Jesus Journey. Jesus Journey. Jesus Journey. Turn away from self, seek the Lord. Lent begins on March 5, Are you prepared?

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1 March 2014 Newsletter Lent begins on March 5, 2014 In This Issue Lent The Triduum Lenten Repaint and Thin No More Turn away from self, seek the Lord Reconciliation Holy Week Schedule Are you prepared? Important Dates Turn away from sin, be faithful to the Gospel Palm Sunday, April 13, 2014 Holy Thursday, April 17, 2014 Good Friday, April 18, 2014 Holy Saturday, April 19, 2014 Easter Sunday, April 20, 2014 Come to our Parish Reconciliation service on Saturday, April 5, 2014 at 10:00 am! Turn to new life, embrace it

2 St. Michael s Newsletter Page 2 of 5 TRIDUUM The Triduum, or the Three Days, begins at sundown on Holy Thursday, reaches its high point in the Easter Vigil, and closes with evening prayer on Easter Sunday. We fast on Good Friday and Holy Saturday; this is called the Paschal Fast. Before a big event and/or tragedy, many people will lose their appetites. This is one reason that people will fast during these days. Holy Saturday Easter Vigil Each of these days signifies a stage in the central mystery of our redemption: Christ s death, His burial, and His resurrection. Holy Thursday This is the day on which we celebrate the gift of the Eucharist as our nourishment and our salvation. This is the last day of Lent; at sundown, Lent ends and the Paschal Triduum begins. The Mass of the Lord s Supper on Holy Thursday features the distinct action of the Washing of the Feet. Jesus presents us with a symbol for his entire life, given on the cross for all people in obedience to the Father. Good Friday Good Friday is the first day of the Paschal Triduum. The Celebration of the Lord s Passion usually takes place in the afternoon. This is the time of day when the lambs were slaughtered in the Temple of Jerusalem to prepare for the Passover feast. This is the time when tradition tells us that Jesus died. We remember the day that Jesus spent in the tomb, having truly died a physical death. On this day, we bless food we will be sharing with our families on Easter. During the Easter Vigil Celebration, we share the amazing story of Christ s rising from the dead. We bless water, baptize adults and children, receive new members into our Church and call the Holy Spirit to confirm them in faith. Easter Sunday The Celebration of Easter continues for fifty days, until it culminates on the feast of Pentecost. We celebrate death, burial and resurrection. The word Easter comes from the same root as the words star and east, which means dawn light. What a wonderful way to describe the Christian Passover! We welcome all visitors and guests into our parish as our Alleluias burst forth like spring flowers!

3 St. Michael s Newsletter Page 3 of 5 Lenten Pretzels Repaint and Thin No More! Do pretzels really have anything to do with Lent? The pretzel indeed has its origins as an official food of Lent. However, much of the information available is based on tradition that has been handed down through the ages. Nevertheless, the Vatican library actually has a manuscript illustrating one of the earliest pictures and descriptions of the pretzel (Manuscript Code no. 3867). In the early Church, the Lenten abstinence and fasting laws were more strict than what the faithful practice today. Many areas of the Church abstained from all forms of meat and animal products, while others made exceptions for food like fish. For example, Pope St. Gregory (d. 604), writing to St. Augustine of Canterbury, issued the following rule: "We abstain from flesh, meat, and from all things that come from flesh, as milk, cheese and eggs." Second, the general rule was for a person to have one meal a day, in the evening or at three o clock in the afternoon, and smaller snacks to maintain strength. So a need arose for a very simple food which would fulfill the abstinence and fasting laws. According to pretzel maker Snyder s of Hanover, a young monk in the early 600s in Italy was preparing a special Lenten bread of water, flour and salt. To remind his brother monks that Lent was a time of prayer, he rolled the bread dough in strips and then shaped each strip in the form of crossed arms, mimicking the then popular prayer position of folding one s arms over each other on the chest. The bread was then baked as a soft bread, just like the big soft pretzels one can find today. (To be fair, some traditions date the story to even the 300s.) Because these breads were shaped into the form of crossed arms, they were called bracellae, the Latin word for "little arms." From this word, the Germans derived the word bretzel which has since mutated to the familiar word pretzel. -FR. WILLIAM SAUNDERS Jock, the painter, often would thin his paint so it would go further. So when the Church decided to do some deferred maintenance, Jock was able to put in the low bid, and got the job. As always, he thinned his paint way down with turpentine. One day while he was up on the scaffolding -- the job almost finished -- he heard a horrendous clap of thunder, and the sky opened. The downpour washed the thinned paint off the church and knocked Jock off his scaffold and onto the lawn among the gravestones and puddles of thinned and worthless paint. Jock knew this was a warning from the Almighty, so he got on his knees and cried: Oh, God! Forgive me! What should I do? And from the thunder, a mighty voice: REPAINT! REPAINT! AND THIN NO MORE! -Author unknown

4 St. Michael s Newsletter Page 4 of 5 SCHEDULE OF LENTEN RECONCILIATION SERVICES Thursday, March 13, 2014, 7:00 pm at St. Therese Parish Tuesday, March 18th, 7:00 pm at Church of the Ascension Wednesday, March 19, 2014 at St. Pius X Friday, March 21, 2014, 7:00 pm at Our Lady of the Plains Tuesday, March 25, 2014, 7:00 pm at Queen of Peace Church Wednesday, March 26, 7:00 pm at Our Lady of Loreto Wednesday, April 5th, 10:00 am at St. Michael the Archangel Parish St. Michael s Holy Week Schedule April 17, Holy Thursday 9:00 am Morning 7:00 pm Mass of the Lord s Supper April 18, Good Friday 9:00 am Morning 3:00 Celebration of the Lord s Passion April 19, Holy Saturday 10:00 am Food Blessing 8:30 pm Easter Vigil April 20, Easter 6:45, 8:45 & 10:30 am Mass 12:30 pm Mass 2:30 pm Spanish Mass Turn to new life, embrace it

5 March 2014 St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 4:30 pm 1st Saturday Rosary Ash Wednesday 6:00 & 9:00 am Mass 12:00, 5:30 & 7:30 pm. Lit. of the Word with Ashes 4:00 pm Lit. of the Word with Ashes Youth-led :00 am-6:00 pm 1st Friday adoration DPS Book Fair DPS Book Fair Men s Club Pancake breakfast :00 noon Simple Soup :00 pm DPS Potluck 26 12:00 noon Simple Soup *Please be advised, dates and times are subject to change