Before Entering Lent
Cheese-fare Sunday
Romans 13:11-14; Matthew 6:14-21
We stand at the doors of Great Lent (Fast). As conscious members of Christ's Church, we should know why this fast exists, how to begin it, what we are to do during Great Lent, and what we are meant to achieve. Where do we learn all this? -- The Church provides answers to these questions, offering guidance not based on human reasoning, but from God – these are the instructions of the Lord Jesus Christ and His holy apostles.
First of all, the fast has a purpose – the purification of our souls and bodies and union with God.
Why purification? -- We know that dirt does not mix with cleanliness, or rather, it is senseless to try to combine them, because dirt will overpower cleanliness. To truly purify, it is not enough to just put on a clean shirt or generally clean clothing; a person must bathe, wash properly, and only then don clean clothes. Similarly, dirty walls must be cleaned and wiped down before painting.
Great Lent is established for the purification of the soul from sins, to rid ourselves of spiritual dirt, and to unite with Christ through Holy Communion, through receiving His teaching in the Word of God.
Our body needs food, drink, care, protection from the cold, warmth, etc. It is like the body of every animal. But the animal, apart from the care of the body, does not need anything.
However, a human being consists of two entities - body and soul. Our souls need spiritual nourishment and care. The human soul longs for union with its Creator, but, contaminated with the impurity of sins, it cannot connect with the holiness of God; being polluted, it will not feel unity with God.
The Lord is aware of our imperfection and sinfulness, and that is why He instituted the Sacrament of Repentance-Confession so that a person could have a font of spiritual purification and be able to connect with God. The Sacrament of Confession (Repentance) was instituted by the Lord Jesus Christ on the first day after his Resurrection, when he appeared to his disciples-apostles and said:
“Receive the Holy Spirit! If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained." (John 20:22-23)
But Christ spoke similarly to His disciples even before His suffering:
“Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” (Matthew 18:18)
For this reason, in the Church of Christ, there exists the Sacrament of spiritual cleansing – the Sacrament of Confession. But before the Sacrament of Confession, a person must make certain spiritual efforts, an examination of the soul before their own conscience. Conscience, like the soul in general, is invisible, immaterial, but, as we all know, it exists. The Creator gave us the sense of conscience so that we could monitor and feel our deeds and actions. Because in Confession we ask God for forgiveness of our voluntary and involuntary sins, Christ also shows us where to begin the Great Lent – with forgiveness. This is so that we first forgive the sins of our neighbours:
“For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” (Matthew 6:14-15)
That is why, based on this clear instruction of Christ, we must begin our Fast with forgiveness. In a family, a wife and a husband, in going to Confession, must ask for mutual forgiveness, as well as children from their parents and vice versa...
We must also be aware that bodily fasting is not an end in itself; we practise it so that the spirit can more easily reign over the body, over bodily desires. Fasting is not only about not eating meat, not dancing, not going out for fun, but fasting is about growing spiritually, becoming rich, acquiring the treasures of the soul.
Spiritual fasting is abstinence from evil and bad deeds and trying to do good deeds as much as possible.
“What good is your fasting if you do not eat meat but devour your neighbour with hatred?” - asks St. Basil the Great.
The Holy Fathers of the Church teach us that we should fast not only with our stomachs, but with our whole being.
“Let your mind abstain from evil, wicked thoughts; let your memory abstain from memories of the unkind, unclean; let your tongue abstain from lying, slandering your neighbour; restrain your ears from hearing bad jokes and bad songs; restrain your hands from an other’s goods, property; restrain your feet from leading you to places of sin.”
Thus, a person should fast not only with their stomach, but also with the mouth, with their whole being, and direct their mind, willpower, and daily actions to doing good, to giving charity. We should not only try to visit the sick, the infirm, and those in need and help them, but also for parents to strive to pay more attention to their children during Great Lent.
We often neglect our responsibilities to our children in the midst of work, marking anniversaries, and festivities. Let us ask them what worries them, how they are studying, with what do they need help and encouragement. Let us talk to them about God, read them Christ's teachings from The Gospel, teach them prayers, ensure that they attend all Sunday services with us, and the Service of the Lord's Passion, and the Carrying Out of the Shroud.
Let us take care of the treasures of the soul for ourselves and for our children, those treasures
“where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:20-21)
Amen.
Very Rev. Fr. Taras Slavchenko
Taras Slavchenko was born on March 8, 1918 in Nikopol, Dnipropetrovsk region in Ukraine. After graduating from school and the Pedagogical College, he entered the language and literature faculty of the Scientific Pedagogical Institute. Having successfully completed it in 1938, he served as a teacher in a secondary school.
