Final days before Holy Week

As we draw nearer to Holy Week I thought I would bring this blog commentary full circle to a point I made in the first week of Lent.
In that posting I looked at how fasting and self-discipline, in one form or another, is probably less difficult to keep if it’s framed in the positive, rather than the negative.
Specifically, how deciding to cut junk food, or exercise more, or try harder to see things from an adversary’s perspective, actually helps to draw us nearer in our relationship with God.
I saw something on another Catholic parish’s website, just below an interesting discussion on fasting (more on this in a moment), that listed activities we can add that help us live more fulfilling lives. I’d like to share that list here:
* pray for 20 minutes each day with daily scriptures (www.usccb.org)
* begin or re-start the practice of the daily Examen of conscience
* slow down, eat mind-fully, walk with awareness, talk intentionally
* practice attentiveness and kindness with someone who tries your patience
* listen deeply to those you love
* pray for the grace to be able to forgive
* commit to visiting someone who is sick or imprisoned
* in an argument, allow the other person to have the last word
* arrive at Mass 15 minutes early

On the topic of fasting, or self-denial, at the top of their list came fasting from television and electronics – not surprising given the Pope’s call to cut back on text messaging at the start of this year’s Lent.
That was a newspaper headline that made me wonder what the Pope was going on about but looking around in the past few weeks, it is remarkable how many people using SMS or wireless communications don’t look at you and don’t follow the course of the conversation you’re trying to engage them in.
The reason that parish gave for curbing TV and the use of electronics? To spend more time with our loved ones – including God.