The beauty of Lent: season of love, not only lamentation
Many Catholics dread the Lenten season. After all, it is about sacrifice, penance and the mentality of “I am a terrible human being and I should deprive myself of my wants.” Popular sacrifices include giving up pleasures like coffee, candy or chocolate, and waking up at the crack of dawn to pray. There is a communal aspiration to be perfect in only 40 days. And amid the sacrifices, penances and fasting, Catholics and non-Catholics alike forget what the Lenten season is for.
An interview with theology professor Sr. Mary Angelica explores the deeper and even neglected message of Lent. She says, “Lent is not only about self-denial or self-abdication, although that is always involved. The main emphasis is on Christ’s sacrifice and what redemption really means. It is a call to go deeper into the mystery of redemption.”
The season of Lent is an opportunity to dive deeper into the ultimate act of love and sacrifice: Jesus’s death on the Cross. Sr. Mary Angelica reminds us that our sacrifices are a reflection of Christ’s sacrifice. This season allows us to observe His sacrifice, and the mystery of it: why would God die for mankind, as broken as it is? How is it possible for one Man to die for all sin?
Sr.Mary Angelica recommends meditating on the Crucifixion and the Stations of the Cross. Many parishes, and even our own Church of the Incarnation, holds the Stations every Friday. In this time God invites us to meditate–either with company or by ourselves–on the prolonged suffering He had to endure.
Although Lent in its majority is about self-denial and self-abdication directed towards Christ, it has much more to it.
Another forgotten aspect of Lent is almsgiving or acts of charity. Of course, this does not mean everyone should donate lots of money. After all, many (such as most college students and professors, myself included) cannot afford to do this.
People prioritize giving away material things, but giving away intangible things that you value is even more important than quitting coffee for a while . In her interview, Sr. Mary Angelica says, “Almsgiving can be giving away your time to God or someone in need. It can be giving away your talents. Father Thomas’s talent is to make the people around him laugh, and my talent is to laugh!”
Lenten sacrifices and almsgiving do not have to be big changes in your life. Like New Year’s Resolutions, some Lenten sacrifices are too high to reach. Many Christians become demoralized and give up within the first week of Lent.
Lent is not about being as perfect as possible. Sr.Mary Angelica refers to the Bible on this: “Adam and Eve were made perfect. And even they still fell.” The Gospel of Matthew says, “Be perfect as your Heavenly Father is perfect”. Sr. Mary Angelica emphasizes the words “as your Heavenly Father is perfect”.
This is both a message of unconditional love and a call of perfection. It is a reminder that our Father will love us despite our flaws and for us to become how God sees us, but He does not brush our faults under the rug. He calls us to be as perfect as we are able.
And so, it is okay to start small. God knows we are human. It is okay to fall.
The final — and often neglected — part of Lent is building a relationship with Christ. This season is a great opportunity for Christians to polish and reform their relationship with Christ in preparation for Easter. Sr. Mary Angelica reminds us that, “Just like any relationship, it’s the little things that count. And the little things mean a lot to Christ.”
Instead of giving up something big that disrupts your daily life, find out what is blocking your way to a better relationship with Christ. Find a way to implement Christ into your daily commute, into your time, into your relationships with others. Start small, then build up to it. It does not have to be big to be noticed by God.