Lenten Prayer
O Father, most merciful,
in the beginning You created us,
and by the passion of Your only Son
You created us anew.
Work in us now, both to will and to do what pleases You.
Since we are weak and can do no good thing by ourselves,
grant us Your grace and heavenly blessing,
that in whatever work we engage,
we may do all to Your honour and glory.
Keep us from sin and empower us daily to do good works,
that as long as we live in the body,
we may always perform service to You.
After our departure, give us pardon of all our sins, and receive us to eternal life;
through Him who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, forever and ever.
Amen.
St Anselm, 11th century
The Season of Lent
In our daily lives we are often preoccupied with working towards achieving personal goals such as, working hard to build financial stability, going to the gym to keep fit or equipping ourselves with mental strategies to cope with the ‘ups’ and ‘downs’ of life. Although there is nothing wrong with these goals, we often neglect to tend to our spirituality, our soul.
Lent which commenced last Wednesday is a great opportunity to take time to do this, to grow closer to Christ as we approach the feast of Easter. There are several practices the Church encourages us to engage in during Lent such as prayer (spending time talking to God, going to Mass, reading the bible, participating in the Stations of the Cross), self-denial (not eating meat; not eating sweets or dessert; giving up entertainment to spend time with the family, abstaining from things that do not draw us closer to God) and Helping Others (special attention to someone who is poor, sick, elderly, lonely or overburdened, or in other ways in need).
In his homily, the Holy Father, Pope Francis, reflected on Lent as a journey of returning to God and as an opportunity to deepen our love of our brothers and sisters. “God”, said the Pope, “is appealing to our hearts and our entire being, inviting us to Him. It is a time to reconsider the path we are taking, to find the route that leads us home and to rediscover our profound relationship with God, on whom everything depends.”
I encourage you to open your hearts to Christ by accessing the many resources available to you during this Lenten Season.
Archbishop Peter A Comensoli Lenten Message
Catholic Podcasts
Holiness for the Working Day (Podcast)
Pints with Aquinas (Podcast)
https://pintswithaquinas.com/episodes/
Melbourne Catholic Archdiocese (Lenten Resources)
https://melbournecatholic.org/lent2021
Catholic Apps
Laudate: This app is wonderful year-round, not just during Lent. It provides the daily readings, reflections, and a vast collection of prayers.
Lent #Pray40 Challenge from Hallow Take the Lent #Pray40 Challenge from Hallow – the Catholic Prayer and Meditation App!
Catholic Devotional
In the Footsteps of Christ
Daily Text Messages
Flocknote: Flocknote is offering a daily Lenten reflection that you can choose to receive as either an email or text message.
Catholic Email Subscriptions
Best Lent Ever by Dynamic Catholic: Catholic Speaker Matthew Kelly provides daily emails with videos and reflections to help you “Rediscover Jesus” this Lent.
Catholic Video Reflections
Lentsanity Reflections: Every Sunday throughout Lent, Benedictine monk, Fr Ananias Buccicone O.S.B. will share a new video giving you amazing and profound reflections and instruction on how to grow in faith.
Student Lenten Program – The Search
During Lent, students will have the opportunity to open their hearts to Jesus through learning about the Catholic faith and prayer during Thursday lunchtimes. ‘The Search’ explores the questions: How do I know if God even exists? Do I have a soul? What's the purpose of my life?
Using philosophy, science, art, history and theology, we will be screening an exclusive series to explore life's ultimate journey in all its richness and beauty.
Please encourage your children to attend. Students can register via SEQTA notices.
Friday 8:00am Mass – St Catherine of Siena Parish Church
Students, parents and their families are invited to attend 8:00am morning Mass.
Friday during Term 1, 8:00am to 8:25am
St Catherine of Siena Parish, Caroline Springs
The Eucharist allows us the opportunity to receive so many graces from God. Strength, forgiveness and hope are some of the graces we receive. However, the most important is growing in a deeper love for Christ from receiving him in the Eucharist. It is a wonderful opportunity to spend some time in silence and prayer and move our focus away from ourselves and on things we may need to work to allow Christ to reign in our hearts.