RBWords - Volume 37 - Number 3: March 2024
Something to Think About
R. B. WORDS - VOL. 37 - NO. 3 - MARCH 2025 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT - I am writing this reflection in the middle of Lent, just before Laetare Sunday. Like the title “Gaudete” in Advent, “Laetare” also means rejoice! Rejoice may not be the word that immediately springs to mind when one thinks about the season of Lent! “Penance” is likely to be more common in understanding. But “Laetare Sunday” does give an opportunity to take a look at what way we are individually and collectively observing in this season and whether or not what we do has anything to do with “the reason for the season,” which is a fruitful and holy observance and participation in the celebration of Holy Week. Lent does not exist independently of Holy Week. The particular “penance” we choose should point us in that direction. The Decree on the Sacred Liturgy (Sacrosanctum concilium” of the Second Vatican Council states: “During Lent, penance should be not only internal and individual but also external and social.” In many dioceses around the USA, the bishop will make provisions for “fast and abstinence” for those 18-59 years old and leave the rest to the individual person. But I would suggest that penance be related to the offense, which occurs in relationships. Forgiving offenses or asking for forgiveness, not just sacramentally, but externally is one way of doing this. The point is not just for Holy Week but a sign of something we want to do habitually year round. That kind of conversion is hard-won, but life-changing. The best source for this is the life of Jesus and the forgiveness he continually offers to those who reached out to him. Continually reading the gospels is a good Lenten practice that can continue after the season is over. It prepares us for Holy Week but extends well beyond it. The parable of the Prodigal Son in the Gospel According to Luke [15:11-32] can serve as a good reflection point to ask about our own ability to repent or to forgive. To all my readers, I pray you will have a fruitful Lent and a blessed Holy Week and Easter celebration! IT’S SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT
It Has Been Said
IT HAS BEEN SAID:
Our hearts and minds desire clarity. We like to have a clear picture of a situation, a clear view of how things fit together, and clear insight into our own and the world’s problems. But just as in nature colors and shapes mingle without clear-cut distinctions, human life doesn't offer the clarity we are looking for. The borders between love and hate, evil and good, beauty and ugliness, heroism and cowardice, care and neglect, guilt and blamelessness are mostly vague, ambiguous, and hard to discern. It is not easy to live faithfully in a world full of ambiguities. We have to learn to make wise choices without needing to be entirely sure.
Henri Nouwen: BREAD FOR THE JOURNEY: A Daybook of Wisdom and Faith
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