The Burden of Lent – Reflection by Br. Damian, CMC

Very often, we see Lent as a burden. We treat it as if it is another Ten Commandments. We tend to view it negatively because of the requirements such as fasting from meat on Friday, giving alms to the poor, and sacrificing something that we love to do for the entire Lenten season. We actually make Lent more complicated as we use our energy complaining about it. This is similar to the Pharisees and the Scribes and how they made the laws complicated. The law that was once passed down from God to Moses had become so strict that many people gave up following it. This was because Pharisees and Scribes added more laws and precepts that were not willed by God. These foreign laws and precepts demonstrated that they had disobeyed what God had told Moses to instruct them.

In the first reading today, Moses instructs the Israelites about the laws. He says, “Observe them carefully, for this will give evidence of your wisdom and intelligence to nations.” The Pharisees and Scribes however, did not observe the laws carefully, and they were too ignorant to follow. Therefore, we need someone to represent the truth to correct this mistake. We need someone like Jesus! Jesus came not to abolish the law but to fulfill it. Yes! Let us be like Christ and ask for His grace each and every day so that His grace can guide our eyes to see Lent not as complicated nor as a burden, but to see all the joy in it as we are fulfilling God’s will.

Br. Peter Damian Phung, CMC, a religious brother from the Congregation of The Mother Coredemptrix, is a senior at Conception Seminary College. Some of his interests include prayer, reading, cooking, spending time with family and friends, and watching and playing soccer.