Thinking About Lent

[drvnsmiln]

Christians have just this week started their season of Lent. Our church is participating in a program called Living the Eucharist. There is a flyer in our church bulletin every Sunday during Lent. I was struck with the first paragraph of this morning's flyer for the first Sunday of Lent:

How about this: Lent {TheCamino} is about spiritual renewal. It's about a journey we've invited {called} to make. On the far horizon is the glory of Easter {Santiago}. On the near horizon - ashes {Physical and Spiritual "Challenges"}, mortality, and temptations in a desert {Along the Way}. It's the time in between these two horizons that is a different kind of space, a passage, a time of being on the way. It is a time of conversation, of change, of growth, and also of uncertainty and "not knowing". Lent {The Camino} is the annual trust walk of the church, when we let ourselves be led by the Spirit into the desert of purification.

This struck me as something that needed to be shared with fellow pilgrims. Happy Lent!

 

[Arn]

Lent is a time of giving something up!
Rather than giving up: ice cream, chocolate, fine single malt whisky (oh, the horror), or biting your nails; consider the following:
For your mind: give up baseless, judgemental opinions...especially those that tie you up in knots. The focus of your ire doesn't know. And, if they did, probably wouldn't care.
For your heart: make every effort to give up the bad feelings you have for another. Odds are they, just like you are looking to heal the wound. Be big...be first.
For your soul: give up just one non Christ like habit, fixation or addiction. That done...do it again and again.

 

[C clearly]

It's the time in between these two horizons that is a different kind of space, a passage, a time of being on the way. It is a time of conversation, of change, of growth, and also of uncertainty and "not knowing".

I really like this description. I'm a nonbeliever, don't even consider myself a "spiritual" person, but this is one of the best explanations I've seen of how/why I am attracted to pilgrimage.