We Retreat to
Seek
Harry Scherer
Class of 2022
(4/2019) Recently, I overheard a
particularly patient and caring person describe the season
of Lent to someone who had never heard of it. "It is a
recalibration," she said. "It is time to get away while
staying exactly where you are."
This simple, yet wise, description
of the holy season of penitence led me to consider the
profound observation that one observes Lent exactly where
one is. The beauty of these 40 days of prayer, fasting and
almsgiving can be observed at any time and at any place.
This is where the action of recalibration occurs. A scale
does not become balanced by moving the base of the scale;
it is the beams which need to reach harmony with each
other.
Consider the charge to pray. It is
an activity in which the Son partook. It has been
prescribed by the Saints since the time of Peter.
Certainly, people do not continue to pray just to emulate
the actions of the Incarnate Word and His followers, while
this would be a noble task. St. ThérPse of Lisieux said,
"For me, prayer is a surge of the heart; it is a simple
look turned toward heaven, it is a cry of recognition and
of love, embracing both trial and joy."
This description of prayer has
always prodded me to take part in this divine activity. It
is an escape from the mundanity of ordinary life and a
momentary participation in the divine. The surge of the
heart lifts the soul up from the confines of the body and
allows the mind to quickly meet a portion of the peace of
heaven.
The next charge which we are given
during this season is to fast. This is an activity which
is most similar to the question, "what are you giving up
for Lent?" At the very least, we are called to "give
something up" as a sacrifice for the sins we have
committed and in solidarity with the rest of the Church
and the world. In addition, a direct effect of intentional
and quiet fasting is the betterment of the soul. Because
of this, we are called to take advantage of that
betterment and act in a more Christ-like manner.
What is the purpose of cutting
sweets from our diets for 40 days if we still speak in a
salty way to our family? Why cut music in the car from our
commutes if we cannot have peace in our souls? The
immediate vocations of one who is fasting during the
season of Lent is to draw spiritual benefit from the way
in which we are physically denying ourselves.
This vocation is actually
immensely convenient. Because we are not confined to a
specific time or place in which to deny ourselves and
offer that denial for the good of souls and the world, it
can be achieved when any tribulation comes up; we are
certain that tribulation does not confine itself to time
or place. Again, the nature of the season which emphasizes
recalibration reemerges in the aspect of fasting. This is
a rare occurrence for a Christian during any other time of
the year, and an extinct occurrence for the rest of the
world. Because we are called to "deny ourselves, take up
our cross, and follow" Christ especially during these 40
days, the activity of fasting makes this denial as easy
and fast as possible.
Certainly, there is nothing easy
and fast about removing sweets from our diets and removing
complaint from our lips. The Church recognizes that this
is a difficult task but is also cognizant of the fact that
this activity unites the members of the Mystical Body of
Christ to the Cross. For the 2000 years that the Church
has existed, She has always taken the opportunity to touch
the Cross of Christ, for it was by this Cross that the
salvation of man was made possible.
Finally, Christ and the Church
calls us to give alms. The apparent intention of this
practice is for the soul to remind the body that physical
objects are not the end, or purpose, to life. A small, or
even large, denial of physical goods can recalibrate the
soul to better understand life’s individual and absolute
purpose. Specifically, by giving alms, we are given the
grace to come closer to understanding why all human
persons are on earth, and why we are individually on
earth.
The practice of the Lenten season
is, simply put, an admission that the cares of the soul
are superior to the cares of the body. In my eyes, the
most difficult aspect of living out the fulness of the
season, is recognizing and acting upon this superiority.
After all, we are being called to believe that an
inanimate reality, which we have never seen with our
physical eyes or heard with our physical ears, is more
important than the body, from which we act upon the will
of the soul.
Alternatively, the beauty of the
season lies in the heightened use of our spiritual eyes
and ears. We begin to see earthly matters from a
supernatural perspective. We begin to see things closer to
the way in which God sees them. Is there a more
significant way in which to live? Can anyone on the earth
suggest a more lasting and spiritually fulfilling manner
of life?
As we pray, fast and give alms, we
are given the opportunity to recognize these activities as
eternal goods, temporarily beneficial for our bodies in
this life and eternal beneficial for our souls in the
next. As we move to recalibrate our souls from a tepid
water to a flowing stream, we should be aware and
intentional of keeping our souls by the brook of the
stream. Instead of settling for mediocrity, we are called
to be uncomfortable with our insufficient attempts at
greatness. Instead of keeping our sights on the things of
this world, we are called to escape our ways while staying
exactly where we are.
Read other articles by Harry Scherer