The forty day
period is symbolic of the forty days spent by Moses and Elijah
in the wilderness; during the days of Noah God made it rain for
forty days and forty nights (they were in the ark for much
longer); the Jews wandered forty years traveling to the Promised
Land. Jonah in his prophecy of judgment gave the city of Nineveh
forty days' grace in which to repent. Jesus retreated into the
wilderness and fasted for forty days of temptation to prepare
for his ministry.
The Lenten period of forty days owes its origin to the Latin
word quadragesima, originally signifying forty hours. This
referred to forty hours of complete fasting which preceded the
Easter celebration in the early Church. The main ceremony was
the baptizing of the initiates on Easter Eve, and the fast was a
preparation to receive this sacrament. Later, the period from
Good Friday until Easter Day was extended to six days, to
correspond with the six weeks of training, necessary to instruct
the converts who were to be baptized. English word lent came
from ancient Anglosaxon name of March - lenct (since the main
part of lent before Easter usually was in March).
A strict schedule was adhered to in the teaching of the
converts. In Jerusalem near the end of the fourth century,
classes were held throughout seven weeks of Lent for three hours
each day. With the acceptance of Christianity as the state
religion of Rome in the 4th century, its character was
endangered by the great influx of new members. To combat the
hazard, the Lenten fast and practices of self renunciation were
required of all Christians. The less zealous of the converts
were thus brought more securely into the Christian fold. There
are two guiding principles for the observance of Lent. During
this season, the faithful are to grow in their love of Jesus
Crucified, and they are to practice extra penance for their own
and other people's sins. Both aspects of Lent deserve some
explanation.
Love of
Jesus Crucified ~
The spirit of Lent is the spirit of Christ Crucified. Therefore,
whatever enables us to better understand Christ's Passion and Death, and
deepens our responsive love for His great love toward us should be
fostered during the Lenten season. Some recommendations:
* Meditation on the Gospel narratives of Christ's Passion.
* Spiritual reading of books like Goodier's Passion and Death of Our
Lord Jesus Christ, Abbot Marmion's The Way of the Cross, Edward Leen's
Why the Cross?, Fulton Sheen's Seven Words on the Cross.
* Recitation of prayers like Soul of Christ Sanctify Me.
* Besides making the daily Way of the Cross, encouraging others to make
the Stations at least on Fridays during Lent.
* Having some symbol of Christ's Passion, like the crucifix or picture
of the crucifix within easy eye vision to remind us of the Passion at
odd moments of the day.
* Having some short aspiration which is recited (at least mentally) a
few times during the day, like, "My Jesus Crucified," or "Heart of
Jesus, obedient unto death, have mercy on us."
* Occasionally reciting the Litany of the Precious Blood.
* Spending some extra time before the Blessed Sacrament, asking Our Lord
to grow in the understanding of His continued Passion now in the Church,
which is His Mystical Body on earth!
* Making an occasional entry into one's spiritual journal about, "How
much the Passion of Christ means to me."
Reparation for Sin ~
In practising penance, we should keep in mind that there are two levels
of reparation we are to practice, for our own and other people's sins.
We are to expiate the guilt incurred by failing in one's love for God.
And we are to repair the harm done by disobeying the will of God.
* On the first level, our penance should be the practice of a deeper and
more generous love for God
* By making acts of divine love.
* By doing our ordinary work with more selfless love for God.
* By putting our heart more sincerely into whatever we are doing, and
periodically telling our Lord we are doing it out of love for Him.
* By deciding before Lent, what form(s) of charity I will practice
towards those with whom I live or work. There is no more pleasing love
of God, as expiation, than the selfless love of others whom God puts
into my daily life.
* By going through the spiritual and corporal works or mercy, and
selecting one or more on which I wish to concentrate during Lent, as my
form of penance-as-love, offered to the loving but offended God.
On the second level, our penance should strive to endure some pain in
order to expiate the sinful pleasure that is always the substance of
sin. This can take on a variety of forms, and no two people are the same
in this matter. The following are merely examples.
* More frequent reception of the Sacrament of Penance during Lent.
* More frequent attendance at Mass.
* Less time spent in eating, or eating less food, or getting up earlier
than usual.
* Sacrifice of some hours per week that would otherwise have been spent
in watching television, listening to the radio, reading secular
newspapers, magazines, or fiction.
* Walking, instead of driving, and walking upstairs instead of using an
elevator.
* Doing without some delicacy at table, or not eating between meals.
* Getting up promptly in the morning, and retiring in good time at
night.
* Answering letters or writing to persons who would appreciate hearing
from us.
* Gauging one's time in telephone conversation or conversation in
general.
