Psalm Reading for Lent

It is customary in the Orthodox Church to read and pray with the book of Psalms during Lent. Monastic people read the psalter through once a week. During Lent it’s doubled; they read the whole book of Psalms twice a week. Does this make reading them once over 6 weeks seem more possible? Below is a calendar for the assigned Psalms for each day for this month. The book of Psalms is in the Old Testament of every bible. Reading and praying the Psalms is a joy! There are 150 Psalms, and they cover a complete range of human emotions and experiences.

The Psalms that refer to Israel’s deliverance are in reference to Christ’s redemption of the whole world. The Psalms that call for victory over the enemies in battle refer to the only real enemy, the devil, and all of his evil works, which Christ has come to destroy. Babylon is the sphere of Satan, and Jerusalem, the eternal Kingdom of God. The Psalms that lament the innocent suffering of the righteous are sung as the plea of the Lord Himself. Various Psalms express anger, frustration, fear, depression, sorrow, repentance and even complaining. Other Psalms give praise for God’s creation and remind us that we are caretakers of what is not ours, but God’s. St. Athanasius said, “Each of these books, [of the Bible] you see, is like a garden which grows one special kind of fruit; by contrast, the Psalter is a garden which, besides its special fruit, grows also some of those of all the rest.”

Click the Bible for a link to the Psalms