CLEAN WEEK
Let us joyfully begin the all-hallowed season of abstinence; and let us worship with the bright radiance of the holy commandments of Christ our God, with the brightness of love and the splendor of prayer, with the purity of holiness and the strength of good courage. So, clothed in raiment of light, let us hasten to the Holy Resurrection on the third day, which shines upon the world with the glory of eternal life. (Kathisma of Matins, Clean Monday)
ONE VIRTUE THAT FOR CENTURIES Christians have been quite suspicious of is joy. During Lent particularly, Christians become very suspicious of this virtue indeed. In fact, it is often viewed as a sin rather than a virtue. Yet St. Paul includes , it amongst the fruits of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22).
Christians tend to think of Lent as a time of sorrow, but the above hymn refers to it insistently as a time of joy and brightness. Our Lord Himself reminds us that we are to fast joyfully:
“When you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance. For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.” (Matt. 6:16-18)
This lesson is echoed also by the Triodion:
O faithful, with joy let us enter upon the beginning of the Fast. Let us not be of sad countenance, but let us wash our faces in the water of dispassion; and let us bless and exalt Christ above all forever. (Second Canon of Matins, Clean Monday)
Lent is characterized by what the Greek Fathers call harmolypi (“bright sadness” or “joyful sorrow”). This is because Lent, like repentance, is at the same time both sad and bright, both sorrowful and joyful.
Thus the purpose of Lent is to 1ead us into the joy of the Lord. The joy of which we speak is not the joy of the world, which comes and goes and depends on outward condition. It is a deep, spiritual joy that springs from our loving relationship with Christ.
Those who think of Lent purely in terms of fasting and obligations can never fully experience the joy of Lent. The joy of Lent is offered to us in Lenten worship, through the services of Great Compline and the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts. These solemn services help us gradually to change our hearts and lives by entering into the bright sadness of Lent, through which we are able to make our own the joy of repentance, the joy of returning to God.
~Vassilios Papavassiliou, Meditations for Great Lent: Reflections on the Triodion
