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Lenten Repentin’
The Lenten season is often known as one that
deals with prayer, fasting and repentance. Many
times, it is a time of year that causes each of us
to take a deeper look at our lives as we seek to
remove our vices and grow in our relationship with
the Lord.
Yet, Lent is also often viewed as a negative time of
year. We many times misunderstand the meaning of
the season and it can quickly become a time that
almost seems depressing and hurtful, as if a
punishment has been handed down to us. In our
sinful hearts, we take this Lenten season, which God
has given us through His Holy Church, and turn it
from a gift into a curse.
As we do so, the season then becomes a time of
struggle and difficulty in our lives. Whether we
deal with the difficulties of almsgiving or simply
begin to rethink how we are living our lives, the
time can seem unbearable because our sins seem as if
they overwhelm us in every way.
This is not only the case for us today. For even
from the earliest formation of the Church, people
dealt with the burden of sin, especially as they
were confronted with their disobedience to God’s
Law. And, as we hear in the book of the Acts of the
Apostles, we are taught how to respond to our own
sinful actions: “Now when they heard this, they
were cut to the heart and said to Peter and to the
other apostles, ‘Brothers,*
what should we do?’
38Peter
said to them, ‘Repent, and be baptized every one of
you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins
may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of
the Holy Spirit.”
As sin overwhelms us and as we are confronted
with our disobedience, we are given a gift from our
Lord: the gift of repentance. For as we
repent, we are then offered forgiveness through the
death and resurrection of Christ Jesus. Jesus, our
Lord, came down to earth as God and remained
obedient and faithful to His Father. Yet, out of
His love for us, He took our sins upon Himself and
died on the cross. Then, on that Easter morning to
which we look forward during this Lenten season, our
Lord rose from the dead for our salvation.
As we repent and are baptized, we, too, die with the
Lord and rise again with Him. As we are washed by
His Word, our repentance is lovingly accepted and
our sins are forgiven in the name of God, the
Father, Son and Holy Spirit. And, in that
Word-filled water, we receive the Spirit into our
hearts, made one with God through the love of the
Son.
Then, each time we come to His Holy Altar and
receive His body and His blood, wrapped in bread and
wine, we remember our baptisms, the day we became
one with our Savior, and we are strengthened in our
faith, knowing that God loves us so much that He
forgives our sins each and every time we repent.
My dear friends in Christ, do not be depressed or
hurt by the Lenten season, but be encouraged by its
presence. Use this season as a time to thank God
for His many blessings and to remember the gifts
that He gives to us each and every day. Though sin
may seem burdensome and overwhelming, remember that
Jesus died on the cross and rose again so that our
sins are forgiven and our burdens are removed. And
He allows us to taste the forgiveness that we are
given when we receive the Blessed Sacrament of the
Altar. There, at the Lord’s Holy Altar, we are able
to taste and see that the Lord truly is good and
that His gifts are overabundant, especially during
the Lenten season…for as we prepare for Easter
during this season of Lent, we are encouraged by His
forgiveness as we repent.
Blessings, hope and love,
Deacon Gonzalez |
