20 Lenten Things That Caught My Eye Today (Ash Wednesday, 2015)

2. You are what you eat. Eucharistic edition with @CookingPriest:

"Rend your hearts, not your garments" (Jl 2:13a) #Lent http://t.co/STFywlIePt

— Dynamic Catholic (@DynamicCatholic) February 18, 2015

5. Three year-old Brazilian boy with cancer ‘celebrates Mass,’ wants to be Pope

6. From Bishop James Conley:

When we are baptized, we join the Body of Christ. We become united to every member of Christ’s body, in every state in life, and every part of the world. We are united to women considering abortion. We are united to Christians suffering martyrdom and persecution. We are united to couples struggling in marriage, to priests struggling in their vocations, to religious searching for joy.
Christ unites us. And so the sufferings of each member of the Body of Christ are our sufferings. And in Christ, we can lift up those who are suffering. This Lent, we can remember those who are suffering in our prayers. We can support them with our resources.
But most especially, this Lent, we can be present to those suffering in our own communities, and in our own families. To love the members of the Body of Christ is to choose to be with them—to visit the sick, or the elderly, or the poor, and to be present to them.
We are a part of the Body of Christ, the Church, and Christ works through us. This Lent, Christ can work through us to heal those who suffer. We are called to solidarity, to support, and to love our brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ.

"Fasting is the change of every part of our life, because the sacrifice of the fast is not the abstinence but the distancing from sins."

— Fr. Dismas, O.P. (@dismasop) February 19, 2015

That was from St. John Chrysostom, a great read!

— Fr. Dismas, O.P. (@dismasop) February 19, 2015

9. Confession is about gaining freedom from slavery to sin.

10. How about praying this prayer from Thomas Aquinas for ordering a life wisely for 40 days?

For Ordering a Life Wisely
O merciful God, grant that I may desire ardently, search prudently, recognize truly, and bring to perfect completion whatever is pleasing to You for the praise and glory of Your name.
Put my life in good order, O my God.
Grant that I may know what You require me to do.
Bestow upon me the power to accomplish Your will, as is necessary and fitting for the salvation of my soul.
Grant to me, O Lord my God, that I may not falter in times of prosperity or adversity, so that I may not be exalted in the former, nor dejected in the latter.
May I not rejoice in anything unless it leads me to You; may I not be saddened by anything unless it turns me from You.
May I desire to please no one, nor fear to displease anyone, but You.
May all transitory things, O Lord, be worthless to me and may all things eternal be ever cherished by me.
May any joy without You be burdensome for me and may I not desire anything else besides You.
May all work, O Lord, delight me when done for Your sake and may all repose not centered in You be ever wearisome for me.
Grant unto me, my God, that I may direct my heart to You and that in my failures I may ever feel remorse for my sins and never lose the resolve to change.
O Lord my God, make me submissive without protest, poor without discouragement, chaste without regret, patient without complaint, humble without posturing, cheerful without frivolity, mature without gloom, and quick-witted without flippancy.
O Lord my God, let me fear You without losing hope, be truthful without guile, do good works without presumption, rebuke my neighbor without haughtiness, and—without hypocrisy—strengthen him by word and example.
Give to me, O Lord God, a watchful heart, which no capricious thought can lure away from You.
Give to me a noble heart, which no unworthy desire can debase.
Give to me a resolute heart, which no evil intention can divert.
Give to me a stalwart heart, which no tribulation can overcome.
Give to me a temperate heart, which no violent passion can enslave
.Give to me, O Lord my God, understanding of You, diligence in seeking You, wisdom in finding You, discourse ever pleasing to You, perseverance in waiting for You, and confidence in finally embracing You.
Grant that with Your hardships I may be burdened in reparation here, that Your benefits I may use in gratitude upon the way, that in Your joys I may delight by glorifying You in the Kingdom of Heaven.
You Who live and reign, God, world without end.Amen.

11.

"Meditate frequently on the sufferings which I have undergone for your sake" v1512 #DivineMercy ~ #AshWednesday

— DivineMercy (@SantaFaustyna) February 18, 2015

12. From Brooklyn:

Mortification has been described as the drawbridge that enables us to enter into the castle of prayer, because prayer is the ultimate goal of mortification. We are not masochists as Christians, yet we know that without mortification we will not find the true happiness which is ours on Earth. Only the person who understands mortification, who can live simply and enjoys the good things of life, will understand how to accept the suffering that is part of every human life. Another spiritual author said that a day without mortification is a day lost because we have not united ourselves to God.

13. From the Imitation of Christ via Magnificat today:

I will speak to my Lord, I who am but dust and ashes. If I consider myself anything more than this, behold You stand against me, and my sins bear witness to the truth which I cannot contradict. If I abase myself, however, if I humble myself to nothingness, if I shrink from all self-esteem and account myself as the dust which I am, Your grace will favor me, Your light will enshroud my heart, and all self-esteem, no matter how little, will sink in the depths of my nothingness to perish forever.
It is there You show me to myself — what I am, what I have been, and what I am coming to; for I am nothing and I did not know it. Left to myself, I am nothing but total weakness. But if You look upon me for an instant, I am at once made strong and filled with new joy. Great wonder it is that I, who of my own weight always sink to the depths, am so suddenly lifted up, and so graciously embraced by You.
It is Your love that does this, graciously upholding me, supporting me in so many necessities, guarding me from so many grave dangers, and snatching me, as I may truly say, from evils without number. Indeed, by loving myself badly I lost myself; by seeking only You and by truly loving You I have found both myself and You, and by that love I have reduced myself more profoundly to nothing. For You, O sweetest Lord, deal with me above all my merits and above all that I dare to hope or ask.
May You be blessed, my God, for although I am unworthy of any benefits, yet Your nobility and infinite goodness never cease to do good even for those who are ungrateful and far from You. Convert us to you, that we may be thankful, humble, and devout, for You are our salvation, our courage, and our strength.

14. Ten tips from the pope.

15. A symposium on National Review Online some years ago. Does it stand the test of time?

16. Reading suggestions for Lent from another year.

17. How can we live the Gospel? A Q&A.

18. “Please, please, please: Do not give up chocolate this Lent.” Have the #BestLentEver.

19. Do you know about Fr. Robert Barron’s daily Lenten reflection by e-mail?

20. From the Liturgy of the Hours on Ash Wednesday, from St. Clement:

Let us fix our attention on the blood of Christ and recognize how precious it is to God his Father, since it was shed for our salvation and brought the grace of repentance to all the world.

If we review the various ages of history, we will see that in every generation the Lord has offered the opportunity of repentance to any who were willing to turn to him. When Noah preached God’s message of repentance, all who listened to him were saved. Jonah told the Ninevites they were going to be destroyed, but when they repented, their prayers gained God’s forgiveness for their sins, and they were saved, even though they were not of God’s people.

Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, the ministers of God’s grace have spoken of repentance; indeed, the Master of the whole universe himself spoke of repentance with an oath: As I live, says the Lord, I do not wish the death of the sinner but his repentance. He added this evidence of his goodness: House of Israel, repent of your wickedness. Tell the sons of my people: If their sins should reach from earth to heaven, if they are brighter than scarlet and blacker than sackcloth, you need only turn to me with your whole heart and say, “Father”, and I will listen to you as a holy people.

In other words, God wanted all his beloved ones to have the opportunity to repent and he confirmed this desire by his own almighty will. That is why we should obey his sovereign and glorious will and prayerfully entreat his mercy and kindness. We should be suppliant before him and turn to his compassion, rejecting empty works and quarreling and jealousy which only lead to death.

Brothers, we should be humble in mind, putting aside all arrogance, pride and foolish anger. Rather, we should act in accordance with the Scriptures, as the Holy Spirit says: The wise man must not glory in his wisdom nor the strong man in his strength nor the rich man in his riches. Rather, let him who glories glory in the Lord by seeking him and doing what is right and just. Recall especially what the Lord Jesus said when he taught gentleness and forbearance. Be merciful, he said, so that you may have mercy shown to you. Forgive, so that you may be forgiven. As you treat others, so you will be treated. As you give, so you will receive. As you judge, so you will be judged. As you are kind to others, so you will be treated kindly. The measure of your giving will be the measure of your receiving.

Let these commandments and precepts strengthen us to live in humble obedience to his sacred words. As Scripture asks: Whom shall I look upon with favor except the humble, peaceful man who trembles at my words?

Sharing then in the heritage of so many vast and glorious achievements, let us hasten toward the goal of peace, set before us from the beginning. Let us keep our eyes firmly fixed on the Father and Creator of the whole universe, and hold fast to his splendid and transcendent gifts of peace and all his blessings.

RESPONSORY
Isaiah 55:7; Joel 2:13; See Ezekiel 33:11

Let the evil man give up his way of life,
and the sinful man his thoughts.
Let him turn back to the Lord,
and the Lord will have mercy on him.
– Our God is kind and compassionate,
always ready to forgive.

The Lord does not wish the sinner to die,
but to turn back to him and live.
– Our God is kind and compassionate,
always ready to forgive.