Getting Closer to Christ

 A painting of Jesus Christ by Diego Velazquez

The season of Lent is not simply a period of 40 days before Easter. It is a time during which we prepare ourselves for the death and resurrection of Jesus, our Saviour. Parishioners at the Church of St. Catharine of Siena in Seaside Park, New Jersey are partaking in a special church Lent program besides performing their own personal acts of penance and prayer.

The Church of St. Catharine of Siena in Seaside Park, New Jersey

For this program, each family at St. Catharine of Siena took home a nail from a basket that had been placed at the altar rail and set it up in a conspicuous location in their home. The purpose of the nails was and is to keep the parish’s families focused on Jesus and what He went through for us. On Palm Sunday, each family has to return their nail to the church.

Seaside Park - on the Jersey Shore - is a popular summer destination

Conventual Franciscan Friar George Sabol is the pastor at St. Catharine of Siena parish. The church is suffused with a spirit of Franciscan love and service. Franciscan friars also spend their lives trying to get as close to Jesus as they possibly can. Having a cross in their homes, St. Catharine of Siena’s parishioners now have another opportunity to do the same.

(Sources of related images on webpage and homepage: www.stcatharinesiena.com, www.wikipedia.org, and mchb55 on www.tripadvisor.com.)