40 Shades of Lent Friday after Ash Wednesday, 08 March 2019 Isaiah 58:1-9///Matthew 9:14-15
God our loving Father, in this 40-day journey of Lent in and with your Son Jesus Christ, help us to imbibe anew the value of “fasting”. How unfortunate that in this age when we have made everything so fast and quick, we have forgotten or totally disregarded the other meaning of that word “fasting” that seemed to have been stuck with the past.
We have ceased to fast not only during Ash Wednesday and Good Friday but even before receiving the Holy Communion in the Sunday Mass, making all kinds of excuses with bold claims of having sacrificed so much in doing good deeds that we need not fast from food anymore.
And if ever we fast these days, we repeat the very same mistakes of the people in the Old Testament of having themselves as the focus of their fasting rather than you, O God, through others.
“Why do we fast, and you do not see it? Afflict ourselves, and you take no note of it?” Lo, on your fast day you carry out your own pursuits, and drive all your laborers. Yes, your fast ends in quarreling and fighting, striking with wicked claw. Would that today you might fast so as to make your voice heard on high!”
Isaiah 58:3-4
In this age of superabundance of almost everything in the world like food, clothes, money, gadgets and other things except YOU, teach us to let go of some comforts and pleasures to be one with those in suffering.
Most of all, let us fast to be empty of our very selves so we can create a space for you and for others. Fill us with your Self to become your very presence here on earth:
“Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your wound shall quickly be healed; your vindication shall go before you, and the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer, you shall cry for help, and he will say, Here I am!”
Isaiah 58:9
What a joy it would be if more people experience you, O Father, through us. Amen.
40 Shades Of Lent Thursday after Ash Wednesday, 07 March 2019 Deuteronomy 30:15-20///Luke 9:22-25
Dearest God:
Life is a mystery, life is Lent. Of course, we always choose life over death but in reality, you know it is not so: though our lips, our minds agree in the words of Moses, our hearts are so far from you.
“Today I have set before you life and prosperity, death and doom. If you obey the commandments of the Lord, your God, which I enjoin on you today, loving him, and walking in his ways, and keeping his commandments, statutes and decrees, you will live and grow numerous, and the Lord, your God, will bless you in the land you are entering to occupy.”
(Deut.30:15-16)
Teach us, O God, through your Son Jesus Christ our Lord to rightly choose life by being responsible with this gift of life, of taking care of others by forgetting our very self; of bearing with all the pains of life by carrying our cross daily; and most of all, by following his direction, being present and one in him and with him in every persecution.
Life is a daily Lent when we lose ourselves in you to be renewed into a better person more like you, our true image and likeness. Amen.
40 Shades of Lent, Ash Wednesday, 06 March 2019 Joel 2:12-18///2 Corinthians 5:20-6:2///Matthew 6:1-6,16-18
Life is a daily Lent. According to St. Benedict, every day we go on our own “exodus” or “crossing over” – a pasch – from sinfulness to holiness, from slavery to freedom, from darkness to light; hence, Lent, like life, is a journey.
But, as a journey, Lent is
more about direction than a destination.
It is a journey with Jesus
Christ and in Jesus Christ. It is a journey that begins right inside our
hearts.
“Even now, says the Lord, return to me with your whole heart, with fasting, and weeping, and mourning; Rend your hearts, not your garments, and return to the Lord, your God.”
(Joel 2:12-13)
In the gospel, Jesus
stressed to us the importance of this inner journey into one’s heart:
“Take care not to perform righteous deeds in order that people may see them; otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father.” (Mt.6:1)
(Mt.6:1)
The 40 days of Lent that begin today in our celebration of Ash Wednesday are not mere number of days to be followed but signify to us perfection which is an ongoing process in life. During the early days of Christianity, all baptisms took place on Easter and the 40 days of Lent (cuaresma) were spent preparing candidates for Baptism. It still remains the key point in this sacred season that during the Easter celebrations, we renew our baptismal promises which we continue to do daily by renewing our faith in God, rejecting temptations of the devil by choosing and doing what is good. The practices of fasting, alms giving, and contrition for sins help us in staying on course in the direction of Christ.
Why do I say direction of Christ, not destination of Christ?
So often we live our lives following a destination. In this age of WAZE and GPS, we can easily seek directions to a particular destination. Focus is more on the destination, not really the directions. Problem with being focused more on destination is we miss the fun and adventure of every journey. When we reach our destination, what do we do? We cross out from our list of travel goals every destination that we make and start looking for new places to visit until we have been to every place on earth! So, we plan to visit the Moon or Marss next? Eventually we get tired with travels and after covering so many distances and destination, we still feel lacking or incomplete.
Just like in life. We set goals which is very important but not everything. First we set our sights to finishing studies like a destination to reach. After graduation, we start a career or a job. We just keep on creating new goals, new destinations, raising our bars further that after proving how good we are, we are still empty. There is no more destination to go to that we confront ourselves with the existential question, is this really what I need most in life? Is this all?
“Ito na nga ba? Dito ba talaga ako?”
When we see life more as directional like in Lent which we celebrate every year and its spirit we live daily, it does not really matter what God wants me to do or if this is what He really wants from me. To see life more as a direction means to find its meaning in God that we keep on maturing, we keep on sustaining our journey in Him and with Him. It does not matter wherever He leads me or where I go or stay. No need to face the dilemma of “should I stay or should I go” because what matters most is I am in and with God.
Lent is entering God in and through Jesus Christ. It is going back to Him, staying in Him and with Him in love. This is the reason why we fast, we empty ourselves even our sights and other senses so that we become more sensitive to God’s presence. Notice how our churches and the liturgy are very plain and simple: no flowers, no decors, no Alleluia, no Gloria. Everything is bare essential so we are not distracted in finding and following God right in our hearts.
Recall the first time you fell truly in love when you see and hear and even smell your beloved everywhere and in everyone. You think every lady you meet is your beloved one like in the song “You Are Everything, and Everything Is You” by the Stylistics. When we truly love, the time and place are no longer important because all we have are the here and the now together.
Oh how easy to say we love God or somebody! But if we try to probe deeper into ourselves, we find that we have not truly loved God or anyone that much because in many instances, we always prevail over them. We choose our own will than God’s or our beloved’s. That is when we sin as we turned away from God and our beloved, changing our direction in life.
Lent is the wonderful season of finding again our direction in life, our true love, God. Love needs no justifications. And we can only love persons, not things. To be able to truly love, we first need to be “reconciled with God” (2 Cor.5:20) which this holy season of Lent offers us in prayers and liturgy. The beauty of finding our life direction in God this Lent is that it is not just a personal journey but a communal one as well. When you find your direction, you find God. If you truly find God as your direction, you would surely meet and find your neighbors.
And that is when you find
joy and peace.
And that is Easter, the direction and ultimate destination of every Lent and life.
Amen.
The shore of Tiberias where Jesus asked Simon thrice after Easter if he loves Him; then He asked Simon to “follow me.” Like Simon Peter, we must first love Jesus so we can follow Him to whatever direction, not destination. Photo by author, April 2017.
Lawiswis ng Salita ni P. Nicanor F. Lalog II, Ika-04 ng Marso 2019
Kuwaresma.
Kuwarenta dias ng paghahanda Bawat araw balot ng hiwaga Ng mga salita nagmumula Sa ating Bathala.
Apatnapung araw ng pagtitiis Maraming naiinis, naiinip Ayaw subukang namnamin ang tamis Dahil ang lahat ay pinabibilis.
Ang susi ay naroon sa ating budhi Kung tayo ay makapananatili ng ilang sandali Sa bawat araw ng ating paglagi Kapiling ating Hari na kanyang sarili ibinahagi.
Tuwing kuwaresma Ating kinukuwenta mga ligayang ipinauubaya Ngunit di natin alintana Biyaya at pagpapala kapag tayo’y nagpaparaya.
Akala kasi natin tayo ay nawawalan Sa paghuhunos dili, pag-aayuno At iba pang mga gawain ng kabanalan Gayong ang totoo, napupuno tayo ng Espiritu Santo.
Kung tutuusi'y isang munting Kuwaresma Itong ating buhay araw-araw Ating pananaw namumulat na pinakamahalaga Hindi ang ating taglay kungdi ang ating inaalay at binibigay.
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