Bishop Wenski - Statements

LENT 2005

With Ash Wednesday, February 9th, we have begun once again our Lenten journey of renewal and continual conversion of mind and heart. These forty days of prayer, fasting and almsgiving prepare us for Easter Sunday when we will renew our Baptismal Promises to renounce sin and to live as God’s children.

Christ is the new Adam whose obedience to God’s will “even unto death” reconciles us to the Father and makes of Adam’s sin that “happy fault” which gained for us so great a Redeemer (cf. Exultet, Holy Saturday liturgy).

Adam and Eve’s sin was fundamentally one of pride and disobedience. In the face of temptation, they give in and sin; and sin alienated them and their progeny from a life in communion with God. The Book of Genesis in recounting the story of the Fall speaks in highly figurative language – a language that is difficult for many of us to grasp today. However, it is important to understand what their temptation was – it was to become like God – but on their terms not on his. That original sin has wounded us all – for we still want to think of ourselves as gods – and we think that we can makes ourselves into gods on our terms. Those terms define the way temptations come to us. One old country preacher once said that you can classify temptations into one of the 3 “G’s”: Guns, gals (or guys, as the case may be), and gold. In other words, rather than seeking God’s will, we seek to impose our own through the selfish pursuit of power, pleasure or riches.

These forty days of Lent are designed to put us back on good terms with God by leading us to repent for the times that we have sought to impose our terms on him or on others.

Lent is a time for a more intense practice of prayer – perhaps by daily Mass, or by rediscovering traditional devotions such as the rosary or Stations of the Cross. Prayer helps turn us away from the temptation to power, to control, to self-sufficiency. In prayer, we let go, so we can let God…

Lent is a time for self denial and fasting. Before we can say yes to God or to a neighbor in need, we have to be able to say no to ourselves. Fasting turns us away from the temptation to pursue pleasure for its own sake.

And Lent is a time for alms giving. Scriptures say that charity covers over a multitude of sins. In helping the needy, we imitate the mercy of God that we hope will be showered on us. Not the rule of gold but the golden rule will win God’s mercy on us.

Jesus who is God also shares in our human nature – he too is tempted but does not sin. He refuses to accept the terms defined by the Adversary.– his way to God, and through Him, our way, is not through seeking power, or pleasure, or riches but through obedience of God’s will.

In Christ, we can become Godlike – but it is always on God’s terms not ours. Through him we enter in the very life of God, the communion of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. With him, we journey towards the glory of the heavenly Jerusalem along the way of the Cross. In him, we become a new creation and are made God’s children through the gift of his Holy Spirit so that we might live no longer for ourselves but for him (cf. IV Eucharistic Prayer).