Have you ever considered how a single careless word can spread beyond your control, wreaking havoc you never intended? The first Saturday of Lent invites us to examine one of our most common yet destructive spiritual ailments—sins of the tongue.
Drawing from Mark's Gospel, we reflect on how Jesus healed the sick with just the touch of his garment, prompting us to recognize our own spiritual infirmities. The meditation focuses particularly on our tendency toward gossip, detraction, and calumny—sins that might seem minor but cause irreparable damage. St. Philip Neri's brilliant illustration of this truth comes alive as we hear about the penitent told to pluck a chicken and then gather all the scattered feathers, an impossible task mirroring the irretrievable harm of our careless words.
What makes this reflection particularly powerful is its unexpected relevance to our digital lives. As I reflect on my own social media habits, I realize how platforms like Twitter have supercharged our ability to commit these sins, allowing us to instantly broadcast potentially harmful statements to thousands. The meditation's warning that "in every society, none are more to be feared than those who speak ill of their neighbor" takes on new urgency when we consider how digital gossip erodes the very trust our communities need to survive.
The five practical resolutions offered—from not involving ourselves in what doesn't concern us to avoiding all insulting words—provide a challenging Lenten practice for anyone seeking spiritual growth. Whether you're struggling with everyday gossip or finding yourself caught in cycles of online criticism, this meditation offers both the uncomfortable mirror of self-recognition and the hopeful path toward healing our speech.
Subscribe to join our Lenten journey as we continue tomorrow with reflections on prayer for the First Sunday of Lent, and share your own experiences of taming the tongue in our increasingly digital world.
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Christ is risen! The glorious transformation we've been preparing for through forty days of Lenten sacrifice has arrived, but what happens to our spiritual journey now?
This meditation explores the profound significance of Eastertide—not merely as the end of Lenten disciplines but as the beginning of a new way of living. From the triumphant moment when "light has triumphed over darkness," we are called to understand that Easter isn't about abandoning our spiritual progress, but redirecting it toward a fuller expression of our life in Christ.
As St. Paul reminds us, being "risen with Christ" means elevating our desires toward heaven while detaching from mere earthly satisfactions. For newly baptized Catholics, this season marks their first days in the faith, while for all believers, it offers a time to balance joyful celebration with continued spiritual growth. The Easter octave specifically highlights this transition as we learn to live out the new life received in baptism.
The meditation offers ...
The sacred stillness of Holy Saturday holds a unique place in our spiritual journey - that profound pause between the Crucifixion and Resurrection, where we are invited to contemplate the mystery of Christ's rest in the tomb. Through ancient liturgical texts and thoughtful meditation, we explore this day not as empty waiting, but as fertile ground where the seed of Resurrection quietly germinates.
"Today I am plunged in anguish, but tomorrow I will break my bonds." This powerful antiphon sets the tone for our reflection on what appears as defeat but secretly harbors victory. We join Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus at the hasty burial of Jesus before walking through the profound symbolism of the Easter Vigil ceremonies—the blessing of new fire, the lighting of the Paschal candle representing Christ risen, and the gradual illumination of darkness as this light spreads throughout the congregation.
The beautiful paradox of Holy Saturday emerges as we contemplate both loss and anticipation. "The ...
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A good (long) read by Fr. Z.
The following is a good point to keep in mind:
“ Allow me to go back to my food analogy for liturgy. This might seem a little insulting but it is just intended to make a point about the continuum we are on.
In 99% of a man’s day and activities, it is beneath his dignity to scrunch up his face and make airplane noises while moving a spoon around with his hand. People would think he was nuts. OR… if he is sitting in front of the high-chair of his little son, who can only eat goop and must sometimes be convinced to eat it, then that man is not doing anything beneath his dignity. On the contrary, he is performing a sacrificial act of love for his child. He sacrifices his dignity – becoming more dignified yet – for the sake of his boy’s eating something that will help him to grow out of the need to eat that sort of thing in that sort of way. He helps his boy move up the food and eating continuum to more complicated foods eaten in a more human way....
