“We Need to be Reminded Several Times…”

This week’s blog is taken from our archives.  When it appeared last Lent, I received many comments.  I have posted it again for two reasons. It is a good start for Lent. Secondly, my nephew Stephen, who is teaching his brother Joe in this blog post, passed away last year of ALS, Lou Gehrig’s disease. Stephen went on to become a teacher and a counselor for many years at Georgetown Prep in Washington DC. He is deeply missed by family, friends, and the many students whose lives he touched. 

Enjoy your Lenten Journey. Fr. DeLillio

Seated at the kitchen table Joseph, my seven-year-old nephew, was studying the Ten Commandments, preparing for his First Communion.  Stephen, his eleven-year-old brother was also at the table doing his homework while their mom was doing the dishes. 

Joseph asked this question, “Mom, what does adultery mean?”  Busy at the sink, my sister thought: How do you explain adultery to a seven-year-old?  Before she could answer, Stephen spoke up, “Joseph that’s as if daddy or mommy would go on a date with the man or woman next door?  Saved, thought my sister. Joseph responded, “Mommy or daddy wouldn’t want to do that.”  And then he moved on.

At the ninth commandment, Joseph, again perplexed asked, “What does covet mean?”  Again, my sister thought:  I couldn’t explain adultery now I have to explain covet.  However, before she could answer, Stephen, the theologian said, “Joseph that’s as if daddy would take the woman next door out on a date.” Joseph said, “Oh, but why do we have two commandments that say the same thing?”

My sister, again a little tongue-tied hesitated, but Stephen blurted out, “Joseph that’s because some people are thick and need to be reminded several times!”  I’m not sure that’s the accurate answer, but Stephen’s response certainly explains why Lent comes every year, “…because some people are thick and need to be reminded several times.”

What is it that Lent wants everyone to remember?  Essentially to become deeply aware of how much God loves his creation and the depths God has gone to show it: the passion, death, and resurrection of his son.  Accomplishing this desire God then astonishes everyone by rewarding creation with the same gift of resurrection from the dead that he gave his son.

Lent proves that God is not a revenge seeker. God is not about getting even or retaliation. “For God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.” (John 3:17).  Rather, Lent is about the words the prodigal son’s Father uttered to his oldest son: “But now we must rejoice because your brother was dead and has come to life again.” (Luke 15:31-32). That’s our God, and you can see why he loves us so much!

Lent is the time we realize God’s mercy and forgiveness and think more deeply about our personal inability to let go of hurts, our powerlessness to forgive, our lack of sharing good will with those who experience joy and with friends who find happiness in their living of life. 

Let us then see this Lent as a precious opportunity to become ready for heaven by washing all bitterness and resentment away.  As my nephew Stephen reminds us, let’s not be “thick,” but “thin” enough to change.