Focusing on 40 days of Lent on our 40th

Specific Objectives

At the end of the session, the assembly the participants are expected to:

1. Know and understand the meaning of Lent

2. Appreciate fasting, praying and alms giving during Lent

3. Live out the true meaning of Lent throughout the 40 days

Expanded Outline

I. Introduction

This year we celebrate the 40 years of God’s faithfulness in different phases of community life as MFC. This phases are like important seasons that is preparing us for something greater and now to be light to the world. There are also 4 seasons in the Catholic Church’s Liturgical Calendar. We have advent, ordinary time, Lent and Easter seasons. In this month of March which is also the Month of the evangelization of the Philippines 500 years ago, we focus on the season of Lent. Lenten season prepares us for the Easter season.

Lent (Latin: Quadragesima: Fortieth) is a solemn religious observance in the liturgical calendar that begins on Ash Wednesday and ends approximately six weeks later, before Easter Sunday. The purpose of Lent is the preparation of the believer through prayer, doing penance, repentance of sins, almsgiving, atonement, and self-denial. This event is observed by Christians in the Anglican, Eastern Orthodox, Lutheran, Methodist, and Roman Catholic Churches.

II. 40 days of Lent and Love

“The period of forty days or years contains instances of suffering and the victory. The Israelites wandered in the desert for forty years before they entered the promise land. Jesus fasted for forty days and nights before commencing his life giving public ministry. The Israelites needed to wander in the desert for forty years so they would be purified. Indeed, the generation that sinned died in the desert. Jesus fasted for forty days in order to prepare him for ministry.” – Frank Padilla, 40 days with Job

Lent is 40 days long because traditionally it is a number of purfication and preparation in the Bible. In observing Lent for 40 days may we see it with Love: By the solemn forty days of Lent the Church unites herself to the mystery of Jesus in the desert. CCC540

1. Focuses on Jesus’ Suffering

Our catechism states, the seasons and days of penance in the liturgical year (Lent, and each Friday in memory of the death of the Lord) are intense moments of the Church's penitential practice. Through these sacrifices, may we not only remember the sufferings of Jesus and offer our pains to Him.

2. Focuses with Jesus’ Love

We do not sacrifice just for the sake of doing it. We sacrifice because we want to love more. In this time of Lent, may the extra resources we gain in our self-denial (fasting and abstinence) be given in alms-giving.

3. Focuses Jesus’ Victory

After 40 days of sacrifice and giving result in a more loving, resilient and forbearing person. May we come out of Lent a better person reflecting the glory of the work that God has done in us. The passion and death of Christ leads to Victory.

III. Focus on the Three Pillars of Lent

The three traditional pillars of Lenten observance are prayer, fasting and almsgiving. These times are particularly appropriate for spiritual exercises, penitential liturgies and pilgrimages as signs of penance, voluntary self denial such as fasting, almsgiving, and fraternal sharing. CCC1438

1. Focus on Prayer

Prayer is our avenue to communicate our love to God. It is also our time to reflect about the will of God in our lives. During Lent we are given more time to pray. We have more time to be closer to God. For me prayer is a surge of the heart; it is a simple look turned toward heaven, it is a cry of recognition and of love, embracing both trial and joy. St. Therese of Liseux

2. Focus on Fasting and Abstinence

Catholics who are eighteen to sixty years old are required to keep a limited fast. In a fasting we simply eat one normal meal and additional two snacks, as long as these snacks do not add up to a second meal.

Fasting helps us to grow in self-mastery. It also teaches us to obey the will of God. It is a sacrifice directed towards God and not ourselves. Abstinence is a day on which Catholics fourteen years or older are required to abstain from eating meat. We refrain from eating meat since Jesus sacrificed his flesh for us on Good Friday. Our goal in abstinence is to have a simple meal. We avoid meat while eating a sumptuous seafood dinner misses the whole point of sacrificing for God.

3. Almsgiving

Almsgiving is not only for the rich or people who have some extra spending money, but also for those who are poor or are struggling. We are all called to go out of our comfort zone to share Christ to others. It is a sign of our care for those in need and an expression of our gratitude for all that God has given to us. Let us also love our neighbors as ourselves. Let us have charity and humility. Let us give alms because these cleanse our souls from the stains of sin. Men lose all the material things they leave behind them in this world, but they carry with them the reward of their charity and the alms they give. For these they will receive from the Lord the reward and recompense they deserve. (St. Francis of Assisi)

We focus on Christ through prayer, fasting, abstinence and almsgiving

IV. 40 Days of Spiritual Preparation

For most Catholics, the first thought that Lent brings to mind is giving something up. Lent is the season wherein we are given time to prepare spiritually for the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus. In this time we need to give up and add up something in our lives. The effect of this is we are a better person after the season of Lent because we choose to Love.

1. Something to offer (give up)

What can we give up this Lent? Here are some practical things:

• We can give up our personal comfort during the 40 days of lent eg. watching netflix, tv shows, driving when you could walk

• We can give up eating our favorite foods.

• We can give up visiting our social media accounts.

2. Something to gather (add up)

Again, Lent is not only about giving up but gathering or adding up. So what can we add up this Lent? Here are some suggestions:

• Join a Live The Word group to enhance your knowledge about the Word of God

• Go to mass daily and spend time praying for the intentions of others.

• Do a corporal or spiritual works of mercy.

• Participate in Parish activities during lent and holy week.

• Donate the money you save from the food you are fasting from.

• Read a Spiritual Books such us 40days with Job, 40 days with Mary by our Servant General

3. Someone to Evangelize (step up)

As lent is a time returning home to Him “Pagbabalik loob”. May we also seek to bring God’s people back home through witnessing and evangelization. As we are on the 40th year of our community, may be true to who we are as MFC, Missionary and Evangelistic in all seasons. In person or online we can seek to inspire in our own Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and to the ends of the earth. Here are some suggestions:

• List down people that you want to evangelize

• Invite your friends to join a Live The Word hub, CLS or LCS

• Conduct a family household (This may also be an opportunity to inspire a non-community family member to appreciate and eventually join the community) *Outline is uploaded at www.missionaryfamiliesofchrist.org

• Invite friends to join Lenten Recollections

• Encourage friends to go to confession

V. Conclusion

The significance of 40 is preparation, purification and change. Lent is a time of conversion a call to repentance. We are supposed to examine our lives and leave out our sins and temptations for good. It is a time for us to renew our commitment to God that we are His disciples and we are ever ready to proclaim His love to others.

Lent is an avenue for us Catholics to be well prepared for the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Christ. Through the 40 days of prayer, fasting and almsgiving out of love we are reminded of the way of the Cross. Yes, it can be difficult but we must focus on the real reason for the season of lent which is the Glory of the Cross.

As we observe lent we our reminded that almsgiving is to love others, fasting and abstinence is to love ourselves and prayer is to love God. Lent is all about Love and may it move us to radiate the Light of Christ to the world.