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S. Martino, Villareggia (Ivrea - Italy)
Parish priest knocks at family door
Lenten prayer
in parish families

A parish priest at Canavese country (Italy), Don Matteo Somà, speaks about this his brief but significant parish experience:

"This parish has about one thousand inhabitants. Last year (1997) I proposed a Lenten experience of prayer in family: forty days in forty families diverse.

At the beginning of Lent we blessed in Church prayer candle and we delivered it to the first family.

Every day the candle changed family and every evening that family invited friends and next-door neighbours for just half an hour of prayer. Together with a deacon every Lenten evening I went to a family to animate prayer.

In the evening, on the drawing room table there was the prayer candle and the Bible. On the door of the house a Christ icon invited to prayer.

the prayer had an moment of hearing of the daily God's Word and a moment of silence. Afterwards, a brief moment of sharing ended by a litany prayer and by Our Father. We changed prayers almost every evening, but the scheme remained unchanged.

This has been an experience that reached about one half of the whole population. Every family could live her missionary and prayer dimension. I think almost all people received an invitation.

I willing share this initiative because it looked me very useful".


edited by
fr. Paolo Benvenuto <donpaolo@gsi.it >
Via Salgari 4/4 - 16156 GENOVA PEGLI
ITALY

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