Great and Holy Lent

Another Lent is upon us. Too many folks get confused about this peculiar time of year. What is Lent? Well, the term "lent" is but an old word for "spring." So, what goes on during this time of year?

To put this answer very simply, we remember who we are. We remember that we are called to a common life in Christ in devotion to him and to his cross and what it means. Our lives are lived in the way of the cross. We are called to deny ourselves which is why many take on Lenten "fasts." We must also remember that this time is just that, a time of sacrifice. It has become necessary for some folks to "take on" something during this time of year, something of a positive nature. Sometimes this is a great thing, and it is that in "taking on" something that they are giving up something else. For folks purposing to read scripture daily during Lent, they are giving up the time they would have otherwise had.

It is a season of fasting. In fasting we begin to see precisely that liberty we have in the grace of the resurrection. We are not bound by our addictions, but rather we have the grace through Christ to overcome them. Lent is a "high and holy" time so to speak. It is a time of instruction and learning. Historically, this would be the time that people wishing to join the Church would learn of Christ's teachings and then ultimately be accepted into the body at Easter.

It is a season of remembering our frail humanity. In remembering Christ's life and death, we think of our own mortality. Every day is another grain of sand through the hourglass of our lives. Every moment seeming shorter than the previous becomes more important and more fleeting the longer we live. Lent reminds us that our lives must be lived fully in Christ. Each grain of sand is redeemed in his great love. Each moment is a gem, priceless and worthy to be honored. It is a season to become keenly aware of our fragile nature and to thank God our provider for his many gifts.

Let us attend to those things which Christ would find worthy. Let us be about the reading of scripture and honest prayer. Devoting ourselves to his calling, let us not lose heart but look to the triumph of the cross and let the glory of the resurrection be our joy.