You don’t have to be Mexican to celebrate Cinco De Mayo or Catholic to enjoy Mardi Gras. Same goes for the Lenten season that began this week on Ash Wednesday and goes ‘til Easter.
Many Christian denominations recognize this 40-day holy season. It is a time of reflection and repentance. During an Ash Wednesday service, the congregation is reminded of their mortal failings and comes to the alter to receive an ashy sign of the cross upon their foreheads with the words “Remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”
In this weird and ceremonial way, it is comforting to be reminded we are all just human beings trying to get through the day and that we all make mistakes and are forgiven. Forgiving oneself is always the hardest.
40-Day Goal
I like the way the Lenten season sets up a universal, time-limited goal with world-wide participation. And these universal goals are lofty; improve yourself or help another. No one ever says I think I will steal, adulterate, murder, or eat ice cream every day for 40 days. Nope; again, universally we all want to be better.
During the Lenten season you can give up something or add something like daily prayers, journaling, visiting your aging parents, working out (your body is your temple) or you can take something away, like sodas, red meat, and for me… Spider Solitaire.
I spend way too much time engrossed in a stupid card game on my phone. If gluttony is a sin, then I am a gluttonous solitaire player.
All Are Welcome
You don’t have to be an Episcopalian to be welcomed at our altar for communion or for our once-a-year ashing (I know that is not a real word, but I like it anyway. Forgive me.). And you don’t even have to darken the doors of a church to be a part of this year’s holy season in order to set up a Lenten practice for yourself. It’s a personal challenge with, my favorite part, a time limit culminating on Easter Day, throughout the world.
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