Lent

Last year, I was challenged by some students with their participation in a season of Lent (understand, in my tradition, the “Christian” calendar is not followed because of the background of being from a low-church format). This year, I decided to join with them in this time and see it as a challenging experience but also something that I will be able to grow from.

Lent is the season on the Church calendar that begins with Ash Wednesday and covers Good Friday. It is a season of death: both the traditional observance of Jesus’ crucifixion and burial as well as a time for us to be aware of our own deadness and dying. But ultimately it is a season that points in another direction too, because Lent brings us to Easter. It anticipates resurrection, looking always toward the promise that in Christ’s death, there is Life.

Spanning forty days [not counting Sundays], Lent was originally intended to imitate Jesus’ withdrawal into the wilderness for forty days. It’s a concentrated time of preparation for Easter Sunday, characterized by soul-searching and reflection. During this time of remembering Christ’s death, we also recognize our own mortality:

We don’t live forever—
we have patterns and habits that break our shalom with God and others—
we are weak and need strength from God and others—
in our weakness we rely heavily on stimuli and modes of pleasure.

Lent encourages us to respond to these realizations. In particular, Ash Wednesday encourages us to embrace our frailty and the forgiveness of God. Through consistent confession, we admit to God [and ourselves] the ways we sever peace. In daily readings from the Scriptures, we find wisdom and the encouragement we need in times of weakness. By fasting and pursuing self-denial, we learn to approach our desires in healthier ways.

In light of the example and sacrifice of Jesus, the Church is invited to imitate him during this concentrated period of time. During Lent, together may we be a community that hears and responds to God’s invitation: “Come back to me, with all your heart.” [Joel 2:12] (from http://www.marshill.org/lent/)

So I have decided to give up all drinks except for water for this season of lent. This is going to be a real challenge for me but I think will be a rewarding experience. I’m excited to because this spiritual practice is done in community and I have people around me doing it and people holding me accountable to it. So I am looking for to the experience but also the communal aspect of it as well.