Ash Wednesday

Invite others to pray with you this Lent. Share the Rosary and win a pilgrimage with School of Faith!

One

Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent.

St. Gregory the Great tells an amazing story about St. Scholastica, the twin sister of St. Benedict. One day she came as usual, and her saintly brother went with some of his disciples; they spent the whole day praising God and talking of sacred things. As night fell, they had supper together.

Their spiritual conversation went on and the hour grew late. She said to her brother, “Please do not leave me tonight; let us go on until morning talking about the delights of the spiritual life.”

“Sister,” he replied, “what are you saying? I simply cannot stay outside my monastery.”

When she heard her brother refuse her request, the holy woman joined her hands on the table, laid her head on them, and began to pray. As she raised her head from the table, there were such brilliant flashes of lightning, such great peals of thunder, and such a heavy downpour of rain that neither Benedict nor his brethren could stir across the threshold of the place where they had been seated. “May God forgive you, sister. What have you done?” cried Benedict. “Well,” she answered, “I asked you and you would not listen; so, I asked God and he did listen. So, it came about that they stayed awake the whole night talking about God and the spiritual life.

Wow! How would you like to have such a good friendship with Jesus that, as He said, “Whatever you ask in my name, I will do it.” 

Two

I would like to suggest that above all Lent is the time to do three things: Improve our friendship with Jesus, become more like him, and help others to a better friendship with Jesus.

Regardless of how you might characterize your friendship with Jesus right now, I’m sure we would all like to have a better friendship with him. If you want a better friendship with someone, then we need to spend time together. Especially time talking and listening and getting to know one another better.

That is precisely what mental prayer or meditation is. It’s time in friendship with Jesus. Time talking to Jesus, listening to Him and just being with him. The Catechism says two great ways to do this are the Rosary and Lectio Divina – that is - praying through Scripture. 

So let me suggest that if you pray the Rosary occasionally, consider praying the Rosary every day during Lent.

If you pray the Rosary every day, then consider spending a little more time in friendship with Jesus each day this Lent through Lectio Divina. It’s really simple. Set aside 30 minutes. Read something from Scripture, or the Saints, or the Church. As soon as something strikes you – stop reading. Reflect or think about what struck you. Try to understand what God is saying. Then apply that truth to your life by asking: Am I living this or not? If not, then what is preventing me? And what am I going to do about this? That leads to a resolution. A Resolution is to choose something practical and concrete to do that day based on your meditation.

Three

If you already pray the Rosary daily and practice Lectio, then maybe God is calling you to a deeper level of prayer.

John of the Cross teaches us that as our friendship with Jesus deepens our prayer should become more simple. It simplifies from saying a lot of words doing a lot of thinking and trying to figure things out to a simple loving attention (John of the Cross Ascent, 2, 14, 2-3).

John of the Cross describes this as, “An inclination to remain alone and in quietude…If those in whom this occurs, know how to remain quiet they will soon - in that unconcern and idleness -delicately experience the interior nourishment.” 

Teresa of Avila tells us to continue mental prayer until we lose the desire to read and acquire more knowledge (Life 14). Then we should just be with God in calm, quiet, and stillness. (Life 12:2,5)

So, if you have established the habit of daily meditation and have persevered in this for some time but you find that you have lost the desire to say a whole lot or read a whole lot or even try to figure things out – if you have a growing desire to just be with Jesus and Mary without talking, reading and figuring things out – then do that.  Simply remain alone with God in silence and commit to do more of that this Lent. Because Jesus is inviting you to a more intimate friendship with him and you want to respond. 

Four

Lent is a time to become more like Jesus. We do that by overcoming vice and growing in virtue. 

This might surprise you but the purpose of Lent and the purpose of prayer is that we change. Not God. And the only way we will change is if we practice. Virtues are good actions that become habits. You can’t make good habits just by thinking about it. You have to do it. You have to practice. That is why mental prayer or meditation, thinking about God and what we should do, has to end with a resolution – the commitment to do something. Without a resolution, we won’t change and get better. 

St. Francis De Sales writes of the necessity of the daily resolution, “The most important thing of all is that you cling firmly to the resolutions you have taken in meditation so as to practice them carefully.  That is the great fruit of meditation, without which it is often not only useless but harmful.  Why so?  Because the virtues upon which we have meditated but not practiced sometimes puff us up so much in mind and heart that we think we are already what we are resolved to be which no doubt is the case if our resolutions are solid and ardent.  But when, on the contrary, they are not practiced, they are useless and dangerous.” (Introduction to the Devout Life, II Chap 8)

Examples of a resolution: Today I will listen more than I speak. I will not gossip today. I complain too much, so today I will practice thanking God ahead of time for working everything for good. I am anxious, so today I will replace that feeling of anxiety with an act of trust in God. 

If you want to become more like Jesus, then make the commitment to have and do a resolution every day flowing from your meditation because without a resolution you won’t change. 

Five

Lent is also a time to help others into friendship with Jesus.

At the beginning of Lent everyone asks, “What are you giving up?” Instead, ask “Hey, what are you doing to grow in friendship with Jesus this Lent?” 

Give them a chance to respond. Then suggest, “I’m doing this Rosary challenge where we pray the Rosary every day in Lent. Would you like to join me in praying this Rosary Podcast every day this Lent? I could share it with you…”

Invite others to pray the podcast with you this Lent by clicking the “Share the Rosary” link below. 

For each person you share this link with who begins to pray the Podcast during Lent, you will receive one entry into our pilgrimage to Poland or any of our upcoming pilgrimages. 

Invite others to pray with you this Lent. Share the Rosary and win a pilgrimage with School of Faith!