And so begins Lent. Just as my New Year's resolutions have totally dissolved around me, in comes Ash Wednesday with a booster shot of discipline. I waiver every year on whether to give something up or to do something positive. I sometimes try to do both. This year it's no alcohol and no video games (sacrifice) and an attempt to meditate at least once a day. Motives are not pristine for most people, and I'm no saintly exception. While the spiritual benefits of discipline are many, there are very few of us who aren't secretly hoping for a lower number on the scale or lower blood pressure at the same time. I don't suppose Jesus minds as long as we do (or don't do) SOMETHING. At least we give Him more than the usual passing thought.
The Catholic traditions (you've caught on that I'm Catholic, right?) are very comforting. Some of them are weird, too, and I don't dispute that, but the music, the stained glass windows, the incense, and the vestments all help to put me in a sacred space. I don't stay there long on the average day, but at least I get to dip a toe in once in a while. Everything else on the planet seems to be in turmoil, but the Church just keeps on keeping on. OK, I would vastly prefer it if they would ordain women and accept that many wonderful people happen to be gay (I know several priests who I am reasonably sure play on that team), but it is quietly reassuring to have something which is pretty much unchanged since my childhood. Or Geoffrey Chaucer's childhood, for that matter, give or take Vatican II.
I wish you calm and peace, perspective and insight. And from now until Easter I'll be missing the "Alleluia" more than a little as we focus on the more somber side of life.
The Catholic traditions (you've caught on that I'm Catholic, right?) are very comforting. Some of them are weird, too, and I don't dispute that, but the music, the stained glass windows, the incense, and the vestments all help to put me in a sacred space. I don't stay there long on the average day, but at least I get to dip a toe in once in a while. Everything else on the planet seems to be in turmoil, but the Church just keeps on keeping on. OK, I would vastly prefer it if they would ordain women and accept that many wonderful people happen to be gay (I know several priests who I am reasonably sure play on that team), but it is quietly reassuring to have something which is pretty much unchanged since my childhood. Or Geoffrey Chaucer's childhood, for that matter, give or take Vatican II.
I wish you calm and peace, perspective and insight. And from now until Easter I'll be missing the "Alleluia" more than a little as we focus on the more somber side of life.
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