Lent, from what little I know about it, seems to be a great idea. "Lent is a season of soul-searching and repentance." Well, isn't that special. I guess the rest of the year is spent aimless rebellion. And what is Mardi Gras? A couple weeks of church-sanctioned sin and debauchery?
Not that either of these things can't be participated in, in some ways, but I just can't imagine embracing these things as being part of my religion. You don't find either in the Bible--nor Easter, Christmas, or several other holidays. I say, and I believe God's word reinforces the idea, that we should follow Christ daily(Luke 9:23), we should celebrate his death and resurrection everyday, but especially on the first day of the week (Luke 22 and Acts 20:7), and we should always be thankful for God's amazing gift of His own son.
So, my advice is, this year for Lent give up Lent. Unless you do it for the personal challenge, or the fun of giving up something. But if you really want to crash a religious observance you could just as well try your hand at Rammadan, or if you're more adventurous check out Thaipusam--they are each about as scriptural as the "Christian" rituals listed above.
Posted by cmwillis at February 28, 2004 11:41 PM | TrackBackI know nothing about the Paschal Mystery. Maybe you could enlighten me. Also, where in the Bible do we get the idea of celebrating the birth of Christ? Where did the N.T. Christians observe it? I can't find it.
Posted by: cmwillis at March 21, 2004 5:07 PMMaybe I misread the Bible, but I thought that Christmas (i.e. the birth of Jesus) and Easter (i.e. the resurrection of Jesus) WERE in the Bible. It's irrelevant that Christmas and Easter were not the terms used in the Bible. Celebrating Christmas is celebrating the birth of Christ.
Yes, I do think we should be following Christ daily. But that does not mean Lent is not an important season. Ideally we should do a lot of things that we end up not doing. If you are someone who does repent everyday and dedicate all your actions to the greater glory of God, then maybe Lent would not be as significant to you. But everyone is human and has their own blemishes. If Lent makes even a handful of people slow down and reflect on their own actions and deliberate the meaning of the Paschal mystery, then Lent is a worthwhile season.
Also, when you start your argument by saying "From what little I know...", maybe you shouldn't be pontificating.
Yeah and whats with that Easter crap? We should be remembering the resurrection daily, not especially remembering it one day a year. Sheesh!
Posted by: TIm at March 5, 2004 9:48 PMWow, willis, I'm really impressed with your ability to completely ignore the relevant issue. Does Scripture forbid fasting? If not, does it forbid fasting as a group?
The Bible never commands you to own a Bible.
Posted by: Josh S at March 5, 2004 1:31 PMI dont think lent or other such remeberances are forbidden in Scripture, and it seems that your implying such?
and your not upsetting me at least...I just like to discuss such things.
If I'm disrespectful to entire denominations, what are those people doing to God's word? I apologize for upseting someone.. but what's more important, our feelings or God's word?
Posted by: cmwillis at February 29, 2004 10:21 PMI'm not a big fan of lent, probably b/c I grew up in a church and family that didnt emphasize it.
but it seems to me you're disrespecting a whole lot of folks who see fit to have a special rememberance.
so I think you've got a point, but you've taken it too far. disrespecting entire denominations is a bit much. I do a lot of things that I cant directly back up with clear scripture, but that's Christian liberty and conscience for ya.
Posted by: bobw at February 29, 2004 8:41 PM