Getting ready for Holy Week, I’m struck, as always, by how jarring the Palm Sunday liturgy is. One minute we’re all shouting “hosanna, hosanna!” (Greek for “save us”) and then the next thing we know, we’re shouting “Crucify him.” It’s emotionally wrenching; hope and expectation give way to fury and fear. No settling in, no probing depths. Our liturgy moves us from place to place, scarcely able to take a breath.
Preparing Children for the Passion
It can be difficult for our children to the stories of Holy Week. Here are some tips for preparing children for the Passion.
Three Teaching Points for Lent
Lent is upon us, the forty days set aside to prepare to celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus.
When the Basics are Hard
I’ve been attending yoga classes at my local studio for about a year. I’m into yoga for the stretching and centering, so when Zoe announced that the theme of the Wednesday class was going to be hard work, I immediately got nervous.
The Surprising and Disrupting News of the Annunciation
If you’re anything like me, you might have still found scraps of Christmas lying around when you were getting ready to help your children with a school Valentine’s Day celebration. It’s still cold in most parts of the country, and we might still feel a bit of a holiday hangover when we’re not quite sure what to do with ourselves in the days following the Feast of the Epiphany.
Changing the Subject: Parenting on Ash Wednesday
Every year my sermon for Ash Wednesday comes down to one thing: this business of smearing ashes on our faces? It’s for us, not for God.
Faith at Home – Preparing for Lent
The season of Lent is less than a week away. Now is the time to talk with your family about what you will be giving up and/or what disciplines you will be taking on.
Candlemas: History, Traditions…And Crepes!
On February 2, exactly 40 days after Christmas, we commemorate Mary’s adherence to the Mosaic law as she entered the Temple for the ritual purification, as explained in Leviticus 12:2-8. Also, forty days was the time when a firstborn was brought to the Temple to be dedicated to the Lord (Exodus 13:2-12).
I need more time with baby Jesus.
Driving up the highway to return a few backup Christmas gifts, I began to meditate on the Christmas season, baby Jesus, and scripture I heard […]
A Gift of the Magi: Stealth Christian Formation
“We three kings of Orient are, bearing gifts, we travel so far. (sic)” The little voice sings from the back of the car. My son, strapped into his carseat, is singing one of his favorite songs.