Ash Wednesday
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Week 16: Ash Wednesday
The history of Lent goes all the way back to the council of Nicaea in 325 CE. Emperor Constantine, wanted to unite the Roman empire under one religion - Christianity. In order to do that, he had to unite Christianity. The council of Nicaea was a gathering of Bishops from all over the Roman empire. They came together to decide on Christian Orthodoxy, or a set of standardized beliefs. Several standardized beliefs came out of this council, such as the Nicene Creed and how the church will decide when to celebrate Easter. There were twenty practical canons that came from Nicaea that deal with a variety of religious matters. Lent is mentioned in the fifth canon, as a preparation leading up to Easter. Before the council of Nicaea there were various regional traditions and practices surrounding Easter, this just unified the way Lent and Easter were celebrated. The period of forty days is modeled off of the story of Jesus in the wilderness "Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights and afterwards he was famished," Matthew 4:1-2.
Lent, in its intention, is about joy and preparation. Personally, I feel we focus a lot on the preparation, and very little on the joy. This past Sunday, in the City Worship service, Pastor Jewell encouraged us to think about adding an intentional delight to our lent practice. I love this idea of an intentional delight, whether that is alongside giving something up or on its own. This isn't to say that there isn't goodness in giving something up. That is a valuable way to take stock of our life, priorities, way we spend time, or even what we use to fuel our body. For those who want to practice Lent, I would invite you to think of an intentional delight that you can add into the next 40 days. For me, I am going to carry my film camera with me, and take photos, for no purpose other than it is something I love, but often neglect due to the business of life.
We've spent some time talking about deconstruction recently in The Neighborhood, and I think it’s important to note that religious holidays can be weird and painful for those who are deconstructing. I know when I first began that journey, my first few Easters I didn’t known how to celebrate, prepare, or really what I believed to be true about Easter. I think Lent is a valuable time to add or try out some new spiritual practices. We will dive more into this in the upcoming weeks, but this could be a time to allow your imagination to go wild, and add something that makes you feel alive and connected. Whether that is meditation, scripture, joining our Lent book study, going on walks, creating art, etc. If you want to celebrate Lent, do so with grace and intention. It's okay if it isn't perfect, that isn't the point. The point is joy and preparation. This is a time to prepare ourselves for the mystery of the Easter season and meditate on what we believe to be true about the ministry, death, resurrection of Jesus. There is beauty in intentionally reflecting on and questioning our beliefs. Maybe this isn't "your" Lenten season, and that's okay, too. The last thing I want is for you to be miserable for 40 days, forcing a practice, or sacrificing something that doesn't work for you.
Discussion Questions:
What are your thoughts/feelings about lent?
Have you had past experiences with Lent?
How do you feel about the idea of adding an "intentional delight" instead of taking something away?
Do you plan to observe lent this year?
Sources:
What the Canons from the First Council of Nicaea Actually Say!