Lent’s 40-day observance is a season of repentance. By prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, we learn to reject the allure of power, pleasure, and money to live more totally for God and his purposes.
“Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”
40-Hours Devotional (not held this year)
Father Daniel’s Lenten Letter
Where love exists, it works great things. But when it ceases to act, it ceases to exist.
~ Pope Saint Gregory the Great
Dear Saints,
Love is the hard-fought, hard-won reality of heaven itself. In short, it is the most powerful force in the world.
True love is not an emotion, but a decision. As St. Thomas Aquinas said, it is willing the good of the other for the sake of the other. Love may or may not align with our own comfort, security, plans, or desires, and it doesn’t matter - we do it anyway. That’s the force that changes the world.
The challenge, of course, is that when the decision to will the good of another doesn’t line up with our comfort, security, plans, or desires, we enter the realm of self-sacrifice, and that’s not an easy space for any of us. It takes a firm disposition, a great deal of grace, and a lot of practice.
Enter Lent: training ground for lovers.
Lent is the season of taking small steps towards becoming people who work great things by our sacrificial love. To be sure, it requires effort and self-control and, like any kind of training, is best accomplished through a program. To that end, on the back of this letter you’ll find suggestions for daily practices, categorized by the three main disciplines of Lent: prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. For maximum training success, choose one or two practices from each discipline and adhere to them faithfully throughout the forty days. You’ll also find in this letter a schedule of parish events, and I hope you’ll add them to your calendar. Like so many things in life, Lenten journeys are sweeter and more meaningful when shared with friends.
Throughout these forty days, our eyes will be fixed on Easter - that moment when the greatest love worked the greatest thing of all. Between now and then, we’re invited to practice sacrifice again and again in a dozen small ways so that, when the time comes to act, our heart’s muscle memory will know exactly what to do: we’ll choose the good of the other for the sake of the other. And through that decision we, too, will become part of the most powerful force in the world.
In Christ,
Father Daniel
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SUGGESTED PRACTICES
PRAYER
Remember that prayer time is not something we do for God; it’s something he does for us. This kind of easy, open access to a ruler is unheard of - take advantage of his approachability.
Commit to prayer as a listening and following session more than anything else. That is, let God do the talking and leading.
Ideally, try to pray for at least 30 minutes a day. If that seems too daunting, start with 15 minutes and work your way up, or break it up into three 10 minute increments.
Consider adding a prayer you don’t normally pray, if not every day, at least three times a week (e.g., the rosary, the divine mercy chaplet, the liturgy of the hours).
Every day, work your way through ACTS (adoration, contrition, thanksgiving, supplication).
Every night, undertake a genuine examination of conscience.
FASTING
Don’t fast for any reason other than it will bring you closer to Jesus. Remember that you can do hard things, and that temporary deprivation is often the shortest, surest way to healthy detachment from things that might otherwise control you.
Fast from entertainment, including social media.
Fast from unnecessary online purchases.
Give up the snooze button.
Give up seeking attention or approval from others.
Fast from day-dreaming, overthinking, or complaining.
One day a week, abstain from food and drink (except water) until 5pm.
ALMSGIVING
Remember that the purpose of giving alms is not arm’s-length philanthropy, but rather to be clued in enough to the world around us that we hear and heed the cry of the poor.
For 40 days, give a true tithe to the Church - that is, 10% of your income. Or make a commitment to increase your giving for the next 12 months and start now.
Spend some of your money on those who really need it through our Beyond the Tithe initiative: Imago Dei Behavioral Health Center.
Go through your closet and find some clothes you really like, then donate them.
Volunteer your time and talent, either here at church or someplace like a food pantry.
*For more details on our Beyond the Tithe initiative as well as all of our communal events, please visit www.olmc.church or send me an email at pastor@olmcboonton.org.
Schedule of Activities
Click below for an expanded view. All events are streamed live where possible.
Ash Wednesday Schedule of Services
All of our Ash Wednesday activities will be in-person and livestreamed.
February 18th, 2026:
7:00am Mass
8:00am Mass (with the School)
12:00pm Liturgy of the Word and Distribution of Ashes
4:00pm Liturgy of the Word and Distribution of Ashes
7:00pm Mass
Holy Week Schedule of Services
All of our Holy Week services will be held in-person and livestreamed.
Holy Thursday (April 2nd)
Morning Prayer: 8:00am
Confessions: 8:30-9:30am
Mass of the Lord’s Supper: 7:00pm
Altar of Repose*: after the Mass of the Lord’s Supper until 6:00am Friday morning
Good Friday (April 3rd)
Morning Prayer: 8:00am
Confessions: 8:30-9:30am
Celebration of the Lord’s Passion: 3:00pm
Stations of the Cross: 6:00pm
Holy Saturday (April 4th)
Morning Prayer: 8:00am
Confessions: 8:30-9:30am
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*On Holy Thursday, we “watch and pray” at the Altar of Repose. Immediately following our 7:00pm Mass of the Lord’s Supper, join us in Gordon Hall to adore Jesus in the Most Blessed Sacrament. We “keep watch” with Christ in a solemn way until midnight, and then in silence until 6:00am Friday morning.
In addition to watching at our Altar of Repose, we also invite the faithful to participate in a Holy Thursday devotion called The Seven Churches Visitation. The pilgrimage is accomplished by visiting the Altar of Repose at seven different Catholic Churches before midnight on Holy Thursday. Click HERE for more details.
Stations of the Cross
Every Friday in Lent (March 7th to April 18th) we pray the Stations of the Cross together in the church. Join us at 6:00pm (also streamed live).
Booklets to pray the Stations of the Cross are available at the church and can be found here.
Mass, Confession, and Adoration
During Lent, our regular schedule of Masses, Confession Times, and Adoration continues.
OLMC also takes part in the Diocese of Paterson’s Welcome Home to Healing initiative. On the Mondays of Lent - from February 23rd to March 30th - every church in the diocese is open for confessions from 7:00pm to 8:30pm.
Easter Masses
All of our Masses are streamed live when possible.
Saturday, April 4th
8:00pm Easter Vigil (a two- or three-hour Mass)
Sunday, April 5th
7:30am, 9:00am, and 11:00am
OLMC Livestream
Give Now
Our Lady of Mount Carmel runs on your generosity. Thank you for continuing to support our mission to light up the world with God’s love!
For help with proportional giving, and making progress towards the tithe, check out www.olmc.church/give.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel manages automated giving with DonorBox, an industry leader that harnesses the security, reliability, and convenience of PayPal, Apple Pay, and Stripe.
We also accept contributions the old-fashioned way. Please contact us with any questions.
Lent 2025: Imago Dei Behavioral Health
Every Lent we are encouraged to go beyond the tithe in order to meet the needs of the world.
Our beyond-the-tithe challenge for this Lent is Imago Dei Behavioral Health, an initiative launched by OLMC to provide professional counseling grounded in clinical expertise, compassionate care, and Christian faith to support healing and lasting growth. Our goal is to raise at least $20,000 for this great work.
Our beyond-the-tithe campaign is a great opportunity for us to give sacrificially this Lent.
OLMC Parish Fish Fry
Our Fish Fry is back! Order your dinner today.
Catered once again by the exquisite Tastefully British, this year’s event will take place on Friday, March 13th from 6:00pm to 8:00pm in the school gym. The $20 per dinner price is an adult portion of fish, chips, and coleslaw. Eat-in and take-home orders are available.
All orders must be placed in advance. The closing date for all orders is Friday March 6th - no exceptions!