Lent in the East: "Where's the beef?"

I'll tell you where: nowhere near your stove or your mouth. That is, strictly speaking, the practice throughout the entire Great Fast, as this article from the Catholic Anchor about Byzantine Catholics notes:

In the Byzantine tradition, there are two types of fasting, simple and strict. Strict abstinence is obligatory two times during the Lenten season — On Pure Monday and Great and Holy Friday. On these days, all meat and dairy is forbidden, including eggs and all egg and dairy product derivatives.

“Of course people can observe (additional) stricter fasts out of a spirit of penance if they want to, but they are not obligated beyond the requirements,” Father Hornick said.

Needless to say, this strict fasting is really difficult. And far be it from me to claim I do it well. But practicing such fasting really does shed a different light on Holy Week and Pascha; the fasting gives meaning to the feasting. It's a reminder that what we take for granted shouldn't be taken for granted, and, in a more theological vein, causes one to ponder things such as the loss of original friendship with God through sin (in the East there is an emphasis on Adam and Eve being vegetarian prior to the Fall), the source of true food and drink (Christ/the Eucharist), the point of having bodies (to outwardly worship God, among other good things), and the point of our existence (to know, serve, and love God forever). And it also provides another means of talking to our children about the meaning of Lent and Easter, since the children cannot help but notice that either Mom and Dad are eating differently or that they aren't getting any hamburgers, hot dogs, or three-meat pizza.

On each Friday of the Great Fast there is a Liturgy of the Pre-Sancified, which is a beautiful, somber combination of Vespers and Holy Communion. Here are some excerpts from the hymns sung during that liturgy:

Brethren, while fasting bodily, * let us also fast in spirit:* let us loosen every bond of injustice, * let us tear apart the strong chains of violence; * let us rip up all unjust assertions; * let us give bread to the hungry * and welcome the poor and homeless to our houses * that we may receive from Christ our God His great mercy. ...

In the multitude of my sins, * a pauper with a darkened mind, * I cry out to you, O all-pure One, * with a repentant and contrite heart. * Illumine the eyes of my heart, * you who once gave birth to the unfading Light * Who illumines the ends of the earth * through the fiery sign of His judgment. * Illumine my mind, O Spotless One, by the light of your prayers. * Make me become a son of light by praying to Christ your Son * who grants to the world his great mercy. ...

Like the prodigal son, * I squandered my paternal inheritance and I am now in desolation, * I dwell in a land of evil men. In my folly I became like the unreasoning beasts, * stripped of all divine grace. * So I returned and cry out to You, * O merciful and compassionate Father, * I have sinned, O God! * Receive me as a penitent and have mercy on me. ...

He, though unapproachable in His being, * today becomes approachable to me. * He endures suffering to free me from suffering. He who grants light to the blind is spat upon by lawless lips and gives His back to be scourged like a lowly slave. * When His pure virgin Mother saw Him on the cross, * she cried out: My child, what have You done? * You whose beauty exceeds that of all the children of men * appear disfigured and lifeless! * Alas my Light, I cannot look at You asleep in death. I am so deeply wounded: ' the fearful sword pierces my heart; but I praise your suffering and bow to your compassion. * O long-suffering Lord, glory be to You.

What is particularly striking is how these hymns (which can be rather difficult to sing, especially for those of us who weren't raised with the music and who are musically-challenged) is how they place us in the midst of an event, narrative, or parable from Scripture and have us associate ourselves with, for example, the prophet Elias, the Prodigal Son, the man born blind, the man beaten on the road to Jericho, the harlot who bathed Christ's feet with perfume, Mary and Martha, Lazarus, the foolish virgins. These people and events are not simply interesting data found in salvation history, but are guides on the road to a deeper, richer, transforming communion with the Savior. At the end of the liturgy the people prostrate themselves themselves three times as they sing this hymn with a most beautiful melody: "Having suffered the passion for us, Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy, have mercy, have mercy on us."

For more about the Great Fast in the East, visit Byzantines.net. And if you've never read it, Pope John Paul II's Apostolic Letter, Orientale Lumen ("The Light of the East"; May 2, 1995), is a wonderful introduction to Eastern Catholicism.

Comments

[NYer]

Thank you for a wonderful post! Most Catholics are unfamiliar with the Eastern Churches. Vatican II Council declared that "all should realize it is of supreme importance to understand, venerate, preserve, and foster the exceedingly rich liturgical and spiritual heritage of the Eastern churches, in order faithfully to preserve the fullness of Christian tradition" (Unitatis Redintegrato, 15).

A Roman rite Catholic may attend any Eastern Catholic Liturgy and fulfill his or her obligations at any Eastern Catholic Parish. A Roman rite Catholic may join any Eastern Catholic Parish and receive any sacrament from an Eastern Catholic priest, since all belong to the Catholic Church as a whole. I am a Roman Catholic practicing my faith at a Maronite Catholic Church. Like the Chaldeans, the Maronites retain Aramaic, the language spoken by Jesus, for the Consecration. It is as close as one comes to being at the Last Supper.