THE MYSTERY OF THE REDEMPTION.

II. —Lent season.

 1. — Dogmatic exposition.

The time of Septuagesima has reminded us how fallen man must associate himself, through the spirit of penitence, with the redemptive work of the Messiah. Well, this Lent, through fasting and other penitential practices, we are going to incorporate it in an even more perfect way. Our rebellious soul against God has become a slave to the devil, the world and the flesh. And precisely, throughout this holy time the Church shows us Jesus already in the desert (Dom. I of Quar.), already in the midst of hazards. of his public life, fighting to free us from the triple bondage of pride, greed and lust, which enslave us creatures. When by her doctrine and her pain she has redeemed us from captivity and restored the freedom of children of God, she will give us, in the Easter celebrations, the divine life, which we had lost. Hence the Lenten liturgy, steeped as it is in the teachings of the Master and in the spirit of penance of the Redeemer, served in other times for the formation of catechumens and to move to compunction the public penitents who aspired to be resurrected with Jesus on Holy Saturday, through the reception of the Sacrament of Baptism, or that of Penance. These are the two thoughts that the Church will develop during the entire Lent, showing us in the person of the unfaithful Jews to the sinners, who cannot return to God except by associating themselves with the fasting of Jesus (Evang. of the 1st Dom.); and in that of the Gentiles, called in their place, the effects of the Sacrament of regeneration (Ev. of the 2nd and 3rd dom.) and of the Eucharist in our souls (Ev. of the dom.).

In the Divine Office the readings from the Old Testament continue. On the 1st Sunday of Lent, the figure of Isaac is eclipsed by the thought of Jesus in the desert. In the last week of Lent the liturgy reads the story of Jacob, a figure of Christ and his Church, which is always protected and favored by God as that holy patriarch. It is Joseph in the readings of the Breviary of the 3rd week, and in him we see a figure of Christ and the Church, who have always returned good for evil, and shine with unusual brilliance for their immaculate life. Finally, the 4th week is consecrated to Moses, who freed the people of God, later introducing them to the promised land, and figure in this what the Church and Jesus Christ do with souls at Easter.

We see, then, how "God explains with the light of the New Testament the miracles of primitive times" (Orac. del Sat. S.). Thus, meditating on the parallel pages of both Testaments, we will prepare to celebrate with the Church the holy paschal mysteries, since those sacred pages give us a complete understanding of divine mercy, which knows no limits. The Lenten liturgy also exhorts us through the mouths of Isaiah, Jeremiah and the Prophets; and in the New Testament, by that of St. Paul, whose Epistles become like the echo of the voice of the Master, which is heard in the Gospels of those four Sundays. We can well consider all this time as a great spiritual retreat, into which all Christians from the entire world enter, to prepare for the Easter feast, and which ends with Easter Confession and Communion. Just as Jesus, withdrawing from the hustle and bustle of the world, prayed and fasted for 40 days, and then in his vice of apostolate taught us how we should die to ourselves, so also the Church, in this holy Quarantine, preaches to us how we should die in we the man of sin.

That death will manifest itself in our soul through the fight against pride and self-love, through the spirit of prayer and the most assiduous meditation on the divine word. It will also manifest itself in our body through fasting, abstinence and mortification of the senses. It will finally appear in our entire life through a greater renunciation of the pleasures and goods of the century, giving more alms and abstaining from taking part in worldly festivals. Because, in effect, Lenten fasting should be nothing more than the expression of the feelings of penitence that our soul is filled with, occupying itself all the more freely with the things of God the more it curtails the gift of the senses. Thus, this favorable time like no other, is for generous hearts a source of holy joy, which transpires through every pore of the Lenten liturgy.

This work of purification is carried out under the direction of the Church, which unites our sufferings with those of Christ. Cowards can also enter the fray with effort, trusting in the grace of Jesus, which must not be lacking, if they implore divine help against the enemy; and the strong do not become proud of their observance, because they must know that only the Passion of Jesus is what saves them, and only "by participating in it through patience are its fruits of health applied to them."

«The observance of Lent, says Pope Benedict XIV, is the girdle of our militia, and by it we distinguish ourselves from the enemies of the Cross of Christ; through it we ward off the hurricanes of divine wrath; Through it we are protected with heavenly help during the day, and we arm ourselves against the princes of darkness. If this observance were to relax, it would diminish the glory of God, discredit the Catholic religion, it would be a danger for Christian souls, and there is no doubt that such lukewarmness would become a source of misfortunes for people, of disasters. in public affairs, and of misfortunes for the same individuals.

2. — Historical exhibition

The Lenten liturgy makes us follow Jesus in all the adventures of his apostolic ministry.

First year: Jesus first spent 40 days in the desert on the Mount of Quarantine, northeast of Bethany (1st Sunday). Then he surrounded himself with his first disciples and went up with them to Galilee, from where he returned to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover festival there, then expelling the sellers from the Temple (Mon. of the 4th Week). After having evangelized Judea for several months, he went to Shechem, where he converted the Samaritan woman (Friday 3rd Sem.), from where he went to Nazareth, preaching in his synagogue (Monday 3rd Sem.). From there, finally, he headed to Capernaum, then traveling throughout Galilee (Thursday 3A Sem.). Second year: Jesus returned again to Jerusalem for the 2nd Passover, and there he healed the paralytic at the pool of Bethsaida (Gospel. Friday 1st Week). Back in Galilee, he preached the Sermon on the Mount (Mt. Kouroun-Hattin) (Ash Wednesday and next Friday). Entering Capernaum, he healed the servant of the Centurion (Thursday after Cen.) And then he resurrected the son of a widow in Nain (Ev. Thursday 4a Sem.). He then evangelized Galilee again, and went immediately to Bethsaida-Julias, in the dominions of Philip. In the vicinity of that city he multiplied the loaves (4th Sunday), and then walked on the waters of the lake, when he returned to Capernaum (Saturday after dinner).

Third year: Jesus then toured the regions of Tire and Sidon, where his enemies followed him (Wed. 5th Sem.); He heard the plea of ​​the Canaanite woman when he was passing by Zarephath (Thurs. 1st S.) and, returning through Caesarea Philippi, he returned to Galilee, then the Transfiguration took place (Sab. Sec. and 2nd Sun.). Back in Capernaum, he preached mercy to his apostles (Mart. 3a S.) and immediately went up to Jerusalem to the Feast of Tabernacles, never to return to Galilee. There he confounded the Jews who accused him of breaking the Sabbath (Mart. 4a Sat.), forgave the adulterous woman (Wisdom 3rd Sat.), taught in the Temple (Wisdom 4a Sat. Mon. 2nd Sat.) and He cured the man blind from birth (Wed. 4a S.). After Jesus was in Galilee he went to Perea, where he restored speech to a mute (Sun. 3°) and showed Jonah as an image of his resurrection (Wed. 1st S.). From there he came to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Dedication, and then returned to Perea where he preached the parable of the prodigal son (Sat. 2a S.) and of the rich epulon (Jud. 2a S.). He was then called to Bethany, where he raised Lazarus (Vi. 4a S.). After leaving for Ephrem he headed to Jerusalem, announcing how he was going to be sentenced to death (Wed. 2nd St.). In the Temple he again threw out the sellers (Mart. 1st S.), pronounced the parable of the rebellious vinedressers (Fri. 2nd S.) and exposed the hypocrisy of the Pharisees (Mart. 2nd S.). Finally, he climbed Mount Olivet and, looking at Jerusalem where they were to crucify him three days later, he spoke of the Judgment that will forever separate the good from the bad (Mon. 4a S.).

3. — Liturgical exposition.

The Lenten Season is divided into two parts. The 1st begins on Ash Wednesday, called by the liturgy "Beginning of the Most Holy Lent", to end on Passion Sunday. The 2nd includes the great fortnight that bears the name of Time of Passion. Discounting the four Sundays of Lent and those of Passion and Palms, we have only 36 days of fasting, to which the preceding four have been added to obtain the exact number of 40" that the Law and the Prophets had inaugurated, and that Christ himself consecrated by his example.

LENT SEASONS. —All Lenten masses have their Station. The Pope, in fact, celebrated solemn mass successively in the great basilicas, in the 25 parishes of Rome and in some other sanctuaries, surrounded by his clergy and his people. That was called Station. The name that still remains in the Missal reminds us that Rome is the center of Christian worship, but that is only the trace of a liturgy that is more than twelve times secular and at other times so solemn. Lent, with daily seasonal Mass, is one of the oldest and most important liturgical times of the year. The Temporal Cycle dedicated to the contemplation of the mysteries of Christ now exerts a daily and direct influence on the faithful, while, at other times of the year, the midweek festivals are more like Saints' Days. And since the entire Christian life is summed up in the imitation of Jesus, this Time, in which the Saints Cycle is shorter, must be especially fruitful for our souls.      

The Church has admitted, due to its exceptional importance, the feast of the Annunciation (March 25) then that of St. Matthias (February 24) in the Lenten liturgy. And although, in the course of time, other masses have been added in honor of the Saints, it is nevertheless completely in accordance with the spirit of this era, as Pius X reminded us in his Bull "Divine afflatu", to prefer, the fair mass, not in the case of a 1st or 2nd class double; Well, throughout Lent the official mass of the chapters is that of the fair (with purple), except for these festivals, and even on these same days (Annunciation, S. José, and S. Matías), a mass of the fair in the cathedrals and collegiate churches, so as not to interrupt the Easter preparation for anything.

In order to instill the spirit of penitence, the Church not only suppresses the Gloria and the Alleluia and clothes its priests with purple ornaments during this holy Quarantine, but also orders the deacon to leave his dalmatic and the subdeacon his tunic, symbols of both. of joy, and imposes silence on the Organ. After the Post-Communion a Prayer is said over the people" preceded by this warning: "Humble your heads before God."

Christian society formerly suspended courts of justice and wars during this time, declaring the Truce of God. It was also a prohibited time for weddings, and even today the Church prohibits giving the solemn blessing to spouses during Lent.