Feast of St John the Apostle

Today, December 27, is the Feast of St John, the "beloved disciple", Apostle, and Evangelist.

Fish Eaters explains:

St. John was the son of Zebedee and Salome, and the brother of St. James the Greater (Feast day: 25 July) who, together, were given the nickname "Boanerges" ("Sons of Thunder") by Christ Himself. The men of Zebedee's family were fishermen, and it is possible that SS. John and James were disciples of St. John the Baptist when they encountered the One of Whom the Forerunner spoke. They were called just after SS. Peter and Andrew -- two other fishermen brothers -- left everything behind to follow Jesus, and SS. Peter, James, and John had the most prominent positions of all the Apostles.

A tradition associated with this feast day is the family members sharing a cup of wine (it may be boiled with sweet spices first to remove alcohol) with the toast, "Drink the love of St John." See more at the Fish Eaters link, above, and at Catholic Culture: St John the Evangelist.

Lego Nativity Scene

This is cute, creative, and seasonal. I will try to put up a picture or two when my kids get them built.

Nativity Scene

Mar 25 - Solemnity of the Annunciation

Today the Church celebrates the announcement (or "Annunciation") of God's message to Mary by the archangel Gabriel. On this day, we remember that Almighty God sent His angel to Mary to ask for her consent to His plan, and we rejoice at her whole-hearted "Yes!"

Did you know that the old name for the Solemnity of the Annunciation was the Solemnity of the Incarnation? Many people mistakenly assume that Christmas is the feast of the Incarnation when, in reality, that is the date of Christ's birth. His incarnation, the moment when he took on human flesh, occurred some nine months earlier in Mary's womb, as soon as she said "Yes" to God's request. Just a couple of weeks later, her kinswoman Elizabeth recognizes Mary as "the mother of my Lord," the Lord whom she carries incarnate in her womb. In recognition of the awesome event when the Word was made Flesh, we genuflect during the Creed at Mass on this day.

Suggestions for celebrating the Annunciation:
* Read the story of the Incarnation from Luke 1:26-38.
* Use a famous painting of the Annunciation to discuss the gospel story.
* Study it as a work of art (parent resource here).
* Pray the Angelus.
* Begin the 9-month novena of the Incarnation.

Huron Carol

The "Huron Carol" is a Christmas hymn written in 1643 by St. Jean de Brébeuf, the "Apostle of the Hurons" who was later martyred by the Iroquois.

Brébeuf wrote the lyrics in the native language of the Huron/Wendat people; the song's original Huron title is "Jesous Ahatonhia" ("Jesus, he is born"). This version is performed by Heather Dale, and sung in Wendat (Huron), French and English.



H/t: Diane

Update: Find the words in Huron/Wendat, French, and a couple of different English versions here.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Novena, Dec 4-12

Novena Prayer for Life to Our Lady of Guadalupe
(Spanish version -- En Español)

Oh Mary, Mother of Jesus and Mother of Life,
We honor you as Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Thank you for pointing us to Jesus your Son,
The only Savior and hope of the world.

Renew our hope in him,
That we all may have the courage to say Yes to life,
And to defend those children in danger of abortion.

Give us your compassion
To reach out to those tempted to abort,
And to those suffering from a past abortion.

Lead us to the day when abortion
Will be a sad, past chapter in our history.

Keep us close to Jesus, the Life of the World,
Who is Lord forever and ever. Amen.

Source: Priests for Life

Pro-life Pumpkin

This is a cool pumpkin idea from ALL for All Hallow's Eve.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words ....
Click here for more info and to print the pattern.

H/t: Sarah

Corpus Christi

Yesterday was the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ, also known by its Latin title, Corpus Christi. This is a celebration dear to my heart as Christ's Eucharistic Presence was a large part of what drew me to the Catholic Church.

As Fr. Reginald pointed out in his homily yesterday, this is an unusual feast day in that it honors a doctrine rather than an individual -- although of course the doctrine is very closely related to the Person of Christ. Catholics, along with Orthodox Christians, believe that the consecrated Bread and Wine are in fact the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ substantially present in the Eucharist.

Why do we believe this? Because Jesus taught it. Because the Apostles and early Christians accepted it. Because the Church has always believed it. Because we have been given the gift of faith in His Real Presence.

More:
Scripture on the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist
Early Church Fathers on Christ Present in the Eucharist

Begin Pacschal Mystery Eggs today!

Today is the day to begin the countdown to Easter with the Paschal Mystery Eggs.

Paschal Mystery Eggs

There are several different versions of this idea around, including a commercial variety called "Resurrection Eggs." I am not certain where the idea originated, but it may have been from the Real Learning Forums. The name of "Paschal Mystery Eggs" definitely comes from Jenn Miller's post on this thread in that forum, which also gives details of a longer version.

Here is the version that we use. Get 12 plastic eggs that can be opened and filled, and a regular dozen-sized egg-carton. Inside each egg place the listed object together with a slip of paper with the corresponding Bible verse. You may want to also include an explanation of the significance of the object, or simply discuss the significance when you open the egg. Number the eggs from 1 to 12, and place them in reverse order in the carton.

We open one egg per day beginning on the Wednesday before Palm Sunday and ending on Easter Sunday.

Fill the eggs as follows:
Day 12: Mark 12:22
a small cracker or piece of "Matzoh" to symbolize the bread & wine of the Last Supper.

Day 11: Matt 26:33
Feather or picture of rooster to symbolize the rooster that crowed 3 times.

Day 10: Matt 26:33
3 dimes to symbolize the 30 pieces of silver that Judas received to betray Jesus

Day 9: Mark 15:17
Thorns to represent the crown of thorns (rose thorns work well)

Day 8: Matt 27:31
Nail to represent the nails on the cross

Day 7: John 19:17-18
Small metal or paper cross represents the cross on which Jesus was crucified.

Day 6: John 19:23-24
A die or couple of dice to represent the lots that were cast for Jesus' clothing.

Day 5: John 19:34
Toothpick or toy lance to represent the spear which pierced Jesus' side.

Day 4: Matt 27:57-60
Piece of white cloth to symbolize Jesus's linen burial cloth.

Day 3: Mark 16:1
Cinnamon stick symbolize the burial spices.

Day 2: Matt 27:62-65
Rock to represent the stone over the mouth of the tomb.

Day 1 EASTER MORNING! Mark 16:5-6
This egg will be empty to symbolize the tomb that was empty because Jesus was risen!!

Stations of the Cross ideas for Kids

These are both Montessori-inspired ideas from Catholic bloggers:

Lillian writes that she has filled boxes for each of her children with items representing each Station of the Cross. "I can't begin to say what a difference this hands-on way of praying the Stations of the Cross has transformed our Fidays during Lent. My little ones now pray along eagerly and listen intently for the station so they can rummage throught their boxes and find the appropriate symbol," she says. I'm going to make a set for my little one, too!

Meanwhile, UK Bookworm has put together a PDF file that you can use to make Montessori-style "three-part" cards of the Stations. Great for learning which Station is which. She has a similar download for the Mysteries of the Rosary as well.

H/ts: Katie and Meg

Simple Lenten practices for children

Lent begins today, or, in the case of the Eastern Catholic churches, it has already begun on Monday. Here are a couple of simple practices that have in past years helped our children get into the spirit of Lent and prepare for the joy and new life of Easter.

The "crown of thorns" has been a big hit at our house. I've seen directions for making salt-dough crowns, but ours is simpler. I simply purchased at the craft store an 8" wreath made of woven twigs. On Ash Wednesday, we stick toothpicks into it to represent thorns, and place the wreath in the center of our dining table. The children get to remove one thorn for each sacrifice or act of kindness (you can make it as specific or general as you like) and their goal is to remove them all before Easter. Some years, we have cleared them all in plenty of time. In this case, we add little flowers to the wreath instead of removing thorns. The flowery wreath makes a good Easter centerpiece.

We also have done a "lenten cross" for the last several years; concpetually it resembles a Jesse Tree or Advent calendar. The original idea for this came from this article by Catherine Fournier on the Domestic Church website. I cut out two strips of brown paper and lay the short one across the long one to form a cross on the wall. Then, using the information in Fournier's article, you can do this project a couple of different ways. If your children are older, you may wish to have them take turns making an illustration for each day in Lent, while another child reads aloud the Scripture reading for the day. If you have younger children, you may prefer to draw or trace a set of illustrations ahead of time. The children then color one each day and add it to the brown-paper cross, while you read the Scripture. Save the master to use again next year. We were blessed to be given a set of illustrations by a friend when our children were young. (Thank you, Paula!)

A simple set of Stations of the Cross can go up the side of your main stairway (consider how many children will need to fit, though!), or down a hall. We made ours using 3x5 index cards with pictures cut from an illustrated book of the stations, with plastic crosses added.

I'll try to find pictures of these.

For myself, I am pondering a Personal Program for Lent.

A blessed Lenten season to you all!

Happy St. Valentine's Day!

Ruth Andreas offers a thoughtful reflection on the roots of St. Valentine's Day:

The corrupt ruler Claudius II (of Valentine's day) sought to divorce all people, thus breaking the sacred and affectionate bond between spouses and family members.

He hoped thereby to make people more malleable, more open to the suggested ends he sought for society.

In opposition to this, St. Valentine the priest was martyred for performing the marriage ceremony "illegally".

Today, whether in the area of "re-defining marriage" or in dictating how many children husbands and wives are allowed to have, we see a return to tactics that have been tried before. This intrusion of the state into the "sacred" arena of marriage and family is wrong.

We perceive with our "feminine genius" that family life has its many challenges and yet, within the great Household of God people can find their answers.

h/t: Erin