Quarantined Lent
Fear, Frustration, and Faith
In the church calendar, we are in the season of Lent, the forty days leading up to Easter. Lent is not only for Catholics but for all who seek to live their lives in a rhythm that follows rhythms throughout scripture. Lent is a season when we are supposed to voluntarily quiet our lives, to ponder our humanness, our mortality, and how to live a more faithful life, but this year, nature had a different idea. We have basically been forced into a season of Lent whether we wanted to or not. I say nature because I do not believe God is intentionally killing people with this disease. I do not believe God is “punishing America” for gay marriage or abortion (or unrelenting greed, an issue in which Jesus actually speaks about a lot in scripture). Besides, nature is part of God’s creation. When teaching from his famous Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says something profound about blessings and calamities: God makes the sun rise on both the evil and the good and sends rain on both the righteous and the unrighteous (Matthew 5:45). While this was about loving enemies, it states something about the character of God and the ebbs and flows of life. Later on, in the same sermon, Jesus speaks about building your metaphorical house of faith on rock, faith in God, so that WHEN the storm comes, the house will stand (Matthew 7:24–27). Jesus is suggesting that even the faithful must whether storms.
Fear
When I went to Brown’s Market in New Meadows to buy a couple of bottles of bourbon, (sorry, but I enjoy some sipping), I casually mentioned to the cashier that I was surprised that all the liquor had not been cleared out. She said it was the ammo that had been cleared out, that more had been sold than during hunting season. People are afraid. They are afraid of getting sick. They are afraid of others being desperate, thus the need to protect themselves. People are afraid that food might run out, so get ready for the hunt. Fear is a human condition. It is okay to experience it, but we must do our best to move past it and not let it control us. Protecting ourselves is smart, but Jesus does not excuse violence in self-defense. I’m not talking about gun control hear, rather I’m speaking about heart control. Jesus showed us on Good Friday, another Lenten lesson, that the cross is the answer to violence, which is to lay down our own lives for others, not to lay down others’ lives for our own. Jesus states the following in response to self-sacrifice, which can be literal or figurative: Those who don’t pick up their crosses and follow me aren’t worthy of me. Those who find their lives will lose them, and those who lose their lives because of me will find them (Matthew 10:38–39).
Frustration
Frankly, I am frustrated right now. I live alone. When I see posts about taking this time of quarantine to enjoy with our families, I get frustrated and at times depressed. I do not have my own family. I do not have roommates. No kids, no spouse. My parents live in North Carolina. Most of my area friends live in McCall while I live in New Meadows, so taking a walk with friends is difficult. There are days I want to scream. There are days I want to drink to numbness. These are all human responses. Jesus even felt such human urges. He screamed from the cross, “my God, my God, why have you forsaken me!?” In the Garden, right after the Last Supper, in another Lenten moment we see the following:
When he took Peter and Zebedee’s two sons, he began to feel sad and anxious. Then he said to them, “I’m very sad. It’s as if I’m dying. Stay here and keep alert with me.” Then he went a short distance farther and fell on his face and prayed, “My Father, if it’s possible, take this cup of suffering away from me. However — not what I want but what you want.”
Jesus felt sad. He felt anxious. He pleaded with God to take it away, but in the end, he gave it to God and prayed for God’s will. Christian ethicist, Luke Bretherton, from Duke University said the following, and this is a paraphrase, not a direct quote: When we lament without praise, we are drenched in pessimism and despair without hope. On the flip side, when we praise without lament, that is triumphalism and creates a false reality. This is the beauty of the church calendar. Lent, a time of lament is paired with Easter, a time of praise. Reading and praying through the Psalms and the Hebrew Prophets, like Isaiah and Ezekiel, are great ways to practice this.
Faith
Lastly, we have faith. While it is okay to experience fear and frustration, it is important that we respond in faith. In the gospel of Mark, there is a story of a man whose child was ill. He said to Jesus “ If you can do anything, help us! Show us compassion!”
Jesus said to him, “‘IF you can do anything’ (emphasis mine)? All things are possible for the one who has faith.” At that the boy’s father cried out, “I have faith; help my lack of faith! (Mark 9:22–24). This man shows us honest faith. He struggles. He’s afraid. His faith isn’t fully in order, but he pleads to Jesus anyway, with his doubts, fears, and frustrations. Now is a time when we must act in faith, to help out the greater community. Now is the time to protect the most vulnerable. This is not a time to “test” God by going about business as usual because “God’s got this.” God does have it, but also requires our participation. Our participation, wrapped in our doubts and frustration but grounded in humility, is needed. Perhaps, maybe, this is all bigger than us. Let us let go of fear, express our frustration and lack of faith, with praise and let God answer our growing faith through this Lenten season. Death, sacrifice, and Lent are not the ends of the story, for resurrection is coming. Peace and health to all of you.
