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Lenten season is most sacred among Christians

The Lenten Season is the most sacred period in Christianity. The foundation of our faith is predicated on the suffering, sacrifice, and Resurrection of Jesus.

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A period of reflection, renewal

By Dr. Arthur Cribbs | OW guest Contributor

The Lenten Season is the most sacred period in Christianity. The foundation of our faith is predicated on the suffering, sacrifice, and Resurrection of Jesus. This expansive 40 day period is a time of praying, fasting, and repenting.  It began with Ash Wednesday when we confessed our sins and reset our lives.

This is a time when Christians around the world rededicate our commitment to God as we reflect on the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus.  Indeed, Lent is at the heart of our faith and is observed by Christians of different traditions, including Anglican, Catholic, Orthodox, and Reformed. Across the Christian spectrum this is a season of reflection, remembrance, and renewal.

What does Lent mean to you? How do you observe this sacred period of sacrifice, submission, and sanctification?

Amid all the busyness of our lives and the many luring attractions that demand our time and resources, what do you do during Lent that is significantly meaningful to you? In what ways are you intentional about your awareness of God and the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus?

If it were not so demeaning, the fictional invention and intrusion of the so-called “Easter Bunny” would be comical as a farcical imitation of this most holy season. But, as an alluring image of these High Holy Days, such a characterization is insulting, demeaning, and idolatrous. It is an icon bantered about for commercial gain. Think about it.

Across the Christian spectrum, this season of renewal, remembrance, and resurrection provides a period of introspection and redemption.  No matter where we are in life and the myriad experiences we have shared and endured, Lent is a sacred season of religious renewal and rededication.

Before we celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus on Easter morning, Lent provides a six week period of introspection, reformation, and renewal of our faith.  This is perhaps the most significant period of the year that provides us time to concentrate on the substance and meaning of life and our reason for being.

Theologically, Lent is a time set aside for believers in Christ to reassess the essence of our faith and the purpose of our lives.  We come together communally to forge our recommitment and relationship to God through Jesus Christ. We peer into the distant past to gain a glimpse into the meaning and purpose of our lives today.  While it is an individual endeavor, the communal enterprise encompassed during this Holy Season brings together the Church Universal.

We are joined together in the fabric of humanity.  Our separate and common experiences, including our various faith traditions deepen and broaden our understanding and commitment to God through Jesus Christ.  These are the High Holy Days of Christianity.

The Lenten Season is a period of passion, reflection, repentance, and renewal.  We reestablish our commitment and relationship to God through Jesus Christ.  It elevates our faith journey and deepens our quest to embody goodness, kindness, and oneness across the expanse of the human family that is formed in the Image of God.

This is a period when we give thanks to God for the presence of Christ and the consecration and renewal of human life rooted in spirituality and the forgiveness of sin.  Happy Easter!

Dr. Arthur Cribbs is the executive director of CLUE-California (Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice)

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