LIVE DIFFERENTLY FOR SEVEN WEEKS
Ash Wednesday is the beginning of Lent, this year it will be on February 14th,
which is, of course, also St Valentine’s Day, and more people shall remember
that, than they would bother about Lent. Compare this with the Muslim
observation of Ramadan, I should think that most of our Muslim neighbours
here in Glasgow will observe this and would not be eating nor drinking
between sunrise and sundown, the fasting being universal, while ours is rather
individual and not complete. People are more thinking in terms of giving up
certain pleasures for Lent, like smoking, or alcohol, or chocolates. This is
actually a good thing after all the indulgence at Christmas and New Year. Lent
is of course always at the run-up to Easter and depends on the Christian
calendar, while the Muslims have their own calendar, which is based on a
Lunar one, and Ramadan can occur sometimes in the summer, when the days
are much longer and fasting much more strenuous.
So, what will you be giving up for Lent? Monks in the Middle Ages gave up
meat, but they could eat fish, and therefore monasteries often had well
stocked fish ponds, a more vegetarian diet for us would be environmentally
friendly, not so much methane in the atmosphere, probably also more healthy.
Lent was and is still in Catholic countries preceded by Carnival, which means
‘farewell to meat’. ‘Fastnacht’, which means ‘the night before fasting’, in South
German areas looks like the Rights of Spring, with men in the processions
wearing heavy bell ringing gowns and carved wooden masks. It was a surprise
for me that in Britain this merry making can occur any time in the year, usually
in summertime to enable processions in funny dress. Churches used not to
have weddings during Lent, and in the Episcopal Church certainly we have no
flowers, although I never thought that flowers could be seen as an indulgence
for the congregation. Yet St Augustine said, “Do not believe that it is enough to
be fasting. Fasting is strenuous, but it does not strengthen your brothers and
sisters”. Maybe we should be thinking of doing something that could be of
benefit to others. Lent would be a wonderful opportunity to do something
differently which might bring more ‘colour into our lives’, and that of others.
The magazine ‘Andere Zeiten’ (which I have quoted from time to time) every
year gives advice in the form of Lent Letters to those taking part in their Lent
programme. These letters are weekly reminders of friends taking part and they
want to encourage to keep going in your endeavour. Last year one lady
followed St Augustine in wanting to do something for others. Everybody
whom she met should be somewhat strengthened by words and deeds.
Starting on Ash Wednesday she first tried it out on her own family and quickly
found out that she needed to pay more attention to them. So, when her
daughter told her of good marks in a school test, and her husband was talking
about stress at work, she realised that she was forced to listen more carefully
what everybody was saying, so that she could find encouraging words for
them.
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