Lent - Celebration of the Word
Lent
Week 1
We begin by lighting our candle and making the Sign of the Cross
Today we have purple cloths on all of our prayer tables because it is the season of Lent.
If we had been at school last Wednesday, we would have all gone to Mass because it was Ash Wednesday. You may have gone with your families. As Mass we have ashes marked on our foreheads. We recognise that we have done wrong and promise to try to do better.
Today’s reading is about a promise too.
A reading from the Book of Genesis
Then God said to Noah and his sons, 9 “I now make my promise to you and to your people who will live after you. 10 I make my promise to all the birds, and to all the cattle, and to all the animals that came out of the boat with you. I make my promise to every living thing on earth. 11 This is my promise to you: All life on the earth was destroyed by the flood. But that will never happen again. A flood will never again destroy all life on the earth.”
12 And God said, “I will give you something to prove that I made this promise to you. It will continue forever to show that I have made an agreement with you and every living thing on earth. 13 I am putting a rainbow in the clouds as proof of the agreement between me and the earth. 14 When I bring clouds over the earth, you will see the rainbow in the clouds. 15 When I see this rainbow, I will remember the agreement between me and you and every living thing on the earth. This agreement says that a flood will never again destroy all life on the earth.
The Word of the Lord…..
God’s rainbow was in the sky and a reminder that He always keeps His promises, St Paul tells us “ No matter how many promises God has made, they are ‘yes’ in Christ". The next time you see a rainbow, remember the promise God made to Noah, and remember that just as God has kept that promise, He keeps all of His promises to you, too Some of us will be making Lenten promises to try to do better, let’s all try to keep our promises too.
Let us pray
Dear God, we’re thankful that You keep Your promises. Help us to keep our promises, too. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Week 2
Today we are celebrating the second Sunday of Lent
We start by lighting our candle and making the sign of the cross.
Think about who your best friend is, it could be someone you have known for a long time or maybe you met just a short time ago but get on with really well – someone you know well and think that they know you really well too.
Today’s Gospel is about Jesus and three of his very best friends – Peter, James and John, friends who had been with Jesus for a long time, who felt they knew him well but something happens to make them see him differently.
We welcome the Gospel
A reading from the Gospel of St Mark - glory to you O Lord
Jesus took Peter, James, and John and went up on a high mountain. They were all alone there. While these followers watched him, Jesus was changed. 3 His clothes became shining white—whiter than anyone on earth could make them. 4 Then two men were there talking with Jesus. They were Elijnd Moses.
5 Peter said to Jesus, “Teacher, it is good that we are here. We will put three tents here—one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” 6 Peter did not know what to say, because he and the other two followers were so afraid.
7 Then a cloud came and covered them. A voice came from the cloud and said, “This is my Son, the one I love. Obey him!”
8 The followers looked, but they saw only Jesus there alone with them.
The Gospel of the Lord - praise to you Lord Jesus Christ
Jesus wanted his friends to see him as he really was – the Son of God and to give them a taste of what it would be like in heaven.
Before that they had only seen him as a man just like themselves but now he was seen in all his Glory as the Son of God, they saw him for what he really is.
So although they were a bit scared about what they were seeing, wanted to be there because they wanted to spend time with him, their best friend.
When we spend time in prayer or at Mass we are also spending time with Jesus, let’s make the most of that time, getting to know Jesus and showing him we love him, learning to see him in others and sharing Jesus’ love with everyone we meet.
Let us pray Dear God,
Thank you for showing us who you are
Help us to be amazed by your glory
And to shine like the sun with your love Amen
Week 3
We light our candle and make the Sign of the Cross to begin.
This week we are celebrating the Third Sunday in Lent, we are almost half way on our journey to Easter.
Today’s Gospel tells us about a time when Jesus was very angry.
We will welcome the Gospel
A reading from the Gospel of St John Glory to you O Lord
When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 In the temple courts he found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. 15 So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. 16 To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!”
The Gospel of the Lord Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ
We don’t think of Jesus as shouting, tipping over tables and so on, he wasn’t in a bad temper like a little child might have a tantrum if they can’t have what they want. Jesus was angry because people were misusing the Temple – God’s house.
It would have been noisy with all the traders and animals, people would have trouble hearing each other never mind listening to God. Jesus knew that the Temple should be a place where God could be praised and people could spend quiet time in prayer.
What time and space do we give to praising God and praying to him? We all have very busy lives, do we squash praying into any spare minute or really make a special time to talk to God and listen to him.
Let us pray
Heavenly Father, the people in the temple forgot you in their busy lives. We pray that we will always remember everything you have given us and make time to thank you and praise you.
Amen.