The celebration of Lent
Regarding the article on page 5 (Feb. 17) titled What Lent ought to mean to Christian people by Christina Rees, I would like to make the following comments. In my opinion, the article was excellent and I was thrilled to see the author's serious attitude regarding Lent's meaning and purpose. I don't think it would detract from the impact of Christina Rees's message if I added another dimension to the meaning of Lent, namely the communal one.
To expand on the main theme of the article that God loves us so much, I would like to add He cannot allow us to go on as usual. We were all made for better things than what we have and where we are at present. During Lent we are urged to look into the mind of the Creator and consider personal betterment for ourselves and for God, which are the same since our well-being contributes more to God's external glory than anything else. But well-being is not just a product or result of Divine Providence but also the result of what we contribute to our personal cooperation with Divine Grace.
The object of this personal reform goes a step beyond our individual growth and contributes something to God's kingdom, to His people and His family. It is the social aspect of penance and fasting, as told by Isaiah in chapter 58:5-8, which I would like to quote from the Bible: "Is that the sort of fast that pleases me, hanging your head like a reed, lying down on sack-cloth and ashes? Is not this the sort of fast that pleases me let the oppressed go free and break every yoke, to share your bread with the hungry, and shelter the homeless poor, to clothe the (person) you see to be naked and not turn your back on your own kin?"
Prayer, fasting and alms giving are spoken of by Jesus in Matthew 6:1-18. If taken as a framework for Lenten practice, alms giving refers to loving one's neighbor and fasting refers to the proper love of oneself and prayer to God.
While not eschewing the peace and quiet that Lent is meant to revive in us, this spiritual period is also meant to activate us to do things we have been neglecting for too long and leave us uneasy, for the sake of restoring not just me but all of creation within my reach. In addition to being a partial rest from our efforts, Lent can also be associated with leisure. This means doing something else that's important and not ceasing to do anything at all.
From the phrase "God so loved the world that he gave his only son..." resonates a "God so loves the world that I will give ..." Each of us has to complete this sentence according to opportunity, ability and God's personal invitation.
FR. THOMAS FIX SCJ
Jakarta