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Lent Event Overview

Intergenerational Event—Getting to the Heart of Lent

  

This intergenerational event will help parishioners grow in their understanding of the three disciplines of Lent–prayer, almsgiving, and fasting--as it fosters community across generations in your parish.

The materials on this site should provide all you need to organize an event that brings children and adults together for a meaningful look at Lent. The first half of the event is an interactive presentation on the three disciplines of Lent, followed by a prayer service. In the second half of the event, families will create the building blocks of a home prayer center. The prayer center materials will help make the connection between parish and home, allowing them to carry the idea of a faith community out the door.

Overview

Getting to the Heart of Lent offers a fresh and meaningful learning opportunity for all ages. Use the materials on this Web site to create an enjoyable and meaningful Lent event.

You will need the free Adobe® Reader® to access many of these resources. If you do not have this free software for viewing and printing PDF (Portable Document Format) files, you may download it here. The event index at the end of this page has links to printable online instructions for each part of the event. The program has three parts:

  1. Presentation (25 to 30 minutes)
    The event begins with a presentation on the meaning of Lent and the Lenten practices of prayer, almsgiving, and fasting. Participants will also take part in a dramatized Scripture reading.
  2. Prayer Service (5 to 10 minutes)
    After the presentation, Getting to the Heart of Lent continues with a short prayer service. Gather your participants together for prayer, reflection, and veneration of the cross.
  3. Activity Centers (45 to 50 minutes)
    After the prayer service, participants will enjoy a variety of hands-on learning and community-building activities in which they will create crafts to use as part of their family’s prayer center.

Take-Home Kits
The event also includes Take-Home Kits filled with resources that families can use to put together a family prayer center and deepen their experience of Lent through Scripture study.

Getting Started

To make organizing your parish event easier, we have put together the following resources: Preparation Timeline Bulletin Article Flier (one editable Microsoft Word document and one printable PDF)