Thousands and thousands of people upon the stage of life are adjusting themselves to their roles in this drama — this drama which is real life. Old men are there and old women, youths and maidens, and even little children. From all parts of the world they come and from all walks of life — kings and queens, merchants and laborers, teachers and students, bankers and beggars, religious of all orders, cardinals, bishops and parish priests, and leading them all the Vicar of Christ on earth. All are quietly taking their laces, for all re actors in the sublime mystery drama of our redemption.
I won’t repeat my lengthy screed from years past. Go here for that, along with plenty of links.
And go here for Lent links – get ready.
But I will just recap my main point from that longer post.
In Roman Catholic tradition, there was, for hundreds of years, a tradition of pre-Lent. It was a period of three weeks in which we
were invited, as a universal Church, to prepare ourselves for Lent. The Sunday Scripture readings were the same every year, everywhere for those days. (Of course, in the pre-V2 liturgy, there was only a yearly cycle of readings anyway….) The selection of those readings had evolved over time, guided by the Spirit (because we do not know how to pray as we ought) …to help us. So that we are not, as one scholar put it, “parachuted into Lent.”
But here we are – with the 6th Sunday of Ordinary Time readings for year A this year, while last year, the Sunday before Lent began, it was the 7th Sunday of Ordinary Time, year C.
I mean, all Scripture is good, and a decent preacher, thinking ahead, can certainly shape a message that helps his listeners hear whatever Scripture readings are given and point to the coming season. Sure.
But there’s something about an entire global community on track in a consistent way, year to year. It….helps.
Those scans are from the 1935 7th-grade religion textbook, With Mother Church, from the Christ Life Series in Religion.
Below is a transcription of some of the content related to this Sunday.
Remember – this is written for 7th graders. These days, we appeal to 7th graders by anxiously assuming that we must entertain them and constantly assure them of how fantastic they are and excitedly shout at them them that we’re offering them something awesome – as consumers, in other words. This is not the case here, is it? The 7th graders are treated respectfully, as full members of the Body of Christ with responsibilities and a role that contributes to the good of the whole, and are encouraged to be attentive to the Scriptures and prayers of the day’s liturgy, see their relationship to their lives and daily struggles, and to live in their framework.
Also note, belying the stereotype of those bad-old-days of-rules-and-rigidity, the theme of charity, aka, love. Also, the sensible, Gospel-rooted understanding of love – which is not about feeling awesome, excited, warm or …anything, but all about living in communion with God’s will – responding in love to His love.
(Remember the first reading would have been Paul’s words on charity from 1 Corinthians 13)
Thus we find that the perfect observance of the law of charity will make us perfect Christians. But how can we know that we have charity? Perhaps we do not feel a sensible love for God such as we feel toward our parents. Our Lord Himself has told us, “If you love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15). This is the test. The first three commandments, you know, relate directly to God; the others, to our neighbor. Hence, “if any man say, I love God, and hateth his brother; he is a liar” (I John 4 : 20).
In time of temptation do we pray and resist because we do not want to break God’s commandments? Then we have charity. If, through weakness, we fall but are sorry and resolve not to sin again, then we have charity. If we are longing always to do the will of God, we shall certainly please Him by loving and bearing with our neighbor. God created and redeemed him and loves him in the same manner as He loves us. During Lent frequently offer the eucharistic Sacrifice, in which you are intimately united with Christ and with your neighbor in Christ through the sweet bond of charity.
Today is the final part of our preparation for Lent. Let us remember that our penances and good works depend for their value on our charity. On the last Sunday before Lent Christ Himself invites us to go up to Jerusalem with Him, and He says, “All things shall be accomplished which were written by the prophets concerning the Son of man, for he shall be delivered to the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and scourged, and spit upon; and after they have scourged him, they will put him to death; and the third day he shall rise again” (Gospel). Face to face with the mystery of suffering, we must pray for light to understand and charity to endure. With the blind man in the Gospel let us cry out, “Lord, that I may see.”
This program of suffering and penance must not cause us to be fearful or sad. If it does, our repentance does not spring from charity or love of God. In the Tract today we join King David in saying: “Sing joyfully to God all the earth; serve ye the Lord with gladness. . . . He made us, and not we ourselves; but we art his people and the sheep of his pasture.” Only through frequent union with Christ in His Sacrifice, can we expect the grace to be generous and joyous in our Lenten penances. In the Postcommunion we are shown where to expect to find the light and strength necessary for victory. “We beseech thee, almighty God, that we who have received this heavenly food may by it be safe-guarded from all adversities.”