On May 13 we celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Fatima. The year 2017 marked the 100th anniversary of the apparitions of Our Lady to the three shepherd children at Fatima, Portugal, where the Blessed Mother appeared once each month from May until Oct. 13 October. In today’s post you’ll meet the three children to whom Mary appeared in 1917: Lucia, Francisco, and Jacinta.
Our Lady of Fatima: The visionaries
Walking through Holy Week as a family
The week between Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday, Holy Week, is the most sacred time of year. During this special time, we enter into the passion of Christ — his crucifixion, death and resurrection — through liturgical celebration and personal conversion. While the season of Lent is a very important time in the Church, it is helpful to remember that our Lenten practices (prayer, fasting and almsgiving) are meant as preparation for the three days of the Triduum. There’s more help online to help you celebrate Holy Week at home.
Holy Week: Ideas for families
Since the early days of Christianity, the week beginning with Palm Sunday and ending at sundown on Easter has been a sacred time because it commemorates the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. In today’s post you’ll find some faith-filled ideas to help you keep the holy in Holy Week.
25 things for your kids to spot during Palm Sunday and Triduum
Technically, Triduum spans three days—from the evening of Holy Thursday until the evening of Easter Sunday—but liturgically, it is “one day,” one long celebration of the Paschal Mystery. Triduum culminates in the Easter Vigil, which is the high point of the entire liturgical year. As with the Sunday liturgy, reviewing what will happen at the liturgy in advance is a good way to help your kids participate with understanding and reverence. Online, you’ll find lists to review and give your kids a heads up before going to church—and challenge them to notice each item during the service.
Fasting, giving, praying: 25+ ideas for what kids & teens can do for Lent
Fasting, almsgiving, and prayer are at the heart of the forty days of Lent. Here are some strategies for helping your kids get involved in these traditional penitential practices. Most of the ideas you’ll find on the website are appropriate for kids ages six and up. The best way to introduce younger children to Lenten practices is for them to see adults and older kids in the family practicing them; use their natural curiosity and desire to be “grown up” as a springboard for talking about what you’re doing, and why. Find out how to talk about Lent with kids, fasting ideas, prayer suggestions, giving ideas and much more.
