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Lent

My hardest Lent ever

There was always one kid in catechism class who raised his hand and asked if he could give up homework for Lent. I was not that kid. I dug deep to find the thing whose absence would most torture me — usually chocolate. As an adult, I gave…

REND YOUR HEARTS

Rend your hearts, not your garments, and return to the Lord, your God (Joel 2:13). Jesus’ call to conversion and penance, like that of the prophets before him, does not aim first at outward works, “sackcloth and ashes,” fasting and…

Savoring the simplicity of Lent

by Jeff Young  For me, one of the most beautiful aspects of being Catholic is celebrating the liturgical seasons: Advent, Christmas, Lent, Easter, and Ordinary Time. There’s something so simple, so … human about this. The seasons ground us…

It’s not you, Lent, it’s me

Sometimes I feel like breaking up with Lent. (It’s not you, Lent … really, it’s me.)  It’s not that Lent has done anything wrong (other than being demanding, relentlessly there every, single year, with no regard for my emotional state as I…

Understanding Lenten sacrifices

Each year our family begins Lent in the kitchen. My wife rolls out three long and thick strands of salt dough that she then braids together. Next she attaches one extremity of the dough creation to the other to form a circle. Then the fun…