Are your kids ready for Lent? Kick things off right by celebrating Shrove Tuesday and observing Ash Wednesday. Here are nine things to do, and resources to go with them.
Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday: 9 things to do with your family
Fasting, giving, praying: 25+ ideas for what kids & teens can do for Lent
Fasting, almsgiving, and prayer are at the heart of the forty days of Lent. Here are some strategies for helping your kids get involved in these traditional penitential practices. Most of the ideas you’ll find on the website are appropriate for kids ages six and up. The best way to introduce younger children to Lenten practices is for them to see adults and older kids in the family practicing them; use their natural curiosity and desire to be “grown up” as a springboard for talking about what you’re doing, and why. Find out how to talk about Lent with kids, fasting ideas, prayer suggestions, giving ideas and much more.
Why we pray, fast and give alms during Lent
Lent is a time to prepare for Easter, but why do we pray, fast and give alms during it? Those acts prepare us, mind and body, for the sacrifice of Lent. Head over to the web site for ideas to make praying, fasting and giving important parts of your family Lent.
Walking through Holy Week as a family
The week between Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday, Holy Week, is the most sacred time of year. During this special time, we enter into the passion of Christ — his crucifixion, death and resurrection — through liturgical celebration and personal conversion. While the season of Lent is a very important time in the Church, it is helpful to remember that our Lenten practices (prayer, fasting and almsgiving) are meant as preparation for the three days of the Triduum. There’s more help online to help you celebrate Holy Week at home.
St. Patrick’s Day: Joy during Lent
It sticks out like a sore, green thumb in the middle of a sober liturgical period. As a lifelong Catholic — and a lifelong Irishman — I struggle with squaring my prayer, repentance, almsgiving and self-denial with a holiday (one of my favorites) whose excesses include dying an entire river green. When I’m supposed to be fasting and giving things up and attending penance services, along comes this holiday — this feast day — that contradicts the whole Lenten vibe with its parades and corned beef. Find more about Saint Patrick online.
