“Blessed are they who dwell in you house” (Communion antiphon Ps 83)

The Church may be thought of as an extra room in everybody’s house. It is not simply a place to meet on Sundays, but a dwelling place where we find a home by the altar of God. As well as daily Mass at various times, we have devotions to aid our faith and spur us on to charity.

Friday is a privileged day because it is the day on which Our Lord died for us. Good Friday is the greatest Friday of the year, but every Friday is a day on which to remember the passion of Christ, perhaps by the Prayer before the Crucifix, the Divine Mercy devotion, or meditation on the Passion.

In our everyday lives, Friday has an impact because as Catholics, we observe abstinence from meat. This simple and undemanding act of penance is a reminder to ourselves, and often an act of witness for others.

During Lent, we give a special place to the Stations of the Cross. In this devotion, we contemplate the sufferings of Our Lord so that we may have compassion for Him, and increase our love for Him. We recall the damage that our own sins do, their effect on ourselves and others, and the wounds that they inflict upon our Holy Redeemer. In this devotion we receive the grace to change our lives, to live for Christ and to deepen our faith.

True devotion can never be opposed to the life of charity. By engaging our mind and heart in pious exercises which draw us closer to Christ, we are opened to the grace which God desires to give us, and through repentance and new fervour, we become more generous in the service of others.