On Lent

I am not, nor have I ever been Catholic.

I have, however, observed Lent for the last 35 years or so - at least the 'giving something up for Lent' part of it. There may be more involved. I don't know. I'm not Catholic. It started in solidarity with my best friend from high school, Matt Corso, who was Catholic, and has continued as an exercise in self-discipline and an antidote to Christmas/winter/Super Bowl/Mardi Gras face-stuffing.

I recently posted on Facebook that I was giving up 'toes' for Lent (a term I stole from a Toastmaster buddy, Cathy Babis - you know, Doritos, Cheetos, Fritos . . .) and asked what others were foregoing. Judging from some of the replies, you'd thought I'd drug a smoking censer and communion wafers into their home.

"I'm giving up the constraints of organized religion"

"Stupid religious practices"

Really? I get that you're tired of being the minority in a (nominally) religious culture. I really do. Me too. But let's not throw the good aspects of religion out with the bad. I've argued for years that religion has no monopoly on 'good'. Nor does it corrupt all it touches. A syringe can have a flu vaccine in it or it can harbor heroin. It just delivers the goods. It's up to us to use our God-given (sorry, couldn't resist) brains to tell the difference.

I'm no sociologist either, but maybe some of these practices developed because they worked. Some may have only seemed to work, but are ingrained now as superstition, some may no longer be needed (hygiene has come a long way since Moses), but some 'religious practices' may actually be good for you whether the culture that developed them knew why they worked or not.

So think this over:

Quieting the mind and being receptive to your subconscious thought process can help with your decision making - you don't have to call it 'praying about it'. (1)

Making a behavioral change for 40 days can lay the groundwork for new habits. Sometimes self-discipline is the only discipline people have. If you go back to your old ways, at least you learned something about yourself - you don't have to call it 'Lent'. (2)

Slowing down to recharge your batteries once a week can make you more effective the rest of the week - you don't have to call it 'Sabbath'. (3)

Not being an asshole helps make your time on this planet more enjoyable for all of us - you don't have to call it 'karma'. (4)

Giving your body a chance to process the crap you've already eaten without cramming any more down your pie hole probably does it some good every now and then - you don't have to call it 'fasting'. (5)

The same can be said for your mind - you don't have to call it 'meditation'. (6)

On the other hand, no way am I giving up bacon (no one has that much self-discipline). Happy Lent people.




(1) “Muddy water, let stand, becomes clear.” ― Lao Tzu
(2) . . . or 21 days (Maltz) or 66 days. You get the point. https://blogs.ucl.ac.uk/hbrc/2012/06/29/busting-the-21-days-habit-formation-myth/
(3) http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/11/health/sleeth-take-day-off/
(4) http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2015/12/pharma-bro-arrested/420954/
(5) http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-intermittent-fasting-might-help-you-live-longer-healthier-life/
(6) http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/features/meditation-heals-body-and-mind