Monday, March 10, 2014

Friday after Ash Wednesday, Cycle A - March 7, 2014

Friday after Ash Wednesday
March 7, 2014      8:30am


Today’s readings are challenging and even a bit jarring.
We as a Church lift up the value of some fasting during Lent.
But today’s readings are at least cautious about this.

God, through the prophet Isaiah in the first reading, says:
What matters is that you care for those who are in need.
God wants us to fast, not so much from food, but from any prejudices or from any sense of superiority or from our fears and divisions.
He simply wants us to care for those in need, no matter who they are or for whatever reason they are in need.   
Even Jesus in today’s gospel doesn’t really advocate fasting.
He acknowledges that we will fast when he, the bridegroom is no longer with us, but he doesn’t really pump it up as a priority.
Why?
Apparently because he knows that it is not an end in itself and that we might slide into thinking that it is an end in itself and judge ourselves as good just because we do it.

So, I see these as tough, challenging readings.
I do believe that fasting is good and plays a real part in our spiritual life.
It plays a real part in our growing in the way of Jesus.
But it plays this part if our fasting from some amount or some kind of food leads us within ourselves, to really look at and know ourselves.
Fasting plays a part if it leads us to look within and see what attitudes and conversations and actions we need to fast from, and what attitudes and conversations and actions we need to embrace and adopt.
If we do that, we will be moved to care for people in need, no matter who or where they are.

In our Catholic tradition, we call this charity and social justice.  
That’s the purpose of fasting according to today’s readings.

To me, the purpose is much more challenging than the fasting itself.