The Sacred Sacrifice: Cultivating Lenten Traditions with Bach’s Great Passion
Easter, the annual celebration of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, is the most significant holy day on the Christian calendar. And yet, even while we diligently focus our families on Christ in the weeks before Christmas, we often find that Easter sneaks up on us, catching us totally unprepared.
Lent, the period of forty days leading up to the weekend marking the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, is traditionally a time in the church’s calendar to meditate on the gravity of our sin and our deep need for a Savior. Observing Lent makes the good news of Easter resonate more gloriously with us.
Paperback
212 pages
5.5 x 0.6 x 8.5 inches
Download Sample Pages
In The Sacred Sacrifice: Cultivating Lenten Traditions with Bach’s Great Passion, Hannah Paris leads us into establishing a beautiful Lenten tradition for families of listening to Johann Sebastian Bach’s St. Matthew Passion. She makes it easy for you to journey through Lent with Bach, on your own or with your family.
Make Lent memorable for your family with:
- Daily listening schedule for Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, including the German and parallel English libretto
- Occasional poems and other readings
- Suggested activities for observing Shrove Tuesday, Ash Wednesday, Holy Saturday, and others
- Recipes for Shrove Tuesday and Easter
The official companion book to Hallelujah: Cultivating Advent Traditions with Handel’s Messiah by Cindy Rollins, The Sacred Sacrifice helps families integrate Bach’s masterpiece oratorio St. Matthew Passion, which musically tells the narrative of chapters 26 and 27 of the Gospel of Matthew, into their Lenten observance.
Recommended Resources to Accompany The Sacred Sacrifice
Audio CD: Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, John Eliot Gardiner and the Monteverde Choir
Spotify Playlist: The Sacred Sacrifice
Youtube Playlist: The Sacred Sacrifice Listening on YouTube
Introducing Hannah Paris
Hannah Paris is a writer with a background in secondary education and language development studies. After many years in the jungles of Papua New Guinea, Hannah and her family now live with the koalas and wallabies in Far North Queensland, Australia. She and her husband started their lives together as sociolinguistic researchers in a Bible translation organization. They continue to work in Bible translation from their home in Australia while homeschooling their three daughters. Find out more about Hannah at her website TheParisFamily.com.