Detox Your Soul This Lent

pattimaguirearmstrong ^ | March 1, 2014 | Patti Maguire Armstrong

[NYer]

Toxins are poisons that can cause disease if absorbed into our bodies.  In the spiritual world, the poison of evil has been absorbed by our culture.

Christians are hunkering down for the spiritual battle that is intensifying and sometimes, are feeling overwhelmed.  I know the feeling.  But three things have lifted my spirit recently and have given me a plan to detoxify my soul this Lent

Interview with an Exorcist

While working on an exorcism story,  I interviewed Father Vincent Lampert, the designated exorcist for the archdiocese of Indiana.  He consulted on the bizarre case of a demonic attack on a family in Indiana.  I found Fr. Lampert to be like the other exorcists I’ve interviewed over the years--spiritually uplifting.  Consider that exorcists go head-to-head with evil, and then afterwards, can enjoy a good night’s sleep. That’s the kind of peace I want.

Fr. Lampert learned to be an exorcist in 2006 at the North American College in Rome. While studying there for three months, he assisted on over 40 exorcisms with longtime Italian exorcist Father Carmine De Filippis.  Fr. Lampert trained alongside Fr. Gary Thomas, whose experiences became a book by Matt Baglio called "The Rite: The Making of a Modern Exorcist," and inspired the fictionalized movie.

Fr. Lampert emphasized faith as the key to life and according to him, with faith, we need not fear evil. “The power of God is greater than the power of evil,” he said. “I don’t carry a bag of tricks with me, I bring the power and authority of Jesus Christ that he has given to his Church.”

If we stay away from the occult, go to Mass, have faith in God, and pray, Fr. Lampert says we are protected.  “The focus is on faith of Jesus Christ and it’s going to be reinforced by going to church,” he said.  “The devil is already on the run if you are going to church and especially if you are receiving Communion.”

Fr. Vincent Lampert

Fr. Lampert is confident and upbeat.  One of his secrets for peace is that he stopped watching the news six years ago. “ I choose to be a positive person,” he said. “I can’t be a Christian and walk around with a long face because no one with a long face is going to bring someone to Christ.”  He said that rather than letting the world change us, we should tune out the negative as much as possible and do what we can to change the world. “I believe the Gospel has the power to change the world, and that is what I choose to focus on,” Lampert said.

Raise the Soul through the Mind

With Lampert’s message in mind, I am keenly aware that what I let into my brain, affects my spirit. I don’t plan to stop watching the news (not yet anyways) but during Lent I will fill my mind with holy thoughts. I have selected  writings assembled in Meditations for Lent for daily reading. Bossuet was a Seventh Century, French bishop, theologian, a brilliant orator, and a student of St. Vincent DePaul.  His writings are compared to those of St. Augustine and St. John Chrysostom, and reported to have been at the bedside of Pope Pius XII.

Jacque-Benigne Bossuet

“The whole of the Christian life consists in making this journey [to Heaven] well,” Bossuet writes, “and it was to that end that our Lord directed all his deeds.”

The first day of meditations state, “”We will come to him and make our home with him” (John 14:23). “Desire that he should be in you in this way.  Offer yourself to him as his dwelling and temple.”  Bossuet encourages us to look at Jesus in heaven waiting for us so that we will break the chains that holds us down. With such a vision, we are drawn to our Lord who awaits us.

By celebrating the nearness of Jesus, I will distance myself from the craziness of the world. At least that will be how my day begins.

Heavenly Music

Better than a cup of coffee to start the day, is filling up on angelic music that lifts one’s heart towards heaven. The music of Lent at Ephesus soothes the soul in a mystical way. Ironically, it is from a group of women who have separated from the world to answer God’s call. The Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles live a monastic life in the country in the Diocese of Kansas City-Saint Joseph. Hidden from the world, they sow, tend crops, and farm animals.  Yet, their voices ring out. 

A young, classically trained Prioress Cecilia and her sisters use music to worship God eight times a day. It is surely his sense of humor that these cloistered nuns have an international recording deal and two other albums that have topped the charts.

Their album, Advent at Ephesus, was #1 on the Billboard's Classical Traditional Music chart for 6 weeks in 2012. Last year, the sisters’ bestselling album, Angels and Saints at Ephesus topped the chart for thirteen weeks.

Photo by Mark Armstrong

They have just released Lent at Ephesus, a collection of  23 songs.  Three are original compositions inspired from the Diary of St. Faustina. 

“Lent is the time for us to meditate deeply on the love of God for Man,” Sr. Cecilia explained. “Forty days have been lovingly given to the church to prepare her members for the greatest mysteries of our faith.”

 I can’t control the world or much of anything really, but I can start the day lifting my mind, heart, and soul to heaven.  Regardless of what else you have planned for Lent, it’s never too late to add holy reading and inspirational music.  I imagine that it’s the kind of daily activity that will become addicting.

[NYer]

When Does Lent Begin?

Catholics familiar only with the Latin Church may be surprised to learn that Ash Wednesday and its customs exist only in the Western church. The Eastern churches have other ways of counting the days of Lent, and of beginning this Great Fast.

The Roman Catholic Church counts Holy Week as part of the Lenten Fast, but not the Sundays during the Lenten season. Therefore, in about the 8th Century, it was necessary to add four days to the beginning of Lent to bring the number of days up to the traditional 40. This was the origin of Ash Wednesday.

The Eastern Churches (both Catholic and Orthodox) consider Holy Week as a separate unit with its own Fasting and Abstinence requirements, not technically included in the Great Lent. Lent liturgically concludes on the evening of the 6th Friday of Great Lent, the vigil of Lazarus Saturday. Although we do not fast on Saturdays and Sundays, we do continue to abstain from certain kinds of foods on the Fridays of Lent. The Saturdays & Sundays of the Great Fast are counted in the total of days, thus bringing the number up to 40, counted from Ash Monday, the first day of Great Lent.

[Salvation]

Good advice here.

[Salvation]

Detox Your Soul This Lent
Lent is coming: Time to prepare Printable Lent Worksheet
Cdl. Bergoglio's Lenten Letter, 2013
Your Guide To A Catholic Lent
Following the Truth: Lent: Becoming Uncomfortable About Being Comfortable [Catholic and Open]
Following the Truth: Spiritual Exercises – Week One [of Lent] In Review
Clerical Narcissism and Lent
Content of Pope's Lenten spiritual exercises revealed
How Lent Can Make a Difference in Your Relationship with God (Ecumenical Thread)
A Call from the FSSP French District: offer up your Lent for Catholic Unity [Catholic Caucus]
A Call from the FSSP French District: offer up your Lent for Catholic Unity [Catholic Caucus]
On the 40 Days of Lent
Christians Tailor Lent Outside Catholic Traditions
Christians Tailor Lent Outside Catholic Traditions
Lent, A Time to Shoulder Our Christian Responsibilities
Consecrate this Lent to Jesus through Mary, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity [Catholic Caucus]
Opinion: Lent for Redacted [Ekoomenikal]

Ash (or Clean) Monday - Lent Begins (for some Catholics) - February 20, 2012
[Why I Am Catholic]: Lent And Holy Week (A Primer) [Catholic Caucus]
Lent, A Time to Give from the Heart [Catholic caucus}
Learning the beatitudes during Lent -- use your Rosary to learn the Beatitutdes [Catholic Caucus]
Lenten Ember Days: March 16th, 18th, and 19th, 2011 (Catholic/Orthodox Caucus)
St. Vincent Ferrer - Sermon for the First Sunday of Lent [Ecumenical]
Pope describes ‘Lenten road’ that leads to renewal
St. Andrew of Crete, Great Canon of Repentance - Tuesday's portion (Orthodox/Latin Caucus)
The Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete (Monday's portion) [Orth/Cath Caucus]
Penance and Reparation: A Lenten Meditation(Catholic/Orthodox Caucus)
For Lent - Top 10 Bible Verses on Penance
Cana Sunday: Entrance into Great Lent
2011 Catechetical Homily on the opening of Holy and Great Lent
8 Ways to Pray During Lent [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]
Baptists, Lent, and the Rummage Sale
So What Shall We Do during These Forty Days of Lent? [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]
Lenten Traditions (Catholic Caucus)
Are You Scrupulous? A Lenten Homily by John Cardinal O’Connor
Blow the Trumpet! Call the Assembly! The Blessings of Fasting
Lenten Challenges

Lent and the Catholic Business Professional (Interview)
Temptations Correspond to Our Vulnerabilities: Biblical Reflection for 1st Sunday of Lent
A Lenten “Weight” Loss Program
On the Lenten Season
Lent 2010: Pierce Thou My Heart, Love Crucified [Catholic Caucus]
US seminarians begin Lenten pilgrimage to Rome's ancient churches
Conversion "is going against the current" of an "illusory way of life"[Pope Benedict XVI for Lent]
vanity] Hope you all make a good Lent [Catholic Caucus]
Lent -- Easter 2010, Reflections, Prayer, Actions Day by Day
Stational Churches (Virtually visit one each day and pray)
40 Ways to Get the Most Out of Lent!
What to Give Up (for Lent)? The List
On the Spiritual Advantages of Fasting [Pope Clement XIII]
Christ's temptation and ours (Reflection for the First Sunday of Lent)
Pope Benedict XVI Message for Lent 2010 (Feb 15 = Ash Monday & Feb 17 = Ash Wednesday)
Whatever happened to (Lenten) obligations? [Prayer, Fasting, Almsgiving]Archbishop John Vlazny
Vatican Presents Lenten Website: LENT 2009
A Scriptural Way of the Cross with Meditations by Saint Alphonsus Liguori (Lenten Prayer/Devotional)
Prayer, Fasting and Mercy by St. Peter Chrysologus, Early Church Father [Catholic Caucus]
History of Lent (Did the Church always have this time before Easter?)

Beginning of Lent
Lent (Catholic Encyclopedia - Caucus Thread)
At Lent, let us pray for the Pope (converts ask us to pray for the pope)
Daily Lenten Reflections 2009
LENTEN STATIONS [Stational Churches for Lent] (Catholic Caucus)
40 Days for Life campaign is now under way (February 25 - April 5]
This Lent, live as if Jesus Christ is indeed Lord of your life
Reconciliation, forgiveness, hope – and Lent
Intro to Fast and Abstinence 101
Lent: Why the Christian Must Deny Himself (with Scriptural references)
40 Ways to Improve Your Lent
Everything Lent (Lots of links)
The Best Kind of Fasting
Getting Serious About Lent
Lent Overview
Meditations on the Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ [Devotional]
On Lent... and Lourdes (Benedict XVI's Angelus address)
Lent for Newbies
Lent -- 2008 -- Come and Pray Each Day
Lent: Why the Christian Must Deny Himself

Lenten Workshop [lots of ideas for all]
Lent and Reality
Forty Days (of Lent) [Devotional/Reflections]
Pope Benedict takes his own advice, plans to go on retreat for Lent
GUIDE FOR LENT - What the Catholic Church Says
Message of His Holiness Benedict XVI for Lent 2008
40 Days for Life: 2008 Campaigns [Lent Registration this week]
Vatican Web Site Focuses on Lent
Almsgiving [Lent]
Conversion Through Prayer, Fasting and Almsgiving [Lent]
Lenten Stations -- Stational Churches - visit each with us during Lent {Catholic Caucus}
Something New for Lent: Part I -- Holy Souls Saturdays
Reflections for Lent (February, March and April, 2007)
Lent 2007: The Love Letter Written by Pope Benedict
Pre-Lent through Easter Prayer and Reflections -- 2007
Stations of the Cross [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]
For study and reflection during Lent - Mind, Heart, Soul [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]
Ash Wednesday and the Lenten Fast-Family observance Lenten season [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]
Pre-Lenten Days -- Family activities-Shrove Tuesday (Mardi Gras)[Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]
40 Ways to Get the Most Out of Lent! [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]

Lenten Fasting or Feasting? [Catholic Caucus]
Pope's Message for Lent-2007
THE TRUE NATURE OF FASTING (Catholic/Orthodox Caucus)
The Triduum and 40 Days
The Three Practices of Lent: Praying, Fasting. Almsgiving
Why We Need Lent
MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI FOR LENT 2006
Lent a Time for Renewal, Says Benedict XVI
Why You Should Celebrate Lent
Getting the Most Out of Lent
Lent: A Time to Fast >From Media and Criticism Says President of Pontifical Liturgical Institute
Give it up (making a Lenten sacrifice)
The History of Lent
The Holy Season of Lent -- Fast and Abstinence
The Holy Season of Lent -- The Stations of the Cross
Lent and Fasting
Mardi Gras' Catholic Roots [Shrove Tuesday]
Kids and Holiness: Making Lent Meaningful to Children
Ash Wednesday
All About Lent

[mlizzy]

Ah ha! That’s why my Eastern Catholic friend put up his notice on Facebook at midnight last night, that he’s abstaining from FB for Lent!

[mlizzy]

One of his secrets for peace is that he stopped watching the news six years ago.

Bingo on this! The two priests we are most closely associated with do not watch the news. Their message is always a good one, and their whole personas are filled with peace. They've inspired me, too, to give up the one-eyed monster (and I'm working toward the other one as well; the computer), instead substituting the window of the world and beyond [the monstrance containing the Sacred Host].

http://adorationrocks.com

[NYer]

They've inspired me, too, to give up the one-eyed monster (and I'm working toward the other one as well; the computer),

Lizzy, you may want to rethink this plan. EWTN provides some excellent programming during Lent. As for the computer, both Salvation and I post lenten reflections and other inspiring articles. You might miss out on these. I used to be a news junkie but gave it up for Lent several years ago. Ahhhh .. peace. I missed nothing.

[Gerish]

I also agree with not watching the news all the time. I often wonder if Satan himself delivered us the 24-hour news channels just to dampen spirits and provide discouragement. I find it refreshing to tune out the doom and gloom and focus on the good.

[NYer]

I often wonder if Satan himself delivered us the 24-hour news channels just to dampen spirits and provide discouragement.

ROFL! Indeed he did, along with "txtng". There also can be no doubt his subtle whispers are what inspired Twitter.

[mlizzy]

Oh, I meant the news, NYer. I still watch EWTN, and a couple of shows with my daughter, and tennis and movies as well with Tom. And, yes, you're right, ditch the news and one can find peace....... As far as the computer, I'm ready to take an axe to it (like Michael D. O'Brien pondered) as it's sadly more an "addiction" than an aid. However, I'm not likely to pass on anything Frs. Kirby, Carota or Broom put on their blogs, so I'll be seeing the inspiring Lenten pieces (peaces?) you and Salvation put up too. :)