Sunday Supplements, St. Patrick’s Day and Looking Ahead to Easter

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Q U I C K S C A N

Parish Site of the Month
Worth a Click

Lent is a busy season for parish webmasters. Catholic sites often see their highest traffic of the year now. As practicing Catholics seek to renew their faith, many of those who have fallen away from the Church for whatever reason come to Catholic sites, seeking nourishment and inspiration—or a way to return.

In addition to posting links to our Lent page, updated throughout the season, send your Web site visitors to a new feature at AmericanCatholic.org. Sunday Supplements, a source for further inspiration during Lent, includes Sunday readings, seasonal links and For the Ride Home, a parish bulletin insert with questions for reflection and quotes from Scripture, saints and Catholic writers. For the Ride Home is updated weekly (a few days before Sunday Mass) and previous issues are available in an archive.

March 17 is St. Patrick’s Day. It’s also an opportunity to teach others about the Christian roots of this feast day and its significance beyond the celebration in secular culture. Send your site visitors to our St. Patrick feature, where they will not only learn about the life and legends of St. Patrick, but also explore Celtic spirituality and find ways to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with family and friends. CatholicGreetings.org also provides a collection of St. Patrick e-cards with Irish prayers and blessings.

The Easter season is a little over a month away (Easter Sunday is March 27). Help your site visitors prepare for Holy Week with a link to information on Triduum rituals found in “Lenten Customs: Baptism Is the Key.” A week or so before the start of Easter, provide a graphic link to our “From Easter to Pentecost” feature on your Web site. The feature has been updated with links to “We Believe in the Resurrection,” the latest Catholic Update exploring the meaning of the Resurrection, and the online version of Eucharist: Jesus With Us, a new 12-month newsletter discussing every aspect of the Eucharist.

As we celebrate the season of Lent and prepare for Easter, continue to send your site visitors to our Eucharist feature using the Eucharist logo and link. In addition to submitting reflections to be posted in our Eucharist forum, encourage others to share stories with St. Anthony Messenger. An October 2005 article will be written based on personal experiences. For more information and Eucharist reflections from 201 Inspirational Stories of the Eucharist, see “Transformed by the Body of Christ” in the current issue of the magazine.

Parish Site of the Month

Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Church, Archdiocese of Los Angeles
Every week, the homepage of this parish Web site is updated with new artwork, "Question of the Week" and links based on the liturgical season and Sunday readings. This Web site not only stays fresh and inviting by updating its content on a regular basis, but also creates a multimedia and interactive experience for users. Read or listen to Fr. Tom Welbers's homilies (they date back to Dec. 1, 2002), and share your thoughts on upcoming homilies in Fr. Tom's new Web blog, where he invites comments from everyone who sees the site, not just parishioners.

Worth a Click

 
The Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston
This simple, attractive Web site greets visitors with a Welcome message from the Archbishop Archbishop Joseph Fiorenza and a link to his most recent pastoral message, “Lent: Prayer, Fasting, Almsgiving.” Learn about the archdiocese by browsing the javascript menu on the right of the homepage or by searching for specific keywords and phrases using the site’s search engine. Use interactive maps provided to help site visitors learn more about the parishes and schools in the Galveston and Houston areas. Also, be sure to check out The Texas Catholic Herald, the official publication of the ardiocese.

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