Easter is the oldest and most important feast on our church calendar. The Easter cycle, also called Paschal cycle, has three components:

First there is LENT , 40 days of preparation leading to the high point, the THREE HOLY DAYS of the Paschal TRIDUUM. The celebration of Easter continues for 50 days to Pentecost.

The Paschal Triduum is the High point of the liturgical year. All else points towards it or flows from it. It is important to understand the whole of the Easter cycle as a unit.

As Art and Environment ministers we think about this span of time from Ash Wednesday through Pentecost as a whole before preparing for its parts.

Part I - Lent:

Already in the first century Lent solidified into a forty day preparation time for baptism. In the following three centuries, a penitential dimension with a call to repentance and reconciliation developed. After the fifth century, Lent becomes more individualistic, a private devotion and penance time, a list of things to give up, with a focus on the suffering Christ.

Today the church calls us back, to journey together as a people into renewal. We are called to a deeper personal relationship through prayer, fasting, alms giving and a renewal of our baptismal promises. Liturgically, we clean up the church, remove greenery, create spaciousness, emptiness, we need to make time to journey into Renewal.

The colour of Lent is PURPLE.

Our Lenten Wallhanging to the left of the wooden doors in the Welcoming Space depicts our long journey together, through the ups and downs of life, but is focused on the high point of the sacred TRIDUUM - the passion - death - and resurrection of Christ indicated by three circles. The red colour in the outer circle and beyond points to Pentecost.