Catholic Fire

1. Ash Wednesday -- I went to Mass this Wednesday and got my ashes, despite the fact that I had been ill with chronic pain for two days. My husband took this picture of me, which I am offering up for the souls in purgatory, as Mother Teresa did.She made a contract with heaven that every time her photo was taken a soul would be released from purgatory. I am sure that purgatory will be empty after I publish this photo. ;-) 2. Lent -- That beautiful season of renewal is here again.  Need ideas for Lent? Check out my Lenten activities for 2015. 3. New Book -- I just have started writing a new book this Lent. It is very rough at this point in time, but I feel called by the Holy Spirit to write it. "This would make a great Lenten read or a gift for a recently converted Catholic, a seminarian or religious postulant, or anyone seeking to grow in their knowledge of the saints and a life of virtue." ~ Erika Marie at Simple Mama  in her review of Seven Saints f...

WHAT IS LENT? "Lent is a retreat that the Church gives us in order to re-focus on what should be first in our lives. The purpose of Jesus' life was to glorify the Father and save the world. ..Lent is not first a time of giving up but a time to re-choose to be the victim of Christ, the Lamb. It is a time to live the Beatitudes.” - Fr. Marie-Dominique Philippe, OP Lent is a 40-day period of preparation for Easter Sunday and one of the major liturgical seasons of the Catholic Church. Signifying the 40 days that Jesus spent in the desert after His baptism, it is a penitential season marked by prayer, fasting and abstinence, and almsgiving. Lent is not necessarily about “giving something up” for 40 days only to return to it on day 41 or afterward, but is a period of ongoing conversion so that we may draw closer to Jesus. When we repent for our sins and then make a permanent--rather than temporary--change in our lifestyle, a spiritual transformation can take place. At ...

WHAT IS LENT? Lent is a 40-day period of preparation for Easter Sunday and one of the major liturgical seasons of the Catholic Church. Signifying the 40 days that Jesus spent in the desert after His baptism, it is a penitential season marked by prayer, fasting and abstinence, and almsgiving. Lent is not necessarily about “giving something up” for 40 days only to return to it on day 41 or afterward, but is a period of ongoing conversion so that we may draw closer to Jesus. When we repent for our sins and then make a permanent- rather than temporary- change in our lifestyle, a spiritual transformation can take place. At the heart of repentance lies the call to conversion. “Repent and believe in the Gospel” (Mark 1:15)! Here's to a happy and holy Lent! Here's a great reading list for Lent , and another to which I would add this wonderful book. You'll find Lenten activities for the whole family HERE. Fr. Robert Barron’s Daily Lent Reflections (E-mail) ( Wa...