x Close
World at Prayer blog
Reflections of Family and Faith
"The family that prays together stays together." - Venerable Patrick Peyton
Easter season | Family Activities | Holy Week | Triduum
Do you attend the Triduum liturgies with your family? We've gathered up some tips and encouragement from past years to help you and your children get the most out of these holy days. Triduum Memories "Let us stand." ... "Let us kneel." I have vivid memories of the first time I attended a Good Friday liturgy. It was held during the day, so Dad was probably working, and we kids attended with Mom and two of our great-aunts. To top it off, we were attending at our great-aunts' parish, not ours, so it was an unfamiliar church. Between the completely different ritual of the Good Friday liturgy as opposed to a regular Sunday Mass and the new surroundings and music, I remember being very confused. I certainly didn't understand the custom of venerating the cross.
Share
Good Friday | Holy Thursday | Seasonal Reflections | pray the rosary
St. John the Evangelist bravely stood vigil at the foot of the Cross alongside the Blessed Virgin Mary. In the most incredible act of love, Jesus strains to fill His lungs so He may speak, and with just a few words, He gifts Mary to the world as Our Mother and institutes her spiritual motherhood as He proclaims from the Cross, "Woman, behold your son!" Then He says to the beloved disciple, "Behold your mother!" (John 19:26-27a). This incredible gift of Mary as a mother is not only a blessing for John but for every disciple—incredibly, that includes you and me. At that moment, each disciple becomes a beloved son or daughter of the Woman, who epitomizes every virtue and is full of God's grace. Mary, chosen by God to be the Mother of His only Begotten Son, is then beautifully given in the act of sheer love to be the Mother of every one of us. Mary’s life of faith, marked by her profound trust in God’s promises, exemplifies His goodness and fidelity. She embraced the divine word with unwavering obedience: “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your word.” She then lives this out in every moment of her life, most profoundly in the moments of her Son’s Passion and death.
Share
Brief and contemporary inspiration focused on hope and family prayer will be delivered to your inbox! Articles include live video, written word, and links to resources that will lead you and your family deeper into faith.
Jesus’ death and Resurrection is the most important moment in human history, an event of literally cosmic significance. And so, when you stop to think about it, it is remarkable that Jesus chooses to set this infinitely unique and important moment in the context of His traditional Jewish faith and the ritual of Passover. On the night before the Son of God is to die for the sins of the entire human race throughout all of human history, this is what is most important to Him: that He celebrate the Passover meal with His disciples, and so connect this ritual commemoration of Israel’s freedom from bondage with His new Covenant of eternal freedom from sin and death.
Share
Daily Gospel Reflections | Holy Week | Spy Wednesday
Reflect on trusting God's timing and avoiding impulsive actions through the story of Judas' betrayal in this Daily Gospel Reflection for Wednesday of Holy Week. Today's Gospel: Matthew 26:14-25 Our actions are never hidden from God. We can try to justify our actions, we can pretend that we know better or that God somehow needs our help to bring His plans to fruition, but these are all lies we tell ourselves. God knows what is best, and He knows us better than we know ourselves. We can’t know what was going on in Judas’s heart when he sold the Lord for thirty silver pieces. Perhaps he was greedy, but it is commonly believed that he was doing what he thought was the right and just thing to do. Many were anticipating a political Messiah who would battle their oppressors, and perhaps Judas thought this exchange would be just the spark needed to ignite the battle. Regardless of his motives, we know that Jesus was aware of the betrayal by the time of the Last Supper, and that once it was complete, Judas regretted his actions. How often do we step in and take action impatiently because we think God needs our help? How often do we take matters into our own hands when we don’t like the direction God is leading us? And then, how often are we later burdened with regret for those foolish actions?
Share
We see a scene full of mixed emotions; love vs betrayal, grace vs human freedom, positive courage vs failure through betrayal of the one I promise to love. Even Jesus knowing his hour was near and what was to happen does not give in to abandon the humanity. We have many times looked on the betrayal part of Judas which lack personal choice of return due to excess despair and Peter’s betrayal that antithetically to Judas does not end on remorse but on the Mercy of loving Jesus and so Peter chooses repentance and reformation.
Share
I came across a stand-up comedy bit recently. The comedian says, “You ever notice, after Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead, you never see them hanging out again?” Think about that for a moment. Lazarus had a bad day. Not a flat tire. Not a bad meeting. He died. That’s already a terrible day. Day one: “Okay this is new.” Day two: “I am Still dead. Not improving.” Day three: “Alright, I think this is permanent.” Day four: “You know what? I’ve accepted it. I’ve processed it. I’ve let go. I’ve moved on.” He’s finally at peace. Maybe he’s thinking, “This is actually not bad. No bills, no responsibilities, no family WhatsApp groups.” Everything is calm.
Share
