The disciples of John pose a serious question to Jesus about fasting. Their question reflects a desire to better understand fasting itself. Why do they fast, but the disciples of Jesus do not? Jesus gives his typical enigmatic response that couches fasting in the context of mourning. When he is gone, his disciples will indeed fast, for they will mourn his absence. We only grieve a loss, so for us today, what is the loss that motivates our fasting during Lent?
In spiritual terms, we give up something to lose our preoccupation with the physical realm so as to gain a deeper experience and understanding of our spiritual destiny. In other words, the aim of fasting today is to connect with God in a more authentic, meaningful way. For this reason, fasting has a long-standing place of honor among the three traditional practices of Lent that have the same purpose. The other two are prayer and almsgiving. Jesus has had something to say about how to practice all three.
When it comes to fasting, for example, Jesus advises those who fast to look fresh and avoid the appearance of fasting. Then, the father who sees what is hidden will repay what is hidden (Mt 6:16-18). The prophet Isaiah has more to say about authentic fasting.
Isaiah says on behalf of the Lord, "This…is the fasting that I wish: releasing those bound unjustly, untying the thongs of the yoke; setting free the oppressed, breaking every yoke; sharing your bread with the hungry, sheltering the oppressed and the homeless; clothing the naked when you see them, and not turning your back on your own" (Is 58:6-7). In other words, we are to open our hearts to those who need us most, most especially our family members (Jl 2:12-13).
In regard to prayer, when the disciples ask Jesus to teach them how to pray, he provides what has become the classic model for genuine prayer. The Lord’s Prayer is a loving and beautiful way to talk openly and honestly with our heavenly Father. This prayer joins us together in praying for the coming of God's kingdom, for the fulfillment of our needs, and for the forgiveness of our sins. The Lord’s prayer provides a theological summary of how we are to conduct ourselves in relation to God and to each other.
Jesus himself often went out alone to a secluded place and prayed to his heavenly Father (Lk 5:16; 6:12). Rarely is the content of his prayer revealed to us, however. What we do know suggests that, during his prayer, Jesus spoke openly and honestly with his heavenly Father, holding back nothing. Since he came to do the Father’s will, we can be sure that Jesus spent time in prayer discerning what that might involve and what he must do. We can do no better than to follow the example of Jesus in our own prayer life.
Jesus also spoke to his disciples about almsgiving. He offered them the parable of the widow’s mite to illustrate the right attitude in giving money to the poor. This story makes it clear that the amount of money given is not what counts, but the sincerity of heart with which it is given. The Psalmist offers another way to apply this practice: "Blessed is he that considers the needy and the poor" (Psalm 40:2).
Notice that the Psalmist says “considers” rather than “gives” to the needy and the poor. This suggests that almsgiving is more than giving money to the poor. Almsgiving includes anything done out of genuine charity and sincerity of heart for those in need. In that sense, every time we support a public policy, for example, or promote a personal practice that addresses the needs of the poor is almsgiving. In fact, every deed done to benefit our neighbor in the name of Christ is a form of almsgiving.
Fasting, prayer, and almsgiving are three traditional Lenten practices that can be applied in many ways. All it takes is a little imagination—and a simple prayer…sprinkled with a little fasting perhaps…polished off with some sort of almsgiving.
No comments:
Post a Comment