Experiencing the Lenten season as a family
Christmas trees, nativity scenes, gingerbread — all seem to serve as built-in visual aids for the season of Advent, offering kids some tangible connections with this journey of joyful hope. Following on the heels of such a richly sensory experience, the spare, simple season of Lent initially seems less approachable. Can children really understand the intimidating themes of penance, prayer, and sacrifice that characterize the Lenten season?
The Catechism describes Lent as the primary penitential season in the liturgical year. Just as Jesus spent forty days praying and fasting in the desert, Catholics spend the days of Lent preparing spiritually to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus on Easter Sunday. The feast of Easter represents the foundational event of the Catholic faith, so a time of preparation is a must for the whole family. Yet the spirituality of Lent can be a challenge for both children and adults to grasp.
Peter and Catherine Fournier, authors of “Lent and Easter in the Domestic Church,” believe that Lent offers a wonderful opportunity to teach kids about the central mysteries of the Catholic faith. At their Web site, http://www.domestic-church.com, the Fourniers provide a variety of Lenten activities designed to help children access the spirit of the season.
Lent can be challenging for kids when it feels too intense or too abstract. The Fourniers encourage parents to bring the themes of prayer and sacrifice down to a level that children will understand. Parents can begin by presenting the season of Lent as a time of preparation.
“We prepare for lots of activities,” Catherine Fournier points out. “We write a grocery list before heading to the store. We put on a coat before going outside.”
As children think about the ways that they prepare for important events in their own lives, they can begin to see penance, fasting, prayer, and almsgiving as ways to prepare the heart for Easter.
To emphasize this spirit of preparation and clearly establish a connection between church and home, parents can try making a noticeable change in the appearance of the home. Make this year’s Lent the time that you set up a special prayer table to focus family devotions. Add a new icon or Lenten activity to make visible the spiritual themes of Lent.
To fulfill the same purpose, Peter and Catherine Fournier recommend an activity called “stripping the home.” They remove decorative furnishings until the Easter season, reminding the entire family that, as Peter Fournier describes, “We are stripping away anything unimportant and preparing for the important.”
Making such changes teaches children how to live the faith day to day. Preparing a meatless meal, offering an extra donation to the poor, or praying through a children’s Stations of the Cross activity will help kids internalize the connection between belief and action. Integrated into the life of the family, these activities become a lived expression of our Catholic faith.
More important than any activities, though, is the example parents set for their children. “The real opportunity of Lent,” Peter Fournier explains, “is to communicate to children that the parents think Lent is important.”
When parents embrace a spirit of Lenten preparation, their actions teach children that they take the faith seriously. None of the ways of explaining the beauty of Lent comes close to the model of a parent’s desire to grow in faith. An act of loving prayer or service may communicate the faith in ways that words or activities do not. To really help your children appreciate the spiritual journey through Lent, show them that you are embarking upon the journey yourself.