The Inversion of Lent Wednesday, February 6, 2008 at 2:09 pm
Lent is not a time of self-punishment. Or showing the world what a good Christian you are through wearing an ash cross. At least, that’s not what it’s supposed to be. But just as Jesus was in the desert after hearing the Father’s declaration of who he was, it is meant to be a time for us, without some of the distractions we commonly face, to know who we are. It is not to say we must punish ourselves, because Christ has already removed the power of sin and death and hell, and there is no punishment waiting for us before God’s throne. But we must remind ourselves of our identity, and come to know our identity in him. And I don’t think there is a prescribed way of doing that.
Lent is a time of inverting the world’s priorities. It is a time to say maybe…
Maybe sorrow is the beginning of joy.
Maybe mercy is the beginning of power.
Maybe humility is the beginning of greatness.
Maybe meekness is the beginning of strength.
Maybe poverty is the beginning of riches.
Maybe chastity is the beginning of marriage.
Maybe fasting is the beginning of fullness.
Maybe silence is the beginning of speech.
Maybe death is the beginning of life.
Maybe God is the beginning of man.
I like that. God just turns everything upside down from what we think should be. Thank goodness He’s God!
For Lent this year, I’m going to pursue silence as much as possible. You may want to look at my blog at http://peoplepowergranny.blogspot.com and vote in my poll about lenten fasts.
Well put, David.
David, I think we may have met briefly at the GCN conference…I think…if you were there! (I’m Bhamdavid).
Anyway, I want to ask if I could use your list on my parish’s site, gladly attributed to you, of course. It’s just quite powerful. If not, that’s fine!
David,
You are more than welcome to post the link. I would be most honored.