Return to The Reign of Mary No. 195
The Reign of Mary
No. 195: Letter from the Editor
March 5, 2025
Ash Wednesday
Dear friends in Our Lady,
Praised be Jesus and Mary. The fasting and penance of the season of Lent — as much as our human nature dreads the thought — are most beneficial for the soul. The beginning of Lent reminds me of what one priest used to say in his sermons at this time of year. He would refer to Lent as “spiritual harvest time.” In other words, it is a time when many graces are available to us — IF we spend this important season as we should.
Why must we do penance? Recall the words of Our Lord to his disciples: “Unless you do penance, you shall all likewise perish” (Luke 13:3). Examples of holy persons doing penance to atone for sin or to obtain favors from God are numerous in Sacred Scripture. To cite just two examples: When King David sinned and had been admonished by the prophet Nathan, he kept a fast (II Kings 12:16) to obtain God’s forgiveness and mercy. Judith, who “fasted all the days of her life, except the sabbaths, and new moons, and the feasts of the house of Israel” offered prayers and penance that God might show mercy to His people: “Judith went into her oratory: and putting on haircloth, laid ashes on her head: and falling down prostrate before the Lord, she cried to the Lord…” (Judith, 9:1).
The benefits of penitential practices are almost too numerous to mention. They include: 1) obtaining God’s forgiveness and mercy, 2) atoning for the temporal punishment due to sin, 3) earning graces for the conversion of sinners, 4) subduing our passions, 5) strengthening our will power, 6) augmenting the value of our prayers, 7) gaining merit, 8) proving our gratitude to our loving Redeemer, who suffered so much for us, 9) and elevating our minds to spiritual things.
Recall the story in the Gospel when Our Lord drove the demon out of a possessed person, after the apostles had tried in vain to exorcise the poor man. Later, they asked Him why they could not cast out the devil, and Jesus replied that some devils are driven out only by prayer and fasting. At Fatima Our Blessed Mother urged the children to “pray and sacrifice” for the conversion of sinners. When we read the lives of the saints, we find that all of them were zealous in performing penance. Should we not strive to imitate them?
Finally, especially during Lent, let us not forget to meditate on the Passion of Jesus. Meditation on the Passion will help us to be more generous in our acts of sacrifice. For if Our Lord suffered so much for me, why cannot I bear the small trials and sacrifices that God asks of me, for love of Him? Also, as we call to mind the sufferings of Jesus in His Passion, let us console our loving heavenly Mother, whose soul was pierced by a sword of sorrow at the foot of the cross. The Blessed Virgin Mary was without sin, yet she suffered for us. Let us console the heart of our Mother, who is our life, our sweetness, and our hope.
In the service of Jesus and Mary,
Rev. Fr. Benedict Hughes, CMRI (Email)