February begins the holy season of Lent in which through acts of prayer and fasting and good works, we prepare ourselves for Holy Week, and ultimately for Easter. The entire Christian faith hinges on the events of Holy Week, culminating on Easter Sunday, when the Son of God through His resurrection, redeemed us from our sins and made us heirs to the kingdom of heaven.
The ashes of Ash Wednesday remind us that we must die to ourselves in order to live, which is why the ashes are placed on our heads in the sign of the cross. The cross is the ultimate symbol given to us by Jesus, of how we must pass from death into new life – just as He did on His cross. Like Him, without the cross, we cannot pass into the glory of resurrection and the fullness of redemption.
Lent calls us to go deep into prayer both in terms of frequency and in terms of quality. Let us commit to taking time each day to put ourselves into God's presence and to talk to Him.
For centuries the church had established a Lenten discipline around abstaining from meat on Fridays. It is a small act of self-denial that can help us recall the need to sacrifice. I would encourage each of us to reinstate that practice this year.
Another discipline that has been a common Lenten practice, is fasting. But for fasting to become truly an act of self-discipline, it requires us to actually feel hunger. The emptiness in our stomachs, connects us viscerally with those for whom hunger is the defining state of their existence and it should remind us of our moral obligation to feed the poor. Our empty stomachs also reminds us of how empty we are unless we are filled with God.
Whether it is from this feeling of hunger or some other yearning, a true deepening of our spiritual relation with God is meaningless unless it spills over into tangible actions of charity for others. Now is the time to find some way to care for those who are less fortunate than ourselves.
If we utilize the season of Lent to truly transform our spirits so that they become totally focused on the goodness of God, then we will be adequately prepared, as best as we humans can, to share with Christ in the events of Holy Week.
Let us welcome the opportunity of these next 40 days to transform ourselves into worthy participants in the mystery of God’s love.
May God bless you all.
Fr. Al
