Thank God for the beauty of spring! The daffodils are already in bloom at our house, and wherever you look, you can feel spring about to explode. In less than two weeks, we will enjoy the fragrance of Easter lilies, so it makes sense in this fourth week of the month to focus on the role of beauty in family culture. 
 
Think back: When was the last time your whole family did one of the following together?  

• enjoyed nature, like a sunset or a family hike;
• marveled at art, such as a painting or a great piece of music;
• knelt together at Adoration to admire and praise God’s glory.

In other words, are we creating opportunities for our families to turn toward beauty in a shared experience of awe that cultivates a spirit of wonder and praise? 

Such moments are so important. They take us out of ourselves. They place us closer to communal worship, which is what we’re made for—culminating, please God, in beholding the beatific vision together for all eternity.

And yet, how often are we undercutting the opportunities to gently turn our families toward God by:

• being alone in our rooms, on screens;
• breaking up our families in pursuit of too many individual extracurriculars;
• using Sunday to get more work done, rather than spend time together as a family 

Usually, our families don’t just stumble upon a shared experience of beauty. It’s not like the “up next” icon on the screen that automatically cues up the next episode. Instead, we need to prepare for it, cultivate it, desire it, even pray for it.
 
Here’s the good news—Sundays are the perfect day for families to not only worship the Lord, but to extend this shared worship into experiences of appreciating beauty together. 
 
As we approach Palm Sunday, Holy Week and the Sacred Triduum, let’s give thanks for the beauty that surrounds us. And let’s all prepare our hearts to behold the beauty and wonder of the Resurrection.

“‘Beauty will save the world,’ because this beauty is Christ, the only beauty that defies evil, and triumphs over death” (The Way of Beauty).