Lent is a time to intensify spiritual life
My Dear Sisters and Brothers in the Lord,
Shortly, we will be embarking upon our annual Lenten season. It is a time for us to assess our lives and endeavor to come closer to the Lord. It is a wonderful liturgical season when the Church gives us opportunities to reflect on how we are living our faith and can renew our spirituality.
Considering the difficult economic times we are experiencing, this Lent I ask each one of you to join me in doing whatever we can to help our brothers and sisters, not only the poor who are always with us, but also those who are suffering because of the recession. This means performing the corporal and spiritual works of mercy — contributing to a charity which helps the homeless or helping a family that is in financial distress. It means preparing a meal weekly or food shopping for someone who is homebound, or assisting a family struggling to pay tuition for their child in a Catholic school. Whatever we choose to do, whether it is simple or creative, what is important is that, by our good works, we make Christ present to the many people in need.
Coupled with our good works, we should try to intensify our spiritual life through our practice of prayer, fasting and abstinence. The Holy Father has encouraged us to thoughtfully pray with the Scriptures through the use of Lectio Divina. This means we pick up the Scriptures, read a passage until something inspires us, then lay down the Bible and meditatively pray over a word, a verse or a sentence that we read. A good place to start with this practice would be to use the daily readings the Church gives us for Mass, or perhaps to prayerfully read the letters of St. Paul, since we are celebrating the 2,000th anniversary of his birth this year. We can also enter into the mystery of the Christ-life by meditating daily on the mysteries of the holy rosary or attending Mass on a daily basis. We can even consider a practice from the past: fasting — which does not seem to be “in vogue” these days. Then we can practice almsgiving by contributing the money we save by fasting to a good cause. Abstaining from alcohol, desserts, smoking or a bad habit can not only improve our well being, but also enhance our spiritual life.
Lent truly is a time to come closer to the Lord, and our Church suggests many wonderful ways we can accomplish this. Please join me in making Lent a time of spiritual growth so that, together on Easter morning, we as the people of God can proclaim because of our good works and our prayer life that Jesus has truly risen from the tomb and dwells in our hearts! Happy Lent!
Sincerely in the Lord,
Most Rev. Paul G. Bootkoski
Bishop of Metuchen