The Fast Begins

Dear Abrahams

Great Lent begins today with a feast.  This is a rare occurrence and thereby a reminder for us of the festal nature of Great Lent.  What is so festive about fasting, we may ask?   To answer that question all we need consider is the contest.   We are in the midst of the Winter Olympics.  What medal is acquired without effort and who among the contestants, while putting forth the effort for the trophy, is not filled and rewarded beforehand with the joy of anticipation of winning?   On the other hand, although knowing they may not win, who among them can possibly be filled with despondency, a reality that tries to defeat them from within?   Subsequently, if they win or lose, while competing and putting forth the effort they are rewarded in a way they would not have been, had they not entered the competition. 

Great Lent is a time when we willingly deny our weaknesses and appetite for carnal things so that we may hunger and thirst for trophy that is Christ.  It is a contest, and our endurance, the effort.  And like contestants in any endeavor, we too can be filled with the joy of anticipation.  But unlike any other contest, all can win.  If contestants in a sport can anticipate the joy of victory even with a great possibility of defeat, what excuse have we?  We should be ashamed to grumble!  We cannot be defeated by any other contestant no matter how much greater he or she may be!  And no event can be too difficult for us.  Our own weaknesses and frailties need not impair us.  Even the Devil himself cannot defeat us!  All we need to do is harness our hearts and wills to Christ and we win!   The Psalmist says, O taste and see the Lord is good.  One who has tasted, cannot help but anticipate and savor Christ throughout his life, whether enduring the fast or enjoying the communion of prayer, until the Prize is acquired.   And the Prize?  Joy all along the way and at the finish, the Creator Himself, the treasure house of joy. 

So let us compete and endure with great fervor this lent, rejoicing in the blessing that it begins with the feast of the Lord, His Presentation into the Temple and like it, our presentation into His Temple at the end of the Great Fast!  Let's remind ourselves throughout lent by heeding the words of Savior Who told us that miraculous things come from prayer and fasting, by

- setting aside more time for spiritual reading,

- more use of personal prayer,

- more often talking directly to our Savior as Father and Friend (as St. Isaac the Syrian advises),

and listening to the words of St. John of Kronstadt when he says to: refresh your soul from worldly vanities by friendly and loving interaction, to be mutually comforted by your common faith. For ‘I see not yours, but you,’ [St. Matthew vii.11.] says the Apostle.”