Celebrate Lent!

We're a few days away from Ash Wednesday, and so let's think about how best to celebrate Lent. "Celebrate" Lent? Yes, for Lent is indeed a blessing -- a time to reboot the system, realign priorities, take some trash out to the curb.

The forty-day discipline of Lent commemorates the forty-day fast of the Lord, when he retreated to the desert to pray and prepare himself for the challenges of his impending public ministry. The Church's observance of Lent thus has its roots in the earliest centuries of Christianity.

By tradition, the three elements -- specifically noted in Chapter 6 of Matthew, as we hear each year when we come to church on Ash Wednesday -- are prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. Those of us who are "of a certain age" remember when the only element that gained much attention was the "fasting" piece. Specifically, the annual question was "What are you giving up for Lent?" To that inquiry, children might answer "chocolate" and adults might say "my evening drink."  

Of course, we can do better than that. Regarding prayer, we are blessed to live in a golden age of Catholic sources. There are innumerable on-line and paper sources for daily prayer and reflection. Pick one, and move deeper into the Lord's love. As a starting point, we are providing every parishioner with the Magnificat Lenten Companion, a beautiful resource that fits nicely in your pocket or purse. (Those who are already subscribers to Magnificat should not hesitate  to take one -- the Companion will nicely supplement what you are already reading.)

Another fabulous way to incorporate more prayer is to begin coming to Daily Mass.  If the Saint Martha schedule doesn't fit your day, there are Masses each day, all over town, beginning in the Cana Chapel at Saint Thomas Aquinas at 6:30 a.m.  I'm always amazed by the number of Daily Mass goers who explain that it all started for them one Lent, long ago, when they decided to try Daily Mass.  So they came.  And they never left.

Fasting has at least two components. One is observance of the Church's requirements: Persons aged 14 and up are to abstain from eating meat on Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, and all the intervening Fridays of Lent. (It is a beautiful custom, more and more returning to Catholic families, to abstain from meat on Fridays year-round.) During Lent, persons aged 18 to 59 are also required to fast.  That means we can eat as many as three times in a day, provided two of the helpings do not add up to our one full meal.

Beyond those minimal requirements, though, we do well to add a personal fast.  Of course, it can be chocolate or an evening glass. But how about fasting from talk radio? Or from televised news? Or from cursing? Or surfing YouTube? Or televised sports? Are there ways we are repeatedly wasting time?  Are we doing things that bring us down, rather than elevate us and make us better persons? Might be time for a fast, don't ya think?

The third traditional element is the giving of alms. This can take a lot of forms. Perhaps the simplest level is to have a cache of meal-sized gift cards for fast food in our wallets, so that we can assist the street poor without providing cash. Ministries that assist young mothers are always in need of additional

resources. We are blessed to have several local schools (including our own, of course) where truth, clear thinking, and Christian virtue are taught. Around the country, the handful of truly Catholic colleges and universities are in need of our support. Likewise, the small but growing band of faithful religious orders can use our assistance. Pray about where else our resources should go.

We've got other fine Lenten opportunities coming up. Fridays will include the Stations of the Cross (twice each Friday) and -- Alleluia! -- the return of our fish frys. Deacon John will be leading a beautiful series of reflections and discussion ("No Greater Love: A Biblical Walk through Christ's Passion") on Sunday evenings. Our 24 Hours for the Lord will be on March 25-26 (do not miss the Scriptural Stations on March 25 -- the music is amazing!). Our friends at Saint Mary in Williamston have a parish mission coming up on March 18-19, and will continue to host Alive! with Adoration and Praise and Worship music on the Saturday of the month.

On Ash Wednesday, we will have (4) Masses. 7 am, 8:30 am, 12 Noon, and 6 pm. Please come and begin Lent where we can best begin in -- before the Lord!

Blessings!

frmike