Lent 2020
Lent 2020, time of grace and love
A time of grace and love, we are once again immersed in the impulse of love of God Father in his plan of salvation for humanity. This time is the “Lent” that gives testimony of a fervent walk of forty days joining our effort to the grace of God that comes to us to help us be “one” with Him.
This Lent of 2020 should remind us of three main conditions: first, our human frailty, which should be a reflection of our humility (Phil 2:6-11). Let us note that today humility is exfiltrating from our human conscience. We are in a sphere of pride and overvaluation of our self’s. Man lives only for himself and believes himself to be the center of everything and the master of mankind. It should not be so, since human frailty is precisely his imminent return to the ashes of the grave. Man, in his action towards himself and his neighbor, must reflect humility.
Then, the other condition of this time of grace is love (1 Cor 13:13). Knowing how to give Love is a gift of God and a disposition infused in the heart of man that deserves to be revealed. Precisely, this time of Lent comes to help us be messengers of this love for ourselves and for our neighbors. To give love to the other is to give God to the other (At 13:46-49). We must transmit GOD around us by sharing our daily bread with those who do not have it. Let us look into the streets of our cities and near our homes: there are homeless people who need a small piece of bread. To give God to other is to listen to the neighbor who needs to talk to a brother or sister. To give God to the neighbor is to learn how to leave our burrows to visit a friend and acquaintance who needs human closeness.
Finally, let us think about the third condition which is forgiveness (Matthew 6:14). Let us know how to forgive and cultivate tolerance towards the Church and especially towards priests. We pray for them with abundant prayers for their ministry. During this time of Lent let us learn to look less at the faults and failures of others. Let us avoid hurting others, let us know how to recognize our faults and ask for forgiveness.
So, brothers and sisters, let us pray during this Lent of 2020 that Humility, Love and Forgiveness may reign in us.
Don Ruffin *
* Father Ange Ruffin GOLI comes from the diocese of San Pedro in the southwest of the Ivory Coast, near Abidjan. He arrived this year at the Pontifical College International Maria Mater Ecclesiae, a college for seminarians and diocesan priests from all over the world which is run by the Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ in Rome. He is part of the priestly community of the college which consists of 45 priests, being in Rome to continue their ongoing formation. Father Ruffin is currently studying at the Gregorian Pontifical University for a degree in Communication Sciences.