This Lenten Season, we’re reflecting as a parish on the sign of the cross, not just as a symbol of our faith or a mark drawn in ashes on our forehead, but as an entrance into prayer. We’ve asked parishioners to share some of their own observations. If you would like to share one of your own, please send it on to Fr. Mike. 

This reflection is from Christopher Severin, our Interim Music Director, pianist, and parishioner:

As a convert, I have been struck by the fleshiness of the expression of the Christian faith in the Catholic Church.  Jesus is present sacramentally in tangible ways, and our signs and symbols can have a physical reality.  This led to a deeper understanding of the Sign of the Cross and the role it could play in my ongoing conversion. 

The moment came at the beginning of a meal, and the context of Jesus’ question to his disciples, “Can you drink the chalice I must drink and bear the cross I must bear?”.  That question seems unanswerable because it is incomprehensible.  

As I made the sign of the cross, I was aware that it was something I was doing to, or on, my body. I was placing an actual cross on my body, with the weight bearing down on Jesus as he carried it to carry to Calvary. Or, I was placing my body on a cross, as Jesus was placed on a cross at the moment the horror of what was to become inescapable. This brought a more complete recognition of the cost of my salvation and the depth of Divine Love.  
It would not be honest to say that since that time I have always made the sign of the cross with that gravity, but it remains present even in “routine” practice of the sign.

      —Christopher Severin

When Jesus asks a question in the gospels, Jesus or others rarely or definitively answer the question. So spiritual writers through the course of the tradition have challenged us to answer them for ourselves. Here are 20 questions you can ponder and reflect on during these days of Lent. You may be surprised where your prayer leads you. If you want to see the context of the question, the chapter and verse are cited.

1. “What are you looking for?”  John 1:38
2. “Woman how does your concern affect me?”  John 2:
3. “If I tell you about earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?”  John 3:12  
4. “Do you want to be well?”  John 5:6  
5. “Does this shock you? What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before?”  John 6:62
6. “Do you also want to leave?”  John 6:67  
7. “Why are you trying to kill me?”  John 7:19
8. “Woman, where are they?  Has no one condemned you?”  John 8:10  
9. “If I am telling you the truth, why do you not believe me?”  John 8:46  
10. “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”  John 9:35  
11. “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.  Do you believe this?”  11:25

12. “Take away the stone…Did I not tell you that if you believe you will see the glory of God?...Lazarus, come out!...Unite him and let him go.”  John 11:34; 39-40;43-44
13. “Do you realize what I have done for you?”  John 13:12  
14. “Will you lay down your life for me?”  John 13:38  
15. “Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me?”  John 14:10  
16. “Do you believe now?”  John 16:31  
17. “Who are you looking for?”  John 18:4  
18. “Do you say this on your own or have others told you about me?”  John 18:34  
19. “Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.”  John 21:29  
20. “Do you love me?” John 21:17

Lent is a time for reflection and preparation during which we seek to turn away from sin and toward God. The Lenten pillars of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving help us do this. In prayer, we grow closer to God and reach out to our family, friends, and neighbors near and far. When we fast, we make more room for God in our lives and unite with Christ’s suffering. And in giving, we share with others so that all might have what they need to live.

THE PILLARS OF LENT

As we begin our Lenten journey, reflect on how your prayers, fasting, and almsgiving can guide you. As Pope Francis explains, these are “elements which, when lived sincerely, can transform life and provide a sure foundation for dignity and fraternity.” How can practicing the Lenten pillars transform your life and the lives of our sisters and brothers around the world? Visit crsricebowl.org to learn more.

Join our faith community—and more than 12,000 Catholic communities across the United States—in a transformative Lenten journey with CRS Rice Bowl. Pick up your family’s CRS Rice Bowl from the Narthex of the church or click here to donate online.

Archdiocese of Chicago Lenten Resources