This is the reflection Shay offered at the gathering yesterday. It’s based on Luke chapter 4. It’s a short reflection as our services are discussion based.
I love the progression of this passage: The full of the Spirit experience of being baptized followed by 40 days of fasting. Then temptation and the announcement of his ministry. There’s a lot to unpack.
It is said that Lent is observed to commemorate the 40 days that Jesus spent in the dessert. In order to be like Jesus we are to also abstain from something for 40 days. Some folks fast, some give up chocolate or Facebook. I must admit I’ve always been a bit uncomfortable with Lent. This idea of denying the body makes me anxious. As a trans* person I spent years denying the existence of my body; I spent years thinking my body was sinful or shameful. I don’t want to internalize those messages anymore. So what is the healthy way for me to observe Lent? In the past I have added a practice: More reading, more prayer, and that seems better for me.
Joan Chittister in her book on the liturgical year says this about Lent: “It is about opening our hearts one more time to the Word of God in the hope that, this time, hearing it anew, we might allow ourselves to become new as a result of it. It is the call to prayer, to liturgy, to the co-creation of the world. It is about our rising to the full stature of human reflection and, as a result, accepting the challenge to become fully alive, fully human….”
And that resonates. Jesus fasts, then denies all of the temptations to power. He refuses to take the role of the emperor and provide bread for himself, he refuses to take control of the nation and be a political king, he refuses to have himself lifted up. Instead he claims that he is called to preach good news to the poor, preach the release of prisoners, and the liberation of the oppressed. He understood the heart of his calling and was unwilling to be swayed from it.
What is our calling? Do we know what it means to be fully alive and to be involved in the co-creation of the world? What if we spent lent figuring out how we can be involved in the release of prisoners, the liberation of the oppressed, and preaching the good news?
Can we use Lent to root out the places that are keeping up from being fully alive? To rest up for the work ahead. To go deep into the remembrance of our baptism and get ready once again to pick of the mantle of our calling. We can best speak truth to power if we are centered and able to tap into the Spirit.
Amen Amy! The Facebook thing drives me crazy at lent! I just don’t udranstend. Our church is very big about the giving up something. I on the other hand have always used it as a reminder to spend more time with God in some way. Mine this year is to talk to him more, which I have honestly slacked on the past few months. Lent just reminded me that I need to intentionally take time to spend with him. I think I might start asking the people who have put these status updates up “what are you replacing Facebook with?” Lol. Love this post!