The Original Meaning of Lent

Lent is a time of introspection. We read Exodus, and watch the Israelites grumbling, even after the amazing things God had done for them (Ex 17:3-7). In them, we recognize ourselves. For many of us, then, Lent is time for the spiritual equivalent of New Year’s resolutions. We set aside work on ourselves for forty days so we don’t end up wandering around in the wilderness for 40 years. We do things to burn off the excess fat that’s weighing us down, try to improve our spiritual diet, and do some meaningful spiritual exercises to strengthen the muscles we call “virtues.”

But in the early days of the Church, Lent was not so much a time to focus inward. It was time for Catholics to focus outward. It is a time not just for personal growth, but for growth of the Church.

In the days of the Church Fathers, did the whole Church fast, pray, and give alms for the forty days preceding Easter? Absolutely. But Catholics did this primarily for the sake of others rather than themselves. There were two groups of people that were the main beneficiaries of this prayer and penance: new Catholics to be baptized at Easter and lapsed Catholics to be readmitted to communion. These folks were praying and fasting during Lent to break the power of darkness in preparation for their crossing over the Jordan into the Promised Land through baptism and penance.

We ought to recover this ancient tradition and do penance for and with those who will enter or return to the Church at Easter. But there is something else that we should do. There are millions more who should be returning or entering. We need to tell them about Jesus.

“Evangelism? That’s not my charism, not my personality.” “I need more education, first.” “I evangelize by example.” But the second Vatican Council and all Popes since teach that all Catholics are called to evangelize in both deed and word. The story of the Samaritan woman (John 4) teaches the kind of evangelism that all of us can manage.

First, Jesus models it for us. He comes to a town where everyone is a member of a heretical sect and sits down by a well. A woman comes to draw water. Israelites usually don’t talk to Samaritans, much less drink out of their ritually impure vessels. To boot, men usually don’t make conversation with women. But Jesus recognizes her existence and affirms her by being willing to accept a drink from her. Once she gets over her shock, a dialogue ensues. It starts out about water, wells, Jews and Samaritans, but Jesus asks her questions that throw her off a bit and make her think. He finally asks a question that leads her to “fess up” and admit her need. She’s hungry for love, and has run through quite a few partners looking for the real thing. Jesus’ soul-piercing glance tells her that his is the love she’s been looking for. She abandons her water jar and returns to town to tell everyone about Jesus.

Did she wait till she had a master’s degree in theology? Did she sit down with people and demonstrate from Scripture why he was the Messiah? No. She simply told people, with joy, confidence, and conviction, what Jesus had done for her. And she invited people to come and experience him for themselves.

And that’s how a large portion of that heretical town came to believe. And that’s how a large portion of the Roman Empire came to believe. There were no crusades in stadiums, no TV preachers. Christians simply listened to neighbors and co-workers with respect and love, asked questions to find out their needs, and told how Jesus had met similar needs in their lives. And then an invitation was issued to come check it out.

One of our more meaningful Lenten resolutions this year ought to be to get over our fear of sharing the good news, to be aware of the spiritual needs of those around us, share his love, and invite them to Church. More people are searching than you think. “The fields are white for harvest.” (John 4:35).



Thanks to Dr Marcellino D'Ambrosio of Crossroads Initiative.

This article on the meaning of Lent originally appeared in Our Sunday Visitor as a reflection on the Scripture readings for the 3rd Sunday in Lent, year A (Ex 17:1-7; Ps 95, Rom 5:1-8 and Jn 4:5-42).

Rise, and do not be afraid!

Are you tired of Lent yet? Wondering why you chose you favorite bad habit to give up? Are you finding yourself counting the days, just waiting it out, maybe twitching a little now and then? Thinking about marching right into Burger King or making a quick stop at the bakery? Is your tongue just itching to really tell someone off? Or maybe your credit card is keeping you up at night softly sobbing from loneliness. Imagine calling the whole thing off. Right now. Just stop Lent and get off. Stop the fasting, the abstaining; stop the extra prayers and just break those promises of weekly confession, daily Mass, nightly rosary. Just stop it all. Just say NO to Lent. And get off this crazy roller coaster of a liturgical season! I mean, really now…is Jesus coming back anytime soon? Who knows? 

Imagine the disciples for a second. There they were with Jesus, their beloved teacher, and they are having trouble understanding all his mysterious talk of suffering and dying and coming back to life again. The disciples! The guys who know him best are struggling with this whole going-into-the-desert-thing. Here we are 2,000 years later, and we’re trying to understand and benefit from the example of his temptations. You had better believe I would conjure up some bread after forty days without food. Not to mention a case or two of beer! Of course, I would call down an army of angels if the Devil appeared and started tempting me. And, yea, ruling the world seems like a heady vocation with lots of perks. But I, like you, must do what Christ did. And in case we’re scared out of our minds at the very idea of what’s ahead for the Church, we have Christ on the mountain with Peter, James, and John. And we have Christ's promise: “…his face shone like the sun and his clothes became as white as light.” What sort of promise is this? What exactly is the promise of the transfiguration?

The disciples, gawking in fear at the sight of the transfigured Jesus, Moses and Elijah with him, fall flat on their faces in the dirt. Jesus touches them and says, “Rise, and do not be afraid!” When they rise, Jesus remains alone standing before them, shining brilliant white. Moses and Elijah are gone. The joyous light around him dissipates. All he says to the dumb-struck disciples is: “Do not tell the vision to anyone until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.” That’s it. That’s his explanation of what just happened. Um, what just happened? We received a revelation. And now that we have it, what are we supposed to do with it?

Let’s go back to Paul and his second letter to Timothy. Paul writes to this friend, “[God] saved us and called us to a holy life, NOT according to our works but according to His own design and the grace bestowed on us in Christ Jesus…” What makes this holy life we are called to possible? Nothing other than the gifts we have received from God, the grace “now made manifest through the appearance of our savior Christ Jesus…” Paul, writing long after the revelation on the mountain, is reminding Timothy that he must “bear [his] share of hardship for the gospel…” How? “…with the strength that comes from God.” Jesus’ transfiguration, his transformation before Peter, James, and John is our Lord’s seal on an ancient promise: endure with my strength, endure with the gifts you have been given, endure with one another, and you too will be transfigured; you too will shine like the sun, white as light. 

What do we do ‘til then? Jesus touches his frightened disciples and says to them, “Rise, and do not be afraid!” In this one command, we can hear the echo of all of the promises our Lord made to Abram: “I will make you a great nation…I will make your name great…I will bless those who bless you…All the communities of the earth shall find blessing in you.” None of these gifts are ours by right or inheritance. It is ours in faith by the promise of the One who blesses His creation with His presence. We cannot lay claim to a single blessing, not one gift from our Lord if, trembling in fear of our future, we are face down in the dirt. Or if we will not look up into the eyes of Christ; or if we refuse in our sinfulness to be transfigured, to be changed into He Whom we adore. So, rise and do not be afraid! Do not fear small sacrifices or large ones; do not fear little fasts or days of abstinence; do not fear that the Body of Christ is sick beyond healing, or that the Word is silenced against the world’s unbelief and violence. Meet your temptations for what they are: lies. Meet the Devil for who he is: a liar. And rejoice that you have been given a seal on the promise of your salvation! A bright shining promise made by he “who destroyed death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.”

What awaits our Lord in Jerusalem is an ignoble death on the Cross. He knows this. Yet he rides into Jerusalem like a slave on a donkey. And though he is cheered as a king, he is abandoned like a beggar to beg for his life. . .even as he dies. His face shone like the sun on the mountain. But it bleeds on the Cross. His clothes become brilliant white on the mountain. But when he is lifted up on the Cross, he wears a king’s purple, red with his own blood. And when he stands before the disciples shining and bright on the mountain, he stands with Moses and Elijah, the Law and the Prophets; yet in the garden he is alone. On the Cross he is a criminal among thieves. He knows all of this. And he appears to his disciples to seal an ancient promise of mercy. He appears, transfigured, to ease their doubts, to strengthen their resolve, to bolster their lagging faith. 

Are you ready yet to abandon your Lenten fasts? Your sacrifices? Are you ready to deal with the Devil and shop among his lies? Are you ready to stop this crazy ride and get off? If so, hear this one more time: “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” Listen to the Cross. Listen to the fall of the temple veil as it crashes. Listen again to Paul: “Beloved, bear your share of hardship for the gospel with the strength that comes from God.” Listen to Jesus say as he touches your hand, “Rise, and do not be afraid!”

 

 

 

Thanks to Fr Philip Newell, OP.

Feast in the desert - feast of the Annunciation

As you know, we are bound by Church law are to do penance on Fridays of Lent. (Of course, by 'we', I mean Catholics - we may have a few Protestant friends here). Today, however is Mar 25, the day we celebrate the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord.

Canon 1251 - Abstinence from meat, or from some other food as determined by the Episcopal Conference, is to be observed on all Fridays, unless a solemnity should fall on a Friday. Abstinence and fasting are to be observed on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.

Today, the Feast of the Annunciation, is Solemnity, so you are not bound to your Friday penance. (Of course, you can continue to observe penance if you choose, but today you are not bound to it. And if you do decide to skip the day of penance today, maybe I could recommend that we remain sober to Season.

In celebration of this great day, nine months before the birth of our Lord, let us consider the special event:

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, "Hail, O favored one, the Lord is with you!" But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and considered in her mind what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there will be no end." And Mary said to the angel, "How shall this be, since I have no husband?" And the angel said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. And behold, your kinswoman Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For with God nothing will be impossible." And Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her. - Luke 1:26-38

Have you been troubled by a piece of news that God broke to you unexpectedly? When you question, do you continue to trust the Lord and His ways? Perhaps God has shown you that you are not alone - there is usually someone not too far from us, who is feeling the same insecurity.

I'm just human and not some superwoman (a sharing by Priscilla Chua)

Reflecting on my pit stop of the first week of Lent, I've come to the realisation that I'm just human and not some superwoman. Taking up the challenges of being a "Warrior for Christ", I attempted to do several things like saying the morning prayers lauds (from the Universalis app on iPhone) and giving up taxi rides. According to the checklist, there are certain things that I've been religiously doing and some things I have such hard time trying to fulfil. I must admit it's so tough.

Personally I have poor time management and lousy planning skills, that's why time always seem to be insufficient for me. Committing to start my day with morning prayer (lauds) have forced me to work on them. Because of my early work timings in the morning, I pray on the way to work, which has been in the train recently. I attributed my habit of taking the cab all the time to laziness and taking the easy way out - so I can sleep more, walk lesser and definitely get to sit. But I've been sticking to the dedication and I think it has definitely helped to tighten the strings of my purse as well as the discipline to get up earlier. Part of the money saved from the supposed cab fares also gets deposited into my plastic zip lock carrier titled "Lent - Donation for a Charitable Organisation". I cannot explain the level of satisfaction watching it grow. Honestly I think I will continue the practice even after Lent.

Due to the nature of my profession (I do sales by the way), I find it so hard to fast on three slices of white bread till 7pm. Being in the office by 730am and at events from 11 to 8pm, makes me hungry all the time. Last Thursday was the second time i fast on three slices of bread and tried to pray the rosary during lunch hours. I was so tired I literally nodded off while sitting at the kopitiam (I know God still loves me even though I didn't manage to finish it!). Every moment I feel the hunger pangs, I just remind myself that it's an offering to God. For Him!

There's still a long way to go and I will strive to pray more and relate more to Jesus and His focus on God.

I am fasting! (a sharing by Joanna Jael)

Yes, it has been [more than] a week and it hasn't been easy fasting and facing endless issues in life..

I've shared with my community about something that I experienced on the second day of Lent. It wasn't something really big or something to be proud of. It was just a simple thing that made me relise how much God loves me and how He has shown me that my prayers are heard.

Every year during Lent, I will fast strictly to a meal a day with some drinks to get me through the day. As what I've always done, this year wasn't any different. Usually when I'm being offered food, I'd just take and if the food is just before me, I'd open my mouth and just eat. Last Thursday, I had my one meal and went to work. Through the day, I became hungry. During lunch time, I was doing my work and a colleague, not knowing that I'm fasting, came to me with my favourite chocolate mint love letters. The love letter was just about 5cm away from my mouth and she told me to eat. As I opened my mouth and was about to consume it, it hit me so hard that I pushed my chair back and said that I was fasting. It felt as if it was the Holy Spirit that was hitting me on my head telling me to resist from temptation. It was unbelievable at that moment. Every morning I’d pray that God will help me resist temptation especially when I am fasting.

Look how God has been good to me. It maybe a small and simple thing that had happened, but it’s a little way that God reminded me to be faithful because God has never abandon me.



What do you think? Share with the community...

A week of realisation (a sharing by Bob Wong)

The [first] week [was] truly been a week of realisation for me. In the sporadic nights that i prayed, even when it was so tempting to just say "just skipping one day won't hurt", i found my true purpose in life. Maybe not so much as to purpose but direction.

But sometimes i can't help to wonder have i truly find my direction, or is that direction from my own human nature or is that truly God's calling. In the past week for the many times i've been tested for my faith, be it in the form of fasting or in the form of prayer.

I can honestly say that i have failed several, if not many times. Also, i begin to question myself has my human nature began to take over me, or maybe it has devoured me. So much so that i don't realise that how i act is actually against God's direction.

It can also be that i think i'm too smart, that cause me to trick myself to believe that i'm actually not that bad after all. As much as i know that the wise in God's eyes are always the fools and the fools are truly those that are wise, i can't differentiate the difference between the two. Neither can i differentiate am I truly fool or am I truly wise.

I wrote this because i understand and know my faults and have probably not made the feel use of my first full week of Lent. Yet i'm determine to move forward in the direction of God and on top of my goals i would like to add on a huge task that i'm challenging myself to do. Which is to be a example of Christ to those around. Hopefully to all. "And it is in dying that we are born to eternity" (Prayer of St. Francis).

What do you think? Share with the community...

The first remedy for doubt

Friends, over years, I have been privileged to have friends who open up to me and share their doubts. I try to share my faith as best I can in the hope that they will find me a stepping stone to rediscovering God again. I loved this article and I think it's a worthwhile six-minute read for anyone. I hope it blesses you, especially if you're in doubt (emphases mine):

Suggestion is one of the great weapons in the enemy’s toolbox for harming those who struggle with doubt. The devil has no actual truth on his side in making the case that God does not exist or is evil or uncaring, so he has to rely on illusion to sell that lie. It is no accident, then, that Tradition has tended to cast a jaundiced eye on the magician or wizard as a servant of the devil — for all of them rely on the weaving of spells and illusions. The devil, says Jesus, is a liar and the father of lies. When he lies, he speaks his native tongue. And his most potent lies are reserved for turning us away from believing in the existence and love of God.

How, then, do we fight back? It is a surprising fact that Jesus answers that question, not with a book of apologetics, but with a counsel:

“My teaching is not mine, but his who sent me; if any man’s will is to do his will, he shall know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority” (John 7:16-17).

This is solid incarnational wisdom. If you are hagridden by doubts about your faith, the sensible thing is not to sit stewing in your juices about abstractions, but to start doing the things Jesus says we should do: namely prayer, fasting, almsgiving, the works of mercy, etc. As we do, we find the Holy Spirit coming alongside us and helping us begin to rediscover in a living way the truth of the things which, in the thick of doubt, might have seemed strictly academic or theoretical. Jesus becomes a living presence, not some guy who lived a long time ago.

This call to action is a useful diagnostic for us, because our response to it tells us something important. Namely: Are we doubtful because we have questions we want answered or because we have questions we don’t want answered? For, of course, there are two sorts of people in the world: those who ask questions to find things out and those who ask them to keep from finding things out.

The former sort can be seen in the apostles, who asked all sorts of questions of Jesus because they really wanted to know what was going on. Jesus never rebuked them for doing so. But when Pharisees demanded to know (despite all Jesus had done) by what authority he was doing his signs, Jesus refused to answer them for a very simple reason: He knew they didn’t want an answer. They were looking for ammo, not answers. The counsel to do what Jesus commands is a quick way to find out which sort of questions we are asking. If we are looking for answers, we will be happy to obey him while we ask our questions. If we are looking to avoid him, we will find some excuse not to obey while “asking questions” and ignoring the answers. And, if we are in that latter camp, we will have the first response to our doubts right there — namely, “Repent, obey and believe the Good News.”

Chances are, of course, if you are poring over an article like this in search of what to do about your doubts, you are not in the class of people who is struggling to escape from Jesus. On the contrary, odds are, you’ve been trying to serve him the best you can and you feel dry as a bone, filled with all sorts of doubts and questions. Of questions, we will speak next time. But in the meantime, know this: The prayer and obedience offered in dryness pleases God best — and if only the will to obey is present. He delights in your service. On that, more in the future, as well.

- Thanks to Mark Shea for NCRegister.com.

A pared-down Lent

Every year I look forward to this season as a time for stepping back and re-evaluating who and what I am in the big picture of God’s creation. Sometimes I undertake big changes at this time: three years ago I decided to give up meat for Lent, and it was such a life-changing experience that I haven’t gone back.

Other years it’s smaller stuff: one year I gave up wearing perfume, another, burning incense, and yet another time I wore the same pair of earrings throughout Lent. These, I know, sound like frivolous actions, but in the greater pantheon of things, they’re not. Each was something that brought me into a more disciplined and simple mindset; each small sacrifice made me focus less on the loveliness that flavors each day and more on what really is essential.

This year I came onto my Lenten practice a bit late; I just wasn’t feelin’ it for the first few days. On the first Sunday of Lent, however, I was shopping in one of those large discount stores for dog food and a few other household items, when I became distracted by other bargains in the store. “Oooh, I have to have that; OMG, we really need this. Wow, look at the price; can’t pass that up!” Pretty soon my carriage was filled not only with what I needed, but with a bunch of other stuff that was just too good to pass by.

Then something that I heard that morning in the temptation story of Jesus in the desert stopped me in my tracks. What was I doing? Why was I buying all these other things that were not necessarily bad, but which I clearly did not need? (After all, temptation wouldn’t be temptation, would it, if there wasn’t some element of good contained within?)

And then I came upon this year’s practice: buy only what I need. This is not a new idea. Catholic stewardship addresses the hierarchy of needs in a very solid and straightforward way. It’s just that putting it into practice when there’s just so much stuff to buy—well, it’s hard.

But that’s what I’m practicing this Lent: buy nothing I don’t need. Even a few days into this mindset, it’s already a challenge. There have been at least five occasions so far where a food item seemed irresistable, a book looked really interesting (but would only raise the to-read pile a little higher), a skirt was such a deal and would go with everything I already owned.

This practice isn’t going to make me rich, for sure. But what I hope it does, by observing a spirituality of necessity this Lent, is to better focus on the one true thing that matters: a right relationship with God and with the people around me.



Thanks to Mary Carol Kendzia of AmericanCatholic.org.

10 tips for making the season more meaningful

1. Slow Down - Set aside 10 minutes a day for silent prayer or meditation. It will revitalize your body and your spirit.
2. Read a good book - You could choose the life of a saint, a spiritual how-to, an inspirational book or one of the pope's new books.
3. Be kind - Go out of your way to do something nice for someone else every day.
4. Get involved - Attend a Lenten lecture or spiritual program.
5. Volunteer at your parish - Whether it's the parish fish fry, cleaning the church or helping with the food drive, it will give you a chance to help others.
6. Reach out - Invite an inactive Catholic to come with you to receive ashes on Ash Wednesday.
7. Pray - Especially for people you don't like and for people who don't like you.
8. Tune out - Turn off the television and spend quality time talking with family members or friends.
9. Clean out closets - Donate gently used items to the St. Vincent de Paul Society.
10. Donate - Google "Catholic Missions." Then pick one mission and decide how you can help by sending money, clothing or supplies

Thanks to Our Sunday Visitor.

Asking God to be “fair” is very dangerous

In Ezekiel 18, God answers the question of his “fairness” in dealing with us:

You say, “The LORD’s way is not fair!” Hear now, house of Israel: Is it my way that is unfair, or rather, are not your ways unfair? When someone virtuous turns away from virtue to commit iniquity, and dies, it is because of the iniquity he committed that he must die. But if the wicked, turning from the wickedness he has committed, does what is right and just, he shall preserve his life; since he has turned away from all the sins that he committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die. (Ezekiel 18:25-28)

It is a rather dangerous thing demand that God be fair. How easily we can declare of many circumstances. “That’s not fair!”  But when it comes to the Lord, a little friendly advice is helpful: Be VERY careful before you ask God to be fair. If God were fair we’d all be in Hell right now. As it is, God is merciful and none of us have ever really gotten the punishment we deserved. Notice that God answers the accusation that it is unfair for him to punish the sinner in a twofold way:

1. Your Choice – If a person sins and does not repent of it he will die (i.e. descend to hell). But that is his choice to stay in sin and thus incur the cosequence that he dies spiritually and cannot see eternal life. It is our choice that is determinative of this.

2. Choose Mercy! God also answers with a sort of plea that we call on his mercy instead. God is a God of the second chance. And, rather than give us the fairness we seek in a misguided way, we bids us call on his mercy, repent and he will hear and save us. For if a person repent he will live! Scripture says elsewhere: As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways! Why will you die, O house of Israel?‘ (Ezekiel 33:11). Again, God our savior wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth (1 Tim 2:4). And again, The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9)

If you want God to be “fair,” that is, to use strict justice,  can't you see that we are all in very serious trouble?  In the end it is only his grace and mercy that will ever see us through. We ought to have enough humility to banish notions of fairness in our relations with God. Mercy is the only way we stand a chance. Kyrie Eleison!



Thanks to Msgr Charles Pope for the Blog of the Archdiocese of Washington

Penance: integral to the Lenten journey into love

The lenten journey includes penance. For Christians, this necessarily involves the sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation, in obedience to the love and infinite concern of our Savior who instituted it for the sake of his People. It was God's will that his children freely drink of his mercy by confessing their sins to the properly ordained ministers of forgiveness in his Catholic Church, for it was Jesus who breathed on his apostles and said: "Receive the holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained" (Jn 20:22-23).

In his apostolic exhortation Reconciliation And Penance, John Paul II notes "that for a Christian the sacrament of penance is the primary way of obtaining forgiveness and the remission of serious sin committed after baptism. Certainly the Savior and his salvific action are not so bound to a sacramental sign as to be unable in any period or area of the history of salvation to work outside and above the sacraments. But in the school of faith we learn that the same Savior desired and provided that the simple and precious sacraments of faith would ordinarily be the effective means through which his redemptive power passes and operates. It would therefore be foolish, as well as presumptuous, to wish arbitrarily to disregard the means of grace and salvation which the Lord has provided and, in the specific case, to claim to receive forgiveness while doing without the sacrament which was instituted by Christ precisely for forgiveness" (31).



Thanks to F. K. Bartels, Catholic Online
See article here.