LENT

An Invitation to Holy Lent

Dear People of God:

The first Christians observed with great devotion the days of our Lord’s passion and resurrection, and it became the custom of the Church to prepare for them by a season of penitence and fasting. This season of Lent provided a time in which converts to the faith were prepared for Holy Baptism. It was also a time when those who, because of notorious sins, had been separated from the body of the faithful, were reconciled by penitence and forgiveness, and restored to the fellowship of the Church. In this manner, the whole Congregation was put in mind of the message of pardon and absolution set forth in the Gospel of our Savior, and of the need that all Christians continually have to renew our repentance and faith.

I invite you, therefore, in the name of the Church, to the observance of a holy Lent: by self-examination and repentance; by prayer, fasting, and alms-giving; and by reading and meditating on God’s holy Word.

Prayer

In this joyful season of preparation, greater regularity and discipline in prayer help realign our hearts towards God through Jesus Christ.

We will pray the Great Litany on:

  • Tuesdays at 7:30 pm at the Nickersons’ (19 Verlin Drive)

  • Wednesdays at 5:30 pm at Renovation Church (506 Edwards Road)

  • Fridays at 7:00 am at Renovation Church (506 Edwards Road)

Fasting

A practice which helps us deny bodily passions and indulgences and, ultimately, reorders our disordered desires. When we would partake, we replace this with prayer and devotional practices.


Participate with us:

  • A long fast of a certain food or other consumption during Lent

  • A fast on Fridays from meat

  • A fast on Fridays from all food (as is safe and healthy)

Almsgiving

This discipline goes beyond charity toward exceptional acts of mercy for those in need. As we live in the reality of God’s Kingdom, we go to great lengths to ensure that our neighbors experience physical flourishing as we invite them into spiritual peace through Christ Jesus.

Participate with us:

Recommended Reading:

  • The Interior Castle by St. Teresa of Ávila

    A spiritual classic describing the soul’s journey toward deeper union with God through prayer and self-knowledge. A beautiful Lent companion for cultivating interior reflection and surrender.

  • The Pilgrim’s Regress by C.S. Lewis

    An allegorical story tracing a man’s search for Joy through philosophy, longing, and eventual faith in Christ. Lent invites us to examine false loves and rediscover our deepest desire in God.

  • Momo by Michael Ende

    A deceptively simple tale about a girl who saves her city from those who steal people’s time. It gently challenges our hurry and helps reclaim a slower, more attentive posture for the Lenten season.

  • The Feast by Margaret Kennedy

    A novel set in a seaside hotel where hidden motives and character are revealed before disaster strikes. Lent sharpens our awareness of what truly endures when comforts and illusions fall away.

  • The Road by Cormac McCarthy

    A stark story of a father and son carrying hope through a devastated world. It resonates with Lent’s honesty about suffering while quietly insisting that love still “carries the fire.”

  • The Wild Orchid by Sigrid Undset

    A nuanced portrait of intellectual doubt and gradual conversion in early 20th-century Norway. Its slow unfolding of faith mirrors Lent’s patient work of renewal in the soul.