Father Csaba’s reflection on the gospel Monday 21 January 2019 The Feast of Saint Agnes.
Fasting !? We are the children of a consumer society , of such a society, -even if we do not say it out loudly - the slogan of which is is buy it and throw it away! There is immeasurable squandering going on everywhere ! I am convinced that the great task of the XXIst century ’s prophet is that to lead out our world , without shaking it up, from this pleasure-hunting ,of this liberal world devastating everything, consuming everything , I am free to do , I am entitled to everything mentality !
Fasting: you could consume it , you could and yet you do not do it ? It would be good if our world would discover the strength, value hidden in the conscious fasting, self-denial, giving-up ! The one who is dependant on a lot is not a free man , you are a prisoner of all that your existence, happiness depends on ! You are only really free , if your successful life, happiness and prosperity is independent of people’s opinion , from all the clothes you bought, from items of luxury , from electronic gadgets , from all sorts of odds and ends !!
Fasting ! Take your destiny consciously into your own hands, make decisions, every good decision is fasting , since you have to give up something ! Experience that whatever you have given up did not make you poorer , but lighter, freer ! Anything that you accept , you posses is a burden , it will finish up in your sack and you can drag it along ! Without a load the high mountains become hills , but with a large pack even the small hills will tower like unsurpassable rock cliffs ahead of you !
Fasting: The consciously chosen renunciation, giving up is a nice smelling flower , out of which you can make a bouquet for your God, who from the first sentence given to Moses in showing the way to happiness is asking from you , that you worship Him with burning love !! Who would want to have enough , grow “heavy” from nourishments that originate form the “mud" of the earth , when our creator God’s wedding feast is awaiting us !? Who would want to appear resplendent in richly-embroidered garments , in luxury articles pushing our world from a sustainable field, in luxury items that push our world into destruction, if we can put on the regal robe of good deeds , the real wisdom’s doctoral gown, the magnificent wings of the genuine love of God?
My Lord I am not awaiting my spiritual tranquility , joy from nice food, nor from expensive clothing, jewellery, items of luxury but from You who not only created me, but even invited me to Your Kingdom , for the wedding feast !! For this reason like one in love shedding all that is choking them ,scattering the unnecessary pieces of clothing ,desiring nothing else I am running into Your arms !! I am not awaiting happiness from the creatures , but from my Creator , I don’t need the gifts , but the Giver Himself , neither blessing , but the infinite Love that dispenses the blessing !!
With love,
Father Csaba
translated by dr k.e.
The Word of God
Now John's disciples and the Pharisees were fasting; and people came and said to him, "Why do John's disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?" Jesus said to them, "The wedding guests cannot fast while the bridegroom is with them, can they? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast on that day. "No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old cloak; otherwise, the patch pulls away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and the wine is lost, and so are the skins; but one puts new wine into fresh wineskins."
Mark 2:18-22
Father Csaba’s reflection on the gospel Monday 21 January 2019 The Feast of Saint Agnes.