Some years ago I chose not to give up anything for Lent or to take on anything new; very unusual for me, having first come to the Episcopal Church during a Lenten season and fallen in love at first sight. The muted, realistic tones about sin and forgiveness I found there struck a deep chord in me, and Lenten disciplines became integral in my observance of the season. But the changes and chances of life during that more recent Lent were hard enough that practices added-on made no sense. The inner reality of struggle which I was experiencing matched the solemn realities of the season already—which in itself proved a great blessing. That year the resonance between my life and Lent, if anything, deepened my appreciation for the season.
My Benedictine friends at St. Gregory’s Monastery in Three Rivers, Michigan, change very little in their daily routine during Lent. Their life together is already pared down, their shared simplicity the usual source of their joy and their challenge. Lent gives them a time to reflect on a manner of life to which they are already committed. It think that such a thing happened to me outside the monastery, and happened unintentionally.
The sobering realities of an economy gone very bad bring these reflections to mind. Some of us have felt direct effects from the sharp decline. No one can escape the repercussions of it. Anxiety is in the air for almost everyone.
The realities of Lent and our lives at present may match up, in ways not of our own choosing. The prophets (and here I think especially of the latter part of Isaiah) suggest that the economies of God’s people have a way of focusing the spiritual awareness, no small thing. Which is to say that there may also be blessing out there for us, also not of our own choosing. Lent just might awaken us to such peculiar blessing.
I pray for us all, that we might have a good and holy Lent, during this hard season.
The Rt. Rev. Wayne Smith
Tenth Bishop of Missouri
Tags: Bishop's message, Lent
