Participants in the Magnify Lenten Retreat organized by the Peoria Diocesan Council of Catholic Women gather on the altar at St. Mary’s Cathedral in Peoria on March 9. Provided photo

As we prepare to “magnify” Jesus during our celebrations of Holy Week and the Easter Triduum, we shine a light on the Lenten preparation of the Peoria Diocesan Council of Catholic Women (PDCCW), who held their second annual Magnify Lenten Retreat at St. Mary’s Cathedral on March 9.

The two and a half hours were filled with prayer, song, adoration, a Eucharistic procession, confession, and Holy Mass.

Attendees take part in adoration during the Magnify Lenten Retreat at St. Mary’s Cathedral on March 9.

Organizer April Adams reports that music accompanied every aspect of the program, from the sung verses after each decade of the rosary, to the traditional “O Saving Victim” and “Down in Adoration Falling” during exposition and benediction, to the more recent “Jesus, Jesus,” as attendees processed behind the monstrance holding our precious Lord.

Adams said “powerful” was the word participants used to sum up the experience, and she added, “It was a beautiful morning of prayer, worship, and adoration to glorify God, love Him, and magnify Him.”