Saturday, March 24, 2012

The Longest Day In The Week

To me, Sunday seems longer than any other day of the week.
Oh, not in a draggy, boring, tedious way, but rather in a nice, slow, relaxed, leisurely,
take-it-easy way.
My Sunday begins on Saturday Evening with the lighting of a votive candle, [electric for safety] a prayer welcoming the Sabbath (adapted from Jewish tradition), and Evening Prayer 1.
I am wearing either a skirt with a really nice top, or a dressy pants suit. There
are pretty cloths on the end-tables where I usually keep my books.
A little later, I have my Sunday Night Supper, which is eaten slowly, usually while watching EWTN (either the current programming or something I've DVRed). There are several hours between "Bless us, O Lord," and "We give Thee thanks."
During the week, I pray only one of the Daytime Hours; on Sunday, all three. I alternate
which Hour is Current, and which two are Complementary. Also, I pray more Rosaries and
Chaplets of Mercy on Sunday.
My Sunday reading, as I've mentioned before, is also different. There are some
books I read 7 days a week, some I read only on weekdays, and some kept especially
for Sunday. My rules for a "Reserved for Sunday" book are:
1: It must be a Catholic book.
2: It can be fiction or non-fiction.
3: It cannot be a textbook or scholarly work.
4: It must be a book that I would enjoy reading during the week,
something I can look forward to returning to NEXT Sunday.
Even the games I play on the TV and the computer on Sunday are quieter than the ones I play
during the week. And Sunday is also the day on which I do Jigsaw Puzzles.
The only collection I work on is my Rosary Art Collection.
I've found that, the better Sunday has been, the easier it is to pray
Evening Prayer 2 (after Benediction and Devotion on EWTN). After Evening
Prayer 2, I say a prayer to conclude my Sunday.
I then change into weekday clothes, remove the cloths from the tables, and put back
the books.
I read once, in a Jewish book, that remembering the last Sabbath sweetens the first half of
the week, and anticipating the coming Sabbath sweetens the second half. I have found this
to be absolutely true.

1 comment:

Barbara Schoeneberger said...

I like your rituals. On Sundays I try to spend more time on spiritual things or getting out in the fine weather for some sunshine.

Encouraging news about EWTN's Fr. Anthony

Fr. Anthony hopes to be back on the air in the near future.  Oh, HOW I'm praying for that to happen! https://franciscanmissionaries.c...