Since repentance is necessary for salvation, so are the acts which manifest repentance (Luke 13:1-9; Acts 26:28). Throughout the year, the Church calls the faithful to do penance, therefore, establishing norms of fast and abstinence to aid us.
Every Friday is a day of penitence, an acknowledgement of our sins and of the price of our salvation. It is a little Good Friday preparing us each week for Sundays, a little Easter. Unless it is a Solemnity (e.g. the Solemnity of St. Joseph, Friday, March 19, 2021), Latin Rite Catholics are to abstain from meat. Catholics are permitted to substitute a different kind of penance on Fridays outside Lent. But during Lent, however, this permission is withdrawn.
Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are obligatory days of fasting and abstinence for Catholics. In addition, Fridays during Lent are obligatory days of abstinence.
For members of the Latin Catholic Church, the norms on fasting are obligatory from age 18 until age 59. When fasting, a person is permitted to eat one full meal, as well as two smaller meals that together are not equal to a full meal. The norms concerning abstinence from meat are binding upon members of the Latin Catholic Church from age 14 onwards.
Members of the Eastern Catholic Churches are to observe the particular law of their own Church (sui iuris).
MEDITATIONS
DAY FOUR WITH
DAVID NATUYI
Dear friends in Christ,
Today we are invited to reflect on the prophecy of Isaiah (58:9b-14). The message of prophet Isaiah is shaped by his opening vision of the glory and sanctity of God confronting the human sin.
Today, the prophet continues by saying that “if you bestow your bread on the hungry, then light shall rise for you in the darkness”. Charity and almsgiving are two of the mandatory acts of kindness that we are encouraged to carry out during this year’s Lenten season. The prophet also admonishes us that if we remove from our midst every form of oppression, false accusations, and malicious speech, that the Lord shall guide us every day.
Prayer:
Lord, help me to be kind to those who seek my help especially the poorest of the poor. Amen.
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