Time for a Pause: Lenten Reading and a Few Other Thoughts

It occurred to me, in reflection last week, that Jesus never raised a fist exclaiming to his followers: “Fight!” during the crucifixion. He certainly could have done so when arrested in the Garden or hoisted on the cross. In the accurate depictions of the crucifixion, Jesus is nailed at the wrists, his hands limply open, not rigidly, angrily closed. (The Romans preferred this technique because, unlike nailing hands where the tissue of fingers is thin and the pressure could dislodge the hands, nailing at the wrist provided a better anchor upholding the arms.) Jesus could have tightened his fists. He chose not to. This led me to think about anger and revenge, two realities that make us clench our fists and force bitter, angry words like, “fight!”

Later this week, and to my chagrin, I noticed that preceding and during the President’s address, many congresspersons pumped their clenched fists into the air in faux adulation and even at one point chanted, “fight, fight, fight.” Some of the guests in the gallery who stood at their acknowledgement by the President also raised clenched fists. Have we become a nation of ferocity rather than peace? Was the legislative chamber of our country perched on a wall, spears aloft, clenching their fists and shouting “fight,” ready to leap against adversaries like a phalanx of warriors from Braveheart? Have we forgotten Jesus’s warning: “Those who live by the sword will perish by it.” (Matthew 26:52)

Reflection

You and I are given plenty of material to fold into our souls and work into our minds and hearts for prayer and peaceful action this Lent. Can we open our hands a little more often and give a helping hand somewhere to someone? Maybe a bit of solid meditation on the importance of opened hands as ministry would help our spirituality these next 40 days. We cannot welcome anyone when we approach with a clenched fist. Open hands reflect an open heart. Let’s pray to be brave enough to live this way.

Some excellent Lenten reading:

Now, of course, I am no professional reviewer of books, but I spend a lot of time reading reviewers before I get a book from the library or purchase it. That in mind, I’ve cobbled a Lenten reading list for you and I think you will like whichever ones you choose. Remember: these are books with a spiritual theme; they do not promote any faith or religion but they are grounded in belief in God and God’s overwhelming love for us.

Little Detours by Regina Brett – Even reading the table of contents, for example: God is Rarely Early But, Never Too Late, and Don’t Lose Your Wild, will give you a positive jolt for handling disappointments in life. Brett is a prize-winning author and one of her books, God Never Blinks, was on the The New York Times Best Seller List for quite a while. She is a former columnist for The Cleveland Plain Dealer. I love her succinct, humorous, serious style. 

Touch the Wounds by Tomas Halik, a Czech priest-professor, who argues that “Christians discover the clearest vision of God not by turning away from suffering but by confronting it.” Halik uses the narrative of Jesus appearing to the apostle Thomas and a theological basis  for this argument. I found this book to be enlightening and spiritually profound especially for this season in the Church year.

Jesus of Nazareth by Gerhard Lohfink is an understandable text with a theological explanation of who Jesus was within our faith and should be within our hearts as believers. You will particularly be drawn to the chapters, Decision in Jerusalem, Dying for Israel, and His Last Day, as meaningful during Holy Week. 

Jesus: A Pilgrimage by James Martin, SJ is an account of Martin’s journey in the Holy Land with a Jesuit friend. It is a large book but it reads quickly and gives you insights you won’t find even in a well-written travelogue of the country. At times it is humorous, especially when the two Jesuits disagree on the best roads to take or the time of day best suited for hiking in desert heat. If you select the sections related to Lenten narratives in the Gospels, you will find this book helpful for your prayer and reflection.

Hope: The Autobiography of Pope Francis written with Carlo Musso. I have not read this book but thumbing through it I am intrigued and cannot wait to read it. It is the first autobiography ever written by a pope and it comes in time for the theme of the Holy Year: Hope. Francis electrifies the world with his humane approach to doctrine and his loyalty to the Gospel. He now lives on the edge of eternity. The book appears at a significant time as he writes: “We Christians must know that hope doesn’t deceive and doesn’t disappoint: All is born to blossom in an eternal springtime.”

Sunflower Seeds of Hope by Sister Melannie Svoboda, SND, is a refreshing excursion through the four seasons of the earth and how we might grow, like the seeds, to the fullness of our spiritual lives. It is a book full of practical wisdom, wonderful humor, and delightful applications of spiritual insights for daily life. It is an edited collection of Melannie’s blogs since 2012 each blog accompanied by reflection questions and a few responses from readers when the blog appeared. 

In full disclosure I must add that Regina Brett and Melannie Svoboda are dear friends of mine and have been for many years. But that doesn’t soften my eye to their writing. What does soften it is knowing their personal, deep love for God and human beings and all of nature that seeps, like rich veins, into everything they write. I hope you select some of these books for Lent.