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Category Archives: lent

Journey Into the Desert

March 11, 2011

Journey Into the Desert

By Father Stefan Starzynski

How many times have we said at the end of Lent, “I wish that I had a better Lent”? Here we are at the beginning of a new Lent. We have another opportunity to begin anew. Lent is about preparing our hearts to receive Jesus on Easter Sunday.

We are told in the scriptures that the Spirit drove Jesus into the desert. The same Spirit drives us into the desert. The desert has two purposes in the scriptures. The desert is the place where we are tested and stripped of the illusions that we have created about ourselves. The Desert is the place where we can hear and meet God.

We find an example of this desert experience in the life of Moses. Moses went into the desert for forty years in exile, but Moses experiences God on Mount Sinai. Moses had to go into the desert for forty years before he met the Living God in the Burning Bush. The Prophet Hosea says that God in the desert comes to us as a Groom meeting His Bride. God prepares us to become his bride in the desert.

One of the titles of Mary is the Rose of Sharon. This rose is a desert Rose. It is small, delicate and beautiful. This Rose springs up in the desert. In the morning the petals capture a single drop of dew. The rose protects the dew from the heat of the desert. The dew also gives nourishment to the rose. In the desert we meet God and God meets us. The Rose of Sharon is an image of the Blessed Mother and of every Christian. The Dew is an Image of Jesus.

We are called to be like Mary and receive the dew of God’s Word. In the desert of Lent our hearts are made more sensitive to the small ways that God comes to us.

How many people say that they have a hard time hearing God? In order to be able to hear God we first have to enter into the desert. May this Lent be a time when we make a journey into the desert in order to hear the still small voice of God.

May we come to know that we are God’s precious rose in the desert of the world.

Fr. Stefan Starzynski is Parochial Vicar of St. Marry of Sorrows in Falls Church, VA and serves as Spiritual Adviser to the Paul Stefan Foundation and its Maternity Homes for Women in Need.

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The Feast of the Annunciation

March 25, 2010

As we celebrate the Solemnity of the Annunciation, I am struck by two things: the significance of our Lord taking the same human form as each of us began our lives, and how the Virgin Mary said “yes!” to a life of pain and suffering, knowing her Son would be King but that His crown would be very different from other rulers.

The angel of the Lord appeared to Mary and said,

Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give to Him the throne of His father David, and He will reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of His kingdom there will be no end.”

The angel did not say “Mary, God is sending a great military leader and you are to be his earthly mother.” Or “would you care to sit on a golden throne with the Son of God, eat fine food and drink the finest drink for the rest of your life?” No, the angel Gabriel told Mary that God Almighty wanted her to give birth to a tiny baby – His baby, their baby – and that God was sending the Holy Spirit to knit that divine child in her womb! So it’s not a coincidence that this feast day falls nine months to the day before Jesus’ birth on December 25^th.

It’s also not a coincidence that Jesus first took the form of a human being as a tiny embryo – vulnerable, microscopic and completely dependent upon the nourishment of fellow human being, for whom he would eventually suffer and die to save.

What would have happened if Mary said “thanks, but no thanks?” Or if fear, poverty, inconvenience or any number of other circumstances won instead of her free will and courage? Her fiat is a model to us all – especially mothers and fathers who feel unprepared to bring an unborn child to term – because “through Him all things are possible.”

For those parents, let us ask our Virgin Mother’s intercession in praying,

Hail Mary, full of grace

The Lord is with thee;

Blessed art thou amongst women

And blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary,

Mother of God,

Pray for us sinners now

And at the hour of our death.

Amen.

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The Power of “True” Fasting

February 24, 2010

Two year’s ago, the Pastor at our Church made copies available of a Catholic magazine called The Word Among Us. While there are many terrific Catholic magazines, newspapers and online sources, The Word Among Us has really struck a chord.

This month’s issue is truly incredible. It is not only dedicated to Lent, but it focuses on the true meaning and impact of Fasting on our spiritual well being. Lent is so often practiced by many as a “that time of the year” ritual or tradition, rather than experienced as a way to examine conscience, seek reconciliation through Penance and a time of Fasting to draw closer to God and have a better understanding of our Faith as Catholics.

“True” Fasting, as outlined in Isaiah 58, will truly transform our lives, draw us closer to God and straighten our pathway to eternal life.

The current issue of The Word Among Us can and will inspire us to be more passionate in our Lenten observance and, through sacrifice and prayer, draw us closer to Our Lord and Savior.

Below are some bible stories about Fasting featured in the current issue. But we also encourage you to go to the site and prayerfully reflect on the three articles of Fasting for this Lenten season. It could change your spiritual life.

Blow the Trumpet Call the Assembly

It’s All About Prayer: Discerning a “True” Fast from a False One

Open Our Eyes Lord: Fasting Creates a Hunger for God’s Leading

Hear and Answer Us, O Lord!

Helpful Stories from the Bible about Fasting

For answers to prayer: “We fasted and prayed to our God for this, and our petition was granted” (Ezra 8:23). Burdened with embarrassment about having to ask the Persian king for an army to protect him and his fellow travelers, Ezra fasted and prayed, and the king granted his request.

For forgiveness of sin: “When they were gathered at Mizpah, they drew water and poured it out on the ground before the Lord, and they fasted that day, confessing, ‘We have sinned against the Lord’” ?(1 Samuel 7:6). Samuel led God’s people in a fast to celebrate the return of the Ark of the Covenant and to pray that Israel might be forgiven of the sin that allowed the Ark to be captured in the first place.

For clarity and guidance: “Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing; so they led him by the hand and brought him to Damascus. For three days he was unable to see, and he neither ate nor drank” (Acts 9:8-9). Having just experienced a traumatic conversion, Paul fasted for three days while he tried to reconcile himself to the fact that he had been wrong to persecute the Christians. After three days, he was visited by Ananias, a Christian leader in Damascus, who prayed over him, restored his eyesight, and helped him gain clarity on God’s calling for him.

For a special calling or mission: “He will be great in the sight of the Lord. He will drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother’s womb” (Luke 1:15). John the Baptist adopted a rigorous fast to help keep him focused on his ministry.

Appeal to God for protection: “Fast on my behalf, all of you, not eating or drinking, night or day, for three days. I and my maids will also fast in the same way. Thus prepared, I will go to the king” (Esther 4:16). It was against the law for a woman to appeal to the king in Babylon. But Esther dared to do this so that she could plead with the king to protect her people from destruction. Prior to taking this bold step, Esther asked all the Jews to fast and pray that God would protect her. The king welcomed her, heard her petition, and saved the Jews.

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Lenten Carbon Fast?

February 19, 2010

There’s a new calendar by the Archdiocese of Washington that is causing a stir among some critics for its focus on Catholics cutting their carbon footprint this Lent.

The calendar, created by the Diocese’s Environmental Outreach Committee, provides 40 carbon-fasting suggestions in order to be “wise stewards of God’s Creation” in preparation for Lent and the Easter Season. Some of the measures include:

“Turn down your thermostat by at least one degree.”
“Remember your baptism today, and the power of water. Try to conserve: Leave a bucket in the shower or kitchen sink, and collect ‘grey water’ to water the plants.”
“Be aware of how much food you discard this week. Look for opportunities to avoid wasting food by planning well, and eating leftovers.”
“Speak out! Ask our leaders to take action on climate change today.”
Show reverence for life and for the Earth today by obeying the speed limit when driving. Every 10 mph in speed reduces fuel economy by 4 mph, and increases the risk of getting into an accident.

The full calendar is viewable here, and more detail on the calendar and the promotion of this “new twist on Lent” by the California bishops is at the California Catholic Daily.

While these are good suggestions to be stewards of God’s creation, how appropriate is it to focus an entire 40 days on cutting your carbon footprint? Is that more important than the grave issues like abortion, adultery, euthanasia and others that could inform Lenten sacrifices such as volunteering at a Pregnancy Resource Center or taking time to help an elderly neighbor? Some, like the Sweetness & Light blog, have questioned the calendar’s focus saying

Is nothing sacred? This isn’t your father’s Catholicism.

Others, like this Catholic who must remain anonymous, shared a keen insight saying

We have clear guidelines on how to follow the liberals on saving the planet but we cannot have clear guidelines when it pertains to their votes on killing babies?

What do you think?

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