The Season of Lent

In the center of our classroom stands a special table. It is our prayer table. As the liturgical year changes, the table changes. 

This was our prayer table earlier this week:

This is our prayer table now:

Why the change? Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the Lenten season. Lent is a time when we look at ourselves and try and see what can change and improve so that we can be more like Jesus. We take more time to pray, to ask forgiveness of our sins, and to share with others. For forty days we prepare for the new life of Easter. 

Our Lenten wreath is brown and bare, symbolizing the desert where Jesus prayed for 40 days and also the crown of thorns. Can your child explain the symbols pictured on our wreath (purple ribbon, burlap cloth with a cross)? As we journey through Lent, we will add more symbols to help us better understand this liturgical season. 

Today we participated in Ash Wednesday mass, along with several other schools, at OLPH Church with Father Sathia. We all received ashed on our foreheads to remind us that we are sinners.

Lent is a time of change; a change of mind and heart. May the 40 days of Lent help us prepare for the joy of Easter. 

Adoration: Praying with Jesus

This week we are blessed to experience a very powerful form of prayer called Adoration. Adoration is an ancient form of prayer. The root of the word is "adore". Essentially, Adoration is an opportunity for us to show our deep love for Jesus. 

What sets Adoration apart from other forms of prayer is that Jesus is present with us in a consecrated host. We are able to pray with Jesus before us, who is truly present in the Eucharist. 

Before entering into Adoration, we familiarized ourselves with the prayer format our adoration will follow using a little personal journal. We reflected upon and drew our personal thoughts for the Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving and Supplication prayers. 

On Tuesday, we celebrated a beautiful school mass with Father Jim. He reminded us to love God and to always love one another. 

After mass, we placed a consecrated host, the Body of Christ, inside a beautiful gold Monstrance, and placed it in the chapel. Jesus is truly present!

Classes spent some time in prayer this week. As we entered Jesus' presence in the chapel, we showed our deep respect by genuflecting, bowing low on one knee. Then we moved through a series of prayers; Adoration prayer, Confession prayer ("I'm sorry for ... Please forgive me"), Thanksgiving Prayer, and a Supplication prayer (our prayers for others). Quiet time in prayer and reflection was embraced by our students. 

This was a beautiful week and this experience drew us closer to one another and closer to Jesus. 

Adoration Booklet from Look To Him and Be Radiant. 

That's MY church!

"That's MY church!"

As we pulled up to Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church today, one little sweetheart was so excited that we had arrived at HER church! What a wonderful feeling for a child to have! She felt this was a place she could call her own and where she belongs. 

That's OUR church! 

The boys and girls prayed, sang, and participated in our celebration led by Fr. Jack. It was a lovely gathering. Many thanks to the parents and younger siblings who shared in our mass with us. 

We were very fortunate to remain after mass for a tour with our delightful Grade 5 buddies! Care to join us?

This is the foyer of the church. It is the entrance to God's house. 

Then we enter our church. We were reminded it is our home. 

As we enter the church, we see the baptismal font where babies, children and adults are baptized. It is made of marble. Both of Mrs. Beliveau's kids were baptized here!

When we enter, we bless ourselves by dipping our fingertips into the holy water.

"In the name of the Father, and the Son,
and the Holy Spirit, Amen"

The narrow shelf behind the baptismal font (between the foyer doors) holds holy oils used at baptisms, confirmations, and for anointing the sick. 

This is the Paschal Candle. It represents Christ, our light. Each Easter, we get a new candle. This candle reminds us of our baptism, because when we are baptized our baptismal candle is lit from the Paschal Candle. 

To the side of the church is a small chapel. When just a few gather for mass, they celebrate here in this cozy area. 

This is the altar. It is like our dining room table. It is here where the priest stands to prepare the body and blood of Christ. 

The ciborium holds the body of Christ.

The chalice holds the blood of Christ. 

We use only our fanciest serving dishes at this special meal!

This is the ambo. 

The Word of God is proclaimed from here. 

This is the view from the ambo. Look at all the pews! The pews take up the most room in our church, and it is where we sit. We are important! God is present in us. 

We went behind the altar to a small room called the Blessed Sacrament Chapel. 

Here we saw a beautiful gold box called the tabernacle. The body of Christ is placed inside. A little red light shines up high, letting us know the body of Christ is present. 

The priest's clothing are called vestments. He chooses the colour of his vestments based upon the liturgical calendar, or what time of year it is in the church. 

Priests wear green during Ordinary Time, purple during Advent and Lent, white throughout Christmas and Easter, and red during feast days. 

In the church basement is the Clothing Nook where people can shop for free. Wouldn't this be a wonderful place to drop of our clothes when we outgrow them or don't need them anymore?

Today we learned so much about our church, the mass, and our faith! We are so very proud to call OLPH our home! Thank you to the kind and knowledgeable staff who led our tour, to the parent helpers who generously joined us, and to the students for participating respectfully and enthusiastically. We can't wait to come back!