LENTEN PRACTICES

Lord, this Lent,
let my good example be loud
and my ego soft and silent.
Let my sacrifices, prayer,
fasting and Lenten practices
be for your honor and glory,
as well as the lifting up
of the spirit and life
of my neighbor. Amen

© Andy Costello, Markings Prayers

PRAYER FOR LENT

Come Holy Spirit
during these 40 Days of Lent,
lead me like you led Jesus,
into the wilderness, to the mountains,
to the temple, to those places within me
that I need to go to face those temptations
in my life that I need to face and overcome.
Give me words, Sacred Words,
like you gave to Jesus,
so that I might challenge and face
my hungers and my needs,
my demons and Satan, the tempter within.

Come Holy Spirit
during these 40 Days of Lent,
give me the strength you gave Jesus
to face the great temptations of life:
the temptation to take the easy way out,
like changing rocks into bread,
without working and sweating for our daily bread;
the temptation to reach for power and self glory,
Satan’s kind of power, not God’s power of humility;
the temptation to place myself in dangerous situations,
saying that God will watch over me,
and in the process stumbling,
because I said, “It’s all up to God”
without any decisions coming from me.

© Andy Costello, Markings Prayers

DAILY PRAYER FOR LENT

Lord, guide me
through these 40 days of Lent.

Protect me and direct me:
be a cloud above me this day
and a pillar of fire above me this night.

Remind me to take some moments today to go
with you into the mountains of prayer,
where I might see you transfigured before me.

Enter into my temple this day; walk around;
remind me when I’m too busy buying and selling;
and cleanse me of my idols.

Lord, help me this day to be like you:
a grain of wheat willing to die
so that others might live.

© Andy Costello Markings Prayers

LENTEN PRAYER

Jesus, Temple,
and cleanser of temples,
cleanse my inner temple,
turn me and all my house
into a house of prayer.

Jesus, Passover,
pass over my sins,
but not over my house,
nor my work, nor all
the people in my life.

Jesus, Cross,
hanging high above
all the crosses
of the world,
help me to help others
as they too make the
way of the cross.

Jesus, Grain of Wheat
that died and was buried
in the earth,
help me to die to self,
so as to be like you:
daily bread for others.

© Andy Costello, Markings Prayers

LENT:

BORROWED MISSALETTES

The missalettes were missing—well, not all 500 of them, but that Sunday most of them were missing from the church benches of St. Monica's Parish.

Father Tom, who said the 8 and 9 AM Masses, said he didn’t notice anything different. He usually doesn’t. His nickname in the seminary was, “Sleep Walker.” Most Sundays he puts most of the people asleep. So to be honest, he didn’t even notice that the missalettes were missing at those two Masses.

But Monsignor Curry, he’s Monsignor Exact, he’s Monsignor Precise, he noticed it at the 11 AM Sunday Mass. He notices everything. “What happened to the missalettes?” He was sitting up there in the church sanctuary with his own personal missalette. He even has his name on it. Well, when the second reading moved from page 19 to 20, the familiar sound, “chuuumsshish”—the sound of 400 pages all turning at the same time was not to be heard. And when he was reading the gospel, everybody was looking at him. Nobody was following along with a booklet. They didn’t seem to have one. He got nervous. His sermon was shorter than usual that Sunday morning: 4 minutes and 13 seconds to be exact. Jim Grayson, one of the ushers and an accountant, always timed Monsignor’s homilies. The two of them would often joke about it after Mass. “A little bit long today, Monsignor. 5 minutes and 57 seconds.” And Monsignor Curry would always reply. “Nope! It was 5 minutes to the second. You know me. You know what I always say, `A five minute sermon: exactly five minutes every time and every time right to the point! That’s what people want. No fluff. Solid stuff. People want meat and potatoes. People want substance.’”

So after Mass, after saying “Have a nice day”, with a handshake and only half of a Sunday smile, Monsignor Curry headed back for the church benches. He asked Fred Wilson, the head usher, “Where are the missalettes?” Except for one or two scattered here and there around the church, they were all gone. The other 4 ushers were probably out in the parking lot by now. Fred answered, “I don’t know, Monsignor. I was surprised that nobody was using them either. I thought it was something new you guys just cooked up.”

Monsignor Terence Curry shook his head and grunted, “Uuuum”. Back in the rectory, he caught Father Tom and asked if he knew what happened to the missalettes. He said he didn’t even know they were missing. He caught Father Tim Tames who had the 5:00 PM Mass Saturday afternoon. He said they were there at the 5. The old people were using them. They always do. A lot of them can’t hear that well.”

“Who took the missalettes from the benches?”

Mystery! Well, Monsignor Curry started calling around the parish. On his fifth phone call, the mystery was solved. It was the visiting priest who had the 7:00 Sunday Morning Mass. Mrs. Grimes said, “He told us to take a missalette home. `Nobody would notice it. Steal one. It has great readings for Lent. Use it for prayer during the week. Catholics usually don’t carry Bibles around with them. A missalette is nice and light and easy to carry with you to work or wherever you pray: whether you pray on the bus or in the bathroom or wherever.’ 

The Monsignor jumped in, "He said, `bathroom,’"

"Yes, Monsignor, yes he said 'bathroom.’ He also said, `This year’s Sunday’s readings touch all the basic issues of life. Great Lenten reading.’”

Monsignor Curry was laughing when he put down the phone. He headed back to where Father Tames and Father Walker were. “Guys, you’re not going to believe this. Father Nelson is the culprit. He told everyone at the 7 o’clock Mass to steal a missalette. `Nobody would notice it.’ Surprise! Everyone took him at his word.”

Father Nelson was the visiting priest. He had a wedding of a niece the day before and stayed over at the rectory that Saturday night. He had volunteered to take a Mass the next day in case someone wanted a break. They gave him the 7:00 AM Mass and he was gone by 10:00 that Sunday morning. 

It was a busy parish. Sunday Masses were on the hour: 7:00, 8:00, 9:00, 10:00, and 11:00. There was also a Mass at 5:00 o’clock on Saturday evening. Being an exact man, the Monsignor liked easy to remember and exact times for Masses—on the hour. “Have them in and have them out, all in 45 minutes and they’ll love you for it. And if you don’t, they’ll be cursing you because the parking lot will be a disaster. So don’t preach too long. Keep your eye on the big clock in the back of the church. That’s why I put it there.”

Then the Monsignor added, “We’re going to have to call up the missalette company first thing tomorrow morning and order 500 more. Isn’t that funny? I never heard anything like this before in my forty-five years of being a priest.”

That afternoon the word was all around the diocese. “Almost 500 missalettes stolen!” The Monsignor, well, all three priests, called their friends, and then their friends called their friends. “Stories like this don’t make the diocesan paper,” one priest said. “All we ever get are pictures of the bishop and the bishop standing there giving people awards!”

The story could have made the local evening news, but it didn’t. However, that afternoon the word also got around the parish. Most people laughed. People envied those who were at the 7:00 o’clock Mass. Those who took a missalette were saying things like, “That’s a good one! And I thought I was the only one who stole one. I guess everybody picked their moment to sneak a missalette into their inner jacket pocket or into their pocketbook, hoping their neighbor wouldn’t see them. I suppose people were trying to figure out all through the Mass the best moment to make their move. Probably, by the time for the sign of peace, most people decided that the best moment for the steal would be when they got back from communion. That’s the time most people close their eyes for a few moments of quiet prayer.”

Now, if most people hadn’t stolen a missalette, and if the story hadn’t been so public, what happened next, probably wouldn’t have happened. People with the stolen property actually began to use what they stole. They began to use the missalettes for prayer that Lent. The story reinforced what Father Nelson had said. “The Lenten Readings this year are great readings for prayer.” Everybody loved his offhand comment, “For Lent this year instead of fasting or abstaining from chocolate chip cookies or chocolate layer cake, fast or abstain from too much talking or too much television. Every day take a 15 minute prayer break. Find a quiet place at work or at home. A lot of people tell me that they use the bathroom for prayer. `It’s the only place in our house where I can get any privacy.’ So read the missalette; pick out just one of the Lenten readings at a time; pray with it. Great stuff. Great Lenten reading.”

Father Nelson was right. As he said in his sermon, the Sunday readings for this Lent, Year A, were loaded with food for thought.

One person said that when she began to reflect on Jesus’ three big temptations in the desert, she saw that they were down deep temptations that she too had to face in her life: trying to live by bread alone without any word from God, looking for the quick magical fix instead of the struggle to work things out—especially when it came to communicating with her husband and her teenage kids, and the ever present temptation that we all have of forgetting God, and trying to go it alone as if we were God.

A few said that they could relate to Peter, James and John when they went up the mountain and experienced the transfiguration of Jesus. They had been on a great Lenten weekend retreat and they didn’t want to leave. The retreat house was in the mountains and they all experienced Jesus in a new way. Prayer seemed much more exciting than the daily grind of everyday life back in the valley.

A few teenager boys—each the youngest in their family—loved the story of God calling David, the youngest in his family, to be the one who would save the people.

Others found themselves wishing they were like “The Woman at The Well.” Surprise! While they were praying, they found out that what happened to her, happened to them in prayer. They met Jesus on the bus or during their coffee break or wherever they grabbed fifteen minutes for prayer.

Three groups, each with about six people, actually formed discussion prayer groups to look at the readings together. They all showed up at their meetings proudly displaying their stolen missalettes. They began their session with a prayer from the missalette. Then someone would do just one reading. They would discuss it. Then they would pray with it for a while—all in an hour. It was so rewarding that they planned on doing it every Lent. Someone even suggested trying it for next Advent as well. That was nixed. “Let’s see if we can do it for this Lent first and then see if the same energy and enthusiasm exists next Lent. Before we start talking Advent, let’s see if this is manageable. You all know the history of small groups in this parish.”

It was later found out that Father Nelson was the last person to hear the story. He was from out of state, so he didn’t know any of this for over a month. When he called his sister for Easter, she told him the whole story.

“Ooops,” he said. So he called up Monsignor Curry to apologize. “To be honest, Monsignor, I didn’t realize what I was saying that morning. I just threw in that thing about stealing a missalette to tell people to really listen to the Lenten readings. I didn’t think people would actually take a missalette. I’m really sorry! I’ll send you a check for what they cost.”

“Send me a check! Hey,” Monsignor Curry blurted back, “we made money on the deal!”

“What,” said Father Nelson back over the phone. “Made money? I don’t understand?”

“Yeah! Someone told me that you mentioned at the end of your homily, `By the way, if you feel guilty about stealing a missalette, throw an extra dollar in the collection this morning.’ Well, I had Jim Grayson of our financial committee check it out. He’s an accountant and a stickler for numbers. So he looked up what was the average income for the 10:00 o’clock collection for the past 5 years other than Christmas, Easter, July and August. Sure enough the Mass that you said that morning brought in $2756.16 over the average collection. Who said Catholics are no longer motivated by guilt?”

Silence. “Father Nelson are you still there?”

© Andy Costello, U.S. Catholic, March 1993

ALONE

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily is, “Alone!”

“Who’s there?”

“Just me.”

“Are you alone?”

“Sometimes.”

As I reflected on today’s readings – by myself – alone – many themes and thoughts hit me.

What themes and thoughts hit you as you heard today’s readings for this First Sunday of Lent?

THREE READINGS

Today’s three readings have serious issues to think about.

As I looked at the various reading materials for Lent I noticed that the articles and booklets suggest fasting from trivial pursuits – no not the game – and then use 5 or 10 minutes of that saved time for reflection and prayer on the Bible – the Holy Scriptures – sometime during your day.

Grab your Bible. Find a quiet place where you can be alone. Read a passage or story or short section of scripture. Think about it. Talk to God in prayer about what your thoughts are.

When you’re reading and reflecting, you’re alone. When you move into prayer – you are no longer alone. “The Lord be with you.”

That’s doable. And today’s three readings have heavy questions to think about. In fact, all the readings for Lent are very challenging.

As I sat there with today’s 3 readings, the thought of being alone hit me.

FIRST READING

Today’s first reading from Genesis – is great stuff. It uses part of the beginning of the Second Creation Account. (Cf. Genesis 2:5-25) We know the First Creation Account where God creates the whole universe and the whole world from a distance – one day at a time – and on the sixth day, male and female he made us. (Cf. Genesis 1: 1-2:4.) The Second Creation Account is much earlier literature. It’s more primitive – more earthy. And it gets its hands on issues we need to face.

In this earthy, second, more primitive creation account, God is all alone and forms man out of the clay of the ground and blows into his nostrils the breath of life. Now God is not alone. This new person, Adam, is now part of God’s story.

Then God plants a garden in Eden, where he places this man that he has created. Then God makes the various trees grow and they are delightful to look at – and they have good fruit on them.

We can picture the whole story. It’s like we’re at a play and the curtain opens and the story unfolds.

Next comes the twist – the turn – the possibility of tragedy or comedy – the reality of good and evil – and choice – freedom of choice. This is good story telling.

The storyteller wants us to hear the story, so we can hear our own story.

In the middle of the garden there is the tree of life – as well as the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

In movies, plays and novels, this is what is called, “Foreshadowing.”

You know the old rule. It’s called Chekhov’s Principle, “If there is a gun on the wall in act one, you have to use it by act 3.”

So the two trees are in the story for there for a reason.

Today’s first reading tells us all this and then jumps to the snake. It jumps from Genesis 2:9 to 3:1 – leaving out the great text, “It is not good to be alone.” It leaves out the great story of God creating all the animals – cats and dogs, “Bow wow!” and “Meow!” – birds and wild beasts – but none were suitable. The man was still alone. So God cast the man, “Adam” in Hebrew, into a deep sleep, and while he slept God created woman out of the man’s rib and wow was he surprised when he woke up. Bill Cosby in his renditions of these great stories in Genesis loves to say, “Adam went, ‘Wooooman!” and that’s where the word “woman” comes from. In using word plays, he’s close to what the Hebrew words are doing.

You know this folk tale – about the woman being formed from the man’s rib. You’ve heard it at many weddings. It’s good story.

Back to today’s first reading – the part that comes next – that we heard today. The woman is all alone and the snake sneaks up to her and asks, “Did God really tell you not to eat from any of the trees in the garden?”

Notice she’s naïve – and the snake is most cunning. She tells the snake, "We can eat of the fruit of all the trees – except the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden. If we do, we shall die.” Then the sneaky move by the snake, “You certainly will not die! No, God knows well that the moment you eat of it your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods who will know what is good and what is evil.”

The woman takes the bite – and the snake was right. She now knows good and evil.

Hasn't this happened every time we took forbidden fruit? When we realize what we did or what another did to us, how we hurt another or ourselves or vice versa, haven't we said to ourselves, "Now I know evil?"

Notice the man, Adam, is no leading man. Notice he’s presented as the follower – stupid – and goes along for the fall. This is good story telling – certainly getting a laugh every time – with women elbowing their husbands in the ribs – as the story is told.

“Then,” the text says, “their eyes were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.”

Great story. It’s the human story. It’s an eye opener.

Relationships, marriages, trips, vacations, adventures, conversations, jobs, life, all start so beautiful – then the temptations – then the wrong moves – then the cover ups.

SECOND READING

Today’s second reading from Romans gives Paul’s deep reflections on this.* Here are a few short comments - and obviously, shallow comments, compared to the depth of what Paul is saying here. However, I hope I catch the main points.

Those who fault Paul from some of his women statements, please notice he puts all the blame on Adam – for bringing sin and death into the world – into the story.

Paul gives us the bad news first.

Then comes the good news, the good story, “Godspell,” in Old English, “gospel’ in later English: Christ, the New Adam, the gracious gift from God, comes and overflows into our world.

The Old Adam brought sin and death; the New Adam brings grace, gift.

The Old Adam brought condemnation; the New Adam brings acquittal.

The Old Adam was disobedient; the New Adam is obedient.

The Old Adam messed it all up for us; the New Adam can make all things right.

In Genesis the story takes place in the garden; in Paul the story takes place in every human heart. Each of us commits our own original version of the old original sin. Each of us is called to hear the call that Paul heard – to meet Jesus on the roads of our life – especially as we move towards evil – and to have an eye opening conversion and a new take on life in our fall.

GOSPEL

Today’s gospel continues and develops these thoughts.

The setting is the desert – a total contrast to the setting for the first reading: the garden.

Instead of food everywhere, there are only sand and stones. Moreover, Jesus fasts for 40 days and 40 nights. There are no trees with fruit. There is no tree of the knowledge of good and evil. That will come at the end of the story – the end of the gospel - where the great tree, the cross, will be the tree of the knowledge of Good and Evil – the great tree which we stand under and hear the words not from the devil, but from Jesus, “Take and eat!” (Cf. Matthew 27:32-56; Matthew 26:26-29.)

Back to the desert, back to the beginning of the story. Jesus is all alone in the desert. He has left John the Baptist and his Father's Voice and the crowd that he was surrounded with in his baptism. (Cf. Matthew 3:13-17)

Then come the temptations – just like in the Genesis story. The devil is called, “The Tempter”.

Jesus knows good and evil – and resists the devil and his three big temptations.

The different gospels present these temptations in various ways. Jesus was the one there – all alone – except for, “The Tempter.”

It’s up to us to read them and see what they trigger within us.

What are our three big temptations?

I like the theme that everyone has to take time to be alone – to find deserted places – to take long walks, find quiet chapels or churches, quiet car rides, go fishing, and deal with the great temptations of life.

I spent 14 years of my life working in two different retreat houses – and met lots of men and women who made an annual retreat. At one retreat house, San Alfonso Retreat House in New Jersey, I noticed men – not there for retreat – who would pull up into the parking lot in the back – facing the ocean – and just sit in their cars for 15 or 20 minutes – and just be – and then head for work or home.

Where do you go when you just want to be - just want to be alone?

What are your temptations?

When alone – we see them better.

So sometimes, it’s good to be alone – and obviously at other times it’s not good to be alone.

At times I see Matthew’s 3 temptations that Jesus faced in the desert to be the temptation for stuff, splash, and power or control.

1) Stuff is good. We need homes and gardens, bread and wine, apples and apple trees, but there’s more to life than stuff.

2) Splash and flash – are not good. By that I mean faking it – making a splash – instead of substance. The devil asks Jesus to jump from the temple top and the angels will catch you and the crowd will go “Wow!” – and they’ll all follow you – The Great Wonder. I know that temptation: when preaching to give splash instead of substance. A father or mother or anyone can use splash and flash with their kids and really not be there.

3) And the third temptation – the temptation for power – for many is the temptation to control – to want to control everything – spouse, children, life, basically not being able to let go - not being able to put life outside our hands – and into God’s hands and cooperation with others. This last temptation is a big temptation: making ourselves the only one on the planet – being all alone - making ourselves a god with a small “g” – as if we are the only person there is. Now that’s a powerful – as well as a very lonely temptation.

CONCLUSION

The title of my homily for today is, “Alone”.

I’m suggesting that all of us fast from something we’re spending too much time with – and use that gained time for some scripture reading or little book reading 5 or 10 minutes each day during Lent and then turning that into prayer - not being alone, but being with God.

Okay, if you’re married – and you’re in the same place in the garden with your spouse, bite into the same reading together and see what that tastes like and then do some praying together – rib to rib. Amen.


*Cf. Karl Barth, The Epistle to the Romans, Oxford University Press, London, Oxford, New York, translated from the Sixth Edition by Edwyn C. Hoskyns, reprint 1972; Vincent Taylor, The Epistle to the Romans, London, 1955; Joseph Fitzmyer, S.J., “The Letter to the Romans” page 830-868 in The New Jerome Biblical Commentary, 1990.