2nd Sunday of Lent
Fr. Philip Neri Powell, OP
OLR, NOLA
We
see God most clearly in darkness. That's a weird thing to say. We
hear over and over again in Scripture that we are children of the
light. That we bring light to the world when we bear witness to God's
mercy and work for His greater glory. We hear again and again that we
leave darkness behind and enter the light so that we might better see
our true end – eternal life with God. But notice: “As the sun was
about to set, a trance fell upon Abram, and a deep, terrifying
darkness enveloped him.” In the darkness, God made his covenant
with Abram. In the darkness, Abram became the father of generations
and those generations called God their Lord. As heirs to the Kingdom,
as brothers and sisters of the Son, we call that same God Lord. And
we come into a new covenant through a darkness. . .a darkness of sin,
death, ignorance, and despair. Lent is our time to recall all that
separates us from God the Father, all that extinguishes the light of
Christ. Lent is our time to practice those feats of sacrifice that
remind us that Christ's victory is our victory. And that the Devil
has no more power over us than we give him. Lent is our time to
embrace the dark night of the soul. What awaits us at dawn is Christ
transfigured – “his clothing [becomes] dazzling white.”
When Abram emerges from the “terrifying darkness [that] envelope[s]
him,” God seals the first covenant with fire and grants to him
descendants as countless as the stars. When Peter, James, and John
emerge from their dark cloud on the mountain, a voice from heaven
declares, “This is my chosen Son; listen to him.” Having emerged
from the other side of their darkness, these faithful men find
waiting for them revelations of divine love beyond their imagining.
Abram becomes the father of God's chosen people. The disciples become
preachers of God's Good News to sinners. Beyond the dark clouds of
their human ignorance, these men find their calling, their mission.
They find in obedience to God their purpose, their holiness. They are
gifted with all that they need to accomplish all that God has asked
of them. And so are we. Holiness is not impossible. Living truly
righteous lives as followers of Christ is not a ridiculous goal, nor
some sort of improbable dream. Abram and the disciples emerge from
their darkness by God's will, freely receive their gifts, and then
work furiously to finish the job God has given them to do. Their
holiness would be impossible if they labored alone in pride, alone in
ignorance and disobedience. But they don't.
And
neither do we. The Church has given us prayer, penance, fasting, and
alms-giving as faithful means of remembering that Christ's eternal
victory on the Cross is our daily victory as his followers. Prayer
unites us in the Spirit through Christ toward the Father, ensuring
our progress in holiness by freeing us from the damning consequences
of pride and deceit. Prayer is how we receive God into our lives and
transform His presence into the words and deeds of witness. Penance
moves us out of the center of our own lives and helps us to occupy
the sufferings of Christ so that we are better able to love
sacrificially. Penance is how we become smaller in the world so that
Christ might become larger for the world. Fasting detaches us
from all those things and people that tempt us to idolatry, tempt us
to replace the Creator with His creatures. Fasting is how we remember
Who made us and for what purpose. Alms-giving encourages us to
imitate God's redeeming generosity, His creative and re-creative
goodness and beauty. Alms-giving is how we recognize that everything
we are and have is first a gift from the Father. These four Lenten
sacrifices, practiced faithfully, take us out of the darkness and
transfigure us into partakers of the Divine Life.
“Therefore,
my brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown,
in this way stand firm in the Lord. . .” If Lent is a time of
testing, a long dark night of the soul, then make this time a test of
your resolve to grow in holiness by imitating Christ. Make it a test
of your faith that God is in the darkness, waiting for you. Like Abram, wait upon the Lord, sure in the knowledge that He keeps His
word. That His covenant with us in Christ is accomplished and true.
Take up these 40 days and treat each one as chance to step closer and
closer to the consummation of your salvation on the Cross. When the
clouds gather and, in your weakness, you fail – we all do, listen
for the voice of God, speaking to you, “You are my chosen.” And
confidently lay claim to Christ's victory over sin and death. . .and
start again. We see God most clearly in the darkness. . .b/c that is
where we most need His saving light.
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