Ask Catholics what they're doing for Lent this year, and they'll probably tell you that they are giving up a favorite food, a favorite pastime or anything else they really love but isn't essential in their lives.

Giving up something for Lent foster self-discipline and tempers our desires. It is a form of fasting.  it is a form of penance. It promotes spiritual growth.

If you're giving up something for Lent, that's great.  But think also about the possibility of doing something positive to bolster your spiritual life and make the world a better place.  Look for ways that you can increase your knowledge of your faith, strengthen your spiritual life or perform special acts of mercy and kindness at home, at work, in your parish or in your community.
 

If you haven't gone to confession in a while, Lent is the perfect time to reconcile yourself with God and the Church.  Most parishes have commual penance services with prayers and Scripture readings, followed by the opportunity for individual confession (a neessity for absolution of mortal sins).  Or you can also go to Confession on any Saturday during Lent.

Preparation for confession should include an examination of consience, which means you think back on sins you have committed since your last confession.

What happens during confession depends on the priest and the person.  Most people still start with the formula: "Bless me, Father, for I have sinned.  It has been (state a number of months or years) since my last confession."

If you can't remember the words or you don't recall how long it's been, don't worry.  Just tell the priest it's been a long time, and he will guide you through the process.

What you will experience is the healing gift of God's love, the chance to start over with a clean conscience, and an overwhelming sense of gratitude.

Telling the story of the suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus was an important part of the early Christian's experience.  In the late fourth century, people began making pilgrimages to the Holy Land, where they would follow the path that Jesus took to Calvary.  During the Miggle Ages, when outbreaks of war made it impossible for people to travel to the Holy Land, people created a Via Dolorosa, or "Sorrowful Way," in their towns and villages.  They erected paintings or sculptures depicting the Passion of Christ along a processional route or inside a church.  By the mid-18th century, the number of stations was fixed at 14 and the devotion know as the Stations of the Cross, also called the Way of the Cross, became widespread.

Lent offers opportunities to pass on your faith to children.  Here are some ideas for making Lenten memories.

1. Pray together.  Even if it's just an Our Father or Hail Mary, it unites the family.
2. Let each family member mention one person or problem that hey would like to pray for in a special way at dinnertime.
3. Take the kids grocery shopping for the poor.  Let them help you bring the food to your parish pantry or the local food bank
4. Let children light a candle at church for people throughout the world who are sick and hungry.
5. Sample Lenten food favorites, such as hot cross buns or pretzels.  If you're really adventurous, check the Internet for recipes and make your own!
6. A practical, realistic resource to help you make the most of your prayertime with children is: http://www.catholicfamilyfaith.org/

Pretzels originated in Europe during the Middle Ages.  A monk was making unleavened bread for Lent with flour and water because eggs, milk and lard were not consumed as part of the Lenten fast.  he twisted some of the dough into the shape of people prayin with both arms folded across their chests.  He decided it would be a perfect treat for children learning to say their prayers.  He called the treats pretiola, the Latin word for "little reward."