LENT 2008
Posted on Wednesday 16th January, 2008
Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, 6th February, and there are two services in St Alban´s that day:
10:30 Holy Communion with imposition of ashes
18:30 Sung Eucharist with imposition of ashes
During Lent there will also be an Adult Sunday School. On Sundays at 12:30, in church, we will explore some basic areas of Christian faith. There will be a short talk and then an opporutnity to ask questions or make comments. All are welcome to attend. The programme is:
10 February
WHAT IS THE BIBLE?
Mark Oakley
17 February
WHAT IS THE ANGLICAN CHURCH?
Mark Oakley & Ulla Monberg
24 February
WHAT IS THE CREED?
Mark Oakley
2 March
WHAT IS VOCATION?
Rickard Stenberg
9 March
WHY DO WE DO WHAT WE DO IN WORSHIP?
Ulla Monberg
WHAT IS LENT?
Lent is the forty day period before Easter, excluding Sundays, beginning on Ash Wednesday and ending on the evening of Maundy Thursday, making way for the celebration of the ‘Triduum’, the three most important days of the Church’s year – Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter.
In the scriptures forty days is a traditional period of time for discipline, devotion and preparation as we see, for instance, in the Gospels when Jesus goes into the wilderness to prepare for his ministry. The early Church soon set aside the days before Easter as a time for preparing candidates for their baptism and for encouraging Christian people to pray, give charitably and fast. It is a fact that Christians have not always been as disciplined in such ways as people of other faiths, but many are now reclaiming the spiritual insights and benefits of using Lent properly to discover God and the self more deeply. So, what can we do this Lent?
WORSHIP
Why not consider going to a weekly church service that you don’t usually go to? At St Alban’s you might go to the Wednesday Eucharist at 1030. Or what about visiting some churches in other traditions? Have you ever visited the Russian Orthodox Church, the Methodist Church or the Swedish Church for instance? Have you visited the Night Church at Copenhagen Cathedral? Copenhagen has many daily services for you to join in. Lent may be a time for you to take worship a little more seriously during your working week.
PRIVATE PRAYER
Our prayer lives can be very haphazard and undisciplined. Lent has traditionally been a time to correct this somewhat. Churches are open for you to pop in and take the deep breath of prayer. Maybe you prefer to try and pray at home, setting aside a few minutes each day to bring yourself consciously into the presence of God. This can be a very difficult thing to do if we are wound up, distracted and stressed! We may need to light a candle, play some music or breathe slowly before we can either pray in silence or in words. For the Christian nothing is more important than our relationship with God because it affects all our other relationships, choices and behaviour. All loving relationships need time spent on them, time that can often feel as if its being wasted, and our relationship with God is no different. What can you do about this in Lent?
GIVING UP
Most people think that Lent is about giving something up and it can often be a good idea to see whether you are able to give a few things up. What are you addicted to (can you answer that question?!) and what does this say about you? If you give up alcohol or chocolate, say, you might also think of giving the money you would have normally spent on them to a charity. Wherever possible try and make your giving up beneficial to someone else other than you Sometimes Lent can be a good opportunity to give up something that is harming you and the body that is, after all, God’s gift entrusted to you. If you are healthy, a “hunger lunch� once a week can be a good idea – eat less and give the money you save to a good cause.
TAKING ON
Some people prefer to take things on rather than give something up. This can range from taking more care of yourself (by taking exercise, for instance) to making sure that you do something more profitable one night of the week than watching TV. One might consider helping out as a volunteer somewhere or deciding to visit someone who is lonely or poorly. You could decide to be more environmentally friendly and change some bad habits. Christians need to take much more seriously their belief that God has entrusted his creation to us and that to exploit and spoil this world and its environment is sinful. Many of us need to amend our attitudes and behaviour. Or you might decide to write letters for Amnesty International or to your MP about a matter that we should take an active interest in rather than just let others take responsibility all the time. Perhaps you might consider sponsoring a child through a charitable organisation? Lent is a season in which to redeem your time rather than waste it!
MONEY
As we know, a good way of taking a look at our values is to take a look at our bank statement and see where we spend our money. Most of us in the West can easily be a little more generous towards those who are less fortunate or to some charity that needs help. What about considering giving the weekly money that you would normally spend on sweets, the cinema, cigarettes, beer, another shirt or skirt, say, to a charity that helps those who cannot afford such luxuries? Although many people think that all Christians can get worked up about is sex, actually the thing that Jesus talks about and warns people about much more is their attitude towards their belongings and money. What we possess can quickly possess us and we become slaves, often unaware, and pushed into a fearful or pretentious way of being. And is it time to review your giving to St Alban’s church? How much does the church mean to you? As much, perhaps, as what you spend on your newspaper in a week – or more? It costs an enormous amount of money to keep St Alban’s open and well maintained with a priest of its own. Remember: we receive no money from the State, from taxes or from the Church of England. Diplomatic status of the Chaplain has been removed now and we have extra tax costs of over 50 %.
READING
What about treating yourself to half an hour’s reading a day – and not just when you’re nodding off at night? There are some excellent spiritual books available. You might also use the time to learn more about our Christian tradition and history. You can always ask Mark for some advice about books.
WWW.LIVELENT.NET
You may wish to take a look at the above site for more ideas for what to do this Lent. You can even have a text message sent to your mobile phone each day in Lent containing a suggested action to do to help you be generous to others, the planet and yourself.
COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS
Christian Aid has a very imaginative way of asking people to use Lent by inviting them to count their blessings each day of the season. Take a look at: http://www.christianaid.org.uk/Images/countyourblessings.pdf
Have a fruitful, prayerful and positive Lent this year.
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