Sunday, March 23, 2025

WHAT IS LENT

Lent is the 40-day season of fasting and prayer leading to Easter. The word “Lent” comes from the Old English “lencten,” referring to Spring and the "lengthening of days that occurs at this time of year.

Why 40 days? Because that’s how long our Lord fasted and prayed in the wilderness after his baptism. During this season, our worship adopts a uniquely reflective and penitential tone. In place of our typically festive approach to worship, these changes allow us to experience a different side of the Christian life as we journey with Christ to the cross, the grave, and ultimately to resurrection.

CHANGES YOU SEE & HEAR:

PURPLE: The liturgical color for Lent is typically purple, symbolizing penitence.

ALLELUIA: “Alleluia” is a joyful word derived from the ancient Hebrew “hallelujah.” It is the most festive word we have. As such, we lay it aside during Lent and do not employ it in our music or liturgy until Easter morning.

MUSIC: Our music, like in all liturgical seasons, seeks to reflect and magnify the liturgy. You will hear hymns with haunting harmonies, (major and minor), and texts that prompt introspection and renewed intimacy with God.

DECALOGUE and CONFESSION: In Lent, our Sunday worship begins with the recitation of the Ten Commandments (also known as the Decalogue) and the Confession of Sin. Placing the Confession up front allows us to acknowledge our sins and to seek God’s forgiveness at the outset before we enter into the rest of worship.

KYRIE ELEISON: In place of the usual triumphant Gloria, we sing, “Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy,” also sometimes sung in Greek as “Kyrie eleison, Christe eleison.” The Greek is pronounced keer′-ee-ay ee-lay′-ee-sohn, crist′-ay ee-lay′-ee-sohn.

LAMB OF GOD: At the breaking of the bread, we sing the words, “Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world; have mercy on us,” in place of our more festive fraction anthems.

EUCHARISTIC PRAYER A or Prayer1 (Enriching our Worship) - as we gather around the Holy Table and tell the story of our salvation, we use either one of these prayers because they emphasize the penitential nature of the season, focusing heavily on themes of sin, repentance, and redemption through Christ's sacrifice, aligning with the overall Lenten focus on self-reflection and preparation for Easter.                                  Fr. Mary+