The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to look deeper than the self improvement tradition of Lent when we may exercise more or eat less to a level of relationship with others that seeks justice and reconciliation.
Work for Justice
The reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah describes false and true worship.
* [58:6–12] Fasting is not genuine without reforming one’s way of life. A true social morality will ensure prosperity.1
Psalm 51 is a prayer for cleansing and pardon.
* [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 Gospel of Matthew, Jesus addresses the question about fasting.
* [9:15] Fasting is a sign of mourning and would be as inappropriate at this time of joy, when Jesus is proclaiming the kingdom, as it would be at a marriage feast. Yet the saying looks forward to the time when Jesus will no longer be with the disciples visibly, the time of Matthew’s church. Then they will fast: see Didache 8:1.3
Franciscan Media notes that St. Casimir, the Patron Saint of: Lithuania, Poland, and Russia, may offer a connecting link between these people so needed today.
Gladyce Janky comments that Isaiah tells the people that God does not want a day of fasting while treating others unjustly.
I hear in this verse very little about fasting from food. Instead, I hear a call to “fast” from placing heavy burdens on others or treating them unjustly. I hear a call to share what I have with others in need of the necessities of life. I hear a call to speak up for the marginalized and to stand as an accomplice of those working to end the yoke of systemic racism. I hear a call not to forget the suffering of the Ukrainian people. I hear a call to pray and take whatever actions I can take within the concrete realities of my life to ease the world’s sufferings.4
Don Schwager quotes “True fasting,” by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 AD.
"All the endeavors for fasting are concerned not about the rejection of various foods as unclean, but about the subjugation of inordinate desire and the maintenance of neighborly love. Charity especially is guarded - food is subservient to charity, speech to charity, customs to charity, and facial expressions to charity. Everything works together for charity alone." (excerpt from Letter 243, 11)5
The Word Among Us Meditation on Isaiah 58:1-9 asks how might our prayer, fasting, and almsgiving bear fruit this Lent? How can we move beyond a “just do it” approach?
This Lent, let your prayer, fasting, and almsgiving become a wellspring of God’s love that flows out from you to others. This season is so much more than a time to take off a few pounds, cut out a bad habit, or declutter closets. It’s more than a time to “just do it.” It’s a time to carry out God’s pursuits. “Father, fill me with your love this Lent, and show me how to share that love with others.”6
Friar Jude Winkler notes how the text from Trito Isaiah points to the need for transformation of the hearts of the Israelites after the Babylonian Exile. Lent is about doing things that reach out to others with love and hope. Friar Jude reminds us of the fast that often follows the death of a loved one, that we commemorate on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, introduces Michelle DeRusha who uses trees as a helpful metaphor to understand how our True and small (or false) selves are intertwined.
The truth is, God does not wish for us to stand stubborn like the autumn oak tree, cloaked in a façade of protection, our truest, most authentic selves obscured beneath a tangled bramble of false security. Rather, [God] desires us to live like the Japanese maple tree, our true essence revealed and flourishing, our true self front and center, secure and thriving. God yearns for us to live wholeheartedly and truthfully as the unique, beautiful, beloved individuals [God] created us to be. Most of all, God’s deepest desire is for us to know [God], to root our whole selves in [God] like a tree rooted by a stream, and to know [God’s] deep, abiding love for us. . . . God invites us into intimate relationship . . . so that we may then live more compassionately and intimately with those around us. We are the windows, as Henri Nouwen [1932–1996] said, through which others may glimpse God. [1] They are windows through which we might glimpse God.7
Fasting from attitudes and actions that generate conflict between people is a practice that will reduce our mourning about broken relationships and provide a start for the Spirit to lead us to healing.
References
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