Special Church Calendar Handout – A Guide for Parents & Students

Event:                 Great Lent & Holy Week 

Dates for 2012:    February 27 – April 14

About Great Lent:

The forty days of Great Lent begin on a different date each year because the Feast of the Lord’s Resurrection occurs on a different date each year.  The fortieth day is the Friday before Lazarus Saturday – Lazarus Saturday and Holy Week are not counted as part of the forty days.  Great Lent is not meant to be a time of gloominess but rather a time of joyful purification – a special time to prepare for the feast of the Resurrection of Christ-Pascha, especially by reminding ourselves to live according to the two great commandments recognized by our Lord: loving God and loving our neighbors.

Family suggestions for Great Lent:

1) Check St. George parish calendar and attend at least one of the special and beautiful services of Great Lent.  2) Read together the daily Bible passages that are provided in the parish bulletin.  3) Abstain from things as much as you can, not only from certain foods but from things that distract our minds and hearts from focusing on God, including things like not using an iPod or a computer as much as usual. 4) Volunteer to help someone in need, like at a homeless shelter.

How does Great Lent apply to me? 

If you play sports, or an instrument, or act in a school play, you know how important discipline is: it is what keeps you practicing and preparing even on days when you don’t want to, because you are thinking of how great it will be when the special day of the event arrives; part of the great feeling that day is thinking back on how valuable all the preparation was.  The same is true for Great Lent and the Feast of Christ’s Resurrection: The more you and your family partake in the suggestions above, the more glorious the actual feast day will be – celebrating Christ’s resurrection and the promise of our own!