'O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity —
greedy, dishonest, adulterous — or even like this tax collector.
I fast twice a week,
Luke 8:11-12
It can be argued that these days it is good to "survey a scene" or size up a situation when we are shopping or doing errands, and we base our thoughts on our experience to keep us safe and alert, rather than walking around on "autopilot", staring into our phone screens of listening to music with our ear buds. As we evaluate our Lenten commitments are we also "sizing up" what our family, friends or coworkers are doing around us? Are we quick to say to someone, most likely an absent minded family member: Oh you are eating meat today, did you forget it's Friday? I do not think and I was taught that is not the real reason for Lenten abstinence and fasting. It isn't to show others how much will power you have, or to look around and judge the degree of someone else's commitment.
One of my favorite Lenten stories to share, is when my children were in middle school eating pb and j's on a Friday and at a table with students who didn't recognize the Lenten season, and who were eating hot dogs. I still don't know of a way to send pb and j's to school without the sandwich becoming a mushy mess. At this big table the conversation, my children said, turned very interesting as each student talked about a type of fasting and why they fast, with some from other faiths who recognized actual fasting from food, and others thinking about it for the first time. And all of that over hot dogs, eaten by some, and the pb and j's enjoyed in all of their mushiness. Conversation, dialogue, with a polite respect for others' traditions and beliefs, I think will go alot further to bringing civility, peace and healing, which our communities all need, rather than who gave up what and how long did they last abstaining from it.
