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Historically, Lent – the season leading up to the Feast of the Resurrection, commonly called Easter – was a time of preparation for those who would be baptized at the Easter Vigil. Over time, it became the practice of the whole church to focus on deepening our faith and recommitting ourselves to our baptismal tasks, particularly continuing in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship. One practice common during Lent has been for individuals to take a “fast” – once a fast from sweet, rich foods, the practice is often described now as an opportunity to limit or give up those things which distract us from God. Another common practice during Lent is to “take on” something – to try out a new style of prayer, to read a spiritually uplifting or challenging text, to attend additional worship. Here are some suggestions for how you might explore these practices during Lent 2025:

  • Do Less this Lent: what can you “give up” from your busy schedule to make more space for contemplation or rest? Doomscrolling on social media? A regular, but unproductive meeting? A hobby or commitment you need a break from? A train of thought you’ve been hyper-fixating on?
  • Take on a more traditional Lenten Fast: Fast from a food or beverage that is a part of your daily routine. Use the habit of reaching for that food item as a trigger to reach for God, instead.
  • Read more Scripture: One great way to engage with Scripture during Lent is to read through one or more books of the Bible. Start somewhere relatively “easy” with a Gospel (Mark is the shortest). To get a good overview of a book’s themes and main ideas, check out The Bible Project (https://bibleproject.com, look under “watch” for overviews). They also have some great thematic studies (what does the phrase “water of life” mean?) and other resources (including some reading guides to different length studies you could try).
  • Pick up a Lenten study: Lenten studies often provide a thematic way to carve out some time each day to read, reflect, and pray. Some can be set up as a daily email. Some are available in book form. And some can be loaded to an e-reader, iPad, or your phone as a PDF. (If you find you would like a printed version of one of these PDF-based options, please speak to Pastor Ruth). Here are three, free ones:
    • Kate Bowler, author of a number of books and devotionals focused on approaching God with our fullest humanity (the good, the bad, and the ugly of it), has a Lenten devotional for 2025 entitled “The Hardest Part.” You can find it (and previous years) at: https://katebowler.com/lent/
    • PWRDF (Primates’ World Relief and Development Fund) is being renamed Alongside Hope, but they continue to offer great resources for thinking about God’s action in the world. This year’s was prepared by the Rev Jonathan Rowe and includes Scripture, reflection, prayer prompts, and the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the Anglican Marks of Mission. https://alongsidehope.org/Lent2025/
    • Our Diocesan Missioner for Christian Formation, Jessica Schaap, has put together a 5 week study looking at the words of George Herbert’s poetry and the music of Ralph Vaughn Williams entitled “Five Mystical Songs.” It is available at: https://tinyurl.com/herbertandwilliams.
  • Pray more: One of my favourite ways to “try on” a style of prayer is by using an app or website. Here are few to check out:
  • Listen to a podcast: The Faith Formation section on the diocesan website has a great annotated list of podcasts to consider: https://tinyurl.com/4kpjk93b.
  • Make Sunday Morning a Priority: A season like Lent is a great time to commit to making it to church every Sunday. Most of us find something calls us away at least occasionally, but there’s something about hearing Scripture, praying together, and receiving Communion each week that nourishes us like nothing else.