Post by Clotilde on Mar 1, 2022 22:55:01 GMT -5
I’m not going to repost the graphic that has been circulating, although I do find it interesting.
My thoughts are these: the Church has given us what laws are good for us and our times. The fasting laws may not be as stringent in the past but perhaps seen in their own times they could be viewed that way. We live in a wicked society where we have every convenience and comparatively, our “modern” fasting sets us aside from the world quite a bit. In the past it might have been normal to go without animal products because they simply were not available in abundance all year long. Whereas now, we are tempted with foods at every turn. People in Catholic Europe had different types of manual labor throughout the year and sure they walked more but generally speaking they did have more time to rest compared to the busyness of today’s society. Some of us are commuting to work, operating modern but dangerous equipment, working 40 or more hours a week, and have many expectations in society—this is a lot.
I am not arguing against additional penances but I think to harp on our current fasts and lament is to be dissatisfied with what the Church has given. It would be better to do these well with a good spirit with trust in the Church than to grudgingly or proudly do more severe penances. By all means, we know that the prescribed penances are just a starting point but God gives us the means to save our souls and the laws of His Church are given from Christ for the times we live in. Just imagine the midnight fasting law for those who have mass in the evening on a weekday because they only have a priest a few times a year! I think we see God’s Providence in the fact that this fast was changed just before the death of the last pope.
I do admire the saints and Catholics of the past but to constantly sift through hundreds of years for a better way or compare ourselves might be a temptation to be a bit ungrateful or contemptuous towards the laws the Church has rightly given with Her authority. I’m not accusing anyone or pointing the finger but merely pointing out the good of resignation to what we have been given.
My thoughts are these: the Church has given us what laws are good for us and our times. The fasting laws may not be as stringent in the past but perhaps seen in their own times they could be viewed that way. We live in a wicked society where we have every convenience and comparatively, our “modern” fasting sets us aside from the world quite a bit. In the past it might have been normal to go without animal products because they simply were not available in abundance all year long. Whereas now, we are tempted with foods at every turn. People in Catholic Europe had different types of manual labor throughout the year and sure they walked more but generally speaking they did have more time to rest compared to the busyness of today’s society. Some of us are commuting to work, operating modern but dangerous equipment, working 40 or more hours a week, and have many expectations in society—this is a lot.
I am not arguing against additional penances but I think to harp on our current fasts and lament is to be dissatisfied with what the Church has given. It would be better to do these well with a good spirit with trust in the Church than to grudgingly or proudly do more severe penances. By all means, we know that the prescribed penances are just a starting point but God gives us the means to save our souls and the laws of His Church are given from Christ for the times we live in. Just imagine the midnight fasting law for those who have mass in the evening on a weekday because they only have a priest a few times a year! I think we see God’s Providence in the fact that this fast was changed just before the death of the last pope.
I do admire the saints and Catholics of the past but to constantly sift through hundreds of years for a better way or compare ourselves might be a temptation to be a bit ungrateful or contemptuous towards the laws the Church has rightly given with Her authority. I’m not accusing anyone or pointing the finger but merely pointing out the good of resignation to what we have been given.