« May I wish you a good Lent ? »
So did I address a handicaped lady of « L’Arche »… Then a bit later I come back : « A-M, you know it better than myself… suffering » . The answer is straight : « But Lent is not sad ! At the Arche we are planning to care for welcoming, opening, sharing, giving : let hope grow in man ! Let’s liberate the Life of God ! » I am not surprised, but touched and thankful, I receive her message and want to share it with you. In it we discover a dynamic version of the three Lenten pillars : praye+sharing+fasting, a life path for climbing up to Easter.
A Lent « Open » on life
Let us climb back on the way leading to the source… Happy and liberated. We will walk with the « Prodigal son », exhausted, but who making a last attempt ; with the « Emmaus pilgrims », desperate, although seduced by a presence ; the « Good thief » hea creeped into the path path of our exile ; then, did you notice so many unknown faces in our churches and institutions, however embellished by the quest of their birth place?; sometimes the grave and raging cry of the liar contrasts with the veiled expectation of this People of God on the way to an Easter, still hidden but already prepared.
« Lord, may everything we do begin with your inspiration, continue with your help, and reach perfection under your guidance. »
Collect for Thursday after Ash Wednesday
A bit of humour
Often and easily caricatured-fat, lovers of food and fond of honours – they have a broad back, regular canons hide and culitvate treasures in Church and manknd : even if this richness of heart and soul belongs to the common good, they find a soil which could suit them « in our ground ». Let’s take this time of Lent : in harmony with our baptism and our religious vows (« I offer myself to the Church and promise to amend my life according to the Gospel … » ), it can be considered as a special period in canonical life, looking ahead to Easter, and privileged period in the building up of our community. The binomial « Contemplation and action » - in which both new commandments cross each other all the time – makes our canonical being and acting consistent. Our Lent itinerary, even in the secret of our heart, will not remain hidden in a closed garden, but will be integrated to the procession of the Church and of mankind : this is a canonical sensibility too.
Does it mean we will not shout « Lord, have mercy ! » with all our voice ?
“Surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, … et us run with perseverance the race marked out for us… Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith… In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. (Hebrews 12)
Last advice ?
Starting Lent is just like landing in an unknown country, without any forecast or calculation ; only a bit anxious to discover what is expecting us… and confident ? Already, the Easter sunrise is pointing out …
[updated on the 28.02.07]
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Canonical life
Those who embark on the canonical life must give up personal possessions and seek the brotherly life, but, unlike monks, they do not withdraw from the world. (read more)
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