68. Friday after Ash Wednesday

Meditations no. 114 (unofficial computer-aided translation)

The value of acts of penance.

Lent is a time for penance and a preparation for the mystery of the Cross which culminates in the Resurrection. The whole liturgical year is directed towards the paschal mystery which is the centre of our faith and the goal of our journey. This season, then, demands even greater devotion by virtue of its proximity to the sublime mysteries of divine mercy.

Lent is, above all, an opportunity to die to the deeds of the flesh in order to be reborn afterwards to the life of God. At times the Lenten liturgy, with its emphasis on the consequences of man’s abandonment of God, has a suggestion of tragedy; but that is not all. It is God who has the last word - and it is the word of his saving and merciful love, and, therefore, the word of our divine filiation. It is this spirit of filiation, of loving union with our Father God, which should direct our practice of penance during these coming weeks.

St Leo the Great points out that, inspired by the Holy Spirit, the holy Apostles ordered more rigorous fasts to be kept during these days so that, in being united to Christ’s Cross, we might also suffer something of what he suffered for us. For we have been made heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

We must die to the deeds of the flesh. We must atone for our having turned towards created things which separate us from God. We must make up, co-redeem and become detached from earthly things. This is the purpose of the acts of penance that our Mother, the Church, imposes on her children during these days. A strict fast is a penance pleasing to God, our Father writes. We should fast with this spirit of penance and reparation, in satisfaction for our sins and as part of the purification that we need. Along with fasting, we will be more generous in our practice of corporal mortification and in all our acts of penance.

We must have the same spirit that led the early Christians to undertake very rigorous fasts and penances. We have both motives and opportunities for mortification. Motives for penance? Atonement, reparation, petition, thanksgiving; as a means of progress - for you, for me, for all the others, for your family, for your country, for the Church… and a thousand motives more.

Mortification must be inwardly motivated and sincere, to be beneficial to the soul.

Let the eyes fast from all curiosity, says St Bernard. Let the ears fast by paying no attention to vain words and things that are not necessary for the soul’s salvation … Let the tongue fast from defamation and gossip, from vain and useless words … Let the hand fast from idleness and from all acts that are not commanded. But let the soul fast even more from all vices and sins and from imposing its own will and judgements. For without such fasting, all other fasting is rejected by God.

In order to forgive us, what God seeks above all is the sacrifice of our own will. A contrite and humble heart is always pleasing to him. He also warns us against the merely external practice of penance: On the day of your fast you pursue your own business, and oppress all your workers. Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight, and to hit with wicked fist. Fasting like yours this day will not make your voice heard on high.

What God wants is sincere contrition, shown in the traditional practices of penance which the Church suggests to us for Lent. Therefore these small deeds must be accompanied by a contrite heart. Without love, they would be worth nothing in his eyes. If you lose the supernatural meaning of your life, your charity will be philanthropy; your purity, decency; your mortification, stupidity; your discipline, a whip; and all your works fruitless.

Mortification of the senses and of the body, mortification that is humble and discreet but sincere and generous, is particularly pleasing to God. Perhaps up to this moment we had not felt urged to follow so closely in the footsteps of Christ. Perhaps we did not realize that we could unite our little renunciations to his redeeming sacrifice: to make up for our own sins, for the sins of men of all times, and for the evil work of Lucifer who continues to oppose God with his non serviam - I will not serve! How can we dare to cry out without hypocrisy, “Lord, I am hurt by the offences that wound your most loving Heart”, if we don’t make up our minds to deprive ourselves of this or that trivial thing, or to offer up some small sacrifice in praise of his Love? Penance, genuine reparation, sets us on the path of self-giving, of charity. We give ourselves to make reparation, and we practise charity to help others, as Christ has helped us.

Our spirit of penance and mortification must be shown in the details of ordinary life.

Our penance should be joyful and inconspicuous, just as our Lord commanded: When you fast, anoint your head and wash your face. We should practise a penance which aims to pass unnoticed, but which is nonetheless real, without allowing ourselves to be deceived by false shame. Although we try not to be noticed, it doesn’t matter if others do happen to see when we offer something in a spirit of reparation out of love for God. Since they have witnessed your faults and weaknesses, what does it matter if they witness your penance?

Do we live this spirit of penance in our daily lives? Penance is fulfilling exactly the timetable you have fixed for yourself, even though your body resists or your mind tries to avoid it by dreaming up useless fantasies. Penance is getting up on time and also not leaving for later, without any real reason, that particular job that you find harder or most difficult to do.

Penance is knowing how to reconcile your duties to God, to others and to yourself, by making demands on yourself so that you find enough time for each of your tasks. You are practising penance when you lovingly keep to your schedule of prayer, despite feeling worn out, listless or cold.

Penance means being very charitable at all times towards those around you, starting with the members of your own family. It is to be full of tenderness and kindness towards the suffering, the sick and the infirm. It is to give patient answers to people who are boring and annoying. It means interrupting our work or changing our plans, when circumstances make this necessary, above all when the just and rightful needs of others are involved.

Penance consists in putting up good-humouredly with the thousand and one little pinpricks of each day; in not abandoning your job, although you have momentarily lost the enthusiasm with which you started it; in eating gladly whatever is served, without being fussy.

For parents and, in general, for those whose work involves supervision or teaching, penance is to correct whenever it is necessary. This should be done bearing in mind the type of fault committed and the situation of the person who needs to be helped, not letting oneself be swayed by subjective viewpoints, which are often cowardly and sentimental.

A spirit of penance keeps us from becoming too attached to the vast imaginative blueprints we have made for our future projects, where we have already foreseen our master strokes and brilliant successes. What joy we give to God when we are happy to lay aside our third-rate painting efforts and let him put in the features and colours of his choice.

I could continue pointing out a multitude of details (I have just mentioned those that came immediately to mind) which you can take advantage of during the course of the day to come closer to God and to your neighbour.

This does not mean that we have to abandon the bigger penances, but that we should value the spirit in which penances, however small, are done. For this reason, care in little things requires constant mortification. It is a way to make life more pleasant for others.

Our Lady’s help will not fail us, so that we may persevere with love and sincerity in the penance we have begun.