March 8, 2020 Class Update: Continuing on the Lenten Journey

Lenten Greetings Everyone!

First of all, God's blessings to the 5 students in our class who were confirmed on March 12.  It was a blessing to be in attendance at the Mass.

Recap of Last Class

The readings at Mass during Lent describe what it means to be in a relationship with God, as catechesis for those preparing for initiation into the Chruch, and for those of us already baptized, it strengthens our faith.

In our most recent class, I started by sharing that on the first Sunday, we hear the story of Jesus's 40 Days in the desert. On the 2nd Sunday of Lent, the Gospel passage is the story of the Transfiguration, which happens on a high mountain, traditionally considered Mount Tabor.

Lent calls us to an intense penitential focus, but the practices we do have a goal of helping us encounter God's glory in a powerful way on Resurrections Sunday.  The Transfiguration gives a glimpse of the glory to come.

We took a few minutes to recite the Lord's prayer line by line to grow in appreciation for the words.

On the theme of Lent as a time of purification in the midst of difficulties, I shared the story of my participation in a Native American Sweat Lodge Ceremony in Rosalie, NE, during a week I spent in northeast Nebraska 9 years ago this month in service at St. Augustine Mission in Winnebago, NE.

Our faith teaches that God doesn't take away our suffering and difficulties, yet He works through them powerfully to bring about the work of redemption.

Another story that demonstrates God's power of redemption is that of San Jose Sanchez del Rios, a Mexican teenager who was martyred during the Cristero War of the 1920's.

Activities for this Week

As a reminder, our class will attend 6 PM Mass on Tuesday, March 15.  It lasts about 30 minutes.

Our next regular class session meets on March 22.

There are two activities for you to do during these two weeks.

Toward the end of class, everyone wrote prayer intentions on an index card to offer up during the school day based on your class schedule.  Please take time over the next two weeks to offer up prayer intentions as you start each class period at school.  The prayer you offer only needs to be a couple of seconds long.  It's a great way to keep God in mind throughout the day.  You won't have to submit the prayer card you used, but there's a chance we'll take time to talk about what this activity was like when we meet next.

The other activity remains the same from last week, to read an article in a Roman Catholic publication.

You may go to the website of Chicago Catholic, the official newspaper of the Archdiocese of Chicago, and pick any article to read.

You can also visit the website of the Knights of Columbus and pick an article to read in the weekly Knightline newsletter.  You can view articles in the current week, or go to the right side of the page to find articles in a previous week.  You may also read an article in the Columbia magazine.  

Then please submit a 1-sentence summary of what you learned in this form.

If you're interested in reading an article from another Roman Catholic publication not listed here, please let me know.

This activity is due by class time on March 22.

You also get extra credit if you read more than one article, so please note that by submitting a summary of each article you read.

Further enhanced extra credit opportunities are listed below.

Looking Ahead

We will continue to explore Lenten themes in class on March 22.

As usual, please feel free to contact me with questions, etc.

We remain connected as One Church, journeying with Jesus during Lent towards Jerusalem to join Him in dying and rising to New Life:

All my relations.

God's blessings,

Paul

Here's a model of a traditional Native American Sweat Lodge in the museum at St. Augustine Mission in Winnebago, NE.

Here's the view of the desert in west central New Mexico onboard the Amtrak Southwest Chief train.  During Lent, we journey through the desert with Jesus.

Here I am at Charles Mound, the highest point of elevation in Illinois.  I thank a fellow visitor named Mary who took this photo of me.  On the 2nd Sunday of Lent, we hear the story of the Transfiguration, which happened on a mountain, traditionally considered to be Mount Tabor.

Here's the shirt I wore during the Sweat Lodge ceremony as it appears about an hour or so afterward.

P.S. Paige, the guest speaker we had back on January 4, is with a group on a medical mission trip this week in Harlingen, TX.  I invite you to join me in praying for the group there.

Our opening prayer was from 2 Corinthians 5:18-6:2, and was the 2nd reading at Ash Wednesday Mass.

We watched this video of the song "Purified" by Christian artist Michael W. Smith.

Our closing prayer was from 1 Peter 1:13-16.  Our Lenten practices are a way for us to answer the call to be holy, like God is.

We watched this video about San Jose Sanchez del Rios, which is from the lesson on Confirmation that is part of the Chosen curriculum that was previously used for middle school RE.  It has an abrupt cut-off at the end, and the final ~45 seconds of it are in this video.

Enhanced Extra Credit Opportunities:

These activities are all optional.  They take longer than the usual activities to do, and they are great ways to enter into a spirit of prayer and grow in faith during Lent.

Go to the grocery store to select items to donate for the monthly St. Martin's Food pantry collection.  Donations can be dropped off at Church on Saturday evening or Sunday morning of this weekend, March 19-20.

Watch the video of the March monthly Taize Prayer.

Watch the live or archived video of Lenten Vespers at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C., each Sunday of Lent, aired live at 3 PM CT, until about 3:30 PM.  It is available on the Shrine's YouTube channel.

You can view a program to follow along at this link.  You may also contact me and I can provide a program for you if you're watching it after the Sunday when it airs live.

Attend Evening Prayer at Ascension on Wednesday evenings during Lent from 7:00-7:30 PM.

Attend any of the other Lenten prayer offerings at the parishes of Oak Park.

If you do any of these, please submit a short summary of at least one sentence describing what you did in this form.  If you attended any of these events and I saw you there, you do not need to submit anything in that form.

Also, at the end of class, I handed out homemade pretzels, a traditional Lenten food.

Here's the recipe if you want to try it at home.  It comes from a special Lenten bulletin given out at Ascension in 2011.

Mix 1 pkg. active dry yeast with 1 Tbs. sugar in 1 1/2 cups lukewarm (100-110 degree) water.  Mixture should bubble.  Stir in 1 tsp. salt and 4 cups flour.  Place on floured board and knead in 1/2 cup more flour.  Knead about 8 minutes.  Divide into pieces, roll into ropes, and shape into pretzels.  (As you fold the "little arms", pray the Lord's prayer or another Lenten prayer.)  Let rise until about double in size.  Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Place pretzels on greased cookie sheet.  Brush with mixture of 1 egg yolk mixed with 2 Tbs. water, and sprinkle with kosher salt.  Bake 12 minutes or until golden brown.

If you make the pretzels small in size, it's possible to make as many as 20-30.