The liturgical calendar of the Church whether it is highlighting a liturgical season or particular Solemnities/Feasts or the days of Ordinary Time provides the believing community with opportunities to deepen faith commitments, the understanding of the foundations of spirituality and the personal relationship we are called to have with God.

Unfortunately, that laudatory goal is not always realised because there is nothing automatic about accepting the message of the liturgical calendar.

To achieve the goal, people must choose to open themselves to the message of the liturgical year and to live its meaning. If people choose not to open themselves, then, for them, the spirituality of the liturgical calendar will have no influence over their lives.

On Ash Wednesday, the Church begins the season of Lent - a six-week period of preparation for Easter. Ash Wednesday is itself a day of strict fast and abstinence. It sets the tone for Lent as a time of penance and renewal.

 In this Lenten message, I want to review some of the fundamental aspects of the season of Lent and invite all the people of the archdiocese to choose to live the season well.

The context of Lent 2007

Catholic believers do not live in a vacuum. We are called to be the leaven of society and fully involved in the mission of Christ. The world in which we live is highly secularised perhaps approaching the status of becoming neo-pagan. It is terribly violent. Danger is everywhere!

That unhappy description of contemporary society means that during Lent we must look at whether the condition of the world and the conversion of the world is part of our prayer.

Spirituality does not mean withdrawing from the world. Even the vocation of contemplative religious that is marked by a physical separation from the world requires prayer for and concern for the world.

It is important to note, especially for those who are discouraged by the condition of the world, that the present conditions of the world are quire similar to the condition of the world at the time of the early Church. What happened?

The Church faced the conditions of the pagan, violent world of that time with perseverance and courage. The Church not only survived the challenge, it flourished. It offered such an attractive alternative to the paganism, violence and lack of values of the time that people chose the Lord and his message of justice, love and peace.

After they made their choice for the Lord, the quality of their lives improved so significantly that they became evangelisers for others.

The elements of Lent

1) Baptism
One of the goals of the Lenten season is to prepare ourselves to renew in a serious and generous manner our baptismal promises at Easter. Preparing to renew our Baptismal promises requires that we reflect on what Baptism does for us.

Through water and the Holy Spirit, Baptism makes us a new creation, adopted children of God and members of the Church. It is very important, especially for those who were baptised as infants (which is most of the members of the Church) to reflect on these three realities. I recommend a quiet reading of the appropriate sections of the Catechism of the Catholic Church to help everyone appreciate the meaning and implications of what Baptism does.

Preparing to renew our Baptismal promises also means a willingness to examine our consciences to identify the compromises we have made over the past year with our Christian commitment. It means a humble, sincere and sorrowful admission of sin, a firm purpose of amendment and requesting reconciliation with God through the ministry of the Church.

As with our Christian obligations to the world in which we live, our Lenten prayer must also reach out to all involved in the RCIA Programme throughout the archdiocese. These people are approaching the Church for Baptism. They need our prayer and our unambiguous witness for their perseverance.

The discipline of Lent

During Lent, the believer is called to Penance for her/his sin and for the sins of the world (vicarious penance). Believers are called not only to accept the cross in their lives but also to choose the cross as the saints did.

Pope Paul VI, in his Apostolic Constitution on Fast and Abstinence (1966), made a very challenging statement. He said, “True penitence, however, cannot ever prescind from physical asceticism as well.”

The theology of “giving up” legitimate comforts during Lent is an example of the physical asceticism referred to by Pope Paul VI. The theology of additional prayer and frequent or daily liturgical celebration during Lent is also embraced by the statement of Pope Paul VI. It requires a commitment to discipline if one is to persevere through the Lenten season.

Many people who are involved in habits of sin and who are experimenting in the world of neo-paganism have become slaves to their senses. They are no longer free. The road back to freedom must include spiritually motivated discipline that is joined with non-judgmental support from faithful Christians and, if necessary, an openness to accept professional help.

Prayer and Charity

A shift in prayer that reflects a willingness to think with the Church is very helpful for Lenten spirituality. For example, those who pray all or part of the Divine Office each day or who participate in the Eucharistic Liturgy daily will notice a change in the themes of the readings and the music that help motivate people to involve themselves in Lenten renewal.

Almsgiving (charity) is not only a virtue, it is a protection for people from self-absorption. People can turn in on themselves unconsciously in spirituality. However, when prayer and fasting are placed in a context of sharing, caring and mission, the danger of self-absorption is significantly reduced.

Conclusion

I hope through this sincere invitation to understand and live Lent 2007 (which applies to me just as much as it does to the readers of this column), we will all choose to accept the opportunity offered by the liturgical calendar of the Church to prepare for Easter seriously but with a good rhythm of life.