Memorial of Saint Aloysius Gonzaga, Religious
Welcome to Lent, everyone! Wait a minute, what?! Today is the Wednesday of the Eleventh Week of Ordinary Time, and yet I invite us to consider today a reminder of how we are to live year-round. The Gospel calls us to practice the Lenten disciplines always, not only during the season of Lent. Let us approach our scripture readings in humility, asking God for the graces to be faithful and generous disciples after the example of Christ.
Once I heard Fr. Denis Robinson, OSB say something like, “Lent is merely an amplified version of our ordinary lives.” What he means is that, as disciples of Jesus, we are called to live the Lenten disciplines always, not only during Lent. Lent affords us the opportunity to be more diligent in these disciplines, more focused, perhaps more invested in them. But these practices are not isolated to Lent.
Today’s Gospel is the passage we hear proclaimed on Ash Wednesday. It’s part of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. Just as Moses went up the mountain to receive the Word of God, so Jesus goes up a mountain as the new Moses to impart his Word to God’s people. Jesus’ teaching in this discourse, found in Matthew chapters 5-7, is essentially the disciple’s playbook. Just as Moses received the Law on the mountain, Jesus gives us a “new Law” and shows us what following God in the New Covenant of Love looks like. In the Sermon on the Mount, we receive the heart of the Gospel and come to understand who we are to be and what we are to be about as Jesus’ followers.
Jesus says to his disciples and to us, “when you give alms [give to the needy] . . . when you pray . . . when you fast . . .” Notice that he doesn’t say “if!” Jesus says “when.” He introduces us to a new lifestyle, the lifestyle of a disciple, which is marked by humility, selflessness, and generosity. Our Lord’s assumption is that the disciple will follow a regular practice, a rhythm, if you will, of giving alms, praying, and fasting. He then gives guidance on what our attitude and our posture should be when we practice those disciplines – giving in secret, etc.
Might we allow today’s Gospel to be a summons to revisit these practices and consider our lifestyle as disciples? I might ask myself, How am I doing in general with serving the poor, both in giving my time and talents and in giving financially? How’s my prayer? Do I “have a prayer life,” meaning I set aside time occasionally for prayer, or do I “live a life of prayer?” The former can be rather scattered and inconsistent; the latter truly becomes a way of life. How about fasting? I’ll admit I struggle with this one, and yet I know that if I will humble myself in self-denial that Christ will increase within me. As we read the Gospels, we see that Jesus himself fasted, prayed, and served the poor. How could we do anything other than follow his example? Because as we discipline ourselves to follow him, we become like the One we imitate.
Today, let us prayerfully examine our lives and then choose at least one of these disciplines (almsgiving, prayer, fasting) to press into a little deeper. Let us make a simple plan or set a goal to incorporate a new practice into our lives this week or to expand a current practice. I pray that we might come to see these disciplines not as harsh or cumbersome, but as gift. It is God’s gift to us that we are disciples by virtue of our baptism. Let us ask God for the graces we need to receive the gift of discipleship with deeper gratitude. Out of heartfelt gratitude pours faithful living. God has been so immeasurably generous to us! Let us give generously back to God and live lives characterized by almsgiving, prayer, and fasting – not only during Lent but every day. Today is a great day to begin making these practices more habitual, more rhythmic! Come, Lord Jesus!
-Elizabeth Wells