Lent, Again

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On Wednesday I will attend Mass, and during the liturgy a minister will use ashes to draw a cross on my forehead, reminding me that I am dust and to dust I shall return. Implicit in this is a question: Am I prepared to face God’s judgement?

The answer, of course, is no, I’m not. But that’s the beauty of the season of Lent: It offers me six weeks to reflect, repent and offer reparation for my sins so that I may be better prepared to say, “Lord, Lord,” when I die.

Jesus assures us that “only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven” will enter the kingdom, and Lent is a perfect opportunity to assess how closely I am adhering to God’s will. The three Lenten pillars of prayer, fasting and almsgiving are aids in turning away from my own preoccupations and toward God.

I didn’t understand Lent as a child. I gave up something – usually chocolate – and fasted and abstained from meat on Ash Wednesday and Fridays, but I never made the connection that those deprivations were intended to help me say “no” to myself and “yes” to God. That’s why I love Pope Francis’ suggestions for Lenten fasting: Fast from hurting words and say kind words, fast from sadness and be filled with gratitude, fast from anger and be filled with patience, fast from pessimism and be filled with hope, fast from worries and trust in God …

What appeals to me most about this list is that it’s not just “fast from …,” it also contains a positive action to do as well – a type of almsgiving, I think. If I can teach myself to habitually say kind words, to be filled with gratitude and patience and hope, and trust in God, then I will be that much closer to entering the kingdom of heaven.

As a bonus, I’ll also be a nicer person.

In keeping with fasting and almsgiving is CRS Rice Bowl, which offers inexpensive meatless recipes for the Fridays of Lent, and suggests that the money saved be donated to help people worldwide who are facing hardships and hunger. CRS (Catholic Relief Services) is the overseas relief and development agency of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops; it “provides assistance to people in need in more than 100 countries, without regard to race, religion or nationality.”

Yes, I understand that there is hunger right here in our local community, and I make a small monthly donation to the Utah Food Bank to help address that need. But scan the news at any given hour and you’ll see just how much suffering there is in the world: famine in Ethiopia, more than 8 million refugees from the war in Ukraine, the aid needed by those affected by the earthquakes in Turkey and Syria, lack of educational opportunities in numerous countries. The few dollars I can give will do little by themselves, but in the first 40 years of CRS Rice Bowl more than $250 million has been put toward helping to ease hunger and poverty throughout the world, including here in the United States.

Prayer, for me, is the basis of my Lenten practice, because it reminds me why I’m fasting and giving alms. For too long I viewed Lent as a time to condemn myself as a sinner, but as I’ve matured in the faith I’ve come to realize that Lent is a call to grow in virtue. I can never forget that I am in fact a sinner, and that I will soon return to dust, but I am also a beloved child of the Father who is calling me to abide with him, and if I am diligent in my Lenten practices they will lead me closer to his waiting arms.

Marie Mischel is editor of the Intermountain Catholic. Reach her at marie@icatholic.org.