From the Desk of Rev. Nicholas Pang….

Lent: A Time of Fasting, Prayer and Charity

We’re officially over halfway through winter! The groundhog’s come out from his den, Jesus has been presented in the temple, and that means we’re moving toward the great season of Lent – the great 40 days. Lent is a time of preparation. In it we commit ourselves to three virtues: fasting, prayer and charity.

The idea of fasting for Lent is one that has lost a bit of its popularity in recent years. Fasting is hard, both emotionally and physically. It’s also meant to be a communal event, and so when no one else around you is doing it, the challenges can be magnified. Some people argue that it’s better to take something on in Lent rather than give something up—a particular act of charity or a hobby. I think there’s something a bit problematic about that though. The founding message of a market economy seems to be that more is always better: more profits, more returns, more “doing”. The problem with this is that it never challenges the structures that we have in place, it confirms them and it magnifies them and it compels us to believe once again that we are the rulers of our lives.

And yet we know that isn’t always true. On Ash Wednesday we are reminded that “you are dust, and to dust you will return”. When we honestly look around us we can see the fragility of our world: cancer, poverty, addictions, war, terror, hatred. If this seems frightening then you’re probably on the right track. The world can be a frightening place to live in and we can’t fix all these problems by ourselves. When we fast, we fast for the sake of remembering our dependence on God and on one another. We do it so that we remember that both in the high times and in the low times, it is God who provides for us, and God who promises to walk with us in the valley of the shadow of death. We do it so that we remember that the very things that we need for our survival depend on the people who labour to help bring them to us: the farmers, the transport drivers, those who employ us. Fasting is ultimately a sign of hope and of thanksgiving, a remembrance of the love that God has for us.

It’s from that place that we commit ourselves to prayer: prayer of thanksgiving for God’s work in our lives, prayer of intercession for the well-being of the world, prayer of repentance for the ways we’ve missed the mark. And it’s from there that we begin to rebuild ourselves with an identity of generosity and care for the world around us. That’s the point when charity and compassion come in.

As in all things, our challenge is to avoid skipping ahead through the messy bits to get to the parts that make us feel good.

As we enter into the season of Lent this year, we’re going to spend a few weeks talking about “Time” and how we shape time to deepen and strengthen our relationship with God. I invite you to consider taking on the disciplines of fasting, prayer and charity, whatever that may look like for you. Together, as we ascend God’s holy mountain, let us remember the one who leads us on the path and calls us to the joy of the Easter resurrection.  

Fr. Nick