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Today we celebrate Ash Wednesday, the first day of the season of Lent. For Catholic Christians, the season of Lent goes from Ash Wednesday to the beginning of the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday. The color of Lent is violet.
In today’s Gospel reading from St. Matthew, Jesus reminds his followers to be humble in their religious practices. He says, for example, that when perform righteous deeds, such as giving alms to the poor, we should do so quietly. We should not draw attention to ourselves.
Likewise, when we pray, we should not make a spectacle of ourselves so that others will think we are very holy.
And, he says that when we fast, we should appear to others as though we are fasting.
During Lent, we are called to examine our spiritual lives and strengthen them. Some do this by adding something good, such as giving alms to the poor, attending Mass more frequently, praying the rosary, or whatever. Others do this by deleting something from their lives to show that the spirit is stronger than the body, such as giving up television, candy, gossip, or whatever.
I advise that whatever special thing you do during Lent, keep it simple. You have the rest of your life to become a great saint; it doesn’t have to happen by this coming Easter!
The photo above is from the Church of St. Michael the Archangel in the Alubarén community of El Hatillo. It is of the altar decorated for Lent. Note the violet fabric and the stark flowers.
