CHRISTIAN PERSPECTIVES

Papal Message for Lent 2010

The full text of the Lenten message issued by Pope Benedict xvi

“Each year, on the occasion of Lent, the Church invites us to a sincere review of our life in light of the teachings of the Gospel.

This year, I would like to offer you some reflections on the great theme of justice, beginning from the Pauline affirmation: ‘The justice of God has been manifested through faith in Jesus Christ’.

“First of all, I want to consider the meaning of the term ‘justice’, which in common usage implies ‘to render to every man his due’, according to the famous expression of Ulpian, a Roman jurist of the third century. In reality, however, this classical definition does not specify what ‘due’ is to be rendered to each person.

What man needs most cannot be guaranteed to him by law. In order to live life to the full, something more intimate is necessary that can be granted only as a gift: we could say that man lives by that love which only God can communicate since He created the human person in His image and likeness.

Material goods are certainly useful and required - indeed Jesus Himself was concerned to heal the sick, feed the crowds that followed Him and surely condemns the indifference that even today forces hundreds of millions into death through lack of food, water and medicine - yet ‘distributive’ justice does not render to the human being the totality of his ‘due’. Just as man needs bread, so does man have even more need of God. St. Augustine notes: if ‘justice is that virtue which gives every one his due ... where, then, is the justice of man, when he deserts the true God?’

“The Evangelist Mark reports the following words of Jesus, which are inserted within the debate at that time regarding what is pure and impure: ‘There is nothing outside a man which by going into him can defile him; but the things which come out of a man are what defile him. ... What comes out of a man is what defiles a man. For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts’.

Beyond the immediate question concerning food, we can detect in the reaction of the Pharisees a permanent temptation within man: to situate the origin of evil in an exterior cause. Many modern ideologies deep down have this presupposition: since injustice comes ‘from outside’, in order for justice to reign, it is sufficient to remove the exterior causes that prevent it being achieved.

This way of thinking - Jesus warns - is ingenuous and short-sighted. Injustice, the fruit of evil, does not have exclusively external roots; its origin lies in the human heart, where the seeds are found of a mysterious co-operation with evil. With bitterness the Psalmist recognises this: ‘Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me’.

Indeed, man is weakened by an intense influence, which wounds his capacity to enter into communion with the other. By nature, he is open to sharing freely, but he finds in his being a strange force of gravity that makes him turn in and affirm himself above and against others: this is egoism, the result of original sin.

Adam and Eve, seduced by Satan’s lie, snatching the mysterious fruit against the divine command, replaced the logic of trusting in Love with that of suspicion and competition; the logic of receiving and trustfully expecting from the other with anxiously seizing and doing on one’s own, experiencing, as a consequence, a sense of disquiet and uncertainty. How can man free himself from this selfish influence and open himself to love?

God is attentive to the cry of the poor and in return asks to be listened to: He asks for justice towards the poor, the stranger, the slave. In order to enter into justice, it is thus necessary to leave that illusion of self-sufficiency, the profound state of closure, which is the very origin of injustice.

In other words, what is needed is an even deeper ‘exodus’ than that accomplished by God with Moses, a liberation of the heart, which the Law on its own is powerless to realize. Does man have any hope of justice then?

“The Christian Good News responds positively to man’s thirst for justice, as St. Paul affirms in the Letter to the Romans: ‘But now the justice of God has been manifested apart from law ... the justice of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe’. “Dear brothers and sisters, Lent culminates in the Paschal Triduum, in which this year, too, we shall celebrate divine justice - the fullness of charity, gift, salvation. May this penitential season be for every Christian a time of authentic conversion and intense knowledge of the mystery of Christ, who came to fulfil every justice. With these sentiments, I cordially impart to all of you my apostolic blessing”.

Hiniduma Calvary

Season begins on Sunday:

Theja Vidyarupa Akuressa group correspondent

The annual Lenten pilgrimage season of Hiniduma Calvary shrine is to be commenced with flag hoisting ceremony at the Mount Calvary (Kurusa Kanda) on February 14 at 5 p.m. The pilgrimage season is scheduled to be ended with Thanksgiving Mass on April 11.

Historically the Calvary shrine is the hillock where Jesus was crucified. Here in Hiniduma it is a replica where the style statues depict the various events that occurred on the way to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

The passion and death of Jesus is annually commemorated during a period of 40 days called the Season of Lent by the Catholics.

In Sri Lanka when it is Lent the Calvary shrine of Hiniduma comes to the minds of the average Catholic to make a pilgrimage to the shrine.

This is the most popular shrine among Catholic devotees that situated about 51 kilometres interior from Galle town on the Galle-Neluwa road via Udugama beside the bank of Ginganga. The shrine was founded by the late Rev. Fr. Cyril Edirisinghe in 1949 when he was the administrator of the St. Anne’s Church, Hiniduma.

During this season several thousands of devotees flock to the shrine to meditate the events and values of Jesus’ life vis-a-vis their own and participate in religious activities. This year Lent pilgrimage season begins with the feast of Mount Calvary on February 17-Ash Wednesday service at 5 p.m.

All arrangements have been made by the administrator of the Shrine Rev. Fr. Shelton Fernando providing more facilities to devotees. Pilgrim rests with better sanitary facilities, tea rooms, food shops and provision shops are available at the parish church premises for the benefit of pilgrims.

Special and official liturgical services are held from Thursday to Sundays every week. From Mondays to Wednesdays Holy Mass will be held at 7 a.m.

Major religious activities for this year:

February 26, 27 and 28 weekend days set apart for the Tamil speaking pilgrims.

During the Holy Week on March 28 - Palm Sunday service at 7.30 a.m. (Presided over by the Bishop of Galle).

April 1 - Holy Thursday service at 5 p.m. (Presided over by Vicar General of Galle).

April 2 - Good Friday. Common Way of the Cross at 2 p.m., the Passion service on Mount Calvary at 3.30 p.m. (The chief celebrant, the Bishop of Galle).

April 3 - Holy Saturday Vigil Service at 11 p.m.

April 4 - Easter Sunday. Holy Eucharist at 8.30 a.m.

Pilgrims flock here to meditate the events and values of the life of Christ and to participate in the liturgical services during the season.

The pilgrimage season will come to a close with a Thanksgiving Mass at 8 a.m. on April 11.

Weekly Devotions:

Noah, man of patience

We come to yet an outstanding character from whom we can learn so many wonderful ways in which God dealt with him. Noah comes to me as a quiet person who carried out his spiritual duties even though the people around him were becoming more and more wicked. Noah saw to it that his family too put God first in their lives.

It grieved God to see His people go astray. The situation was so bad that God decided to erase out man by bringing about a flood. Whilst the sun shone and people were going about their daily business, God instructs Noah to build a huge boat according to His instructions.

Noah preached to the people as he built this boat and warned them of the impending flood that was going to destroy the whole world, but of course they did not heed to him but considered Noah to be a crazy fool and ignored his warnings.

God’s last chance lasted for 120 years - that was how long it took Noah to build this huge boat. Noah’s commitment to this project was a long-term one and had to withstand the enemy’s attack through the people surrounding him laughing and jeering at him.

Some points to remember about Noah - * He was the one person who followed God when all the others turned to wickedness, * Whilst Adam was the first father of the human race, we could say Noah was the second, as from Noah a new chance was given to the human race and * He was a man of patience as he undertook this commission from God to build this huge boat, and finished this long-term project. Successfully without giving up.

Gen 7:1-12 - Then the Lord said to Noah, “Come into the ark, you and all your household, because I have seen that you are righteous before Me in this generation. You shall take with you seven each of every clean animal, a male and his female; two each of animals that are unclean, a male and his female; also seven each of birds of the air, male and female, to keep the species alive on the face of all the earth. For after seven more days I will cause it to rain on the earth forty days and forty nights, and I will destroy from the face of the earth all living things that I have made.” And Noah did according to all that the Lord commanded him. Noah was six hundred years old when the floodwaters were on the earth.

So Noah, with his sons, his wife, and his sons’ wives, went into the ark because of the waters of the flood. Of clean animals, of animals that are unclean, of birds, and of everything that creeps on the earth. Two by two they went into the ark to Noah, male and female, as God had commanded Noah. And it came to pass after seven days that the waters of the flood were on the earth. In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. And the rain was on the earth forty days and forty nights.

After the rain stops, and Noah steps out of the boat, we find that Noah does a beautiful thing by building an altar and saying thank you to God. Unlike Cain who tried his own way of approaching God, Noah follows the way God taught them to by Sacrificing a burnt offering. We find that this really pleased God and God enters into a covenant with Noah and therefore to the human race.

Gen 9:1-11 - Then God spoke to Noah and to his sons with him, saying: “And as for Me, behold, I establish My covenant with you and with your descendants after you, and Thus I establish My covenant with you: Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood; never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.”

Gen 8:20-22 - “While the earth remains, Seedtime and harvest, Cold and heat, Winter and summer, And day and night Shall not cease.” Prayer

Father, teach us to be faithful to you and follow your instructions, however foolish it may sound to the world. Help us to understand your faithfulness in blessing us from generation to generation, if we follow the way you show us. Teach us to be spiritual, search and find you and submit our ways to you. In Jesus’ mighty name we ask. Amen

Sunitha Sahayam

Symbol of true discipleship

Camillus Fernando

Suffering is part and parcel of Christian life. The value of suffering has been praised by the venerated stigmatist Saint Padre Pio - “if you knew the value of suffering you would never give it up”. Those who suffer are the jewels of the church. Saints have voluntarily undergone the crucible of suffering to imitate their saviour who has silently suffered for them bearing reproach, humiliation and death on the tree. The Christian is encouraged to devote more time to prayer and meditation especially dwelling on the sufferings of Christ on the Cross, which was the instrument that saved him, freed from his sins and reconciled him to the Father. “Glory in the cross of Christ”, observed St. Paul.

By reflecting on the sufferings of Christ the Christian draws valuable lessons to bear silently and patiently the hardship he has to undergo in this world, and bear them without resentment, remorse or complaint; “suffering in this world for the sake of Christ cannot be compared to the happiness to come in the next” wrote the Apostle of the Gentiles.

The laity like the religious are requested to be a source of consolation to the agonizing heart of Christ, virtue of humility is to grow instead of pride, since St. Therese of the Child Jesus said that “we can meet God only in the valley of humility”.

Attending mass during this period is encouraged, since it is the heart of Christianity from which all graces flow, the drama of Calvary is re-enacted at Mass. The great spiritual exercise the “Way of the Cross” which the laymen are induced to make, reminds the journey traversed by Christ to the hill of Calvary.

The Christian who is a beacon of light not to be hidden under a bushel, is requested to give alms to the poor in expiation of his sins and undertake good works, specially, charity which should not be confined to one’s home.

All in all, it is a season of repentance and change of heart-new outlook. Christians should be a model. He could share the good things in life with the poor to whom the crucified Christ preached the gospel, then the real significance of lent will be translated into real action.

Active deeds not words will count and would be eligible to share in the joys of the risen Christ at Easter. The fulfilment of one’s state of life and the observance of his laws could be translated as sacrifice and penance as taught by Christ. Thomas Kempis in his “Imitation of Christ” wrote, “there is no escape from the cross which will be in front as well as behind us”. It is the emblem of suffering and triumph. The master said “take it up daily and follow me” a symbol of true discipleship. A hard saying, will we take it up or abandon it?

“Discipleship is not an easy journey on a level road. The ultimate goal of discipleship is glory. The way is one of imitating Christ who lived in love and died for love on the Cross. The disciple must, so to speak, enter into Christ with all his own self; he must appropriate and assimilate the whole of the reality of the incarnation and redemption in order to find himself. Christ must enter into his ego to free him from selfishness and pride. This Cross, sign of love and of total giving, is therefore the emblem of the disciple called to be configured to the glorious Christ.

He lays down three specific and hard to accept conditions for all who seek to live the Christian life and be his true followers. Jesus does not simply state the condition for discipleship he goes one step further and as if we have calculated what it will cost to his followers. First Jesus says, “who ever comes to me and does not hate father, mother, wife and children, yes and even life itself, cannot be my disciple.

His next challenge is equally severe. “Whoever does not carry” the Cross and follow me cannot be my disciple”. No one seeks problems, difficulties, but they will come. Jesus challenges us to bear the Cross not to take short cuts in life. Lastly, He challenges the world’s fascination with materialism, ‘None of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions”. “Father, there are many things I regret doing, and other things, like skeletons in the cupboard, that i am ashamed of, help me to turn to you and express my regret and my shame and mourn for these things. “For when I go to the depths of my heart, I shall find you there waiting for me with compassion and graciousness I cannot show myself.”

Pope deplores child abuse

Pope Benedict XVI on Monday again condemned Roman Catholics who have violated children’s rights, a week before a meeting with Irish bishops over a sex abuse scandal.

“The Church, over the centuries... has promoted the protection of the rights and dignity of minors,” the pope said on the 20th anniversary of the International Convention on the Rights of the Child.

“Unfortunately, in several cases, some of its members, acting against this commitment, have violated these rights: a behaviour the Church does and will deplore and condemn,” the pontiff told the general assembly of the Pontifical Council for the Family.

In November, it emerged that Church authorities in Ireland covered up for priests who abused children in the mainly Catholic country for three decades.

Four Irish bishops have resigned and Pope Benedict has summoned Irish bishops to the Vatican for a meeting February 15-16. Last month, an elite Jesuit school in Berlin admitted systematic sexual abuse of teenagers.

The scandal snowballed when a third teacher confessed, more victims came forward and further schools were implicated.

The head of the world’s 1.1 billion Catholics, who last week urged English bishops to oppose British gay rights legislation, said: “The family, which is founded on the marriage of a man and a woman, is the greatest help that can be offered to children.” AFP