• Prayer, fasting and almsgiving are closely related during Lent.
• Almsgiving is primarily monetary giving.
• Campus Ministry sponsors two almsgiving programs.

For most Marquette students "the big three" stands for James, McNeal and Matthews. But during Lent, that is not all it stands for.

For the Rev. Simon Harak, director of Marquette's Center for Peacemaking, "the big three" refers to the pillars of Lent: prayer, fasting and almsgiving.

Almsgiving consists of giving material help to people who need it, Harak said. He said it can also include serving others in a broader sense. There are no strict rules for almsgiving, he said.

It comes from the idea that all material objects come from God and are to be used for the common good, Harak said.

Almsgiving is a practice that is emphasized during the Lenten series, said Gerry Fischer, assistant director of Campus Ministry.

Lent is a special time to see how we are relating to God, self, others and things, and to see how we improve in those relationships, said the Rev. Larry Jonas, a priest at Gesu Church.

Like the members of a basketball team, the pillars of Lent work together.

"Certainly the motivation to give alms comes out of prayer," said the Rev. Doug Leonhardt, associate director of the Office of Mission and Identity.

Prayer increases the sense of community with God, Harak said. Since God came as a poor person, we ought to act as a community by helping the poor, he said.

Almsgiving also ties in with fasting.

The money you would have spent on the food that you are fasting from can be given to the poor as a way of expressing solidarity with them, Harak said.

The pillars are exemplified in Matthew 6:1-18 during Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, Leonhardt said.

That is not the only place in the Bible where alms are mentioned. The word "alms" appears 10 times in the New Testament, Jonas said.

"It's right in Scripture," he said.

There are multiple ways students can participate in this biblical tradition.

You should find a cause you feel the Holy Spirit is moving you toward in order to increase your contributions during Lent, Harak said. If you ask God where you should contribute funds, he will not take long in answering, he said.

Offerings given during mass count as almsgiving, Jonas said. Throughout Lent, special collections are taken at masses for Gesu's sister parish in Haiti, he said.

Campus Ministry also provides students with almsgiving opportunities by sponsoring two programs: Operation Rice Bowl and The H2O Project, Fischer said.

Operation Rice Bowl is a way to provide food for the hungry, Fischer said. Operation Rice Bowl, the official Lenten Program of Catholic Relief Services, calls Catholics to pray, fast and learn about the challenges of poverty overseas along with giving alms, according to the Web site.

The H2O Project encourages participants to drink only tap water for two weeks, according to the Web site. The money that would usually be spent on other drinks is donated to build wells for those in need, Fischer said.

Students can get a bracelet from Campus Ministry to remind them to only drink water, Fischer said.

The H2O Project is a way students can simultaneously participate in fasting and almsgiving, Fischer said.

Other examples of service that can count as almsgiving include serving at a meal program or tutoring, Fischer said.

"If we really look at our lifestyles, there's always room to give," he said.