Have you ever wondered why the Church has so many feast days in the liturgical calendar? It may be harder to realize as the holy days of obligation have tended to move to the closest Sunday, but all throughout the history of the Church, Catholics have found it very important to celebrate feasts. This is not just a Catholic tradition. The Jews also had many feasts to celebrate what God was doing in their lives and to thank Him for the gifts he had bestowed on them.
When you read through the Old Testament it is clear that they took these feasts quite seriously. There were liturgical celebrations, specific rites to follow, traditions to uphold, and the best food and drink were brought out to commemorate these special days. In today’s Gospel we hear not only about the importance of fasting, but perhaps more importantly, we hear about the importance of feasting.
Think about it, a fast doesn’t mean much if you have not tasted the wonder of food. In the time of the apostles they would often feast because Jesus was with them. It is no surprise that many of the verses in the Bible that pertain to Jesus also involved food. If we are to fast we have to know the glory we are fasting from or it doesn’t tend to hurt as much.
Now that Jesus has gone to heaven we are meant to fast as a reparation for sin. The first reading makes this clear. We are all baptized as priest, prophet and king, and part of being in this priestly role is to fast and sacrifice for the sins we have committed and the sinful lives of others. But the Gospel is quick to remind us that we should also feast, that is to say, we should anticipate with joyful celebration the second coming of Christ and our final destiny of being united completely with him.
The reason we celebrate so many feasts in the Church is to remind us of this reality. This may not be our ultimate home, but we can experience in little ways the joy that is to come in our eternal reward. If we do not take time to celebrate now, we will be like the awkward kid in the corner at Prom when we get to Heaven. We won’t know how to properly partake in the joy that we have been waiting for.
So during this week, let’s pick some specific times where we can fast for our sins and ask for forgiveness and then some special moments as well where we can begin to experience, in a small way, the joys that are to come.
From all of us here at Diocesan, God bless!
¿Alguna vez te has preguntado por qué la Iglesia tiene tantos días festivos en el calendario litúrgico? Puede que sea más difícil de entender, ya que los días de precepto tienden a trasladarse al domingo más cercano, pero a lo largo de toda la historia de la Iglesia, los católicos han considerado muy importante celebrar las fiestas. Esto no es sólo una tradición católica. Los judíos también tenían muchas fiestas para celebrar lo que Dios estaba haciendo en sus vidas y para agradecerle por los dones que les había otorgado.
Cuando lees el Antiguo Testamento, es claro que se tomaban estas fiestas muy en serio. Había celebraciones litúrgicas, ritos específicos que seguir, tradiciones que mantener y se ofrecían los mejores alimentos y bebidas para conmemorar estos días especiales. En el Evangelio de hoy no sólo escuchamos sobre la importancia del ayuno, sino que, quizás más importante, escuchamos sobre la importancia de las fiestas.
Piénsalo, un ayuno no significa mucho si no has probado la maravilla de la comida. En el tiempo de los apóstoles, a menudo festejaban porque Jesús estaba con ellos. No es de extrañar que muchos de los versículos de la Biblia que se refieren a Jesús también incluyan comida. Si vamos a ayunar, tenemos que conocer la gloria de lo que estamos ayunando o no tiende a doler tanto.
Ahora que Jesús se ha ido al cielo, debemos ayunar como reparación por el pecado. La primera lectura lo deja claro. Todos somos bautizados como sacerdotes, profetas y reyes, y parte de estar en este papel sacerdotal es ayunar y sacrificarnos por los pecados que hemos cometido y las vidas pecaminosas de los demás. Pero el Evangelio se apresura a recordarnos que también debemos festejar, es decir, debemos anticipar con gozosa celebración la segunda venida de Cristo y nuestro destino final de estar completamente unidos a él.
La razón por la que celebramos tantas fiestas en la Iglesia es para recordarnos esta realidad. Puede que este no sea nuestro hogar definitivo, pero podemos experimentar de pequeñas maneras la alegría que vendrá en nuestra recompensa eterna. Si no nos tomamos el tiempo para celebrar ahora, seremos como el niño incómodo en la esquina del baile cuando lleguemos al cielo. No sabremos cómo participar adecuadamente de la alegría que hemos estado esperando.
Así que durante esta semana, escojamos algunos momentos específicos en los que podamos ayunar por nuestros pecados y pedir perdón, y también algunos momentos especiales en los que podamos comenzar a experimentar, de una manera pequeña, las alegrías que están por venir.
De parte de todos nosotros aquí en Diocesan, ¡Dios los bendiga!
Tommy Shultz is a Business Development Representative for Diocesan. In this role he is committed to bringing the best software to dioceses and parishes while helping them evangelize on the digital continent. Tommy has worked in various diocese and parish roles since his graduation from Franciscan University with a Theology degree. He hopes to use his skills in evangelization, marketing, and communications, to serve the Church and bring the Good News to all. His favorite quote comes from St. John Paul II, who said, “A person is an entity of a sort to which the only proper and adequate way to relate is love.”
Feature Image Credit: Rumman Amin, https://unsplash.com/photos/assorted-type-foods-nKs-oXRGGEg
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