“We give up things during Lent to remind ourselves of the suffering and pain Jesus will experience at the end of the season. We also give up things to be reminded of our dependence on God. Caffeine shouldn’t be the thing that compels us to live. God’s love and grace are what should compel us to live and love. Giving up coffee is not trivial at all. When that dull headache starts rolling in, we reflect on our mortality, our weakness, and our dependence on coffee (it’s only 9 am — how am I getting a caffeine headache already?), which should remind us of God’s mercy and grace and presence.“
—Rev. Joseph Yoo, United Methodist Church
Every denomination that observes Lent recognizes it as a time to get close(r) to God, and so far as I can tell, every denomination follows the formula spelled out above by Rev. Yoo. What reminds us of God during Lent? Pain. Inconvenience. Disappointment. We are creatures of conditioning and habit, and when we associate God with suffering, then that’s all God becomes to us. How do we get close to God? Suffer! How many people in the midst of a caffeine headache stop and say, “Well, hey, this headache reminds me of God’s mercy, grace, and presence in my life?” I might thank God for the person who invented Ibuprofen, but that’s not my preferred method of getting closer to God.
I understand that there are no atheists in foxholes, and some of the most fervent prayers I’ve made have been in the dentist’s chair – suffering can indeed draw us closer to God. But there are better ways to God. Someone could jump through the stained glass at church to get inside, but it’s much easier to come through the door.
Jesus spent an agonizing three hours on the cross, and before that, he was whipped, mocked, and beaten. His last hours were brutal. They were a fraction of his time on earth – yet that’s what we focus on during Lent – his suffering. What is so wrong with us that we look past the rest of his life and only look at the worst part? Are we so selfish that we only care about the part of his life that paid for our salvation? Are we so devious that we mask our selfishness in acts of self-abasement? Jesus is so much more than a dying man on the cross; he is the man who turned water into wine and kept the party going. He is the man who brought joy to others through healing, driving out demons, and feeding the multitudes. He brought joy to countless people during his ministry on earth, and countless more since his death and resurrection.
We have made God a God not of life and love, but of death and suffering. Think about the most common questions people ask of God: Why is there suffering in the world? Why is there cancer? Why are children harmed? Why are there hurricanes, earthquakes, and tornadoes? I’ve never heard anyone ask why there is love, why do birds sing, and why do toddling children bring us so much joy? We take all of those things for granted. God has been portrayed for millennia as scary, domineering, and vengeful. Jesus was none of those things, and yet those of us who claim him as savior behave as if he’s out to get us if we don’t look uncomfortable.
We are made to love and to be loved. We are made for joy. It’s not too late to switch up your Lenten discipline. Instead of depriving yourself and suffering, what if, instead, you bring joy to someone else? You could engage in random acts of kindness for the remainder of Lent, or anonymously give money to local charities, or even better, you could give time to local charities. We could send care packages to teachers in underserved schools, go to the laundromat and put money in all the machines, or buy socks and underpants for the patrons of St. Luke’s feeding ministry. There are multiple ways to bring joy into the world, a world rife with suffering. The world doesn’t need more people with caffeine headaches or bad moods; it needs more hope, joy, and love.
The Rev. Jason Shelby
Rector
jason.shelby@stfrancispalosverdes.org