Lent: What does it all mean?

For many years, I've struggled with what the meaning of the season of Lent is.  Growing up, my parents always encouraged me to "give something up", like candy, or soda, or something like that.  I was always told that we were to fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, and abstain from eating meat on those days, as well as on all Fridays during Lent.  I would go to Mass on Ash Wednesday, and get the Cross of ashes on my forehead, while at the same time hearing the Gospel from Matthew that tells us not to let people know that we are fasting, and to instead keep our appearance well groomed.  And while I will admit that walking around with a Cross of ashes on your forehead does pose a great opportunity to spread the Gospel, I think that many people may miss the point of what it all means.

I remember listening to a Homily last year on Ash Wednesday, in which a Priest friend of mine said that the Ashes should serve as a reminder of not only our own sinfulness, but also for the need to let the Light of Christ burn deeper into our souls.  Just as there is a surge of new growth in a forest after a forest fire, because the sun can reach places that it couldn't before, so it is in our relationship with God, when we remove the clutter from our lives, and allow the Light of Christ to reach deeper into our souls, and touch places it previously could not.

How do we accomplish this though?  I think the best way to look at it is this:  Just like a forest must sometimes be cleared of excess overgrowth, to keep a massive forest fire from happening, so must we clear the "excess" from our lives, in order to help us avoid temptation and sin, and ultimately grow closer to God.  So our Lenten "fast" does not have to be about just giving up food, or not eating meat on Fridays, or not eating as much.  It can also be about so much more.  Here is what the Prophet Isaiah has to say about Fasting:

Is this the manner of fasting I wish, of keeping a day of penance:
That a man bow his head like a reed, and like in sackcloth and ashes?
Do you call this a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord?
This, rather, is the fasting that I wish:
Releasing those bound unjustly,
untying the thongs of the yoke;
Setting free the oppressed, breaking every yoke;
Sharing your bread with the hungry,
Sheltering the oppressed and the homeless;
Clothing the naked when you see them,
And not turning your back on your own.
Then your light shall break forth like the dawn,
and your wound shall quickly be healed;
Your vindication shall go before you, and the Glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.

Isaiah 58: 5-8

What does this all mean?  It means that we can gain far more by giving up our grudges, our vices, and striving to recognize Christ in others, and be Christ to others.  If we do that, then we will truly grow closer to God, and we will truly learn what the season of Lent is all about.  My prayer for everyone this Lent is that we may learn to be Perfected by God, and always rely on His Grace to give us the strength to endure in times of trial.  May you find the courage to allow God to "burn" deeper into your life, and reach into your soul in ways he never has before.  Amen.