Feb 21, 2021 English

I have a sweet tooth. I love chocolate fudge. But when I saw someone making it, I was startled by so much sugar and butter going into that, and ever since, I would have a second thought before I reach for it. I am also astonished by the sheer amount of sweets some people consume, which goes against good judgment and logic. Such is the sad incongruity and absurdity of craving and other addictions.

The expression, “I can’t help it,” appears often in our conversations.  Sin is like an addiction, a vicious cycle of repetition and enslavement in which many feel stuck.  This sinful imprisonment resembles the current prolonged pandemic, which drives many of us to fatigue, dread, resignation, anger, and even paranoia.

Lent hints at a new beginning and points a way out of this vicious cycle. Traditionally, three things are recommended: prayer, fasting and almsgiving.

Yes, as the spiritual winter of death gives way to spiritual springtime. Prayer is our lifeline with God, which we are encouraged to renew and strengthen. We fast during Lent: total fasting on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, and abstinence from meat on Fridays. Of course, we can refrain from idle talks, gossiping, consumerism, and other hedonistic or sinful habits. Perhaps, the crowning of our Lenten observances is almsgiving. Someone suggests getting a large trash bag, and you put one thing in it every day during Lent, something you don’t need or something someone else needs. At the end of a Lenten journey, you can sort things out and give them to relevant organizations and individuals.

Lent is about a new beginning. From within the frozen tundra, a new life begins. The word Lent comes from lengthening. We experience this lengthening of day light. Yes, our frozen listless soul will also experience the springtime by following the way of the Lord, which we call the Paschal mystery. We go out to the desert with the Lord: “The Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert, and he remained in the desert for forty days, tempted by Satan” (Mark 1:12).

The desert experience is about deprivation. For many of us, deprivation is a great evil, to be avoided at all costs. In deprivation, we discover that we are not all-powerful. Often we are slaves to our bellies, to the opinions of others, to pleasure. We cannot bear pain, so we take pills. We cannot bear growing old, so we dye our hair. But in reality, deprivation/doing without can strip away some of the illusions and give us a glimpse of truth. Illusions of fleeting pleasure, of ‘dessert,’ can be corrected by the sobering deprivation of ‘desert.’

We also have an opportunity to hear voices during Lent, that are often lost in the din of pleasure and meaningless chatters. We can enter into a private desert even in the midst of the world and face our own demons. If we are brave, we can run through this desert trying to find the real God amid the gods.

Jesus breaks the vicious cycle of sin by rejecting the opportunity to be the wrong kind of messiah and by overcoming evil with good. We are invited to go out to the desert to be with Jesus who was tempted and tested but did not sin. United with him, we celebrate the victory of good over evil, life over death, and hope over dread.

The season of Lent, therefore, is truly a springtime for sinners.

Fr. Paul D. Lee