Triduum Symbols: March 23 Class Update

Greetings Everyone!

We are getting closer to the high point of the Church year, the Paschal Triduum, which recalls the central events of our faith, the Last Supper, the Crucifixion, and the Resurrection.

Recap of Last Class

During our most recent class, we spent time on the symbols of the Triduum.  They include the bread and cup that were part of the Jewish celebration of Passover that have become incorporated into the New Covenant in Jesus Christ, Who offered His Body and Blood for our salvation.  This New Covenant was established with a new commandment, to love one another as God, in Jesus, has loved us.  We celebrate what happened at the Last Supper specially on Maundy Thursday and also experience every time we attend Mass. 

We also had a brief meditation/prayer with the Cross, similar to the custom of the Veneration of the Cross at the liturgy of Cross Friday.

And we had a demonstration with a room being lit up progressively with light, like what happens at the Holy Saturday Easter Vigil Mass.  It is an amazing visual effect as the lights getting brighter in Church through the Liturgy of the Word, leading to the Gospel of the Resurrection, recounting the central event of our faith.

We also touched briefly upon two important celebrations during the month of March: the Feast of St. Patrick on March 17 and the Solemnity of the Annunciation on March 25.

There are some links at the bottom of this post about these topics from class.

Looking Ahead

We are not scheduled to have class again until April 13.  That class will be in the Second Week of the Easter Season, and we'll spend time unpacking the meaning of the Season that follow Easter/Resurrection Sunday.

We don't officially have class scheduled on March 30 because it is District 97's Spring Break week.  However, we invite you to join an additionally-scheduled class on March 30, during which we'll pray the Stations of the Cross, a prayer liturgy that allows us to ponder more deeply Christ's Passion and how it speaks to our lives and our world today.  This class will start at the usual time of 7:00, and should last no later than 7:40, and may even end earlier than that.

Activity Options for the Coming Weeks

You will do two different activities in the weeks until our next scheduled class on April 13, preferably one option for Lent, and one option for Easter Season..

Please start with one of the following options and then submit a short reflection of 1-2 sentences at this link.

1. Pray the Stations of the Cross.  Here are some options available online:

Our Sunday Visitor

Traditional Stations by St. Alphonsus Liguori

Scriptural Stations of the Cross by Pope St. John Paul II, which has a different sequence of events

You're welcome to use any of the above formats for praying the Stations, or any other format you find online or in a print resource.

Joining class on March 30 will count toward this option as an in-depth option.

2. Spend time listening to the hymn "Go to Dark Gethsemane", which was used in part at the end of class on March 30.  (This version has a 30-second introduction before the singing starts.)

3. Watch Father Bob's Triduum reflection or Mrs. Ondrlas's Easter Sunday reflection on the Ascension YouTube channel.

4. Read and reflect on the Scriptures passages for Palm Sunday, or any of the days of the Triduum, Maundy Thursday, Passion Friday, Holy Saturday, or Resurrection Sunday.

If you choose Palm Sunday, you can read the Procession Gospel, the 1st reading, the Psalm, and the 2nd reading.  If you read the entire Passional story from the Gospel of St. Mark, that counts as an in-depth option.

If you choose Holy Saturday, please read the Gospel reading, the Epistle reading from Romans, and then pick any of the Old Testament readings and read it along with its Psalm.  If you read all the readings for Holy Saturday, that counts as an in-depth option.

5. In-depth option: Attend any of these Triduum liturgies or watch the livestream of them, at Ascension or a different church.  (Paul proclaims the first part of St. John's Passion narrative on Passion Friday.)  Here is the Ascension YouTube channel where livestreams and archived liturgies are available.

6. Watch one of the videos for Best Lent Ever and write a short reflection on what stood out to you in any of the videos.  All videos, for the current day and past days, are available for viewing at this link.  The reflection for Holy Saturday has some particularly good insights for Easter/Resurrection Sunday.

7. Read from the Words for the Weary Lenten booklet.

8. Write Easter notes to residents at Belmont Village.  Please contact Paul for information on where to send them.  If you aren't able to do them in time for Resurrection Sunday on April 4, it would still be fitting to send them to the residents as cards for the Easter Season, which lasts for several weeks after Resurrection Sunday.

9. Send a get-well note to a former Irving student awaiting surgery.  Please contact Paul for details on where to send your note.

10. In-depth option: Watch Lenten Vespers for Palm Sunday, March 28, at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception occurs.  You can watch it on the basilica's website, where there is also a leaflet posted so you can follow along.  Or you can watch it on the YouTube channel, live at 3 PM CT that day, or archived later.  It lasts about 30 minutes.

11. Listen to an Easter Season hymn from this collection and reflect on it.  If you listen to the entire collection of songs, that counts as an in-depth option.

12. In-depth option: Spend time with the Divine Mercy Chaplet.  You can read the article on this webpage on the Ascension Parish website, and follow the instructions to pray the chaplet.  You may also view an archived recording of the chaplet prayer on the Relevant Radio website, about 35 minutes long in total.

If you pick more than two of the above options to do, that counts the same as an in-depth option.

We pray that you have a blessed time in these final days of Lent, during Holy Week, and the Triduum.

We pray you have a joyful Easter/Resurrection Sunday and great start to the Easter Season.  

And we pray you have a restful, enjoyable Spring Break.

We remain ever connected as One Church in our Savior, Who died and rose again:

All my relations.

God's blessings,

Debbie Lopez

Paul Rubio

Here's the crown of thorns bush in the Desert Room at the Oak Park Conservatory. Jesus was crowned as a cruel joke during His Passion, and is now exalted as King because of the Paschal Mystery, His Death and Resurrection, by which we are saved.

Additional Links

Paul previously recorded two videos that speak about Triduum symbols:

Here's the video for Maundy Thursday.

Here's the video for Holy Saturday.

Paul thanks his parents for assistance with these videos.

We also watched these two music videos in class:

This video is Chris Tomlin's performance of "Amazing Grace (My Chains are Gone)", which embellishes the well-known Christian hymn, interspersed with scenes from the 2007 movie Amazing Grace, telling the story of William Wilberforce's campaign to abolish the slave trade in the British Empire.

This video is for Michael W. Smith's song "Purified". While not written specifically about Lent, its lyrics speak to what Lent is about.

Here again is the video about St. Patrick, by Chris Stefanick.

Please note that Chris releases a short video every week on Tuesday on a topic about the spiritual life.

Here's the video of YouTube stars Mat and Savannah Shaw singing the Beatles song "Let it Be".  While the words weren't intended to be about the Blessed Mother, they speak to the words she offered in her Fiat: "Let it Be".

This dad-daughter duo has made many great videos singing songs to spread joy and encouragement over the past year.  Please feel free to check out their YouTube channel.

Here's a short video with the scene of the Annunciation in the 2006 movie The Nativity Story.

Here's a link to the news story about Prince William's night out on the streets of London.  It connects well with how Christ humbled Himself and died on the Cross for us, as described in Philippians 2:6-11, the 2nd reading for Palm Sunday.

Each of Us Is a Gift: March 16-23 Update

Greetings Everyone!

Recap of Last Class

Our opening prayer was the 2nd reading for the 4th Sunday of Lent, Ephesians 2:4-10.

Our closing prayer was the Gospel reading for the 4th Sunday of Lent, John 3:14-21.

You can find both of them here.

Both speak to the Good News that, though we disobeyed God and turned away from Him into Sin, He delivered us from sin and restored us to our purpose in life, because we are worth fixing, kind of like Sally states emphatically in the courtroom of Radiator Springs in Cars.

That purpose is a major part of the Theology of the Body teachings of Pope St. John Paul II, which we spent time unpacking in class.

Theology of the Body teaches that our bodies are sacramental because they are a visible sign revealing the invisible reality of God.  God is love because, in Christ, He gave Himself totally to us as a gift, and each of us is called to be a gift by sharing God's love with others.

Hopefully, you enjoyed the chance to be a gift to others by sending an encouraging message to a friend at the end of class.

If you would like to see the presentation referred to during our class time, here's the link.  It is about 50 minutes long.

Also, here's the video we watched with the interview featuring Olympic gymnast Simone Biles, who is Roman Catholic.

Activity for this Week

Pick one of these options and submit a short reflection of at least 1-2 sentences here.

1. One of the ways we can be a gift to others is to practice one of the Corporal or Spiritual Works of Mercy.  Pick one to practice this week, and then reflect on it.  Please note that the monthly food collection for St. Martin de Porres Parish is this weekend, and is a great way to feed the hungry.  You're welcome to shop for food donations and then drop them off at church, even if you aren't staying for Mass.

2. Watch this short, 4-minute video in which Chris Stefanick talks about St. Patrick.

3. Friday, March 19, is the Feast of St. Joseph, and this is the Year of St. Joseph.  Spend some time with the Litany of St. Joseph.

4. Watch this reflection video on St. Joseph by Matthew Kelly of Dynamic Catholic.

5. Watch one of the videos for Best Lent Ever and write a short reflection on what stood out to you in any of the videos.  All videos, for the current day and past days, are available for viewing at this link.

6. Read a daily passage from the Words for the Weary Lenten booklet.

In-depth option:

7. Lenten Vespers at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception occurs every Sunday of Lent live at 3 PM CT.  You can watch it on the basilica's website, where there is also a leaflet so you can follow along.  Or you can watch it on the YouTube channel, live, or archived later.  It lasts about 30 minutes.

Please note, you can pick more than one of the above options and that counts the same as an in-depth option.

Looking Ahead

In our next class, we'll spend some time unpacking the symbolism of the Paschal Triduum, the three sacred days of the Church year in the latter half of Holy Week, commemorating the Death and Resurrection of Christ, the central events of our faith.

Please feel free to contact us with any questions, for any clarifications, etc.

Here again is the video Paul shared in class in celebration of his milestone birthday, the song "Glorious" performed by the One Voice Children's Choir.

Below is a photo of Paul, courtesy of his dad, holding a birthday card he received from his grandma, which reads, "You are a gift."  That statement is a great truth that applies to all of us.  Indeed, each one of you is a gift with the purpose of revealing God to others.  Furthermore, you each have a melody within you that becomes a glorious symphony when we join our melodies together, living in praise of God.

Thank you for being part of Paul's milestone birthday celebration on Tuesday.

Keep thinking Spring!  The vernal equinox starts Spring 2021 at 4:37 AM CDT on March 20.

We are connected as One Church:

All my relations.

God's blessings,

Debbie Lopez and Paul Rubio

In the St. Patrick window in Church, he is holding up a three-leaf clover to teach the Trinity.

St. Joseph appears on the outside of Church above the entrance doors, near the large, circular rose window.

Champions of Faith: March 9-16 Class Update

Greetings everyone!

As of March 11, we've reached the midpoint of Lent 2021.  The following Sunday, March 14, is Laetare Sunday, from a Lain term that speaks of joy, for we're halfway through the Lenten journey to Resurrection Sunday.  The priest at Mass wears lighter-colored vestments to mark the occasion.

Recap of Last Class
We spent the vast majority of class time watching the documentary Champions of Faith: Baseball Edition.  We heard from many in the MLB, including Mike Piazza, David Eckstein, Jack McKeon, Mike Sweeney, and others, who shared about what difference faith makes in their lives, both on and off the field.  We thank you for staying a few extra minutes past our usual end time of 8:00 to watch this film.  We hope it was worth your while and that you enjoyed it and gained some new insights about faith from it.

The film is available for free in its entirety on YouTube.

Our opening prayer was 1 Corinthians 9:24-27, which has an athletic metaphor, as did our closing prayer, 1 Timothy 6:11-16.

Activity for this Week
Please continue to spend time this week offering up one prayer intention for each day.

At this link, please submit a reflection. Submissions are due by class time on March 16.

You can share an example of a specific prayer intention, or describe in general terms what it was like doing this prayer activity.

You're welcome to use the same intentions from last week, or offer up a whole new set of intentions.

We also want to offer some in-depth options for prayer this week.

Friday evening, March 12, is Stations of the Cross prayer, about 1 hour long.  To find out about registering, and for more info, please visit this webpage.  More info is forthcoming about a March 26 Stations of the Cross prayer.

Taize prayer from last week Friday, March 5, is archived and available on YouTube, about 1 hour long.

Lenten Vespers at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception occurs every Sunday of Lent live at 3 PM CT.  You can watch it on the basilica's website, where there is also a leaflet so you can follow along.  Or you can watch it on the YouTube channel, live, or archived later.  It lasts about 30 minutes.

Pretzels are a traditional Lenten food.  Customarily, Paul makes homemade pretzels and brings them into class.  If you're interested, you can make pretzels at home:

This recipe comes from a special Lenten bulletin that was given out 9 years ago at Ascension.

Mix 1 package active dry yeast with 1 tablespoon sugar in 1 ½ cups lukewarm (100-110 degree) water. Mixture should bubble.  Stir in 1 teaspoon salt and 4 cups flour.

Place on floured board and knead in 1/2 cup more flour.  Knead about 8 minutes.  Divide into pieces, roll into ropes, and shape into pretzels.  (As you fold the "little arms", pray the Lord's prayer or another Lenten prayer.) Let rise until about double in size.  (Sometimes, I skip that part of the recipe, and they still bake okay.)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Place pretzels on greased cookie sheet.  Brush with mixture of 1 egg yolk mixed with 2 Tbs. water, and sprinkle with kosher salt—the egg mixture part can be skipped, but it does give the pretzels a nice gleam.  Bake 12 minutes or until golden brown.

When I made the recipe with the given amounts of ingredients, it yielded about a dozen or so pretzels, but it can yield more depending on the size you make them.

If you choose one of these in-depth options, please use the submission link above to share a reflection on what stood out to you in any of these prayer liturgies, or what it was like making pretzels.

Looking Ahead
We're planning for part of class time on March 16 to be spent on a basic introduction to Theology of the Body, which is a collection of teachings by Pope St. John Paul II.

We also have a survey with 4 questions about your experiences with faith, at this link.  It should only take a couple minutes or so to complete.  We'll give the chance to complete it during class, but you're welcome to do it during the week.

Please feel free to contact us with questions, for clarifications, etc.

Praying God's abundant blessings on the second half of the Lenten journey,

We remain connected as One Church: All my relations,
Debbie Lopez and Paul Rubio

Here's a scene at the altar in church.

Keep thinking Spring! Lent is the Church's springtime, and the name of this season comes from the fact that the days "lengthen" at this time of year as we head toward the glorious celebration of Christ's Resurrection, which we celebrate each Sunday, even during Lent.

The Franciscans, Plus Visions of Glory: March 2-9 Class Update

Greetings everyone!

Recap of Last Class

In our most recent class, Father Bob visited. 

As we started, we offered up the St. Francis Prayer.  While it may not have been written by him, it speaks to the spirit of his life.

Then, Father Bob shared about the story of St. Francis of Assisi and how his life's circumstances led him to embrace a life of poverty for the sake of Christ and start the Franciscan order.  Father Bob also talked about the order today and his vocation in it.

Then, we continued with Lenten themes.  Lent is a journey that leads to the celebration of the Resurrection of Christ.  This past Sunday's Gospel story of the Transfiguration, which is always on the Second Sunday of Lent, gives a glimpse of the glory that is to come, to encourage us on the journey.

Every time we come to church, especially for the sacraments, we have the opportunity to experience a taste of God's glory.  Even during Lent, Sundays are considered a "Little Easter", as we gather for Mass to celebrate God, Who is alive and present in His Word, in the Body and Blood of Christ on the altar, and in the assembly.

Mass equips us to live our lives faithfully for Him and as a blessing to others during the week, living out the Mission God has given us, which is what the phrase means that the priest utters at the end of Latin Mass, "Ite Miss Est": "This is the mission."

Gathering at Mass, and spending time in prayer, helps us know God's presence guiding us through whatever we face in life.  Paul shared the story of participating in a Native American Sweat Lodge ceremony while spending time on a Reservation in northeast Nebraska 8 years ago.  This ceremony is intended as a purification rite, and, as Paul experienced it, symbolizes how we grow in faith and closer to God as we strive toward Him, even in the face of difficulties.  As Roman Catholics, we believe God in His mercy purifies us from the effects of sin through a process called purgatory.  And God is able to work His redemptive power even in our challenging circumstances, as He has demonstrated redemption in the Cross.

Activity for this week

At the end of class, everyone took time to write down one prayer intention for each day of this week.  The intentions can be for a person in your family, someone else you know, or a greater need in the world, like those who are in poverty or facing violence.  In answer to a question that arose from the exit slips, prayer intentions are sometimes called petitions, because we ask God for something, which can be asking for something to change.  It can also be an intention or petition for someone's well-being.

At the start of each day, offer up a short prayer for that intention. It's a great way to incorporate prayer into your life each day, especially during Lent.

While we didn't mention it in class, you can do this activity over the next two weeks.

Please submit a reflection on this activity at this link. You can share the specific intentions you offered, or share more generally what it was like doing this activity. Submissions are due by class time on March 16.

Looking Ahead

In our class on March 9, we're going to spend almost all of class time watching a documentary called Champions of Faith: Baseball Edition.

This film is a little over an hour long, so class will extend past our usual end time, concluding between 8:00-8:15.  But we hope the extra time is worthwhile because it is an excellent film.  Paul has shown it to his 8th grade classes that past two years, and they have enjoyed it.  We hope you like it as much as them, especially if you have any interest in sports, and most especially any interest in baseball.

As usual, please feel free to contact us with questions, for clarifications, etc.

We remain ever connected as one Church:

All my relations,

God's blessings,

Debbie Lopez and Paul Rubio

The window for Saint Francis of Assisi in our Church

In this photo, Paul, on a trip to Florida 4 years ago, is at the Mission Nombre de Dios in St. Augustine, FL, the site of the first permanent European settlement in North America. On the day the Spanish landed there, September 8, 1565, they celebrated Mass for the first recorded time in North America. The Mass was held at the spot where the Cross is behind Paul.

Paul at the shore of the Atlantic Ocean in Pompano Beach, FL, earlier this week with the floating device that has been a fixture in class each week as we swim in the ocean of God and encounter His presence.