Thought and Prayer of the Day
by Deacon Joanne Warman
March 27, 2025
This coming Sunday will be the fourth Sunday of Lent (how time flies when you’re having fun!). The joy of Easter is just around the corner.
In some traditions this Sunday is known as Laetare Sunday. Laetare is a Latin word associated with the entrance antiphon in a Roman Catholic mass reflecting on Isaiah 66:10-11: “Rejoice, Jerusalem, and all who love her. Be joyful, all who were in mourning; exalt and be satisfied at her consoling breast.” Laetare simply means rejoice. Laetare Sunday expresses hope and joy in the midst of Lenten fasts and penances.
In addition to being a Sunday for rejoicing, the colour in some churches changes. The purple is changed into a pink or rose colour much like the third Sunday of advent changes to a pink candle in the advent wreath.
Laetare Sunday is the Church’s way of giving us a “shot in the arm” as we approach the dark days of Good Friday and Holy Saturday. It’s an opportunity to savor and keep in the back of our minds what awaits us on Easter Sunday — the reality that Jesus Christ is risen from the dead, and that our hearts will always be filled with joy!
For our parish, this coming Sunday will be the fourth Sunday of Lent, the colours of the vestments will still be purple but every Sunday is a reminder of the resurrection. We may still have pass up the sweets at coffee hour but Easter is drawing closer every day and what a day of rejoicing that will be!!
PRAYER:
Loving Creator
We feel the pace of Lent quicken and are filled with joy as we draw closer to Easter.
Teach us to follow the example of your Son, to be worthy of being called one of His followers.
Help us to live each day as he did – turning hatred into love and conflict into peace.
We anticipate the celebration of your Son’s resurrection with eagerness and joy.
AMEN
Source: https://dioceseofprovidence.org/news/prayer-for-the-fourth-sunday-of-lent
