Description

Lenten Season and the Spiritual Benefits to all Christians.

By Sr. Esther Adama SNDdeN

Introduction The Catholic Church’s liturgical year which I have come to experience and appreciate as the playing field between God and His people is a yearly journey of faith put together by her to bring us closer to God who made us in His image and likeness. This circle when fully and consciously participated by all people of God, lead to attaining holiness and cultivate in us the deeper love for our creator God. Just a few months ago, we were in joyful mood celebrating the birth of our Redeemer and now we are invited to pause for a while and reflect on the purpose of our saviour’s advent into the world and travel along with him side by side in the Lenten season like a child walking with the parent/s in both thick and thin moments. As we know already, following our Lord and the call to discipleship is not pain free, it's rather a road less travel. Lent reminds us each year in the liturgical calendar that pleasure, luxury and honor are not what produces joy. The challenge of faithfulness will quite often mirror the heart and actions of Christ. The journey with Jesus leads to sacrifice, suffering and the cross. As Christians, our belief in the truth of the resurrection of Jesus makes us love Easter and the celebration that comes with it, but Lent grounds us in the reality of what it means to daily follow Jesus. Lent reminds us that life is not always easy or rosy, nor do we always get what we want. In this article we shall consider the meaning of lent, discuss the biblical foundation of the Lenten season, reflecting on the teachings of the church fathers on this holy period, the benefit and significance of the season will be embedded, and how we can partake in this spiritual exercise in our time bringing to mind the teachings of the Holy Father Pope Francis on the season of lent.

Meaning of Lent Lent originated from Greek Tessarakosti and Quadragesima in Latin meaning forty days. Many of the theology handbooks of the nineteenth and early-twentieth century confidently claimed that Lent was established by the apostles themselves or in the immediate post-apostolic period at the latest. They assumed this season of fasting was closely connected with preparation for Easter baptism a practice likewise considered to be of apostolic foundation (cf. Romans 6) and observed everywhere throughout the Church since its earliest days.1 The general norms of the liturgical year and calendar describe Lent as a preparation for the celebration of Easter. Lenten liturgy disposes both catechumens and the faithful to celebrate the paschal mystery: catechumens, through the several stages of Christian initiation; the faithful, through reminders of their own baptism and through penitential practices.2 Lent is the season of repentance and renewal. It’s a time the Universal/mother church invites us to slow down and create more space for God in our lives. In doing so, we draw close to God, listen

1 (cf. Romans 6) 2 Second Vatican Council, Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium, nos. 102-105

to His voice in the daily scriptures during Mass, personal readings, and God will also remain close to us in a very special way and make His home in us. James 4:8. Pope Benedict XVI describes Lent as a privileged time of interior pilgrimage towards Him Who is the fount of mercy. It is a pilgrimage in which He Himself accompanies us through the desert of our poverty, sustaining us on our way towards the intense joy of Easter3 . It is indeed a time to journey inward with Jesus and feel every bit of it out of love. It is a season Christians become more aware of our need for God to help us overcome sin and grant us the grace to come up with positive ways of transforming our lives and countries into how God who has blessed us with different natural and human resources will be delighted to see us do. During this season we reflect on what Jesus did to heal and free us from sin as we prepare for Easter and the significance of living as the alleluia people. Lent is not so much about how angry God is with us for our sins. It is about a God who intervenes on our behalf to rescue us from our sins. Lent is not merely about extended reflections on our own mortality. It’s a chance to open our lives and hearts to the pains of the world in imitation of our Lord, who looked with compassion and graciously on those with spiritual and material needs. As Christian Catholics, the holy mother church enjoins us to spend time on the three practices of Lent: prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. It is also a time to participate in the Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation and not forgetting the corporal works of mercy.

Fasting and Abstinence: We fast to improve self-control in an act of solidarity with those who are less fortunate. It also reminds us that everything we have is a blessing from God. Throughout all of Lent, we could decide to make personal sacrifices in a spirit of penance. For example, in sadness for our sins we might dine out less or stop watching TV shows that glorify immoral behavior. On Fridays, Catholics age 14 and older abstain from meat. Why Fridays? Because it unites us to the day of our Lord's death. Why abstain from meat? Because during biblical times, meat was considered a food of rejoicing, since it was not always available. We abstain from eating meat (“the food of rejoicing”) in mourning for Jesus and the death he suffered for our sins. On Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, we abstain from meat – and those who are 18 to 60 years of age also fast by limiting food to just one full meal or two small meals (except when health or the ability to work is seriously affected). On this beginning day of Lent prophet Joel called all people of God both young and old, rich and poor black and white or brown to a holy fast and seek for forgiveness from the God who is gracious and compassionate. Fasting, then, is not about us earning God’s forgiveness alone, but it is about reminding ourselves through our fasting of our radical dependence on God.

3 https://www.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/en/messages/lent/documents/hf_ben-xvi_mes_20050929_lent2006.html

St. Augustine on fasting “Fasting is practiced for a threefold purpose. Firstly, in order to bridle the lusts of the flesh… Secondly, we have recourse to fasting in order that the mind may arise more freely to the contemplation of heavenly things… Thirdly, in order to ask forgiveness for sins: wherefore it is written (Joel 2:12): “Be converted to Me with all your heart, in fasting and in weeping and in mourning.” Fasting cleanses the soul, raises the mind, subjects one’s flesh to the spirit, renders the heart contrite and humble, scatters the clouds of concupiscence, quenches the fire of lust, kindles the true light of chastity”4 . Fasting as a spiritual exercise purifies us both interiorly and exteriorly. It is not to be considered as a competition of holier than thou but a practice of total dependence on God, change of attitudes, embracing God who loves us first and broke the heavens open to pitch His tent among us. Fasting above all assist us avoid sin and helps us love more. This is the period to love more and avoid the judgement that sin brings to us. It is good news that God judges’ sin, because sin is a social evil. It harms both individuals and societies. The sins of corruption, greed and lust lead to the exploitation of men, women, children, the vulnerable, unemployment, embezzlements of public fund, economic breakdown and increase in poverty ritual killings. The sin of racism, tribalism, nepotism leads to the harm of discrimination, division, oppression, disputes amongst people and destruction of life and properties in this country. The sins of arrogance and pride put us above our fellow humans, hence considering ourselves better than the other. The sin of idolatry gives our hearts over to something other than our Creator. The sins of gossip and slander create lies that destroy lives and communities. God in His nature is gracious, but if we find ourselves caught up in many of these sins that harm us and others, we are on the wrong side, and that is a dangerous place to be. Lent, therefore, reminds us of the effect of our sins and calls us to once again redirect our lives towards God by turning a new leaf.

During this period, we are therefore called to purposefully go without something that is part of our ordinary lives. This practice not only curb physical pleasures like eating and drinking but can also be extended to other aspects of our habitual existence. For example, using unkind speech, judgmental or overly anxious thinking, overindulging in digital screen time, being jealous of the other person, dishonesty, sloth, envy etc. it is essential to develop the attitude of fasting in our Christian life even outside the Lenten period. This is because fasting can: remove distractions, remind us of our trust in and the need of God and others, readjust our behaviors and strengthen our hearts to model our life after the person of Jesus Christ and allow us to unite ourselves to the suffering Jesus, express sorrow for our sins, and get us in touch with the needs/suffering of others who live without, not by their choosing. In the desert experience of fasting, we can encounter the good God in a special and new way.

4 https://generositymonk.com/2023/02/24/augustine-of-hippo-threefold-purpose-of-fasting/

Prayer: All that we do can be prayer. However, like any "vital and personal relationship”56 (CCC #2558), it’s important to take time regularly, to turn our full attention to God (think quiet desert). We seek to encounter God: becoming aware of and learning to enjoy his presence, laying bare our hearts to him, and listening to his “still, small voice”6 especially through his Word in the Sacred Scripture. Lent is a time to start praying if you’re not doing so; and if you are, to take it up in a renewed way one as one of your existing moments of prayer living it with special attention. It is also a time to intentionally learn and talk about faith with those close to us to raise our awareness, hear God’s call to our own hearts through the words of others, and encourage each other on the journey. St. Augustine of Hippo 354-430 admonishes us to pray as it is where we encounter the creator who first seeks after us. The wonder of prayer is revealed beside the well where we come seeking water: there, Christ comes to meet every human being. It is he who first seeks us and asks us for a drink. Jesus thirsts and his asking arises from the depths of God's desire for us. Whether we realize it or not, prayer is the encounter of God's thirst with ours. God thirsts that we may thirst for him.7 St. John Damascene describes "Prayer is the raising of one's mind and heart to God or the requesting of good things from God.” prayers as 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.8 In this he encourages us to pray at all time and in every circumstance be it good of bad because God is in them all and it is through prayer we pour out our hearts to God. It is through this medium we can bring the needs of our world, countries, families and personal to God.

During this period of lent we are invited to grow closer to God. Because prayer improves our relationship with God, we pray more during Lent. The Catholic churches offer increased opportunities for prayer, but we should also increase our prayers at home and wherever we go by using the Popular Lenten devotions and spiritual exercises available include attending Daily Mass and the practice of the word of God, praying the Rosary in total meditation on our Mother Mary and going extra length to imitate her virtues, and meditating on the Stations of the Cross. However, the scripture discourages hypocritical prayers as that is unchristian but pray quietly and secretly with humility and trust as Matthew stated9 . One thing is to pray, and the other is to persist in praying even when there is no result because God’s plan and time is not the same as ours. Pope Francis stress on persistence in prayer and its necessity of prayer as children of God during of his

5 Catechism of the Catholic Church no.2558. 6 Kngs 19:12 7 St. Augustine, De diversis quaestionibus octoginta tribus 64,4:PL 40,56. 8 St. John Damascene, Defide orth. 3,24:PG 94,1089C 9 Matthew 6:1-6

catechesis on prayer that if we do not pray, we will not have the strength to go forward in life. Prayer is like the oxygen of life10. Prayer draws down upon us the presence of the Holy Spirit who always leads us forward. This has become very important now and always especially in our current age and time where the quick fix era is making prayer more and more irrelevant. We are called to keep on praying until there is a change or response. Also praying constantly also gives us strength to keep on pushing on. In doing this, Christ also prays for us as our priest, prays in us as our Head, and prayed to by us as our God.”11 Our praying during this period should lead us to true metanoia or conversion of heart and forgiveness. Besides in creating time to pray daily we can nourish our body and spirit as well. A conscious effort is needed to discipline ourselves to pray more and follow it up with positive action if not our Lenten observance could result to hypocritical life. Almsgiving: Almsgiving is an act of charity. We put our faith into action by sacrificing time, talents, and financial resources even amid having less with the current sky rocking price of goods and service in Nigeria. By giving priority to doing good deeds (for example, helping the less fortunate), we make self-denial a personal penance for our sins, and we grow in holiness. Jesus highlights the dangers of fasting and other ceremonies that surround repentance. Before we begin this season, we must remember who it is for. The potential for self-deception is high. Any season of fasting or charity can turn into religious performance instead of a service offered to God. Our almsgiving must be done in selfless service to the God who first provided to us and not to show off. It must be in the spirit of love that will uplift the life of the less privileged or those made poor due to the systems placed by the political figures of our countries.

In other words, discretion matters here in our act of giving. Part of the discretion we display during Lent is trusting that rewards from God may be unseen. Rewards from God are designed to make us into people whose lives reflect him in the world. So, yes, we mark our heads with ashes, however, public shows of piety are not in themselves evil. What makes it evil is our intentions and motivation. As a result, we must guard our motivations and do most of our spiritual work in private, because the privacy of those acts reveals our trust in God. Prayer and fasting, done well, bear real fruit in our actions toward others or the way we treat those around us. Christ-like love, “indeed and in truth” (I John 3:18) begins with our family, and extend to all we encounter in our day-to-day activities. Be it friends or our enemies if we have any. But Christ’s command to love goes even further: to our enemies and, in a preferential way, to anyone in need, to those we will not ordinarily wish to assist, for we are our all children of God. Almsgiving

10 https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/audiences/2020/documents/papafrancesco_20201111_udienzagenerale.html 11 John Gerard Hillier Meaning of prayer in Christ ministry event in profound ways: 22nd February 2023. https://catholicspirit.com/news/meaning-of-prayer-in-christs-ministry-evident-in-profound-ways

is a specific kind of love, that of sharing our time, talent, and resources with the poor not just out of our excess, but in a way that costs us. We are invited to give like the widow in the scripture. Hence give until you feel the pinch. Search for the needy and do something, put a smile on their faces. What activity do I want to be part of this lent to assist the needy in my community? Lent is a time to give and to examine where the Gospel has not yet changed our hearts and society regarding the marginalized and those suffering from the systemic poverty of our time. The Lenten season beings from Ash Wednesday until the evening of Holy Thursday. The season lasts forty days without counting Sundays. The forty-day length of Lent is rooted in the biblical usage of the number forty. Forty is typically indicative of a time of testing, trial, penance, purification, and renewal. In the New Testament, forty days is the length of Jesus’ time of trial in the desert in preparation for his public ministry, proclaiming the Gospel. Ash Wednesday In the Bible, ashes are a sign of mourning and loss. When Xerxes issued a command to kill all the Jews in his kingdom, the Israelites responded in the following way: “In every province to which the edict and order of the king came, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting, weeping and wailing. Many lay in sackcloth and ashes”

12. The link between mourning and ashes is well established in the Scriptures especially the old testament.13

The liturgy makes a second connection as well, one that goes beyond the symbols of repentance found in biblical depictions of mourning. It takes us back to the origin of all our pain. Ash Wednesday evokes the punishment arising from the fall, when God says to Adam and Eve, “Dust you are and to dust you will return”14 In other words, the sadness of Lent is not a general sadness about the inevitability of death but an explicitly Christian diagnosis of the cause of death. We sin and die because humanity rebelled against God. There is nothing natural at all about death. It is an alien intrusion into the good world God created. It is an enemy to be defeated. On Ash Wednesday we remember that we will die, but we do not accept it as the inevitable reality of the human experience. Even in our acknowledgment of death there are clues of our revolt against it. We sin and die because we are born in the aftermath of the rebellion of our first parents. Adam and Eve rebelled because they wanted to be like God and were led away by their desires

(Genesis 3:5- 12 Esther 4:3 13 Cf Daniel 9:3, Jeremiah 6:25; Job 42:6; Matthew 11:21. 14 Genesis 3:19.

6). They believed the serpent’s falsehood15 and disobeyed God’s command. The consequence of this rebellion spread out in multiple directions, including engendering a new distrust of each other (Genesis 3:7) and of God (Genesis 3:8-9). Through the imposition of ashes, Ash Wednesday reminds us that death and sin cannot be completely separated. This does not mean a particular form of death is punishment for specific sins, but sin and death are partners. But if the ashes of Ash Wednesday point us toward the link between sin, death, and rebellion, they also contain something else. The ashes are in the shape of the cross. That cross carries within it an entire story and the foundation of human hope. It is the story of loss and gain, of the incarnation of the truly good one, his glorious life and triumphant defeat of death. The ashes are not just a reminder of our great failure; they remind us of God’s victory over sin and death through the life, death, and resurrection of his Son our Lord Jesus Christ. In his Lenten message of 2024, the Holy Father Pope Francis suggested that during Lent Christians pause and make space to incorporate silent adoration into their lives, as practiced by Moses, Elijah, Mary and Jesus. We can reclaim that this year as well. To adore and thank God for the victory He has won for us through Christ suffering and death. "Have we realized that we've lost the meaning of adoration? Let us return to adoration," he also added that like St. Francis of Assisi, we are invited to "strip ourselves of worldly trappings and return to the heart, to what is essential," the pope said. "Let us acknowledge what we are: dust loved by God." This calls us to total self examination or a thorough introspection of our lives for greater transformation and renewal.

During this season the liturgical ambiance changes to accommodate the season we have begun. The liturgical colour is purple and the musical instruments are reduced to encourage us be more create space for God in our heart, in silent and continuous reflection. Why do we observe this holy season for forty days? Scripturally speaking “Forty”, suggests such qualities as repentance, newness, preparation, selfexamination, transformation, task fulfillment, escape from bondage or slavery, nourishment and growth, and, finally, personal fulfillment, such as with redemption and salvation, and ultimately, new generation and new life. As far as fasting is concerned forty days as a period of fasting is also a common phenomenon in Scripture. We will endeavor to mention some of them. The flood lasts forty days and nights.16 The rains lasted for forty days and forty nights.17When Jacob died his embalmment ceremony lasted 15

Genesis 3:13 16 Genesis 7:4, 17 Genesis 7:12

forty days.18 As the Bible describes God’s mercy on faithful people through the story of Noah’s Ark, the timing of 40 days shows up again.19 In Exodus, we read of how Moses encountered God in prayer for forty days and forty nights.20 The book of Deuteronomy mentioned Moses fasted twice for forty days and nights on Mt. Sinai:21 once after receiving the Law and also on discovering the infidelity of the Israelites in fashioning the Golden Calf..22 Again, in1 Kings, we read of how Elijah traveled for forty days and nights2323 without food after slaying the prophets of Baal and fleeing the wrath of Jezebel. The Ninevites fast for forty days to prevent the wrath of God (Jonah 3:4). In the New Testament we read of how prior to His public ministry Jesus spent forty days in the desert wilderness fasting and praying24 and there he was tempted by the devil25 but Jesus been God overcame the devil. After His resurrection Jesus made several appearances to his followers as proofs to convince them about the truth of His resurrection and in a period of forty days,26 he continued to admonish them about the kingdom of God. In addition to these possible allusions to Egypt’s post-Theophany fast, there are several examples of forty-day fasts of other types during this period. In his Canonical Epistle, Peter, bishop of Alexandria in the early fourth century, legislates a fast of forty days for lapsed Christians to be readmitted from their term of excommunication (Canon 1). The same Canons of Hippolytus stipulates that catechumens who earn their living by “impure occupations”— for example, by wrestling, running, acting, hairdressing, and so on—must undergo a forty-day period of purification before they can be baptized.

Another mid-fourth century collection of church legislation, the Canons of Athanasius, prescribes forty days of fasting as penance for adulteresses and executioners who wish to be readmitted to the Eucharist.27 Fasting for forty days, for whatever purpose or occasion, seems to have been a rather common phenomenon in the pre-Nicene and Nicene period, especially in Egypt. Therefore, the idea of a specific forty-day period of fasting leading up to Easter seems to have begun taking hold in the church at large in 330 AD. There does appear to be a very early tradition 18

Genesis 50:3 19 Genesis 7:17 and 8:6. 20 Exodus 24: 21 Exodus 34:28 22 Deuteronomy 9:9,18 23 Kings 19:7-8 24 Matthew 4:2, Luke 4:2 25 Mark 1:13 26 Acts 1:3 27 https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05789c.htm accessed 4th February 2025

of fasting before the annual celebration of Jesus’ resurrection, but it was a much shorter fast and varied from one church to another.28 St. Ambrose of Milan 397 AD in his mystagogical catechesis encouraged everyone to fast not just limiting it abstaining from food but also refraining from evil.29 He called on all catechumen, instructors and God parents and even the priest to engage in fasting before the reception of the sacraments at Easter. In other words, He call us to love more and be available to assist our suffering brothers and sisters. Of what benefit is our fast if we continue to hate, mistreat people, of what use is my prayer if I have not good works? It precisely a wakeup calls to a change of attitude and metanoia. I feel that we could also reclaim the call of the early church in this aspect. Benefit of this Lenten season When we embrace this season with love for our creator, we will receive great benefit from it as we will grow in our relationship with God. we will be more thankful instead wallowing in ingratitude and complaining about everything. Our focus on God and living out our call to discipleship will deepen and we will experience the spiritual nourishment that comes with being truly God’s children.

Our attitudes towards prayer will intensify during this period as a result, harsh judgments will be gradually removed from us. Once this is achieved, we will worry less and depend on divine providence for all we need. If we open ourselves up like the Israelites in the desert and fully entrust ourselves to be led in new directions, the unimagined can emerge. As we are transformed into deeper relationships with Divine Love, our eyes will be opened, and our hearts moved as we stand witness to the needs of God’s people. The desert is not a destination but a place for travelers going somewhere. The benefit of this season to us as Christians is that it fills us with the ability to embrace selfdenial. People may wonder if there is need for self-denial anymore these days when people barely have food to eat. Self-denial is not necessarily denying oneself from food and pleasure alone, we could work on ourselves to be more forgiving because we have also experience Christ utmost forgiveness. During this period of lent we could be people of hope, good will, work on our anger and be more patient with self, people and object around you, send positive energies to our world, care for our environment by engaging in some practical things that can improve the ecology. It could just be proper disposal of wastes, aiming at planting more trees this year to correct deforestation and so on.

28 https://carm.org/other-questions/what-is-lent/ 29 Mark Water, 2000.The New Encyclopidia of Christian Quotations, Grand Rapids, Ml Baer Books 200, p.358.

Besides the traditional practices done during this season like prayer, fasting and almsgiving, plan to visit the sick in thanksgiving for the gift of health, give to the poor and orphans from the little you have, visit the prison to give courage and hope to the prisoners. Be that one person who will put smiles on their faces by being available to listen in the spirit of synodality and walking side by side with love for God and His people. Above all, the period can assist in increasing in us self-control and total metanoia. Like Jesus who went into the desert to fast and pray and was filled with power and strength, we will be filled with the strength to overcome temptation and avoid the occasions of sin and embrace virtues if we denial ourselves. Our thoughts will constantly be examined so that we can make more room for God in our hearts for we also live in an age in which there is an immense hunger for God. Yet what so often goes unrealized is the importance of combating this strong tendency we have toward enslavement by the senses; that is, the overemphasis placed upon feeding the many desires of our material body, our flesh and blood, is rarely seen for the danger that it is often to the disadvantage of our spiritual soul. “Lord, with love and mercy you protect us from the dangers of the world. When I spend too much time looking into my smartphone, paying little attention to the beautiful faces of the people around me, I know I am in danger of forgetting who I am. When I text and tweet all sorts of messages to people I hardly know, making no time to have a meaningful conversation with a stranger or even a loved one, I know I am in danger of losing sight of God in others. When I indulge myself by buying things instantly and mindlessly, I am in danger of becoming indifferent to the needs of others. Lord, save me from my selfish ways and addictive attachment to the things of this world. Fill me with love, mercy and inner peace, that I may long to truly be present to those who cry for help. Amen.30

Conclusion Lent is a period of reflection leading to the spiritual transformation in the life of all members of Christ’s body, the Church. In this moment we recall what Jesus did for us in other to redeem us back to God. It is fruitful period of forty days of spiritual exercise when taken actively. During these holy season of lent, we see that God is working powerfully in our current predicament to accomplish something new in our lives, in this time God transforming our hearts to accompany Him in several works of mercy such as helping us overcome temptation, repent from sin and reconciling with God through the constant and proper use of the sacraments made available for us in the church, which strengthen our faith. This holy period of spiritual pilgrimage and encounter with Jesus can aid us grow spiritually when we rely on God during times of temptations, challenges and trials for God is constantly at work in our lives transforming these moments into opportunities for our good. These forty days symbolizes 30 Warren J. Savage, Pope Francis: Living Lent with Mercy: Encouragement and Daily Prayers

special period God asks us to focus on moving closer daily to him and create room for Him in a very special way in our lives through the change of attitude, fasting, prayer and service to the less privileged in the society. Let us embrace in a specially way the sacraments the holy mother church has made available for us to purify our hearts and souls this season. We have the baptism the gate way to other sacraments, Eucharist to nourish us, confirmation to strengthen us and penance to obtain pardon and forgiveness from God and the rest at our disposal to approach and not take these avenues for granted. Let us remember that we are the hands, feet, faces, body of Christ here on earth who are called to continue to radiate Him. He uses us to reach others in our choice of words which edifies, the smiles of encouragement and hope, the feet to reach out to the poor and needy around us, to walk together in the spirit of collaboration and mutual listening in (Synodality) journey together in love as God’s people and recognizing God’s power at work daily in our lives. The Church’s synodal form, which in these years we are rediscovering and cultivating, suggests that Lent is also a time of communitarian decisions, of decisions, small and large, that are countercurrent. Decisions capable of altering the daily lives of individuals and entire neighbourhoods, such as the ways we acquire goods, care for creation, and strive to include those who go unseen or are looked down upon.31 I wish to reiterate the words of our holy Father Pope Francis in his 2024 Lenten message that calls us to exercise communitarian decision making process where everyone has a contribution to make for the improvement of our society, feel belong and harness our positive energies and potentials to transform both self and our world. References Second Vatican Council, Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium, nos102105 Lenten Message by Pope Benedict xvi 2020 retrieved 4th February 2025https://www.vatican.va/content/benedictxvi/en/messages/lent/documents/hf_benxvi_mes_20050929_lent-2006.html St. Augustine on Fasting: https://generositymonk.com/2023/02/24/augustine-of-hippothreefoldpurpose-of-fasting/ https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05789c.htm accessed 4th February 2025 https://carm.org/other-questions/what-is-lent/ Mark Water, 2000.The New Encyclopidia of Christian Quotations, Grand Rapids, Ml Baer Books 200, p.358. Warren J. Savage, Pope Francis: Living Lent with Mercy: Encouragement and Daily Prayers https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/audiences/2020/documents/papafrancesco_2020111 1_udienza-generale.html31 https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2024/02/01/240201c.html 12 John Gerard Hillier Meaning of prayer in Christ ministry event in profound ways: 22nd February 2023. https://catholicspirit.com/news/meaning-of-prayer-in-christs-ministry-evident-inprofoundways Catechism of the Catholic Church no.2558. St. Augustine, De diversis quaestionibus octoginta tribus 64,4:PL 40,56. St. John Damascene, Defide orth. 3,24:PG 94,1089C Biblical citation from the The African Bible. Pope Francis Lenten message 2024 retrieved on 10th February 2025 https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2024/02/01/240201c.html