Reflections on Lent
A Season of Preparation
Feb 26, 2009 Kathy Schlossmacher
The rituals and practices associated with the season, that of sacrifice, self denial and recollection are designed to bring the practitioner closer to god and to an awareness of one's self in relation to this god. As an exclusively religious practice it promises the merits of slowing down and becoming more self aware before the big changes that go with the rebirth of spring.
Is Lent Necessarily Just Religious?
For those who are former believers or non believers what merit, if any does this season hold? Why does Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent still hold enough power to be listed on secular calendars while remaining such a powerful symbol of the time of year?
Lent can be a time of recollection even from a non religious perspective. Who cannot use forty days to take some time to reassess and evaluate how the year is going? Even if it means simply reviewing those failed New Year's resolutions, Lent can be an opportunity to slow down, stand back and make some new choices.
Using Lent
Lent proceeds Easter which is the main even of Spring. Whether religious or non religious, few can resist the Easter bunny, colored eggs and the newly minted flowers sprouting from the ground. Lent can be a preparation for that time from any perspective.
It is a time to turn the soil both in backyards and in minds. It can be an opportunity to think again of an issue that is important. It can be a time to make small changes, even if those changes are just for forty days. It can also be a time to look beyond the self and in preparation for the newness of spring to rededicate the self to a worthy cause or belief.
This is a good time to set aside time to volunteer at a food bank, to donate or collect money for a favorite charity. It is also a good time to clean the cobwebs of winter out of both house and mind. Start an exercise program; begin a diet, set aside time to actually read a book. Remember with only forty days, this is not a full steam ahead commitment; it is simply a time to do things differently, to see things differently while waiting for the darkness of winter to dispel to be replaced by spring.
Introspection
The massive beauty of this time is the opportunity for introspection. No one is completely content with the way life is going. There is always room for change and growth and springtime is the ultimate celebration of growth and change. Lent can be a time to look inward to see what about the self one likes and to think of what one wants to change. It can be a time of sacrificing not for a god, rather a time to sacrifice the bad habits that make people less than they can be.
This whole idea of Lent can simply be a time to be especially aware of who a person is, what a person has and where a person wants to go. It can also be a time, especially in today's economic crisis to be aware of those who do not have and to do something about that.
To practice any of these things is just about as religious as one can get, whether one defines that as religion or not. Be aware and don't miss the changes either around or inside, because spring is coming and with it all the beauty of new birth and new life.
New Life
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