Catherine of Siena: Where do you turn when you are in need?

“There is nothing we can desire or want that we do not find in God.”

Catherine of Siena (1347-1380) in Letter T360.

Part of the journey of Lent is learning where we find everything we will ever need: God alone. The best way to help others grasp this is to live like we believe it.

“It is also important to remember in times of fasting, such as Lent, that we’re not just “giving something up,” but we’re “giving something over” and the less we take, the more we can give. Christians always saw this as a time for alms-giving, the practice of giving to the poor and needy. So, when we think of Lent, we think of service and pouring out into the streets so that the world can know the riches of the love of God. As we do all these things, the love of God becomes clearer in our hearts.”

Zachary K. Perkins in “What Christians Get Wrong about Lent” article for Relevant Magazine, posted on 5 March 2014.

Why 40 days? This article reminds readers that the 40 days of Lent mirror the timeframe that Moses spent on Mt. Sinai (Exodus 34:28) and that Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness (Luke 4:1-13; Matthew 4:1-11). The placement of Lent in the church calendar also serves as a time of community preparation for our celebration of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Personally, I like that it’s 40 days long because that’s about how long it takes for something to go from my head to my heart, and the transformation of my heart is what God desires through my fasting, praying, and generosity to the poor (Matthew 6:1-18). Only through such transformation do I become a reflection and conduit of His love to a lost and needy world.

“The Lord calls us to be freed from whatever possesses us so that the only treasure that matters to us is the Kingdom of God.”

Steven Nyl in Redemptorists of the Denver Province post on 3 March 2014.

We are learning that what we think we own really owns us, because only God owns everything. And we are finding that the call to let go of things is actually invitation to freedom. So as Lent begins we are asking this question: “What things do we need to be freed from?”

“Today is the beginning of the lenten fast…In Ash Wednesday’s gospel, from the sixth chapter of St. Matthew, Jesus offers advice about the discipline. Notice Jesus does not say, “if you fast.” Jesus says, “when you fast.” Many Christians struggle with Jesus’ commandment to pray, fast, and give alms. People want to know how…Lenten fasting usually means eating and drinking less than usual…Lenten fasting also means less entertainment, less music, less nonsense…Ash Wednesday is a kind of slap in the face to bring us to our senses… We try to do things consciously, deliberately…We forget ourselves…In the language of the church, this is called “mortification,” which means, “death to self.” We live for others. Eventually, living simply and justly and kindly becomes our way of life.”

Mary Ellen Hynes, Companion to the Calendar (Chicago: Liturgy Training Publications, 1993) 13-14.

Many Christians today don’t observe Lent. It is so sad. Some say that rituals were forced on them in their youth so they want nothing to do with them as an adult. Others recall hypocrites that participated in lenten traditions, and consequently, they want nothing to do with the season. While Lent might be optional, the activities aren’t! Open the word. Read Matthew 6:1-18 for yourself. Jesus is not vague. Giving to the poor, praying and fasting are not optional activities.

Notice the key for Jesus is to have the right heart attitude. Ironic isn’t it that people who do these activities for show not only miss the point before God; they turn others off! So here’s my plea. Don’t participate in Lent unless you are ready for a season of sacrifice, mortification, and transformation. Those who embark on the journey will find that Lent is a gift. We get to dedicate time to growing in three vital aspects of the faith: almsgiving, prayer, and fasting. Are you in?

“Lenten fasting, almsgiving and support, prayer and bible study–practices such as these unite all men and women. The wealthier taste the hunger of those more poor than themselves, those more poor share their own heroic dependence on God and their neighbor with the wealthier who can otherwise become too independent and self-sufficient. By these alms the proud can offer the destitute an opportunity for self-respect; by their gracious acceptance the poor can teach the proud how to be of humble heart before God and neighbor.”

Caroll Stuhlmueller, Biblical Meditations for Lent (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1978) excerpt from reading for Monday of the first week of Lent.

Why observe Lent? Why dedicate time for prayer? Why identify earthly attachments and fast from them? Why give to a needy neighbor, or graciously receive the support from a generous one? These activities draw us closer to Christ and each other and prepare us to celebrate the resurrection together.

Take time today to pray? Is the glory of the cross of Christ overshadowed by anything in your life?   identify something to fast from? It might be anything from food to Facebook. Follow the Spirit’s leading to reallocate time and money to serving a neighbor in need. In so doing, may God transform us together on the road to Calvary.

“What we do, let us so do it, as not to seek or desire human applause: let the good work be done publicly, but let the intention be secret, that we may, by our good works, excite others to follow our example, and yet, by the purity of our intention, seek only to please God, desiring they should be known to him.”

Gregory the Great (540-604) as recounted in Short Instructions, Or, Meditations on the Gospels for Each Day in Lent by Pacificus Baker (New York: Christian Press, 1904), 28-29.

As we consider making sacrifices in order to serve others this Lent, let us be sure our hearts are in the right place by blessing our neighbors, but we must not do it for applause. As others see our good works and glorify the Father in heaven, may they  be inspired follow our example and, in the words of Gregory, “seek only to please God” along with us.

“Those that give alms only to those they consider worthy, have reason to pray that the Lord in judging them will not follow their example.”

Teresa of Avila (1515-1582) as recounted by Charles Jerome Callan in Illustrations for Sermons and Instructions (New York: Joseph Wager, 1916) 309.

Lest we think we are capable of judging who is worthy and unworthy of our aid, Teresa reminds us of the implications of such a judgment. Let us instead err on the side of gracious generosity.

“Christians astounded the ancients with their charity. Although Romans were noted for their largess, they gave expecting a return in kind, at least in honor and friendship. Stoic sages regularly cautioned them to single out the deserving. Social aid, therefore, seldom reached the most needy, those belonging to the very dregs of society. It was precisely these whom Christians sought to help, regularly exhorting their constituency to openhanded and openhearted giving.”

E. Glenn Hinson, The Early Church: Origins to the Dawn of the Middle Ages (Nashville: Abingdon, 1994) 64.

In researching almsgiving in the early church in anticipation of Lent, I am moved at how countercultural Christian charity appears. Christians overturned the rules of reciprocity, which dictated that charity only be directed to the deserving, and of course, a return was always expected. Alternatively, Christian generosity is openhanded and imitates God’s openhearted grace: it is offered freely to everyone. May our giving stir such a renown and response.

“Whatsoever is superfluous in thy estate is to be dispersed in alms. He that hath two coats must give to him that hath none; that is, he that hath beyond his need must give that which is beyond it. Only among needs, we are to reckon not only what will support our life, but also what will maintain the decency of our estate and person, not only in present needs, but in all future necessities, and very probable contingencies, but no further: we are not obliged beyond this, unless we see very great public and calamitous necessities. But yet if we do extend beyond our measures, and give more than we are able, we have the Philippians and many holy persons for our precedent; we have St. Paul for our encouragement; we have Christ for our counselor; we have God for our rewarder; and a great treasure in heaven for our recompense and restitution.”

Jeremy Taylor (1613-1667) English cleric in The Rule and Exercises of Holy Living 4.8.12, another classic from John Wesley’s bookshelf.

My mind is still on Wesley and those who shaped his thinking and contributed to the revival movement in his day. Would you join me in praying for revival? I am praying for Christians to develop a reputation for shifting from owning things to allowing only that which attends to basic needs to stay with us so that we become known for treasuring Christ above all else.

As Taylor instructs, let’s follow the examples set forth in Scripture. Let’s live in light of eternity. As  the days of Lent draw near, join us and many other Christians in considering your own almsgiving. Ask God whom you are to bless with “whatever is superfluous in thy estate.” And let us “extend beyond our measures, and give more than we are able!”

“If there be nothing so glorious as doing good, if there is nothing that makes us so like God, then nothing can be so glorious in the use of our money, as to use it in all works of love and goodness, making ourselves friends, fathers, benefactors, to all our fellow-creatures, imitating the divine love, and turning all our power into acts of generosity, care, and kindness, to such as are in need of it.”

William Law (1686-1761) in A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life (Newcastle: Barker, 1845) 51.

While I pray the quotes I share daily ignite the fires of generosity in your life, you must know that William Law was one of the formative influences in the life of John Wesley. Law wrote A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life in 1728 and it remains for us today as one of the contributing works that helped birth the revival movement in Wesley’s England. May all who revisit this classic be equally inspired today!