Author: Jana

Lent is the season that follows Epiphany, which last for 40 days (excluding Sundays) and takes us to Easter. It seems to have been a common practice in the early church, but was not formalized until the First Council of Nicaea in 325 C.E. Then, the Lenten journey was the preparation for baptism that would take place on Easter. It was, and continues to be, a period of detachment from the world, as the days continued to lengthen into spring. Traditional practices during lent are: prayer, penance, mortifying of the flesh, repentance of sins, almsgiving and self-denial (obstaining from any number of things). These practices were and continue to be used to bring oneself closer to God, and to spend time away from worldly things, to focus on godly things as Jesus did in preparation for his crucifixion.

This Lenten Season I encourage you to join me in preparing for Easter, the rebirth of the Christianity and the renewal of our own baptism into the Church. Each day on this journey I will be posting a practice that will (hopefully) detach us from our daily routines for a few minutes, give us the opportunity to look up to something much bigger than all of us, and nourishment as we continue on our own roads.

In terms of practical details I will be posting Monday-Saturday (as Sunday are not traditionally counted). Each week we will look at the themes of: prayer, art, penance, and the bible. There will be some other inspired things as well. Also in the 14 days leading up to Palm/Passion Sunday we will be looking at a station of the cross each day.

So here is to another season of walking the path of Lent. “May the road rise up to meet you…”

Last Sunday in church the beatitudes were read from the gospel of Luke. Although we are now part way through this week, I have been continuing to mull over the significance of this common passage. We hear this reading so often, it is so easy to not dig deeper and to glace over them.

Years ago at a church service I was given a business card with “Blessed are you who weep, for you will laugh”. Five years later this card is still held by a magnet to the top of the refrigerator door. It is right at eye level and so I frequently see it pass by as I dive into our fridge. Since receiving this card, there have been times of profound stress, despair, and grief in our home; however the card remains and reminds me that things change. Life changes, circumstances change, the world changes. I may be in tears now, but I will laugh later. This provides a tremendous sense of relief and hope. When things are bad they will get better.

It is a bit harder to accept the bitter truth that when we are on top of the world, things will inevitably change and we will become the underdogs once more. This on the surface can be disappointing, however with each transformation comes growth, perspective, and balance. These are the real fruits of the Spirit.

The beautitudes may seem simple, but they are also profound, because they remind us of the vision, the balance, and the hope that we must find in the world. With these gifts we can keeping transforming into the persons that the world needs, that our community needs. Do not despair “for the times they are a-changin’ “. Our spirits are being cleaned, we are touching the experiences and emotions that Jesus himself, as every human has, felt. Let us find the comfort and the hope that is here.

Amen.

In this season of Epiphany I have been seeking the Light without (God) and the Light within (Spirit). I have found it helpful to set aside 15-30 minutes of my day to step away from my routine, to seek that which is both beyond myself and grounded within myself. To seek the light that brightens these dark days, and when I find it to pause and contemplate it. These have not been the mystical experiences such as we have heard from the saints, however I have sensed glimpses of hope, joy, and love.

I have also been reading “Joyful Exiles” by James Houston. In this book Houson reminds us that “But since a mystical experience of Christ is a result of God’s presence, it remains incomprehensible. The only response can be faith and not doubt.” (Houson 69). Revelation in God is not about receiving the answers to questions or prayers, but receiving an experience, a vision, that on examination allows us to grow stronger in our sense of God around us, our sense of God in our lives, and using history, the Bible, and our community of faith we can interpret those experiences meaningfully in our lives.

As a result I have been contemplating ways to make time and discover meaningful practices to open myself to God. As such I have decided to do a “Lenten Journey” a post each day focusing on a discipline or practice that will orientate me (and you if you choose to follow) towards God.  If there any specific topics you would like to see, and if we can we will fit them in.

Thank you!

Houston, James M. “Joyful Exiles”. InterVarsity Press: Illinois, 2006.

Yesterday we celebrated the Baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist. There are many theologies surrounding baptism, and in Modern Christianity there is a wide interpretation of these events. However, despite where different churches fall on the spectrum there a few things that we agree on.

We agree that baptism is the beginning of a new endeavour, a new way of life, a “fresh start”. It is a distinction from who we were to who we are now becoming. This is the beginning of the journey, with the Spirit descending on our shoulder. At this embarkation point there is a sense of hope in God, a sense of our future joy of arriving, as we take the journey down a new path. We acknowledge that a transformation is beginning to take place.

Baptism is also communal in joining our church community as well as Christians around the world currently, as well as with our predecessors and claiming their stories as our stories. In our baptismal vows we in turn are promised the support of our faith community, our guardians, and in some traditions are godparents. This is a reminder that while faith is inherently personal, it is also inherently communal. “We are not alone, we live in God’s world” (The New Creed, The United Church of Canada).

Baptism is also the one sacrament that is common across Christianity. In Roman Catholic and Anglican traditions there are many other sacraments. In some traditions there are only a couple of sacraments, and in others there is only Baptism. Baptism is the one common sacrament to all of Christianity. Therefore it seems important to not only recognize this, but to reflect on how we relate to our Christian neighbours. As well, as how all Christians start this new transformational journey, just a Jesus did so long ago.

For most of us our baptism did not take place yesterday… It happened long ago. As a result, I invite us to pause, to question what we or our parent/guardians vowed on the day or our baptism and how this has affected our lives up until now… Looking at where we have come from sometimes gives us the sense of where we are headed, or at least ideas on how we can continue the journey with purpose. Trusting in the journey, and walking toward the joy of our destination, with the Spirit of God sitting on our shoulder.

Yesterday we celebrated the revelation of Jesus as the long awaited Christ by the Magi. As we start into this Epiphany season, celebrating that Jesus is with us, it makes me wonder about our own epiphanies… Or, how we see the divine or God present with us?

In school I had a professor who was always asked “what has God been doing in your lives?” This was a big question, however as theologians if we are unable to answer this question, or as followers of Christ we are unable to answer this question. How can we claim, especially at this time of the year, that this is the season of Epiphany, aka “God With Us”.

With the return to the routine of work, school, and all the things that we step away from over the holidays at hand I do not have the answer either. I do feel that we need to keep looking, and make note however. That afterall, is what the season of epiphany is all about. As well, when I started out so long ago on this blog (that I have kept sporadically at best), this noting of the divine presence in our lives is what I was seeking. Years later, here I am still seeking. So be of good courage, have faith, by slowly easing into this epiphany season may we seek and find what we are looking for: God with Us.