Lent

Below are Catholic Church guidelines, resources and our schedule of Lenten events to help you on your journey towards Easter.

Ash Wednesday, February 14, 2018 is the beginning of our Lenten journey to Easter joy.  Traditionally, Catholics use this time to examine themselves, their strengths and weaknesses, their relationships, and most of all, their relationship with God.  Is there a bad habit you've been meaning to address?  Is there a new good habit you've been wanting to begin?  Now is the time!  The act of "giving something up" or adding a particular practice to our routine is all centered on our own interior growth- a denying of "self" and a new openness to God. St.Mary of the Angels offers many opportunities for spiritual growth in the many ministries and faith based activities already in place, as well as offering new opportunities this Lent.  

Reconciliation/ Confession
Catholics are to faithfully confess serious sins at least once a year. 
We offer confession in the basilica Mondays at 5PM. 

Holy Week Confession at the Basilica

Monday, March 26 4:30-5:30 am
Tuesday, March 27 after 7:00 Mass from 7:45-8:30 am
Wednesday, March 28 after 12:15 Mass from  12:45-1:30 pm
Wednesday, March 29  7:00 pm until all are heard.

Lenten Penance Services

March 20    St. Joseph Church on Walnut Ave. at 6:30 PM

March 22    St. Bonaventure Church in Allegany at 6:30 PM

March 12    Our Lady of Peace at Salamanca at 7:00 PM

March 10    St. Philomena in Franklinville at 10:00 AM

We will offer additional confession times during Holy Week at the Basilica- to be announced.

Lenten Regulations:

Abstinence from meat All Catholics 14  and older are to abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday, all Fridays of Lent and Good Friday (which is also a day of fasting for most
Catholics).
Fasting is to be observed on Ash Wednesday by all Catholics who are 18 years of age but not yet 59. If medical conditions necessitate, then Catholics are exempt from fasting or abstinence. Those who are bound by this may take only one full meal. Two smaller meals are permitted if necessary to maintain strength according to one‘s needs, but eating solid foods between meals is not permitted. The special Paschal fast, as well as abstinence, are also prescribed for Good Friday and encouraged for Holy Saturday. 
Check out this link for a quick reference guide.
Holy Communion
After they have received their First Holy Communion, all the faithful are bound by the obligation of receiving Communion at least once a year. This must be fulfilled during the Easter season (ending Trinity Sunday), unless for a good reason it is fulfilled at another time. 

Stations of the Cross

Pray the Stations with us on Wednesdays (excluding Ash Wednesday) and
Fridays at 11:30AM. Friday evenings with Morning Star Family Holy Hour at
6:30 Feb 23, March 2, 9 & 23 - soup supper following downstairs. Of course,
you are invited to come pray the Stations on your own at any time.  Good
Friday-Stations prayed here at Noon. Community Way of the Cross schedule is
forthcoming.That ecumenical walk will end at the basilica this year. 

Lenten Resources:

• Download My Parish App to get Lent reflections on your mobile device. This app is a valuable resource for accessing our schedule of events, Mass/confession times, parish updates and much more! You may need to refresh your app to get the updated Lent material. Do so by clicking 3 horizontal bars on upper left corner. Choose "change parish" then choose St. Mary's again. This will re-set your app to receive the new Lent background and the reflections button on the home screen. 
• Sign up to get daily video Lenten inspiration from Matthew Kelly at dynamiccatholic.com They are about 3 min. long and can have a powerful effect on transforming your life. 
• Bishop Robert Barron offers daily reflections by signing up here.
• The United States Council of Catholic Bishops Lenten resources are here.
• Loyola Press offers Living Lent Daily, an email program delivering fresh scriptural insights to your inbox.  Other great resources can be found on their website.
• Do you like informative ( and sometimes amusing) videos? Try Ascension Presents, a Catholic You Tube site.
• Busted Halo offers a "Lent and Ash Wednesday  in 2 minutes" video.

Pope Francis' message for Lent 2018 "Come back to the Lord with all your heart this Lent."
Pope Francis’ 2018 Lenten Message is inspired by words Jesus spoke near the end of His life on the Mount of Olives regarding the end of time: “Because of the increase of iniquity, the love of many will grow cold” (Matthew 24:12). After recognizing the false prophets to which each of us has fallen prey the question Pope Francis would like us to reflect on this Lent is “What are the signs that indicate that our love is beginning to cool?” 

Lent Apps for your mobile devices - a comprehensive listing of the best apps designed for Lent. Pope Francis describes Lent as a “time of grace” and invites everyone to “live this Lent as an opportunity for engaging in … a formation of the heart.” Several Catholic apps are exclusively devoted to Lenten devotions and works of charity designed to assist you in doing just that–opening your heart to transformative graces so you can go out there and transform the world.

Questions about Lent? The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops offers a Q & A to help you understand this season of grace.

Check back frequently during the Season for updates!


Stations of the Cross every Wednesday and Friday at 11:30am
Stations of the Cross and Soup Supper on Fridays of Lent 6:30pm on Feb 23, March 2,9 & 23.  Immediately following praying the traditional Stations of the Cross, join us downstairs for soup/bread supper--a great fellowship opportunity.
Bach's Lunch - Annual Holy Week concert by the  Southern Tier Symphony. Tuesday March 27 at 11:30am. Enjoy live classical music suitable for the season. A wonderful concert to bring children to. 
Community Way of the Cross on Good Friday,   Noon to 3pm. Sponsored by the Greater Olean Association of Churches. It ends this year at our basilica.  Details to follow. 
Liturgy of the Hours - We offer this all year long, but Lent is a particularly blessed time to increase your prayer life by praying the "hours" designated by the Church with the special prayers of the Church. This takes about 15 minutes--very easy to fit into your busy day and we even provide the prayer books! We meet in church Tuesday mornings immediately following 7am Mass (aprox. 7:45am) and again on Thursday mornings (6:45) and Thursday evenings at 4:45pm, just before Adoration. We also offer this prayer on Mondays at 7:00pm at the Oratory of the Sacred Heart. Click link for more information on Liturgy of the Hours.