I have sensed lately while working with the high school group that students are interested in the traditions of the church. They want to know the meaning and significance behind them. As we engage in the season of Lent, it is my desire for students and adults alike to understand the heart of Lent, that it is a season of renewal, of confession, of drawing near to Christ.
In the passage that we are reflecting on as a church (Joel 2:12-17), the prophet speaks of returning to the Lord with our entire heart. As Pastor Dwight reflected, this includes fasting, weeping, and mourning. I thought his reflections were wonderful. I personally was drawn to the next phrase in the text, "Rend your heart and not your garments." At first I had to make sure I knew what "rend" meant. To rend is to separate into parts with force or violence. It means to tear apart, to pull violently. The action of rending was most often associated with mourning and seeking repentance. The mournful person rent (tore) his clothing as a representation of the condition of his heart.
But Joel says that we are to "rend your heart" and "not your garments." The temptation can be, and has been throughout history, that our actions reflect only the tearing of the garment and nothing deeper. In other words, we go through the motions while our very core remains unaffected. Joel implores us that as we return to the Lord we need to do so from our very core. Lent is a season of reflection, meditation, weeping, fasting, seeking, and healing. As Jesus responds to Mary and Martha, mourning the loss of their brother Lazarus, Jesus says "I am the resurrection and the Life." In Lent we are led the reality of the resurrection, a reality that should shake us at our very core. So as the high schools students gained a new appreciation and understanding about communion, let us in this Lenten season return with our all our heart and in the process gain a new/fresh understanding of the cross and the significance it has in each of our lives.
Clearly there are both shared and solitary aspects to the contemplation and renewal of Lent.
Gatherings of Christians on Ash Wednesday, Maundy Thursday, and Good Friday each have their own characters and their own windows into Christ's Passion and sacrifice.
Still, the solitary experiences of study, prayer, weeping, fasting, and mourning cannot be foregone. Returning to Joel 2 so often this week begins to demonstrate to me just how powerful these, too, really are.
To get to Easter, we all must pass through Lent. Let's not fail to notice it, when we are together, or when we are alone.