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Vatican Spiritual Exercises Begin: Bishop Erik Varden Leads Lenten Retreat
The annual Lenten Spiritual Exercises officially commenced on Sunday afternoon, February 22, at 5 p.m. in the Pauline Chapel. In attendance were Pope Leo XIV, Rome-based Cardinals, and various heads of Dicasteries, all gathered to hear the opening meditations led by Trappist Bishop Erik Varden.
Bishop Varden told the Curia: Fidelity to Christ’s example and commandments is the hallmark of Christian sincerity. The extent of the peace we embody — that signal peace ‘which the world cannot give’ — indicates Jesus’s abiding presence in us. We must insist on this now, when the Gospel is sometimes deployed as a weapon in culture wars...For Christian peace is not a promise of ease; it is a condition for transformed society. It is timely to articulate the radicality of Christian ‘peace’ while we remind ourselves and others of the truth in St John Climacus’s words: ‘There is no greater obstacle to the presence of the Spirit in us than anger.’
Bishop Varden, a Cistercian of the Strict Observance who has presided over the Diocese of Trondheim, Norway, since 2019, has themed this year’s retreat “Illuminated by a Hidden Glory.”
The Retreat Schedule
Following his initial reflection on “Entering Lent,” the Bishop will transition into a more intensive schedule from Monday, February 23, through February 27. The daily itinerary includes:
9:00 a.m. – Mid-Morning Prayer followed by the first meditation.
5:00 p.m. – Second meditation followed by Eucharistic Adoration and Vespers.
The retreat will feature a deep dive into the life of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux on February 26, with sessions titled “Saint Bernard, the Idealist” and “Saint Bernard, the Realist.” Other scheduled meditations will explore themes such as the splendor of truth, spiritual freedom, and divine protection, culminating in a final discourse on “Communicating hope.”
Core Teachings: Stripping Away the Superfluous
In his opening remarks, Bishop Varden emphasized that the season of Lent is a return to the foundational aspects of faith. He noted that:
"it takes us, materially and symbolically, into a space stripped of superfluities."
He encouraged the assembly to embrace an "abstinence of the senses," removing even wholesome distractions for a time to focus on the battle against vice and the pursuit of peace.
Following the "Exodus Path"
Drawing inspiration from Saint Bernard, Bishop Varden highlighted the necessity of living by grace while actively engaging in spiritual warfare. He noted that Saint Bernard serves as a model for those who understand:
"what it means to live by grace as we fight evil, foster good, uphold truth, and follow the exodus path from unfreedom towards the land of promise..."
The Preacher closed his initial session with a call to action, stating that the Saint "summons us to loving and clear-headed discipleship."
Bishop Varden continued: The Church instils our Lenten programme with peace. She detracts nothing from her call to do battle against vices and harmful passions — her language is ‘Yes, yes’, ‘No, no’, not ‘sometimes this’, ‘sometimes that’. She gives us instead, as we start each Lent’s battle, a peaceful melody as a seasonal soundtrack: a tract of great beauty that, for over a thousand years, the Church has sung on the First Sunday of Lent, to introduce the account of Christ’s temptation in the wilderness. The tract sets the text of Psalm 90, the Qui habitat. This work of melodic exegesis deserves attention. It is not just a relic of ancient aesthetics. It carries a vital message. St Bernard of Clairvaux was attentive to this message. St Bernard of Clairvaux was attentive to this message....reflecting on what it means to live by grace as we fight evil, foster good, uphold truth, and follow the exodus path from unfreedom towards the land of promise, veering neither to the right nor to the left, remaining peaceful, conscious that underneath what may at times seem to us a tight-rope walk ‘are the everlasting arms’.
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