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Doing Without
Wednesday March 1, 2006
Today, most Christians in the western
world begin the Season of Lent.
When I was young, Christians were expected to give up something for
Lent.
First, as a sign of repentance. By punishing ourselves, we showed a
supposedly loving God that we were sorry for whatever we had done that we
shouldn't have done, on the assumption that making ourselves miserable would
make God happy.
My first boss had a gorgeous secretary. She passed my desk every time
she entered or left his office. I almost swooned. But during Lent, she looked
haggard. She had given up cosmetics.
I'm still not sure how that pleased God. It certainly didn't please me!
Shared suffering
Second, as sharing in
Christ's suffering. Traditionally, this meant fasting – doing without meat,
sometimes also without fish, eggs, and milk products.
Some claim this custom had less to do with religion than with the lack
of refrigeration. By late winter, perishable products had often thawed, frozen,
and thawed again. Doing without them was safer than food poisoning.
I'm still not sure how weakening our bodies made Jesus feel better,
though.
Third, as self-discipline. By refusing to succumb to temptation, we
re-enact Jesus' temptations in the desert.
According to the Bible, Jesus spent 40 days in the wilderness, doing
without food, while being tempted by the devil. That's why Lent lasts for 40
days, not counting Sundays – although Jesus didn't get Sundays off while he was
being tempted.
But the “40” was a symbolic figure. The rain came down for 40 days in
Noah's flood. Moses spent 40 days up the mountain gathering the Commandments.
The Hebrew people wandered 40 years in the desert after escaping from Egypt.
Isaac was 40 when he married Rebecca. Goliath taunted the Israelite armies for
40 days. Both David and Solomon, by amazing coincidence, ruled Israel for 40
years…
For a people who lacked computers to keep digital records of every
detail of life, 40 simply stood for “a very long time.”
Making God happy
Perhaps you can infer
that I'm skeptical about traditional Lenten practices?
You see, I do not believe that God wants us to be miserable. I do not
believe that God wants us to suffer for our own good. I do not believe that God
punishes us by inflicting disease and death upon us.
If God does punish us – and that's a very big “if” – then it's equally
possible that God punishes by granting some people wealth and fame. They can
never have confidence that their friends are not just sycophants sucking up.
They cannot sustain long-term relationships. Their enemies constantly try to
topple them off their pedestals…
If I'm going to give up something, I want it to be for my own good. So
that I can be a healthier, wiser, more caring person. And perhaps what I am no
longer greedy for, I can share with others.
I believe that will make God much happier than watching me avoid
chocolates.
Copyright © by Jim Taylor. Non-profit use in congregations and study
groups permitted; all other rights reserved.
To send comments on this column, email
Jim Taylor
directly. You can also receive Jim's column by email. Contact him at
jimt@quixotic.ca
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