The Fourth Sunday in Lent: We Fast from Negative Words

To sum up the previous weeks: Fasting is not all about us. We fast to help the oppressed and resist injustice. We fast to feed others. Yet, this is only a partial glimpse of the fasting in Isaiah 58. We are also called to watch what we say.

We see in verses 9 and 10 that we are called to "do away with the pointing finger" and to "do away with malicious talk". 

What does it look like to fast from blaming others and speaking maliciously? In a nutshell, if we are about to say something negative or rude; we choose to say nothing at all instead of spewing soul-crushing words.

When we fast from "the pointing finger", we stop blaming others for our own issues. We take responsibility for how we have contributed to the problem. We do not speak disparagingly of others. We should not accuse people falsely or falsely ascribe motives to people. We see their actions, but we should be wary of assigning a motivation to them without asking them about it. We should not scorn the oppressed or the godly. 

When we fast from "malicious talk", we stop speaking unjustly, sinfully, or evilly. We avoid speaking cruelly or vainly. We choose words that are beneficial for others to hear. We speak in a way that people are profited when they listen. We refrain from saying bad things about people. We do not accuse people of poor action or assign nefarious motives to their actions we disagree with. We choose not to slander people.  We choose to speak helpful things instead of harmful words. We speak of righteous and good things instead of unrighteous and negative things. 

When we make assumptions about people and tell those assumptions to others, we are pointing our finger and speaking maliciously. When we use our words to complain, tear down, or criticize, we are not following God's instructions in Isaiah 58. 

We are living in the age of blame and malicious talk. This is coming from all generations and throughout the political spectrum. Sadly, when this is mentioned in the Church, we are quick to cry "Yes, but they!!!!" instead of looking for the plank in our own eye. Let us seek the Spirit's guidance in applying this to ourselves before we start to worry about our neighbor's obedience. 

A Discipline related to this theme is Silence. If we cannot speak in such a way that points people to God, let us be silent. If our speaking would muddy the air with complaints and criticisms, let us be silent. If we cannot improve the silence and edify those we are talking with, let us be silent. Or as our mothers taught us, if we cannot say anything nice, don't say anything at all. 

Far too often, we claim "freedom of speech" as a reason to say hurtful things. We wrap gossip in the guise of a prayer request. We speak cruelly and then accuse others of being too sensitive. This is not the way that things should be in the Church. 

Once we have space in our dialogues and conversations by refraining from saying the negative and cruel words, we can work on filling those silences with good, wholesome, and uplifting words. 

Let us speak words of encouragement instead of discouragement. 

Let us speak of what is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, or praiseworthy.

Let us speak from a place of grief and sadness at the injustices and brokenness of our world, instead of speaking from a place of anger and judgment.

Let us put aside contempt as we take up compassion for our opponents. 

As we choose our words with care this Lenten season, may we find that when we abstain from negative words, we instead speak more positive words into our community and world.