One resource for family life that I am so excited about is CatholicCulture.org, a website whose mission is to strengthen the faith of the Catholic laity so that they “become an active force for renewal in the Church and in society.” (CatholicCulture.org mission statement) There is SO much to explore in the Liturgical Year section of the site; so much, that I want to walk you through it so that you can discover what a blessing of rich Catholic culture it is without being overwhelmed!
What do I use it for in my family? Well, this February, I started incorporating family devotions at breakfast, and family prayer before school; for both of these, Catholic Culture has what I need for daily prayers and readings about the saint of the day (or simply an except from a saint’s writing). There are also recipes, activities, additional things to read or study, and ideas for teaching the faith as it relates to the saint of the day.
As I said before, there is SO much to explore.
Here is how it works:
- From the home page, click Liturgical Year.
- Click February Overview (or whatever month it happens to be when you visit). Here is where you can see the Holy Father’s intentions for the month, feasts for the month, Mass readings for Sundays, special feast day information, and more. There is also a “Highlights of the Month” widget on the right side that showcases the important feasts of the month, and gives links to the recipe and activity of the month, and more.
- Now that you’ve seen the richness of prayer and traditions that the month offers, go back to the top of the page, click on “February Calendar” and start exploring the feasts of the week you’re in at the time. Maybe some activities or recipes will sound like they’re worth a try. If not, don’t worry! There is a way to start simple and small.
Right now, I am only using a tiny bit of what’s offered on each day, but I have a feeling that the authors have given a feast of ideas so readers can choose what fits their individual family needs and interests.
For our family, this means that every morning at breakfast, I pull out my phone, go to CatholicCulture.org, and click on Liturgical Year. (Step 1 from above.) Then I read the life of the saint, and browse the “Things to Do” section to see if any of the ideas could be made part of our day. For example, one of the ideas for today, February 6, is to pray for Christians being persecuted around the world. Another idea is to visit some websites (links are provided) to learn more about the saint of the day. And yet another idea is to read a papal encyclical that has to do with the persecuted Church. There’s something for all ages, and for those with little, or lots, of time.
Then, before school starts, we say our family morning prayers, and I include the Collect prayer from the daily Mass readings. (These are on the same page, Liturgical Year.) I will also browse the recipes, activities, and prayers if I haven’t already. Maybe I will miraculously have the right ingredients some of the time, and that would be fun!
So all it takes is a couple clicks, and our family is united in prayer (and maybe food) with Catholics all over the world. I think that is totally awesome. 🙂
