Lent: the Christian Spring

Falling leaves in Melbourne's parks remind us of nature's changing cycle. The end of the Australian summer and early autumn coincide with "Lent", a word derived from the Anglo Saxon word for "Spring", "Lenthen".

The missionaries who evangelized the pagan lands of Northern Europe linked the Lenten season with the natural season of Spring. Our different climate and seasons, notwithstanding, Lent is a spiritual springtime, a season of growth, culminating in the greatest celebration of new life, Easter.

In Southern Europe, Lent is still known simply as "forty days": in Italian, Quaresima; in French, Quareme. This is a reminder that Lent originated around the Mediterranean, probably in the Second Century. At first it was only a few days of fasting before Easter, but it soon became forty days, the time Our Lord spent in the wilderness (Cf. Mark 1:13). Lent was well established by the Third and Fourth centuries, although the forty days were arranged differently in various places, finally set in our form as forty weekdays of fasting with the inclusion of Ash Wednesday and the three following days.

Well before Lent evolved, Christians were celebrating Easter, because the Resurrection of Jesus Christ is the cause and foundation of our Faith. The weekly "Easter" is Sunday and the Friday fast in preparation for Sunday is even more ancient than Lent.

OUR LENTEN JOURNEY

Easter is thus both the cause and the goal of Lent. The liturgical season took shape around the last weeks when catechumens prepared for their Baptism at the Easter Vigil Mass. Parishes where the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) is established invite us into the fullest celebration of Lent.

The journey of the catechumens is both penitential and catechetical. It focuses on the essentials of conversion: repent and believe. As the blessed ashes are rubbed on our foreheads on Ash Wednesday we may hear the challenging words, "Repent and believe the gospel."

We can make our way through Lent towards Easter in the spirit of catechumens, thirsting for living waters, hungering for the Bread of Life. But the catechumens' Lenten journey to the Eucharist is a "narrow way" of discipline.

LENTEN DISCIPLINE

The Lenten discipline of prayer, self denial and generosity to the poor is taken from Our Lord's teaching in the Gospels (Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18). But prayer, fasting and almsgiving are linked. We may see each best in the light of the three infused Virtues: we pray in faith; we fast in hope; we give to the poor in a spirit of love. The catechumens will receive these virtues in Baptism.

PRAYER IN FAITH

Prayer places self-denial and generous charity to the poor in the context of faith. Good deeds without faith are not of much use. Without faith fasting becomes dieting and almsgiving is reduced to community service. These natural acts good in themselves but they meant to become means towards a supernatural life, the sharing in the presence, power and work of the Holy Spirit that we call "grace". Deeper prayer makes Lent a Springtime of grace.

SELF-DENIAL IN HOPE

You had to maintain that virtue of hope in the early centuries. The Lenten "dry fast" excluded not only meat but animal products (milk, butter and cheese) and the better varieties of fruit and vegetables. On Shrove Tuesday the fat, milk and butter remaining in the larder were used up in making pancakes. A severe fast is a Lenten discipline among Eastern Catholics and the Orthodox.

Contrary to what might be imagined, the rise of monastic life brought about more moderate fasting in Western Europe. After a long day of prayer and work, the monks introduced a light evening meal, the Lenten "collation", so named because Cassian's Collationes were read aloud at that time.

Today there are two days of fasting and abstinence from flesh meat: Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. It may be good to introduce some change of diet in our families, at least on Fridays. But, in modern conditions, fasting becomes acts of self-denial, such as less television or internet! This should not be restricted to adults. Modern children need to wait, to look forward and not to expect to have their every whim indulged. The virtue of hope is only cultivated under limitation and restraint - or how can we really look forward?

GENEROSITY IN LOVE

Self denial frees us to be generous. Our Lenten generosity to the poor is mainly channelled into the Caritas appeal, Project Compassion. Here we can be sure that most of what we give will be used directly for those in need. But we should recognise that Caritas does not merely dole out "aid" but is directed to building up the lives, the dignity and potential of the poor and disadvantaged. There can be no peace and justice without development.

The wounds of Sunami will gradually heal. The people whose lives have been shattered are facing the future with courage. But then there will be some new focus for the strong love that means giving, serving and healing. At the centre is the Heart of Christ pierced for love of us, calling us to the same kind of self-giving love.

What we do to others we do to him. The word "compassion" says it all - a love that identifies with others, a costly love that suffers, the love of the passion and cross of the Lord Jesus. He is our true way through Lent to Easter.