Fasting Archive

RETURN – It’s the Soul purpose of Great Lent

– March 1, 2013

A MESSAGE FROM FATHER LOU RETURN – It’s the Soul purpose of Great Lent

That incredible time of Great Lent is nearing again this year with Clean Monday on March 18. In fact Roman Catholic and Protestant Christians began Lent on February 13, with an early Easter, March 31. Our Pascha this year will be celebrat- ed on May 5. So, just what is the purpose of Great Lent? It’s “soul” purpose is returning to God. It is a return to the original beauty in which we were created – a beauty of union in harmo- ny with God and then with one another. The consequences of the Ancestral Sin were the fall of humankind, a distortion of that original beauty, with a focus on the self and the material realm first – rather than God and the spiritual realm. It is a sep- aration first from God and in turn from one another. This sepa- ration from the “Life-Giver,” consequentially brings about death. The ultimate death, however, is not physical, it is spiritu- al. If not healed, this separation brings about the destruction of our soul.

And so it is that God, in God’s great mercy and love offers healing for our souls. First, through the “Word” – the Holy Scriptures, the prophets and the law and then the Word, Him- self enters into the world to reclaim our fallen race, by becom- ing one of us, taking our sins upon His shoulders, dying upon the cross – destroying the power of death and the evil one – and resurrecting – reclaiming the original beauty of the human race. And finally, by sending the Holy Spirit into the Church – the Body of believers to complete and live out this reclamation project of Return and re-union.

Great Lent is that annual re-telling of the story of our human condition and invitation to re-connect with God and our fellow humans. Of course, the yeoman’s portion of the work has been accomplished by our Merciful and Loving God, yet our free-will response, is a necessary component to our souls’ salvation. The central themes to our free-will response to God’s invitation are:

 A desire to be with God. This desire is predicated upon
humility and an attitude of gratitude, a realization that our very life and all the good that entails are gifts from God. We are not self-sufficient. We need God to live;
 A resolve – a choice to return to the One who gives us life. This return requires a change of focus and direction from our self and the material realm, primarily to God and the

spiritual realm. This is against our fallen human tendency. This is repentance. It is understood in our Orthodox life as a life long journey often entailing hard work;

 Re-union with God. Sharing with Him in the joy of Pascha through which His Life-giving Resurrection is enlivened in us not only at the end of our life but in the midst of it.

The three legged stool of the Great Lenten journey is Prayer, Fasting and Almsgiving. Prayer nourishes our desire and helps us re-connect with the Life-Giver, our Loving Lord. Fasting assists us in the turning primarily away from our selfish focus and to God. It involves struggle and commitment, perhaps a war. It is waged first in the physical realm because it is precisely there that we are too focused. The result of that over focus is a sick soul. Healing comes through re-focusing, returning to God. And finally, Almsgiving helps us to re-direct our focus to our fellow human beings. By loving “the least of God’s brothers and sis- ters,” we love him. (MT. 25:39-41)

Our Lenten Pilgrimage draws near. Let’s use the beauti- ful tools offered at this time of year to Return to our Loving Lord, dying more to our self-focus and living more in the Life-giving Presence, death on the Cross and Glorious and Life Giving Vic- tory in the Resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Have a blessed Great Lent with our Lord’s Grace and blessings,

Fr. Lou

Listed on the following pages are Great Lenten opportu- nities for prayer, scriptural and spiritual readings, repentance and confession, retreats, charity and acts of kindness.

THE LENTEN PRAYER OF ST. EPHRAIM

(Said daily in Great Lent)

Lord and Master of my life, de- liver me from the spirit of laziness and meddling, the lust for power and gossip. (Prostration)

Rather, grant the spirit of wis- dom, humility, patience, and love to me your servant. (Prostration)

Yes, Lord and King, grant that I may see my own faults and not to judge others. For you are

blessed to the age of ages. Amen. (Prostration)

The Journey of Great Lent

– January 31, 2007

by Fr. Lou Christopulos

Clean Monday, the first day of Great Lent, is February 19 this year. Our Pascha is celebrated on April 8, the same day as Western Christian Easter. The 40-days of Lent is primarily about repentance – an attitudinal change, a shift of focus away from ourselves and to God, utilizing such tools as prayer, fasting and charity. When we focus on ourselves primarily and things of this world, we “miss the mark” or sin. When we redirect our focus primarily to God, we “hit the mark”, we live the way we were created to live.

Some important Lenten questions:

What is the Triodion? This is a period of time in the Church including the four pre-Lenten Sundays of preparation for Lent, Great Lent and Holy Week.

How long is Great Lent? It is 40-days from Clean Monday (February 19 this year) to the Saturday of Lazarus, before Palm Sunday. This Saturday, Palm Sunday, and Holy Week are NOT technically a part of Great Lent. Nevertheless, our fast continues through these days, with a partial relaxation on Lazarus Saturday and Palm Sunday, picking up in its strictness on Palm Sunday Night through Holy Week to Pascha.

Why do we fast? We humans are psychosomatic. We have a soul and a body. The true fast is psychic – a spiritual or soul fast from sin. The psychology of the Church teaches us that to get to this spiritual fast, we must go through our body. Thus, we fast from food to help us in our self-discipline. If we can say no to simpler things, such as food, it helps us to say no to more difficult things such as gossip and judging others. Fasting also helps us to redirect our focus on God. When I’m hungry, I am in need. I recognize that I am not self-sufficient. I need basic food to live. Basic food is from God. Another element of fasting is doing without for ourselves, so we can help others. Charity or almsgiving then is a direct result of saving money spent on food or things for ourselves, and re-directing that money to help others in need.

How do we fast? The ultimate fast is a fast from sin. This is the goal of fasting. The prescribed Lenten food fast helping us to that goal begins on Meatfare Sunday, eight days before Great Lent with a fast from meat and begins on Clean Monday with a fast through Holy Saturday, from meat, fish, dairy products, oil and wine – with some exceptions: a lessening of the fast on weekends (oil is permitted); and on the Annunciation and Palm Sunday (fish, wine and oil permitted). There are variations to this fast for a variety of reasons including health, age, children, travel and living in a non-Orthodox country. For variation questions, speak with one of our clergy. But remember, it is better to eat meat than to devour your brother or sister.

What about prayer? Prayer is one main way of communicating with God. We praise God, we thank God, we ask for help for others and ourself. WE ask for forgiveness, for guidance, for strength. Great Lent is a time for heightened prayer life – both personal and corporate. Weekly throughout Lent we have Compline Services on Mondays, Pre-Sanctified Liturgies on Wednesdays and Salutation Services on Fridays. Additionally, we are challenged to be more regular and focused in our personal daily prayer life. The Prayer of St. Ephraim the Syrian sets the tone for our personal prayer approach to our Lord. Also, the Jesus Prayer, “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, Have mercy on me a sinner,” is a formula for constant prayer.
What about almsgiving or charity? This is essential in helping us to turn to God directly and indirectly, by helping the “least of his brothers and sisters.” As was mentioned in “Why do we Fast?” turning to God involves turning away from ourselves, re-directing our attention to helping others. Prayer, fasting and almsgiving or charity are the three legs of the Lenten table.

What about Confession? Confession, or more appropriately, the Sacrament of Repentance, is simply knowing ourselves, recognizing the ways we miss the mark, acknowledging them and attempting to change. We can do this on our own, which can be helpful. Sacramentally, when we do this with a confessor, “two or more are gathered in Christ’s name” and the Grace of God is imparted in a healing and strengthening manner. Confession times are listed on the calendar. Take advantage of this healing sacrament utilizing honesty and humility as a garment of re-baptism and re-generation of our life in Christ.

May Great Lent be a time of re-focus in our life – away from ourselves and to God.
May we “die”
More to the un-Godly aspects of our life, in Christ’s death and live anew in His Glorious and life-giving
Resurrection.

Fr. Lou Christopulos

The Lenten Prayer of St. Ephraim (said daily in Great Lent)

Lord and Master of my life, deliver me from the spirit of laziness, despondency, desire for power over others, and useless talk. (Prostration) Give rather to me your servant, a spirit of purity, humility, patience and love. (Prostration) Yes Lord and King, allow me to see my own sins and faults and not to judge others. For you are blessed forever and to the age of ages. Amen. (Prostration)

St. John Chrysostom on Fasting

Do you fast? Give me proof of it by your works. If you see a poor man, take pity on him. If you see a friend being honored, do not envy him. Do not let only your mouth fast, but also the eyes and the ears and the feet and the hands and all the members of our bodies. Let the hands fast, by being free of avarice. Let the feet fast by ceasing to run after sin. Let the eyes fast, by disciplining them not to glare at that which is sinful. Let the ears fast, by not listening to evil talk and gossip. Let the mouth fast from foul words and unjust criticism. For what is it if we abstain from birds and fishes, but bite and devour our brothers? May He who came to the world to save sinners strengthen us to complete the fast with humility, have mercy on us and save us.

The Journey of Great Lent

– March 5, 2006

Clean Monday, the first day of Great Lent, is March 6 this year. Our Pascha is celebrated on April 23, one week after Western Christian Easter. The 40-days of Lent is primarily about repentance – an attitudinal change, a shift of focus away from ourselves and to God, utilizing such tools as prayer, fasting and charity. When we focus on ourselves primarily and things of this world, we “miss the mark” or sin. When we redirect our focus primarily to God, we “hit the mark”, we live the way we were created to live.

Some important Lenten questions:

What is the Triodion? This is a period of time in the Church including the four pre-Lenten Sundays of preparation for Lent, Great Lent and Holy Week.

How long is Great Lent? It is 40-days from Clean Monday (March 6 this year) to the Saturday of Lazarus, before Palm Sunday. This Saturday, Palm Sunday and Holy Week are NOT technically a part of Great Lent. Nevertheless, our fast continues through these days, with a partial relaxation on Lazarus Saturday and Palm Sunday, picking up in it’s stictness on Palm Sunday Night through Holy Week to Pascha.

Why do we fast? We humans are psychosomatic. We have a soul and a body. The true fast is psychic – a spiritual or soul fast from sin. The psychology of the Church teaches us that to get to this spiritual fast, we must go through our body. Thus, we fast from food to help us in our self-discipline. If we can say no to simpler things, such as food, it helps us to say no to more difficult things such as gossip and judging others. Fasting also helps us to redirect our focus on God. When I’m hungry, I am in need. I recognize that I am not self-sufficient. I need basic food to live. Basic food is from God. Another element of fasting is doing without for ourselves, so we can help others. Charity or almsgiving then is a direct result of saving money spent on food or things for outselves, and re-directing that money to help others in need.

How do we fast? The ultimate fast is a fast from sin. This is the goal of fasting. The prescribed Lenten food fast helping us to that goal begins on Meatfare Sunday, eight days before Great Lent with a fast from meat and begins on Clean Monday with a fast through Holy Saturday, from meat, fish, dairy products, oil and wine – with some exceptions: a lessening of the fast on weekends (oil is permitted); and on the Annunciation and Palm Sunday (fish, wine and oil permitted). There are variations to this fast for a variety of reasons including health, age, children, travel and living in a non-Orthodox country. For variation questions, speak with one of our clergy. But remember, it is better to eat meat than to devour your brother or sister.

What about prayer? Prayer is one main way of communicating with God. We praise God, we thank God, we ask for help for others and ourself. WE ask for forgiveness, for guidance, for strength. Great Lent is a time for heightened prayer life – both personal and corporate. Weekly throughout Lent we have Compline Services on Mondays, Pre-Sanctified Liturgies on Wednesdays and Salutation Services on Fridays. Additionally, we are challenged to be more regular and Prayer of St. Ephraim the Syrian sets the tone for our personal prayer approach to our Lord. Also, the Jesus Prayer, “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, Have mercy on me a sinner,” is a formula for constant prayer.

What about almsgiving or charity? This is essential in helping us to turn to God directly and indirectly, by helping the “least of his brothers and sisters.” As was mentioned in “Why do we Fast?” turning to God involves turning away from ourselves, re-directing our attention to helping others. Prayer, fasting and almsgiving or charity are the three legs of the Lenten table.

What about Confession? Confession, or more appropriately, the Sacrament of Repentance, is simply knowing ourselves, recognizing the ways we miss the mark, acknowledging them and attempting to change. We can do this on our own, which can be helpful. Sacramentally, when we do this with a confessor, “two or more are gathered in Christ’s name” and the Grace of God is imparted in a healing and strengthening manner. Confession times are listed on the calendar. Take advantage of this healing sacrament utilizing honesty and humility as a garment of re-baptism and re-generation of our life in Christ.

May Great Lent be a time of re-focus in our life – away from ourselves and to God. May we “die” more to the un-Godly aspects of our life, in Christ’s death and live anew in His Glorious and life-giving Resurrection.

With our Lord’s Blessings,

Fr. Lou