The invitation to return to a deeper relationship with God begins the Christian season of Lent today in the texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary.
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| Call to return |
The reading from the Book of Joel describes God’s response and promise to our decision to return to Him with all our heart.
* [2:18] Jealous: the Hebrew word describes the passionate empathetic bond the Lord has with Israel. The people’s wholehearted participation in Joel’s call for fasting and prayer sparks the Lord’s longing to protect and love his people Israel. This desire moves him to withhold punishment and to send the blessing of v. 14 instead.1
The first part of Psalm 51 asks deliverance from sin, not just a past act but its emotional, physical, and social consequences. The second part seeks something more profound than wiping the slate clean: nearness to God and living by the spirit of God.
* [Psalm 51] A lament, the most famous of the seven Penitential Psalms, prays for the removal of the personal and social disorders that sin has brought. The poem has two parts of approximately equal length: Ps 51:3–10 and Ps 51:11–19, and a conclusion in Ps 51:20–21. The two parts interlock by repetition of “blot out” in the first verse of each section (Ps 51:3, 11), of “wash (away)” just after the first verse of each section (Ps 51:4) and just before the last verse (Ps 51:9) of the first section, and of “heart,” “God,” and “spirit” in Ps 51:12, 19. The first part (Ps 51:3–10) asks deliverance from sin, not just a past act but its emotional, physical, and social consequences. The second part (Ps 51:11–19) seeks something more profound than wiping the slate clean: nearness to God, living by the spirit of God (Ps 51:12–13), like the relation between God and people described in Jer 31:33–34. Nearness to God brings joy and the authority to teach sinners (Ps 51:15–16). Such proclamation is better than offering sacrifice (Ps 51:17–19). The last two verses express the hope that God’s good will toward those who are cleansed and contrite will prompt him to look favorably on the acts of worship offered in the Jerusalem Temple (Ps 51:19 [20–21]).2
In the reading from Paul’s Second Letter to the Corinthians we are exhorted to appreciate that now is the acceptable time and now is the day of salvation!
* [6:2] In an acceptable time: Paul cites the Septuagint text of Is 49:8; the Hebrew reads “in a time of favor”; it is parallel to “on the day of salvation.” Now: God is bestowing favor and salvation at this very moment, as Paul is addressing his letter to them.3
In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus teaches concerning almsgiving, prayer, and fasting.
* [6:1–18] The sermon continues with a warning against doing good in order to be seen and gives three examples, almsgiving (Mt 6:2–4), prayer (Mt 6:5–15), and fasting (Mt 6:16–18). In each, the conduct of the hypocrites (Mt 6:2) is contrasted with that demanded of the disciples. The sayings about reward found here and elsewhere (Mt 5:12, 46; 10:41–42) show that this is a genuine element of Christian moral exhortation. Possibly to underline the difference between the Christian idea of reward and that of the hypocrites, the evangelist uses two different Greek verbs to express the rewarding of the disciples and that of the hypocrites; in the latter case it is the verb apechÅ, a commercial term for giving a receipt for what has been paid in full (Mt 6:2, 5, 16).4
Tamora Whitney comments it is a time to return to God, to acknowledge our shortcomings and atone. “Behold, now is a very acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” Lent is a time set aside for repentance, but really, any time is the proper time to repent our sins and seek forgiveness.
Even giving up Starbucks or candy can help us with compassion, and the compassionate thing to do would be to donate the money we would have spent on coffee or chocolate to help someone who has no food or no clean water to drink. Denying ourselves can help us feel solidarity.
Because Lent is not just about giving something up, it’s about getting something, about being better. It’s about recognizing what has kept us down and wanting to be better people. In the Gospel, Jesus does not discourage us from sacrifice, from fasting, from almsgiving, but he discourages us from making a show of it. He says our repentance needs to be from our hearts, and God can see into our hearts. The good works we do should be for the good, not to show off. Are we providing alms to help others because it’s the right thing to do, or so others can see how good and generous we are? The point is to do the right thing, not to show off our generosity. Our sacrifices can be private, and God will know what’s in our hearts. And our rewards will be bigger than notoriety.5
Don Schwager quotes “Lent - the epitome of our whole life,” by Saint Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 AD.
"Christians must always live in this way, without any wish to come down from their cross - otherwise they will sink beneath the world's mire. But if we have to do so all our lives, we must make an even greater effort during the days of Lent. It is not a simple matter of living through forty days. Lent is the epitome of our whole life." (excerpt from Sermon 205, 1)6
The Word Among Us Meditation on Joel 2:12-18 notes that Lent begins each year with this reading from the prophet Joel. It’s clear that the Church chose this passage so that we too would return to God with our whole heart during Lent.
Just as sin is a turning away from God, this passage shows us that repentance is a turning toward him. And that is cause for hope. Why?
Because the One we are turning to is the God who takes pity on us, just as he did on the Israelites.
Because the One we are turning to created us in love and wants nothing more than for us to walk by his side.
Because the One we are turning to is the all-merciful God who sent his Son into the world to redeem us so that we could have a relationship with him and abide with him forever.
Because the One we are turning to knows everything about us—the good as well as the bad—and still calls us to follow him and become his disciples.7
Friar Jude Winkler reminds us to call on the mercy of God with humility not presumption. Paul declares today is the acceptable time, the day of salvation. Friar Jude connects prayer, almsgiving, and fasting to rabbinic advice after the destruction of the Temple.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, cites Christopher L. Heuertz, The Sacred Enneagram: Finding Your Unique Path to Spiritual Growth (Zondervan: 2017), 133. Where Chris defines these terms: Holy Ideas: Virtues: Passions: as follows (see pages 246-248):
Holy Ideas: The unique state of mental well-being, specific to each of the nine types, in which the mind is centered and connected with the True Self.
Virtues: Like the nine fruits of the Spirit [see Galatians 5:22-23] the Virtues are . . . gifts of a centered heart that is present, nonreactive, and at rest in the True Self.
Passions: The inverse of the Virtues are the Passions . . . [which] emerge as the heart indulges the Basic Fear that it will never return to its essence and therefore seeks out coping mechanisms that ultimately compound each type’s state of emotional imbalance.8
The insight offered by Enneagram analysis of type eight is offered by Christopher L. Heuertz. He summarizes that when Eights give up their own willfulness, they discover the Divine Will. Instead of trying to have power through the assertion of their egos, they align themselves with Divine Power… Eights also remember the omnipotence and strength that comes from being a part of the Divine reality. The Divine will is not the same as willfulness. As Eights understand this, they end their war with the world and discover that the solidity, power, and independence that they have been seeking are already here. [3] Fr Richard adds that because of their passion for justice and truth, healthy Eights often take the side of the weak and defenseless. For the sake of justice, Eights are willing to fight the powers that be with every available weapon, and our world is a better place for it. Kenneth Berding of Biola University contributes an article “The Not-So-Sacred Enneagram” as a Book Review of "The Sacred Enneagram" by Christopher L. Heuertz expressing concerns from an evangelical Christian understanding.
We were born virtuous, so we are told in this book, but then developed a tragic flaw, often through disappointments or hurts from our parents or caretakers. Our tragic flaw is the place where we park our destructive addictions. The aim of the Enneagram, though, is to guide us into a rediscovery of our true self. Christian readers, however, should take note that this is not what the Bible teaches about original sin. We are not born virtuous. We inherit the sin of Adam (Romans 5:12-21) and are hopelessly in need of a Savior from the day we are born.9
The call to return to God in Lent is from where we are on our journey today. The assistance we seek in this decision may begin by asking the Spirit to open a door for us that is intimate to our body, mind, and heart.
References
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