Comments for The Lenten Fast: Spiritual Warfare at http://www.thecatholicthing.org , comment 1 to 5 out of 5 comments http://www.thecatholicthing.org Thu, 20 Jun 2013 05:08:59 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.3 http://www.thecatholicthing.org/columns/2012/the-lenten-fast-spiritual-warfare.html#comment-10468 Mr. Deeny: Good points. But there is no need to modify the Church's traditional emphasis: we are an Easter people, and normally, when the bridegroom is with us (the risen Lord) we celebrate. But as Jesus said, when the bridegroom is taken away (Lent, Fridays throughout the year), we fast from the goods of the earth as a sacrifice. Here we don't separate body and spirit in a dualistic way, but remember that union with God, the ultimate goal of the spiritual life, lies beyond the sensual realm. Under normal circumstances, you are right: body and spirit mutually complement one another. Sensuality can be a means to contemplate the divine, but sometimes it can consume us and lead us away. One final example is the Church's liturgy: for most of the Church year, physical things along with music appeal to our senses to elevate our minds to God. In Lent we see an elevation of spirit over body (in the proper sense described above): we strip the altar of decoration and the Alleluia ceases. At Passion Week (5th Week of Lent) we become more strict: all of the images and crucifixes in the Church are veiled so we can focus more on the suffering of our Lord. Come Good Friday, the entire sanctuary is laid bare in mourning. In sum, our liturgical practice images our practice of fasting, all for the right reasons. Come Easter, we decorate the church, sing a triumphant Alleluia, and then partake of the goods that we freely sacrificed for 40 days--we celebrate with spirit and body in unison. Come, Lord Jesus. - David Bonagura Wed, 21 Mar 2012 15:58:20 +0100 http://www.thecatholicthing.org/columns/2012/the-lenten-fast-spiritual-warfare.html#comment-10445 Mr. Bonagura Thank you for your response. I looked up Fr. Parsch in Amazon. Too expensive! Over $50 for his series. I'm still not convinced. Mind you, I don't dispute your or Fr. Parsch's expertise. I think it is dangerous for some of us to separate body and spirit. It works better for us if we see them working together. I met an ex-Catholic at work who is now a Calvinist. She thought Catholics too sensual. I'm glad you mentioned Mother Theresa and St. John of the Cross. In one of St. John's poems, he describes Eve's meeting with Satan as a rape. This works better logically since Original Sin is passed on by Adam, who accepted the rape and did not fight Satan, as he should have done. And Mother Theresa has "I Thirst" as one of Jesus's sayings she wants us to note. Finally, Jesus's last day with his disciples was not spent in the desert fasting, but at a supper with food and drink. And what about the woman who covers his feet with tears and fragrant oil? Perhaps you can modify the Church's traditional emphasis? - Dan Deeny Tue, 20 Mar 2012 07:19:49 +0100 http://www.thecatholicthing.org/columns/2012/the-lenten-fast-spiritual-warfare.html#comment-10397 I would respectfully ask Mr. Deeny to delve deeper into Father Parsch's insight, which I would argue reflects the tradition of the Church. As I mentioned, there are noble sensual pleasures, and Catholicism is indeed a sensual religion that sees the fruits of the earth as good things to be enjoyed. (Cathars, Albigensians, Manichees, and Gnostics see sensuality as evil, not Catholics.) But the tradition of fasting--freely abstaining from the goods of the world--has been the practice of our Jewish forefathers, commended by Jesus himself, and promoted throughout Church history precisely because letting go of these things allows us to focus more sharply on God. This is not an indictment of sensuality, but a recognition that our ultimate end is spiritual, and it is grace, not sensual pleasure, that is humanity's greatest good and the surest path to salvation. It is noteworthy that even though the Church sees creation and created things as good, the greatest saints--St. Francis, St. John of the Cross, Blessed Theresa of Calcutta--freely renounced the goods of the world so they could live completely according to the life of the soul, and they do so in precisely the manner that Parsch describes. - David Bonagura Sat, 17 Mar 2012 14:30:04 +0100 http://www.thecatholicthing.org/columns/2012/the-lenten-fast-spiritual-warfare.html#comment-10394 Dr. Parsch makes a mistake when he writes "Abstinence from sensual pleasures... rises to celestial heights." That was, I believe, one of the mistakes the Cathars made. Catholicism is a sensual religion: we have candles, incense, paintings, etc. What could be more sensual than the Body and Blood of Jesus? I would say Satan is against sensual pleasure. Sensual pleasure is the catalyst that helps create souls to fill up heaven. Mr. Bonagura might want to rethink his support for Dr. Parsch's mistake. - Dan Deeny Sat, 17 Mar 2012 07:34:06 +0100 http://www.thecatholicthing.org/columns/2012/the-lenten-fast-spiritual-warfare.html#comment-10392 Thank you, Prof. Bonagura, for a beautiful meditation on the importance of fasting. Fasting shows us how deeply we are attached to the fleeting pleasures of this world, pleasures which must be given up (and which may, if God wills, be returned) if we are to be wholly attached to God, the source of life, happiness, and peace, and our eternal destiny. Pope Benedict's first volume of Jesus of Nazareth sets forth beautifully the nature of our Lord's temptations and the meaning of his victories over them. - Dave Sat, 17 Mar 2012 05:24:00 +0100