Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle officiates a mass on Ash Wednesday at the Arzobispado de Manila in Intramuros, Manila on March 1, 2017. For Roman Catholics ash wednesday opens the season of Lent, a day devoted to fasting, reconciliation and prayer. INQUIRER PHOTO / GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE
Focus on the Word of God instead of idle chatter, Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle reminded the Catholic faithful on Ash Wednesday as they began to observe the 40-day penitential season of Lent.
Catholics had their foreheads applied with ash during Mass on the first day of Lent as a reminder of human sinfulness and mortality and as a sign of mourning and repentance.
The ash came from burned palms, which priests blessed on Palm Sunday last year.
Lent, a season of fasting, reflection and prayer, culminates in the commemoration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ on Easter.
“Sometimes, we give too much time to all kinds of words. These do not come from God, but we give importance to these. We react and respond to words that do not come from God,” Tagle said in his homily during Mass at Arzobispado de Manila.
“People listen and respond to incessant idle chatter, but if it’s the Word of God, is there anyone responding? Is there anybody interested?” he said.
Misuse of social media
In an apparent reference to widespread misuse of social media, Tagle said many people were good only at idle chatter, the only thing they listened to and spread.
“But do they cause change in society?” he said.
Tagle said he hoped the faithful would use Lent to pray, read and listen intensely to the Word of God.
“Do not be ashamed to spread the Word of God. May we find within ourselves that the Word of God is a gift from Him. When I put ashes on your forehead as I say, ‘Repent and believe in the Gospel,’ have a change of heart, be sorry for your sins and have faith in the Word of God,” he said.
The cardinal also reminded the faithful that genuine change must start within themselves.
“Perhaps our most important contribution to the country and the world today is a change of heart,” Tagle said.
“If we do not see that much change in our society, we need to look within ourselves,” he added.
Genuine charity
Tagle also reminded the faithful about genuine charity, which does not call attention to the donor.
“One important aspect of change of heart is that it does not focus on oneself. It focuses on God, through his Word, and focuses on others,” he said, as he spoke about an anonymous donor who on Monday fed 3,000 families in the slum community of Parola, in Manila’s Tondo district, who lost their houses in a fire last month.
He compared the anonymous donor to people who usually had their photos taken when they made a donation.
Tagle reiterated his appeal to the faithul to observe Lent by fasting and by donating the money saved to the feeding program of the Catholic Church.
“Once again, we humbly ask you to help us in this undertaking. We appeal to you to support Fast2Feed of Pondo ng Pinoy’s Hapag-Asa program,” he said.
Fast2Feed is a project that aims to combat hunger and malnutrition among Filipino children by encouraging people to fast during Lent and to donate the money they save by skipping meals to the program.