Originally posted by Rajk999
- to observe lent
- to eat fish or hot cross buns on Good Friday
- to go to church on Christmas day
- to observe the sabbath day
- to go to church on sunday etc
The purpose of these rituals is to inspire in one's person the inclination to do the other things that
Christians are called to do (like you said, feed the poor, &c). Jesus was not opposed to Judaic practice,
but He was opposed to practicing it
for its own sake. That is, there is no sense in washing the
outside of the cup if the inside remains dirty. However, He most certainly did not exclude the idea of
practicing those things as long as those things inspire charitable, loving behavior. So, for those who
practice Lenten abstentions, they need to arouse a greater attentiveness to the needs of the poor.
Jesus did not insist that people practice things in any particular way because I'm sure He realized that
each person needs to find their own vehicles for fostering and developing an increased mindfulness of
the needs for the poor.
Nemesio