Lenten Fasting and Almsgiving – Leo the Great

Almsgiving or works of mercy are essential to making Lenten Fasting lead to the spiritual renewal and progress that the Season of Lent is all about, says this fifth century writer.

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Dear friends, at every moment the earth is full of the mercy of God, and nature itself is a lesson for all the faithful in the worship of God. The heavens, the sea and all that is in them bear witness to the goodness and omnipotence of their Creator, and the marvellous beauty of the elements as they obey him demands from the intelligent creation a fitting expression of its gratitude.

Spiritual Renewal in the Lenten Season

But with the return of that season marked out in a special way by the mystery of our redemption, and of the days that lead up to the paschal feast, we are summoned more urgently to prepare ourselves by a purification of spirit.

The special note of the paschal feast is this: the whole Church rejoices in the forgiveness of sins. It rejoices in the forgiveness not only of those who are then reborn in holy baptism but also of those who are already numbered among God’s adopted children.

Initially, men are made new by the rebirth of baptism. Yet there still is required a daily renewal to repair the shortcomings of our mortal nature, and whatever degree of progress has been made there is no one who should not be more advanced. All must therefore strive to ensure that on the day of redemption no one may be found in the sins of his former life.

Lenten Fasting

Dear friends, what the Christian should be doing at all times should be done now with greater care and devotion, so that the Lenten fast enjoined by the apostles may be fulfilled, not simply by abstinence from food but above all by the renunciation of sin.

There is no more profitable practice as a companion to holy and spiritual fasting than that of almsgiving. This embraces under the single name of mercy many excellent works of devotion, so that the good intentions of all the faithful may be of equal value, even where their means are not.

Almsgiving, companion of Fasting

The love that we owe both God and man is always free from any obstacle that would prevent us from having a good intention. The angels sang: Glory to God in the highest, and peace to his people on earth. The person who shows love and compassion to those in any kind of affliction is blessed, not only with the virtue of good will but also with the gift of peace.

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Works of Mercy

The works of mercy are innumerable. Their very variety brings this advantage to those who are true Christians, that in the matter of almsgiving not only the rich and affluent but also those of average means and the poor are able to play their part. Those who are unequal in their capacity to give can be equal in the love within their hearts.

Leo, one of the Early Church Fathers, was such an extraordinary teacher that he is the first and one of the few Popes of history to have been dubbed “the Great.” This selection comes from one of his Lenten Sermons (Sermo 6 de Quadragesima, 1-2: PL 54, 285-287). It appears in the Roman Catholic Office of Readings for the Thursday after Ash Wednesday with the accompanying biblical reading taken from Exodus 1:1-22.

For more great ideas on fasting, almsgiving and other spiritual exercises for the Lenten Season, see the 40 DAYS OF LENT section of the Crossroads Initiative Library.

Banner/featured image by Grant Whitty on Unsplash. Public domain.

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