I Like Lent

OOdd though it sounds I really like Lent.  Not because I feel overwhelming guilt and the need to atone, nor (merely) because I am a miserable so and so and solemnity suits me better than joyful arm-waving Alleluias, though both are true.  No, mainly I think, because it is a time when it is deemed OK to be quiet.

Many of the major celebrations of the Christian church tend to be noisy affairs, both liturgically and musically, and Lent is not.

Both the liturgy and the music are more restrained, allowing time for reflection and contemplation and even the way the church is 'dressed' is unobtrusive.

This year, along with millions of others I have chosen to give up certain things.  Chocolate of course, cake, sweets, some habitual behaviours which I am better without, but additionally, this year i have chosen to start to read the Bible.  From the first page to the last will be a considerable task, since I intend to really read it rather than skim.

Starting to try to absorb the meaning of familiar words can take considerable time and concentration and I am aware that it will not be possible to complete my task before Easter, but I will continue until I have done so.

There is  no sense of enforcement this year, rather, I feel a sense of anticipation before opening a new page each day and even if it makes no sense to anyone else, for me it gives a feeling of achievement and fulfilment.

This evening is choir practice for Sunday's service where we will once more sing one of the anthems by Farrant.  I love his melancholy and measured music, solemn though it may be and feel totally comfortable with his beautiful settings.

Also today, though it is February, a month I dislike, it has been sunny and almost warm and I am beginning to reclaim my garden.

Lovely Lent.