Free printable Catholic Christian and Bible coloring pages for Ash Wednesday and Lent

Hello my friends of the Omschool, My family is Catholic and follows Catholic Christian teachings in what we call the liturgical calendar.  Today is Fat Tuesday (where we use up all sweets in the house) Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday when we enter into a time called Lent. Lent is the 40-day countdown to Holy Week (Palm Sunday through Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter). During this time we "follow Jesus" through the desert where he was tempted by the Devil. We practice fasting (giving up certain treats to get closer to God), almsgiving (sharing with those in need) and prayer (talking to God). Here are some free printable Catholic activities based on stories from the Bible to help your family follow Jesus in the Lenten journey. 

Let's start with free printable Catholic coloring pages featuring Bible stories. prayer, sacraments, mass, Gospel, saints, Lent, Advent, holidays and holy days, life of Jesus, Catholic saints' feast days, rosary and stations of the cross. Whew! That's a lot! And The Catholic Kid has free printable Catholic coloring pages galore. 

Catholic Sprouts (love the name) has free printable Catholic activities, Bible coloring pages and Christian crafts. It looks like they are all free to print from a download or PDF. Isn't it amazing how generous people are? There are so many to love but my favorites are printable Catholic ABCs in Spanish and Joyful, Sorrowful and Glorious and Luminous Mysteries of the Rosary coloring book to print free. 

Use these free printable Bible coloring pages to make a Lenten Walk with Jesus countdown calendar. Color one picture a day, to celebrate Jesus and all he did on earth: miracles of Jesus, Sermon on the Mount, baptism, holy communion (or Eucharist) and more. Put them in order in a booklet to read to younger siblings. 

Paper Dali has free printable Catholic and Bible story coloring pages and paper dolls to cut, color and assemble. I'm linking you to her home page because I want you to see  how big her collection is. Also, I want to honor her request not to use for anything but personal use. So I'm not sharing any here but linking back.  

St. Anne's Helper has many free Catholic, Christian and Bible coloring pages and activities for Lent and throughout the liturgical calendar. Some are for purchase and some are free. 

Catholic Icing has been one of  my go-to resources for years. I linked to the homepage so you can click around and find what you need. Here is the Lent page with all kinds of Catholic activities. 

Catholic Playground has some of the loveliest vintage Catholic coloring pages to print that I have ever seen. I think they must come from children's books or CCD materials. I think Our Lady of Lourdes is my favorite. 

Karen's Whimsy has been one of my favorite vintage coloring pages sites since I began writing online in 2006 😲(has it been 20 YEARS!?) On her page called "Christianity" you'll find dozens of gorgeous images created from old manuscripts, Bibles, prayer books, etc. Have children color these and make a living stations of the cross. 

And last but not least, is my friend Marilyn The Toymaker, with free printable vintage toy crafts to color, cut and paste. All made by the toymaker herself and free to print. I've linked to the Easter pages but there's so much more and that's  just the holidays. Check out her vintage animal paper crafts. Some are religious and some are just adorable.  Children could make these paper toys as acts of Lenten service and donate to children's missions, senior homes and more. Moses, I think you direct your siblings to make very nice Sun Boxes.

May all your Lenten journeys be all you need them to be. Love, Teacher Omi

Free Printable Lent Lesson Plans, Lenten Calendars

The Catholic church enters the Lenten season of preparation before Easter. For Catholic and Orthodox Christians, Easter is about more than just bunnies and candy. Easter celebrates the Passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. During Lent, which begins on Ash Wednesday, Christians ready themselves for Jesus's coming with prayer, fasting and almsgiving. The date of Ash Wednesday changes each year as Easter is a "movable feast." In 2015, Ash Wednesday is Feb. 18.Here are free printable stations of the cross, rosary, saints and Easter bible story coloring pages.

Lenten season runs for 46 days up to Easter. Lent "follows" Jesus's during forty days of fasting in the desert when He was tempted by Satan. in preparation for His sacrifice on the cross. During Lent, we try to imitate Jesus. We follow the "Way of the Cross" or Stations of the Cross and pray the rosary.

St. John the Baptist Religious Education has nearly 100 free printable Catholic Lenten coloring pages. Categories include:

20 free printable rosary coloring pages

--Joyful Mysteries from the Bible story of Jesus's life: the annunciation, the Visitation, the Birth of Jesus, the Presentation and Finding the Child Jesus in the Temple

--Sorrowful Mysteries from the Bible story of Jesus's life: the Agony in the Garden, the Scourging, the Crowning with Thorns, Carrying the Cross and the Crucifixion

--Glorious Mysteries (heavenly events) in Jesus's life include the Resurrection, the Ascension, the Descent of the Holy Spirit, the Assumption and the Crowning of Mary Queen of Heaven.

--Luminous Mysteries: the Baptism of Jesus, the Wedding at Cana (Jesus's first public miracle), the Proclamation of the Kingdom and the Institution of the Holy Eucharist. These are Bible events from the life of Jesus.

There are free printable Stations of the Cross coloring pages, one for each of the 15 stations. SJB has nearly 20 free printable Apostles Creed coloring pages. You can print free saints coloring pages of St. Patrick, Mary Mother of God, St. Joan of Arc, St. Philomena, St. Tarcisius, St. Clare, St. Maximilian Kolbe, St. Joseph, St. Francis of Assisi, St. Valentine and other saints. There are several of Pope Francis.

Use these free printable Catholic Easter coloring pages for Ash Wednesday, Lent devotions, Holy Week, Palm Sunday and the Easter Triduum: Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday and finally Easter Sunday. Make a Stations of the Cross coloring book for mass and to keep little ones quiet during devotions and to reflect during your stations prayers. The images are beautifully drawn. Many were created from stained glass windows in various churches. These coloring pages make great lent devotional activities to prepare children for Easter. For more free printable Catholic Christian printables, please visit my blogs Catholic Activities and Lent Activities.