Lent, well lived, is able to renew our spirits
Lent is a time to discern. It is a time to look within and reflect on how we live our beliefs in the world today. Lent, well lived, can bring us to renewal of spirit. As we prepare for spring in anticipation of new life in our gardens, and the celebration of Easter in our churches and in our hearts, we have much to ponder.
Catholics are navigating as members of a church that is once again in transition. It is not the first time in our 2,000 year history, but we are at a critical juncture in many ways.
Just as we, the people in the pews, need to discern, so does the institutional church. I believe Pope Francis and many bishops are doing their best. Others cling to the old, traditional ways before Vatican II.
Our traditions are important. I love the Latin hymns and the sacred celebrations. Liturgy and Eucharist are nonnegotiable tenets of our faith.
This Lent, we too need to look at the Scriptures within the context of our lives in the 21st century. Jesus taught his followers to be inclusive, to follow the commandments and the beatitudes, to love one another, to pray for our enemies and to treat others as we would like to be treated.
Recently, the church focused on consecrated life and the need for vocations at Masses. There was extra attention given to vowed religious life, particularly those who choose to wear a traditional habit. I find that disheartening.
Certainly there is a place for contemplative vocations, and I applaud those who accept that calling and are willing to accept the challenges of that lifestyle. I would never dissuade them from their choice.
There is no doubt that the church needs priests to celebrate liturgy. Numbers are dwindling by attrition. I would challenge church leaders and the laity to look at how a consecrated life is defined with a new lens. Consecrated life is a response to a calling, and we are all called.
When my mother was young, women with aspirations to be doctors or lawyers, and those with managerial skills or business acumen were not accepted in the workplace. Women, working with church leadership, formed the backbone of education in this country. They oversaw the building of hospitals, orphanages and social service safety nets when a need arose. They did live consecrated lives. So too did parents, then and today. Couples and single people who are raising children are living consecrated lives.
Teachers, secretaries, janitors, store workers, police and firefighters, public servants, small business owners, immigrants and people of means: If they are striving to make the world a better place, they are living consecrated lives.
Those vowed sisters, in contemporary dress, are joined in their ministries by associates and volunteers, working together to live out the charisms of their particular religious communities. These, too, are consecrated lives.
So many who are willing to serve the church are denied the opportunity due to gender, age, physical challenges or bias, real or perceived. Married men and some women called to priesthood or the diaconate have served that call in other denominations. Archaic rules have driven lifelong Catholics to join congregations that welcomed them without judgment.
This Lent, let us, church leadership and laity, listen to our inner voices and to one another. What is being asked of us? What are we called to be in our world today?