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Melkite Greek Catholic Church Information Center

Holy and Glorious Pascha Preparation - Great Lent and Great and Holy Week - Charity: Good works or Alms-giving

Great Lent and Great and Holy Week are the time of preparation for celebrating Feast of Feasts Holy and Glorious Pascha.

Traditionally, Great Lent and Great and Holy Week are a time of increased charity.

We prepare by charitable works.

Charity is a means of spiritual growth. In charitable works, we share the good things Holy God has given us.

Traditional/Recommended/Common practice

Good works, or alms-giving, or charity, is also a major part of Great Lent. Remember that in the parable of the Last Judgement in the Gospel of St Matthew, our Lord Jesus Christ says that our salvation depends on how we treat other people, because when we encounter them we encounter Christ Himself.

We should try to do a good work / chariable act every day.

Also, we cannot simply think pray that God will have mercy on those who are sick or suffering or in need. We must show our faith by doing what we can to help also.

How do we do good works? We give time, effort, things, and money. The emphasis is on the personal action: time and effort. Here are some suggestions. Perhaps during Great Lent you can make a special effort to visit people who are sick, or make an extra contribution to a charitable organization, or sponsor someone participating in efforts like Walks or Bicycle Rides for organizations. Also, you can bring donations of food for our parish Food Bank.

The Melkite-Greek Catholic Diocese of Newton has "The Shepherd's Care" to Help the Poor

During Great Lent every year, every Melkite Greek Catholic in the US is asked to contribute to the Shepherd's Care, our national charity. The donations to the Shepherd's Care from all the parishes and missions are collected and used to help the poor, the needy, and the afflicted. One way to contribute is to put a certain amount each day into the little Mite Box distributed in church at the beginning of Lent. Another way is to set aside the money you save by fasting. Still another way is to decide on a sacrificial offering for the whole time of Lent, and to write a check for that amount. On the second Sunday after Pascha, 14 April, we will have a collection for the Shepherd's Care, to gather all of our offerings to help those in need.

The Melkite-Greek Catholic Diocese of Newton's Diocesan Office of Melkite Charities has a national program, called "The Shepherd's Care". Every Melkite is asked to set aside money during Great Lent, preferably by sacrificing some non-essential self-indulgence, to donate to "The Shepherd's Care" for the poor. On the Sunday after Pascha, these monies are collected in every parish and sent to Melkite Charities--more than $26,000 in the year 2000. From these funds, grants are given to help orphans in the Middle East, to help earthquake and flood victims, to support charitable programs sponsored by our Church here in the US. A good way to put aside money for "The Shepherd's Care" is to figure out how much you save by fasting and instead of spending it at the supermarket, give it to charity. Or write a generous check now, to keep from spending it on things you don't need.

Every year, every person in every parish in this Melkite-Greek Catholic Diocese is asked during Great Lent to help the poor by giving to "The Shepherd's Care" campaign. Though spread far and wide over the United States, we are able to do much good when we join together. Our efforts at spiritual growth, concentrated during Lent, must bear fruit, and the Fathers of the Church recognized this in their call to join almsgiving to fasting and prayer. Almsgiving means "lovingly offering assistance to the poor." Our almsgiving ought to be somehow directly connected to our fasting--by denying ourselves something, we have more to give to others who need it. Figure how much you save by fasting and give that, or give a certain amount each day during Lent. A dollar a day is not much of a sacrifice, but $40 dollars could be a lot of help to the poor. Put some money aside every day or every week as a sacrificial offering to the poor. On the Sunday after Pascha, offerings are collected and sent to the Diocesan Office of Charities to be combined with the offerings of all the Melkite-Greek Catholic people of the USA.

All Melkites in the US are asked to participate in our nation-wide diocesan Lenten charity, The Shepherd's Care.Since 1988 our Melkite parishes throughout the US have been called upon to join in an effort of charitable giving. While we are called to hear the cry of the poor in all seasons, it is especially during Lent, with our more serious efforts at fasting, and our increased prayer in church and at home, that the Church has challenged us to show the "fruits of repentance" by sharing with those who are needy and in distress. A flyer about The Shepherd's Care and "mite boxes" for making your daily offerings will be distributed to everyone in the church today. At the end of Great Lent, bring your mite box to church, joining your sacrifice with those of your brothers and sisters in Christ. The money collected in all the churches is sent to the Diocesan Office of Charities to be distributed to those in need.

Great Lent is Forty Days.

Great Lent is Forty Days.   The 40-day count begins begins at the beginning of the Vespers of Clean Monday on the evening of the Sunday of Cheesefare/Forgiveness and ends just before the Vespers of Lazarus Saturday on the evening of the last Friday in Great Lent. Sundays do count.

Traditions

Traditions of Great Lent and Holy Week Melkite Greek Catholic Church Eparchy of Newton

More Information

Alms Giving Holy Transfiguration Melkite Greek-Catholic Church, McLean, VA

Saint Ignatios of Antioch Melkite Greek Catholic Church Then click on Resources. The first category is Lenten Information.

Everything You Wanted to Know About Lent But Were Afraid to Ask St. George Melkite-Greek Catholic Church, Sacramento, CA

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Melkite Greek Catholic Church Information Center is dedicated to my cousins: Bucky (Richard C. Liles), Shirley (Shirley Jean Liles Buck), and Donna (Donna Bertha Liles Campbell). Bucky fell asleep in the Lord on Dec. 12, 2000, Shirley fell asleep in the Lord on Nov. 8, 2001, and Donna fell asleep in the Lord on March 9, 2020.
O God of all spirits and of all flesh, who have destroyed death, overcome the devil, and given life to the world: grant, O Lord, to the souls of your servants Bucky and Shirley, who has departed from this life, that it may rest in a place of light, in a place of happiness, in a place of peace, where there is no pain, no grief, no sighing. And since You are a gracious God and the Lover of Mankind, forgive him/her every sin he/she has committed by thought, or word, or deed, for there is not a man who lives and does not sin : You alone are without sin, your righteousness is everlasting, and your word is true. You are the Resurrection and the Life, and the repose of your departed servants Bucky and Shirley. O Christ our God, and we send up glory to You, together with your eternal Father and your all-holy, good and life-giving Spirit, now and always and for ages upon ages. Amen.

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Last Updated: Wednesday, June 03, 2020, 19:25:16, CDT
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