Our Lenten Observance - A Few Considerations

Dear Faithful,

As we begin our Lenten observance, I thought it important to give you some things to consider.

Pope Benedict XIV long ago reminded us that "If this observance came to be relaxed (slackened), it would be to the detriment of the Glory of God, to the dishonour of the Catholic Religion, to the peril of the Christian souls, and we must not doubt that this negligence will become a source of sorrows for people, disaster for the public affairs and misfortunes for the individuals" (Papal Encyclical 19 May 1741).

These words serve as a reminder to us of the great importance for us not to waste the time we have been given in this beautiful Lenten season.

As regards time itself, we should ask ourselves some important questions. How do we make use of our time? How much of our time is spent on providing pleasures for ourselves, even ones that are not sinful? How much of our time is time for ourselves, pursuing our own interests? How much of our time is wasted on meaningless or useless occupations? Count the time that you spend: a. in front of a screen; b. pursuing your own enjoyment; c. with your family; d. taking care of your soul.  Improve your use of time!

This means that we must prepare our Lenten mortifications beforehand. Though fasting and praying are the staple foundation of Lent, it must consist of more than that. It should involve also the reality of alms, deeds and good works, without seeing something in return. It is to help us die to self; to conquer our passions, so as to be able to serve God better and in this way come closer to Him at every passing moment in our lives.

Mortification: We must absolutely deny ourselves if we are to make it to Heaven. The Imitation of Christ reminds us that: "It is necessary to die in order that God may live in us, for it is impossible to achieve the union of the soul with God by any means other than by mortification. These words 'it is necessary to die' are hard, but they will be followed by a great sweetness, because one dies to oneself for no other reason than to be united to God by that death". Hence throughout Lent there should be some daily act of fasting or self-denial.

Prayer and Recollection: A major problem for the soul of today is that he is unable to think on eternal things. For most Traditional Catholics, their prayers are just a tired routine that they know they must perform to survive. And yes, they survive. But there is no growth of soul. For this, you need peace, recollection, and quiet. Something we need to consider improving in our lives during this Lenten period.