It is the Christian season of Lent, a time when many of us are accustomed to "giving something up." In years past, I have given up Coca-Cola and unnecessary use of my car; I've tried to improve my diet or my relations with other people. Last year I took on some spiritual reading I hadn't encountered before. A friend of mine always fasts from sweets during Lent.
The tradition of giving something up for Lent comes from the early Christian church, which enjoined first candidates for baptism, and eventually all Christians, to fast during the forty days prior to Easter. The fast lasted for six days each week (every day but Sunday) and the observant ate only one meal a day. Even at that meal, they avoided meat and fish.
At certain points in history, the Lenten fast provided a means for Christian communities to engage in social justice. Medieval nuns, for instance, would save the food they produced but did not eat during Lent and distribute it to the poor in their communities. Today, people who give something up for Lent sometimes put aside the money they would have spent on that item and donate it to charity. The purpose of all this giving up is spiritual preparation for the renewal of life which happens at Easter.
For Lent this year, I am trying to notice and practice empathy whenever I can. I am noticing the place of empathy in the ways we care for one another. I'm noticing it as a key component in creativity. I'm trying to push myself beyond my own point of view and see things as someone else might see them. I'm trying to slow down and steady my tendency to come to a quick conclusion. One of my spiritual goals is to practice empathy in order to enlarge my understanding of the world.
This Lent, I'm not thinking about what we might give up in our lives. Rather, I'm thinking about how we might prepare ourselves spiritually, not just for Easter, but for all our lives. Coming to church ought to do something for our souls. It ought to help us to be better people this week than the week before. This Lent, I'm wondering how you think about your spiritual lives, and what goals you might have for your own preparation.
I would like to hear from you over the next weeks about your spiritual goals. What is something you're hoping to find in your spiritual search? What practices are important to you? When you participate in the community of our church, what are you hoping to get out of your participation? What are you hoping to be able to give to others? I would like to hear about your spiritual goals. It will help me be a better minister to you.
I hope to hear your spiritual goals. Email me at sstewart@firstunitarian.com. Connect with me on Facebook or @revsarahstewart on Twitter. I look forward to hearing from you this Lenten season.
In faith,
Rev. Sarah Stewart
