A cross is marked on the forehead of a woman during an Ash Wednesday Mass last year. In 2019, Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, March 6. (CNS/Reuters)

EDITOR’S NOTE: Following are some of the spiritual enrichment opportunities being offered at parishes and institutions around the Diocese of Peoria before and during Lent. To add to this list, email cathpost@cdop.org or call The Catholic Post at 1-800-340-5630. For a round-up of fish dinners, click here.

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Soup suppers, speakers planned in Germantown Hills

GERMANTOWN HILLS — St. Mary of Lourdes Parish, 424 Lourdes Church Road, has put together a series of soup suppers and speakers for the Mondays of Lent, starting March 11. Soup will be served at 6 p.m. and the talk will follow from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.

The speakers and their topics are: March 11, “The Lenten Journey with Jesus” by Sister Betty Jean Haverback of the Sisters of St. Francis of the Immaculate Conception; March 18, “Let Me Sow Love . . . Living the Peace Prayer” by Joyce Heiple; March 25, “Entering into the Mysteries of the Rosary” by Deacon Kevin Zeeb of Blessed Sacrament, Morton; April 1, “Rejoice and Celebrate . . . in Lent?” by Sister Mary of the Apostolic Sisters of St. John, Princeville; and April 8, “Is God Speaking to Me through the Beatitudes?” by Deacon Rick Miller of Blessed Sacrament, Morton, and spiritual director of Cursillo.

For more information on this series and other faith formation opportunities, visit stmarylourdes.org.

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Lenten days of reflection will be held in March, April

“Be Still and Know. . . .” is the theme for Lenten days of reflection that are being offered on Tuesdays, March 12 and 26 and April 9, and Thursday, April 4, in the parish center of Holy Family Church, 3720 N. Sterling Ave., in Peoria. Each will be held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

An outreach ministry of St. Mary Monastery in Rock Island, the days will be presented by Sister Rachel Bergschneider, OSB, and Dr. Ted Wolgamot.

The cost is $35, which includes lunch. Checks should be made payable to Sisters of St. Benedict. For a reservation, call (309) 370-6460.

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Geneseo parish focusing on ‘A Call to Holiness’ March 17

Chuck and Alicia Brock

GENESEO — Music and reflections on Pope Francis’ apostolic exhortation, “Gaudete et Exsultate” (“Rejoice and Be Glad”), will be presented by Chuck and Alicia Brock on Sunday, March 17, at St. Malachy Church, 595 E. Ogden Ave. “A Call to Holiness” begins at 6:30 p.m.

The Brocks live in Solon, Iowa, with their three children. Chuck is the director of music and youth ministry at St. Mary Church in Solon, and Alicia is an elementary school music teacher. Together they own and operate a local music studio, giving lessons and producing music. From 2006 to 2011, they were leaders for Leap of Faith Ministries, a college-based outreach ministry. For more information on them, visit chuckandalicia.com.

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Morton parish hosting ‘The Shroud Encounter’ March 16

Russ Breault

MORTON — A museum-quality, life-size replica of the Shroud of Turin will be on display on Saturday, March 16, at Blessed Sacrament Church, 1020 S. First Ave. Russ Breault, an international expert, will present “The Shroud Encounter” at 6:30 p.m.

A production of the Shroud of Turin Education Project Inc., “The Shroud Encounter” is a fast-moving, big-screen experience using more than 200 images covering all aspects of research about the shroud.

The 14-foot-long linen cloth, which has been in Turin, Italy, for more than 400 years, bears the faint image of a 5-foot-10-inch bearded, crucified man with apparent wounds and bloodstains that match the crucifixion account in the Bible. It is one of the most analyzed artifacts in the world, and yet it remains a mystery.

There is no charge to attend “The Shroud Encounter,” but a free-will donation will be accepted. For more information about the presentation or Breault, visit ShroudEncounter.com.

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Jon Lionetti to lead Lenten mission at Silvis church

Jon Lionetti

SILVIS — Catholic speaker, author, and radio host Jon Lionetti will lead a Lenten mission at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, 800 17th St., on three consecutive evenings beginning on Monday, March 18.

“Surge of the Heart” is the theme of the mission. Each program begins at 7 p.m.  There is no cost to attend, but a free-will offering will be received.

Lionetti’s first two books, “Mission of the Family” and “Your God Is Too Boring,” are featured in Matthew Kelly’s Dynamic Catholic Book Program. Lionetti’s “Surge of the Heart,” according to Kelly, is “one of the most inspiring parish missions available in America today.”

More information on Lionetti and the parish mission is available at surgeoftheheart.com.

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Stations of the Cross in Urbana will feature singing of “Stabat Mater” on March 22

URBANA — A Stations of the Cross service planned at St. Patrick Church here on Friday, March 22, will feature the singing of “Stabat Mater,” a hymn on the suffering of the Virgin Mary at the Crucifixion composed by Giovanni Battista.

The hymn will be sung interwoven around the individual stations by Carolee Fairbanks, soprano, and Emilie Williams, mezzo-soprano, accompanied by the Soli Deo Gloria Chamber Orchestra conducted by Franklin Gallo.

The Stations begin at 5:15 p.m. A Lenten fish dinner will be served in the parish center immediately following the Stations.

St. Patrick Church is located at 708 W. Main in Urbana.

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St. Vincent de Paul, Peoria, invites women to be “Inspired!” on March 23

Mary Lenaburg

Writer and speaker Mary Lenaburg will give two talks at the St. Vincent de Paul Women’s Lenten Retreat, set for Saturday, March 23, in the church, 6001 N. University St., in Peoria. It will begin at 7:45 a.m. and include Mass, eucharistic adoration and time for the sacrament of reconciliation, as well as lunch.

The theme for Lenaburg’s talks is “Trust the Lord with All Your Heart.” She will use Scripture and personal experience to delve into how to infuse faith into life when life challenges seem to be their bleakest.

The cost for the day, which ends at 2 p.m., is $10. Reservations are due by March 15 and may be made by contacting Katie Brautigam at katie.brautigam@pepsico.com.

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Devotion to the wounds of Christ offered March 22 at Holy Family, Peoria

The Conventual Franciscan Friars, the Secular Franciscans of the Sacred Heart Fraternity, and the parish community of Holy Family, 3270 N. Sterling Ave., in Peoria are offering a devotional prayer, “Corda Pia,” on Friday, March 22. It will be held in the church at 6 p.m.

The “Corda Pia” is the oldest known devotion of the Franciscan Order in honor of Christ crucified. It honors in a special way the five wounds of Jesus, which were borne in the stigmata of St. Francis of Assisi.

Traditionally prayed during Lent, especially on Fridays, the “Corda Pia” has its theological and spiritual foundation in 1 Peter 2:24, “By his wounds you are healed.”

The name of the devotion comes from the first two words of the opening hymn: “Corda pia inflammantur, dum Francisci celebrantur, stigmatum insignia” or “Gentle hearts are set on fire in the telling of Francis’ stigmata.”

In addition to the “Corda Pia,” Holy Family has Stations of the Cross at 6 p.m. each Friday in Lent. A fish fry is also held Fridays from 4 to 7 p.m. in the school gym.