Prayer in sackcloth and ashes“Behold, now is a very acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.”

~ 2 Corinthians 6:2, from the
Ash Wednesday reading

Prayer, fasting and alms-giving are central practices during Lent. On this page, throughout the season, we will seek to provide you with resources which deepen the meaning of this season, which create the space for personal and social transformation, and which promote the peace and justice which are at the center of Jesus’ call to discipleship.

Our Common Lenten Prayer

This is the fast that pleases me:
to break unjust fetters,
to let the oppressed go free,
to share your bread with the hungry
and shelter the homeless poor.
If you do away with the yoke,
the clenched fist, the wicked word,
if you give your bread to the hungry
and relief to the oppressed,
your light will rise in the darkness. (Isaiah 58:6-7, 10)

All praise be yours, God our Creator,
as we wait in joyful hope
for the flowering of justice
and the fullness of peace.
All praise for this day, this season.
By our weekly fasting and prayer
cast out the spirit of war, of fear and mistrust,
and make us grow hungry for human kindness, thirsty for solidarity
with all the people of your dear earth.
May all our prayer, our fasting and our deeds
be done in the name of Jesus. Amen.

(Source: Archdiocese of Chicago, 1983)

REFLECTIONS FOR SUNDAYS AND HOLY DAYS

On this page throughout the season, we’ll be featuring reflections from a variety of authors of past Lenten booklets, in addition to this year’s, The Light of Lent Through the Gospels: Reflections for Lent 2013, by Megan McKenna, Pax Christi USA Ambassador of Peace. We’ll also be sending our weekly Lenten emails sent directly to your inbox if you’re subscribed to our free email service. (Click here to sign up if you are not already subscribed to our free email service.) 

PRAY-STUDY-ACT EACH WEEK OF LENT

LENTEN RESOURCES

SPECIAL EVENTS AND DAYS OF OBSERVANCE

Bread is Life Campaign

Pax Christi International is inviting people around the world to fast this Lent for a just peace in Syria. Pax Christi International launched the campaign to raise awareness about the suffering of civilian communities in Syria and to express solidarity with those who are trying to survive in Syria and as refugees in surrounding countries. Click here for more information.

Good Friday Observances

Traditionally, many Pax Christi USA local groups plan and stage a “Way of the Cross” event on Good Friday, connecting the sufferings of Christ during his passion with the suffering of our brothers and sisters at the hands of violence, greed, poverty, sickness and war. Below are resources for groups interested in undertaking a Way of the Cross in their community on Good Friday. Also please let us know if you have a Way of the Cross planned in your community. We will list below the names of groups, with contact information, which will be staging a Way of the Cross this year.

Good Friday Way of the Cross Resources

Good Friday Way of the Cross Events, 2013

  • ATLANTA: Good Friday Pilgrimage, March 29, 9am-12:30pm, Begins at the State Capital and ends at the MLK, Jr Memorial Crypt, sponsored by Justice & Peace Ministries.
  • BRADENTON, FL: Pax Christi Manasota will hold its 7th annual Way of the Cross on Good Friday through the streets of Bradenton.  Script will alternate between Spanish and English, covering various social and governmental agencies that deal with the immigrant, homeless and poor. Departure at 11:30am at Stillpoint House of Prayer, the corner of 14th Street W. and 17th Avenue W., where there is ample parking across the street, and end at 1:30pm in front of the Manatee Court House.
  • CHICAGO: Members of Pax Christi Seed Planters are joining 8th Day for Justice and other justice groups on Friday, March 29, at noon, at Congress and Michigan, in Chicago, Illinois.  The march stops at different locations and connects each station with a social justice issue of our times.
  • DENVER: The Maryknoll Affiliates lead a city-wide walk through downtown, including sites such as the war memorial, the county jail, the human services and education departments, and the Federal Center. At each site we carry a big cross, pound in a nail, and have a thoughtful reading that is scriptural and justice and peace-oriented toward issues of the day. Contact: Larry Griffin at 303-771-1146 or ldgriffinjr@gmail.com
  • NAPERVILLE, IL: On Friday, March 22nd at 7:30 pm there will be a Peace & Justice Way of the Cross at St. Margaret Mary Parish in Naperville entitled,”Were You There When They Crucified My Lord?”  Everyone is welcome.
  • NEW YORK CITY: Pax Christi Metro New York is probably best known for its Good Friday Way of the Cross, which was its founding event. Our 31st consecutive Good Friday Way of the Cross, commemorating Jesus’ suffering in His own life and in the lives of people throughout the world today, will take place on March 29th, starting at Dag Hammarksjold Plaza, across from Holy Family Church, at 8:30 AM.  It proceeds along 42nd Street to Holy Cross Church, ending around noon.  Please come and pray with us. Visit nypaxchristi.org for more information.
  • RICHMOND, VA: On March 29, Good Friday, Christians from our city will once again gather for prayer on the streets of Church Hill. As we remember the events that led to Jesus’ suffering and death, we also remember his life and ministry. We will pray for our city and our world, that we might follow Jesus’ way of Love. Our theme this year is “Take up your cross – Follow me”. Our pilgrimage covers 2 1/2 miles, starting at Patrick Henry Park (24th and Broad) at 11:45 am, and ending across the street in the graveyard at St. John’s Church by 3 pm. We invite everyone to join us for all or part of our pilgrimage. For more information, contact Holy Rosary Church, 222-1105.
  • SPRINGFIELD, IL: The annual Good Friday Way of the Cross for Peace and Justice will be held on March 29, 2013 beginning at noon at the Supreme Court Building, 2nd & Capitol. The walk is sponsored by Pax Christi Springfield, Hospital Sisters of St. Francis, and Springfield Dominican Sisters. For more information, call 217-652-3567. Change of location in case of rain will be found at http://www.paxchristispfld.org.
  • ST. PAUL, MN: In South Saint Paul, we carry a 9 foot cross from church to church, and the cemetery.  We read scripture at each church and sing as we walk. We end up at our local food shelf.  It is ecumenucal, so we have people from every church.  We begin at noon.  Contact Liz at lizarend@gmail.com for more info.
  • UTICA, NY: “Transforming Power of Love-Violence Ends Where Love Begins,” a 1.5 mile interfaith walk on Good Friday, March 29, from 10am to noon. Meet at 10am at 309 Genesee St., Utica (former St. Francis De Sales School). Walk will begin and end at this location. Parking is available in the DeSales parking lot. Van rides are available for those not walking. Call Mary C. at 853-2366 or Jane D. at 723-4506 or Sandy W. at 723-0261 for more information. The event is coordinated by Mohawk Valley Pax Christi.

8 thoughts on “Lent 2013”

  1. Beaverton Oregon will host the fifth Walk of the Cross for Peace and Justice at 10:00 AM on Good Friday, April 6, 2012. Meet at 4th and Watson Sts. in downtown Beaverton. Peace!

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  2. The Sister Mary Fritz Chapter of Pax Christi will hold its third annual Stations of the Cross on Saturday, March 31, 2012 at St. Patrick’s Parish in Bay Shore, New York. Based on the Stations done annually by Pax Christi NYC, each station has a social theme and commentary prepared by one of the parish ministries, and one contributed by Pax Christi Long Island. The Stations are presented outside the church on the beautiful grounds of St. Patrick’s right after the 8 A.M. Mass.

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  3. Pax Christi members from the Detroit area join our Day House Catholic Worker and Jeannie Wylie community Stations of the Cross through downtown Detroit beginning at St. Peter’s Episcopal on the corner of Michigan and Trumbull at noon. A tradition for over thirty years, the Detroit walk offers reflections at various sites in the city where the crucifixion of Jesus is experienced in profound ways as a result of greed, apathy, and violence. Contact Kim Redigan at Kim.Redigan@gmail.com for more info.

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  4. Pax Christi New Orleans will join other groups in an outdoor Way of the Cross beginning at 10 AM at St. Joseph Church, 1802 Tulane Avenue and then proceed through part of downtown New Orleans, stopping at significant buildings for each Station. We finish at the park at the river. Pax Christi will lead Station 6. All are welcome.

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  5. Some from my faith community of St. Vincent de Paul in Philadelphia join the Brandywine Peace Committee for the Stations of the Cross at the Lockheed Martin Plant in King of Prussia, PA.

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  6. HOUSTON TEXAS The Good Friday Walk for Justice begins at noon at Hermann Square at City Hall in downtown Houston. At each station we address a justice issue and meditate on it in terms of the Station.

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  7. Pax Christi Austin will hold its annual downtown Stations of the Cross this Good Friday starting at 10 AM. We begin at the NW corner of 10th and Guadalupe, beside the court house. We will pray and process to the city jail, the governor’s mansion, and end in front of the capitol. This year we will use Sister Joan Chittister’s Way of the Cross: Gateway to Resurrection. The readings will be provided. All are welcome to join us.

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  8. The annual Good Friday Way of the Cross for Peace and Justice will be heldon March 29, 2013 beginning at noon at the Supreme Court Building, 2nd & Capitol. The two hour prayerful walk remembers Jesus’ passion and its connection with the sufferings of injustice experienced in God’s people in our world today. Join with others in this ecumenical experience of prayer.
    The walk is sponsored by Pax Christi Springfield, Hospital Sisters of St. Francis, and Springfield Dominican Sisters.

    For more information, call 217-(652-3567). Change of location in case of rain will be found at http://www.paxchristispfld.org.

    Reply

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