Goodbye, Gloria

On Sunday, I let every second of the beautiful Haas Gloria sink into my soul; it's the last Gloria until after Lent.
The Gloria has special meaning to me, because I remember it from the first Mass I ever went to, with my dear friend Jamie.
I was utterly confused, and hoping in the corner of my heart that I wasn't committing some blasphemy by attending a Catholic Mass.  I really hoped God wasn't angry that I was making the sign of the cross.  I was a bit afraid to ask Mary to pray for me and my sins to God.
Even the name bewildered me.  Like Scott Hahn did, I wondered.  Mass?  Mass what? Mass rally?  Mass movement? Mass protest?  

No, silly Sarah.  Mass.  Like Ite missa est.

But then the Gloria began.  The first piano chords seemed to make my heart smile, with their simple, demanding beauty.
And finally, words I could sing without reservation:
Glory to God in the highest!  Sing Glory to God!  Glory to God in the highest, and peace to His people on earth!


Something about it seemed so right, right and fitting in a way I'd never felt before.  No song I had ever sung seemed so right as this simple, beautiful, heartfelt line: Glory to God in the highest, and peace to His people on earth!

I did not become Catholic that day.  But that was the beginning.

Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent.

Lent lasts from Ash Wednesday until Holy Thursday, the day before the Friday Jesus died.  Lent is 40 days long, because the Sundays aren't included in the count; every Sunday is a celebration, whereas Lent is a time of humility, repentance, and austerity.

Included in Lent are several days of fasting and abstinence. Fasting means restricting food intake.  It's canonically defined as one normal meal, with two small snacks, though you're welcome to do more if you like.  Abstinence means not eating meat.  The Latin word used is carne, which only refers to land-animal meat.  This is why Catholics often eat fish on Fridays during Lent. (Allowing fish did not come from a pope with a vested interest in the Italian fish business.  Seriously, where do people get these things?)
I learned in RCIA on Sunday that since I'm a vegetarian anyway, I don't need to do anything special for the "abstinence" part, though I can do something else if I want to.  To do so would be in the spirit of Lent.  To start eating fish on Fridays during Lent would not be in the spirit of Lent.

Even the Mass changes.  The Gloria isn't sung, like during Advent.  The Alleluia, and any use of the word, is stricken from the Mass completely during Lent. Alleluia is a festive word, meaning "Praise Yahweh".  Repentance, fasting, abstinence, and alms-giving, the pillars of Lent, don't fit with "festive".  Humility and austerity, the hallmarks of Lent, don't fit with the joyous nature of the Alleluia.

I already miss it, which is, of course, the point.

The altar is no longer adorned with flowers and greenery.  Instead, bare branches or empty pottery are often used.  Lent is a time of longing, reminiscent of a desert.

Maybe I'm not supposed to do this, but... I've already found myself imagining what the first Gloria on Easter will sound like.  Similarly, I almost hear the Alleluia, and I'll probably hear it in my head before the Gospel reading every Sunday between now and then.

Lent, with its repentance and examination of conscience, approaches quickly.  But it's not here just yet:

Glory to God in the highest!  Sing Glory to God!  Glory to God in the highest, and peace to his people on earth!
Lord God, heavenly king, Almighty God and Father, we worship you, we give you thanks, we praise you for your glory!
Glory to God in the highest!  Sing Glory to God!  Glory to God in the highest, and peace to his people on earth!
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father, Lord God, Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world!  Have mercy on us.  You are seated at the right hand of the Father!  Receive our prayer!
Glory to God in the highest!  Sing Glory to God!  Glory to God in the highest, and peace to his people on earth,
For you alone are the Holy One.  You alone are the Lord, the most high Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God the Father! 
Glory to God in the highest!  Sing Glory to God!  Glory to God in the highest, and peace to his people on earth!

Goodbye, Gloria!

Thanks be to God.