– Carlos M. Frota
Lent. Quarantine. Before developing any further my ideas, I’d like to make clear that my purpose here is NOT to give voice to the usual prophets of disgrace who particularly enjoy times of public distress to anticipate divine punishment for all our sins.
The ways of the Lord are mysterious, and I don’t recognize any authority in the many gurus that speak on His behalf…and of course as a Catholic I join our hierarchy to ask protection for our community, in all of its diversity, a place of tolerance and mutual respect as it is.
Macau, some weeks ago…
Silent Macau. Few people ventured outside their houses, almost running close to the buildings, in a strange, silent way, to escape the invisible enemy. Streets strangely quiet in a city otherwise full of energy and enthusiasm. In a city full of life all around the year, all around the clock!
A unique experience, without panic, but full of strangeness for those living the situation for the first time!
There are words we usually don’t associate one with the other , even if they have something in common. The situations of life they covered are so different that we don’t feel inclined to put both ideas necessarily together.
The title I choose in this text is a good example: Lent and Quarantine both share the same idea of “retreat,” the first linked to the religious calendar of the believers and the other related to a particular public health situation. This year, for reasons we all know too well, Lent and Quarantine are linked, at least in the pages of our calendar…
And even if a process of normalization is well under way in our city, some restrictions recommended by the authorities prevail, to safeguard the interest of all.
I was not in Macau when, some years ago, our community lived a similar experience of another public health emergency situation which was SARS. But of course I was not indifferent this time to the fact that almost immediately the awareness of this new crisis made the government conscious of the necessary steps to deal with the new environment, implementing the adequate measures for every step.
The SAR Government deserves our gratitude and many expressed it already in the different media. I did the same and I am pleased to reiterate it once again.
Every person has his own way to live throughout difficult (or at least unusual) times. Some try to recreate a false sense of normality which doesn’t exist beyond the limits of his or her door. But at least inside their space and inside themselves they live almost as they always lived. Doing the small things of daily life, being in contact with the loved ones abroad to reassure them that everything is ok and dedicating more time to do things only possible in our spare time.
Listening to one’s favorite music, for instance, revisiting pieces and composers and interpreters long forgotten. Classic music, but actually all types of music are a very special language connecting us with times passed, redolent of other places and people and cultures and mentalities and sensitivities — that resuscitate for us ancient worlds!
Movies are of course another way to make the “same” journey to the past, watching again films important for us in different epochs of our process of growing as human beings.
Neither music nor movies occupied the majority of my time during the recent self-imposed quarantine. But having at least more time to spend on both led me to think about the real meaning and value of culture in a time which controls us and disperses us more than it’s willing to submit to our own decisions and our own deep preferences.
The unavoidable Cross!
I was aware of course that during those so unusual weeks at home, Lent was approaching. And for a believer, Lent is very special. Even if, after these forty days, the Christian doesn’t complete and sometimes doesn’t start a process of spiritual growth, embarrassing questions knock at his or her door.
Lent is the time of the unavoidable questions, the uncomfortable ones.
If Christmas can be perverted, in its sense, by the commercial misappropriation of the very nature of the Nativity, Lent has no such escape. The personal preparation during Lent doesn’t imply frequent shopping or accumulating gifts. Because at the end of the forty days Christians find …the Cross!
Repulsive cross for our taste today! So contrary to our tendency for comfort! So violent, so contrary to our propensity to anesthetize our own end. The debate about euthanasia tells volumes about our new (or old) rationale to control the process of death, our own death!
The “decisive” movie
Watching this film, a traumatic experience! Every Lent I ask myself the same question: will I have, this year again, the courage to watch THE MOVIE? Since its appearance fifteen years ago, seeing The Passion of the Christ has become my test of courage every Lent season. Because of the visual impact and brutality of Jesus suffering!
The Passion of the Christ (or simply The Passion) is a 2004 American biblical drama film produced, co-written and directed by Mel Gibson and starring Jim Caviezel as Jesus of Nazareth, Maia Morgenstern as the Virgin Mary, and Monica Bellucci as Mary Magdalene. It depicts the Passion of Jesus largely according to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. It also draws on pious accounts such as the Friday of Sorrows along with other devotional writings, such as the reputed Marian apparitions attributed to Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich .
No, I didn’t watch The Passion during my quarantine. But I am gaining courage to see again Jim Caviezel in his extraordinary role as Jesus. A role which transformed the actor as a human being for ever, as he himself admits.
My books, my friends
Yes, the books, my favorite friends! In my quarantine I chose two or three books I’d like to share with my readers.
The first one: Rediscover Catholicism: A Spiritual Guide to Living with Passion and Purpose, by Matthew Kelly.
A brief presentation: over the past 20 years, Matthew Kelly has seen more of the world than most presidents and more of the Church than most bishops. Now, in this unique and timely book, he proposes that Catholicism is not a lifeless set of rules and regulations, but a way of life designed by God to help each person reach his or her full potential. With remarkable insight, Kelly dispels dozens of myths that surround the rejection of Catholicism today and provides a profound and practical vision of what will lead the Catholic Church to thrive again in the future.
Another book, very interesting indeed!
My Life with the Saints, by James Martin SJ. The story of how his life has been shaped by some surprising friends. In his modern classic memoir, Martin introduces us to saints throughout history – from St Peter to Dorothy Day, St Francis of Assisi to St Mother Teresa – and chronicles his lifelong friendships with them.
My Lent, my Quarantine. This will be a unique experience to me, in anticipation of the Joy of Easter!
Follow
