The Liturgical Season of Lent
The Season of Lent
Symbols, Objects and Practices
Biblical Readings
Prayers
Assessment Plan
Classroom Prayer
Resources
YouTube Clips
Books
Websites
Hymns
Planning Templates
References
Symbols, Objects and Practices Associated with Lent
Almsgiving
Jesus sought to help others; people give alms to follow the ways of Jesus (Bogle, 2010)
Charitable act through which people seek to draw closer to God
People donate their time, money and resources to the needy and less fortunate (Mathson, 1995)
Catholics traditionally 'give up' a luxury they enjoy during Lent; the money saved is often donated to charity (Bogle, 2010)
Ashes
Cross of ashes is traced onto the foreheads of Catholics during the Ash Wednesday ritual
Signify a person's choice to turn away from sin and towards God
Made by burning the palms from Palm Sunday of the previous year (Bogle, 2010)
Symbolise penance, humililty and new beginnings (Kielly & Geraghty, 1996)
First used by the early Christians in the 4th century to publicly mark sinners (Kielly & Geraghty, 1996)
Custom began to involve whole community to recognise that all people are "sinners in need of God's forgiveness" (Harrington, 2007)
Cross
Symbolises "victory over death and salvation from sin" (
Harrington, 2007)
Catholics traditionally pray the 'Stations of the Cross' each Friday during Lent as a way of reliving Jesus' sacrifice (Bogle, 2010)
Reminder of the
"joyous resurrection" of Easter (Kielly & Geraghty, 1996)
Fasting
Reminiscent of Jesus' 40 day fast in the desert before beginning his public ministry
"Helps Catholics turn away from selfishness toward the light of Christ" (Mathson, 1995, p.72)
Catholic adults are required to observe fasting and abstinance on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday
Some Catholics choose to abstain from meat each Friday during Lent (O'Shea & Krosnicki, 2003)
Prayer
Catholics seek to grow closer to God during Lent through regular prayer for example: the rosary, stations of the cross (Bogle, 2010)
Prayer maybe for a person's own needs, or for the needs of others
Prayer is a way of experiencing God in everyday life (Mathson, 1995)
Purple/Violet
Liturgical colour of lent
"Sombre, blue-violet" shade of purple is used throughout the season (Harrington, 2007)
Symbolises repentence and plainness, rather than wealth and royalty as signified by brighter shades of purple (Jensen, 2010; Harrington, 2007)
Repentance and Forgiveness
Lent is a time for acknowledging one's own sins and seeking penance from God (Bogle, 2010)
Catholics prepare for Easter by renewing their baptismal promises (Mathson, 1995)
God's forgiveness allows people to leave their sins in the past and begin a new life following God's ways