Be sure to review the schedule of upcoming Lenten events and plan to join your fellow parishioners as we are challenged together to find greater meaning in our lives through the mystery of Christ's life, death and resurrection.

Lent officially begins on Ash Wednesday on February 17, but we invite you to join us in Madonna Hall for Mardi Gras on Tuesday, February 16. A potluck dinner will be followed by a palm burning ceremony. Scroll down for a complete listing of events.

Regulations Regarding Fasting and Abstinance
Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are days of abstinence from meat and also days of fast, that is, limited to a single full meal.

With regard to Good Friday, the teaching of the Second Vatican Council should be recalled.

Let the pascal fast be kept sacred. Let it be celebrated everywhere on Good Friday, and where possible, prolonged throughout Holy Saturday, so that the joys of the Sunday of the Resurrection may be attained with uplifted and clear minds. (Constitution on the Liturgy, No 110)

The other Fridays of Lent are days of abstinence from meat. The law of abstinence binds all Catholics 14 years and older. The law of fasting binds all Catholics from their 18th birthday until their 59th birthday (canons 97 and 1252). With regard to the obligatory days listed above, however, there are frequent questions about the degree of seriouslness of the matter. The teaching of the late John Paull II are recalled:

The obligation to do penance is a serious one; the obligation to observe, as a whole or "substantially," the penitential days specified by the Church is also serious. No one should be scrupulous in this regard; failure to observe an individual day of penance is not considered serious.

Mardi Gras
MARDI GRAS HAS BEEN CANCELED DUE TO WEATHER!

Ash Wednesday Masses
Wednesday, February 17  -  8:00 AM and 7:00 PM

Tuesday Lenten Soup Suppers
Supper, 5:45 PM, Madonna Hall followed by Service, 7:00 PM, Church
Feb 23  Way of the Cross
Mar 2    Guest Speaker, Mary Malloy
What Wondrous Love is This: The Meaning and Message
of the Triduum for Catholics Today
Using story, song, and Scripture, Mary will lead us in a reflective   exploration of the Triduum (the great Three Days - Holy Thursday,
Good Friday, Easter Vigil into Easter). What is at the heart of each of them? How do they connect? How can we best enter into their rituals and liturgies?
Mar 9    Way of the Cross
Mar 16  Way of the Cross
Mar 23  Penance Service

Mary Malloy is the Director of Music at Annunciation Parish in Clifton, as well as a parish mission preacher for the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales, a retreat facilitator and teacher in the areas of liturgy, spirituality, and catechesis. She has served in diocesan, parish, and Catholic school ministry for over thirty years.

Thursday Evening Masses
Thursdays during Lent  -  February 25, March 4, 11, 18, & 25
7:00 PM, Church

Parish Penance Service
Tuesday, March 23, 7:00 PM