Day 40 – Let Freedom Ring: Freedom from Sloth

Here we are at the end of 40 days of prayer, fasting, and abstinence, asking for God to purge all demonic influences from our lives and lives of the Church. If we have been faithful to the program of prayer and fasting/abstinence, we should have begun a new way of life where we can incorporate such things into our daily routines. Forty days is hardly sufficient to cast all diabolic activity from our lives, our society, and within our Church. What we hope to do is start new and better habits.

Fr. Heilman wrote a wonderful column on acedia, the slothfulness we often display to spiritual matters. Certainly, we will experience temptation to backtrack on our renewed spiritual vigor. As I tell my parishioners at the beginning of Lent, “the point of the next 40 days isn’t to make yourself uncomfortable and miserable for the sake of making yourself uncomfortable and miserable.” Instead, we have committed ourselves to detachment from the diabolical, much the same way an excellent athlete commits to a workout regimen, or the way a scholar commits to their academics. The goal is to become stronger, and through prayer and fasting, holier.

However, sloth can be a sneaky demonic presence. It is an unwillingness to exert effort or to work. Sloth sees comfort as an end goal, so it leads us to steal time and energy from our jobs, families, and faith in the interest of self. It can lead us to procrastination and half-heartedly attending to the duties that others count on us doing.

The failure to challenge oneself, or to completely abandon one’s responsibilities, has spiritual effects that I often liken to its physical and intellectual counterparts. For example, if we are slothful on the physical front, it leads to poor health, loss of muscle mass, and obesity. The body must be taken care of. It must be correctly fed and exercised to stay strong and healthy. Sloth in the physical realm can have a grave cost. If we are slothful in the intellectual realm, not only do we not grow smarter, but we also lose knowledge that we had prior gained. This can have devastating consequences on a person who is in school (ex. grades) or in the workplace. Sloth eats away at any strength or success that might be gained in the physical or intellectual realms. As remarked in the column of acedia, sloth in the spiritual realm leads to a denigration of the spiritual life and breaks down, and distances us in, our relationship with God. Sloth is ultimately another form of selfishness.

To fight this deadly sin, we must look to the cardinal virtue of justice. Justice helps us to assume our responsibilities and to give to others what is rightfully due. Justice leads us away from a slavish devotion to comfort and provokes us to use our God-given abilities and talents for a greater good. It encourages us to treat those tools God has blessed us with (body, mind, and soul) in such a way as to be able to fulfill our purpose. It helps us take care of all aspects of ourselves. Justice helps us be wise and steadfast stewards of God’s gifts in our lives, and to be diligent in the duties and relationships we are called to live in. The purpose of our exercise in prayer, fasting, and abstinence has been to detach ourselves from worldly comfort, looking to another and higher goal.

At the end of these 40 days, let us remember the motto of Bl. Pier Giorgio Frasatti, “verso l’alto” (to the heights), and let the good habits we have engaged in lead us to a greater holiness and life in Christ.

Prayer of Reparation

My Lord and my God, we have allowed the temptation of the devil to move our hearts to sloth, laziness, and disordered love of ease. We have allowed ourselves to be negligent and unjust to those around us. We have allowed ourselves to squander the great gifts You have given us of our minds, bodies, and souls. We have expected You to turn a blind eye to our sloth and reward our lack of justice. We have, at times, been a source of scandal for those searching through our sinfulness and rebellion to You. In our fear, we have allowed the ancient foe to advance. We turn to You Lord, in our sorrow and guilt, and beg Your forgiveness for sloth in all its forms. We beg for the grace of Your goodness to build up within us what You sought to build up in Your apostles in that tempest-tossed boat. We know Lord, if You will it, it will be done. Trusting in You, we offer our prayer to You who live and reign forever. Amen.

Prayer of Exorcism

Lord God of heaven and earth, in Your power and goodness, You created all things. You set a path for us to walk on and a way to an eternal relationship. By the strength of Your arm and Word of Your mouth, cast from Your Holy Church every fearful deceit of the devil. Drive from us manifestations of the demonic that oppress us and beckon us to sloth. Still the lying tongue of the devil and his forces so that we may act freely and faithfully to Your will. Send Your holy angels to cast out all influence that the demonic entities in charge of sloth have planted in Your Church. Free us, our families, our parish, our diocese, and our country from all trickery and deceit perpetrated by the devil and his hellish legions. Trusting in Your goodness Lord, we know if You will it, it will be done, in unity with Your Son and the Holy Spirit, One God forever and ever. Amen.

Litany of the Most Blessed Sacrament

Lord, have mercy. R. Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy. R. Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy. R. Lord, have mercy.
Christ, hear us. R. Christ, graciously hear us.
God the Father of Heaven, R. have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world, R. have mercy on us.
God the Holy Spirit, R. have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, one God, R. have mercy on us.

Jesus, Eternal High Priest of the Eucharistic Sacrifice, R. have mercy on us.
Jesus, Divine Victim on the Altar for our salvation, R. have mercy on us.
Jesus, hidden under the appearance of bread, R. have mercy on us.
Jesus, dwelling in the tabernacles of the world, R. have mercy on us.
Jesus, really, truly and substantially present in the Blessed Sacrament, R. have mercy on us.
Jesus, abiding in Your fulness, Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity, R. have mercy on us.
Jesus, Bread of Life, R. have mercy on us.
Jesus, Bread of Angels, R. have mercy on us.
Jesus, with us always until the end of the world, R. have mercy on us.

Sacred Host, summit and source of all worship and Christian life, R. have mercy on us.
Sacred Host, sign and cause of the unity of the Church, R. have mercy on us.
Sacred Host, adored by countless angels, R. have mercy on us.
Sacred Host, spiritual food, R. have mercy on us.
Sacred Host, Sacrament of love, R. have mercy on us.
Sacred Host, bond of charity, R. have mercy on us.
Sacred Host, greatest aid to holiness, R. have mercy on us.
Sacred Host, gift and glory of the priesthood, R. have mercy on us.
Sacred Host, in which we partake of Christ, R. have mercy on us.
Sacred Host, in which the soul is filled with grace, R. have mercy on us.
Sacred Host, in which we are given a pledge of future glory, R. have mercy on us.

Blessed be Jesus in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar.
Blessed be Jesus in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar.
Blessed be Jesus in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar.

For those who do not believe in Your Eucharistic presence, R. have mercy, O Lord.
For those who are indifferent to the Sacrament of Your love, R. have mercy on us.
For those who have offended You in the Holy Sacrament of the Altar, R. have mercy on us.

That we may show fitting reverence when entering Your holy temple, R. we beseech You, hear us.
That we may make suitable preparation before approaching the Altar, R. we beseech You, hear us.
That we may receive You frequently in Holy Communion with real devotion and true humility, R. we beseech You, hear us.
That we may never neglect to thank You for so wonderful a blessing, R. we beseech You, hear us.
That we may cherish time spent in silent prayer before You, R. we beseech You, hear us.
That we may grow in knowledge of this Sacrament of sacraments, R. we beseech You, hear us.
That all priests may have a profound love of the Holy Eucharist, R. we beseech You, hear us.
That they may celebrate the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass in accordance with its sublime dignity, R. we beseech You, hear us.
That we may be comforted and sanctified with Holy Viaticum at the hour of our death, R. we beseech You, hear us.
That we may see You one day face to face in Heaven, R. we beseech You, hear us.

Lamb of God, You take away the sins of the world,
spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, You take away the sins of the world,
graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, You take away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us, O Lord.

O Sacrament Most Holy, O Sacrament Divine,
All praise and all thanksgiving be every moment Thine.

Let us pray.
Most merciful Father, You continue to draw us to Yourself through the Eucharistic Mystery. Grant us fervent faith in this Sacrament of love, in which Christ the Lord Himself is contained, offered and received. We make this prayer through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.

__ Prayer for Freedom from the Devil
__ Daily reflection and prayers
__ Litany of the day
__ Pray a Rosary
__ Divine Mercy Chaplet
__ Spiritual or corporal work of mercy
__ Fast/abstain (according to level)
__ Exercise (according to level/ability)
__ Refrain from conventional media (only 1 hr. of social)
__ Examination of conscience (confession 1x this week)