter and colored eggs blessed
Easter Sunday: attend Mass, decorate home with flowers and signs of spring, hide Easter eggs, hide Easter eggs, prepare and eat a full beautiful Easter morning brunch or dinner using food blessed on Saturday, Lamb cake, Lamb butter
These are just a couple of things I have come across or we already do. I think the whole point is to clear our lives of distractions from God. Does anyone else have ideas on how to make the Reason for the Lenten Season Jesus? Please share.
