We do this thing called a daily rhythm here at the university where we hold hands before meal time, listen to a reading together and then pray. Sometimes most of us are focused and are able to think about the reading, sometimes most of us are not and catch ourselves groaning over the content or presence of another reading, and sometimes some of us are just content to hold another's hand for a moment before we eat another meal.
I've had the scary privilege (... perhaps?) of choosing the readings for the last few weeks as our current booklet is a little outdated - as it turns out the Lent of a few years ago just does not line up with this year's... only off by a few weeks. hah. So, I've not only been pulling some readings together for our daily rhythm, but I have also been trying to orient these reflections in a way which engages with Lent, even if simply. I thought that it could be good to put down some of these rhythms on my blog:
Isaiah 58:3-5 (NRSV)
3 "Why do we fast, but you do not see? Why humble ourselves, but you do not notice?" Look, you serve your own interest on your fast day, and oppress all your workers. 4 Look, you fast only to quarrel and to fight and to strike with a wicked fist. Such fasting as you do today will not make your voice heard on high. 5 Is such the fast that I choose, a day to humble oneself? Is it to bow down the head like a bulrush, and to lie in sackcloth and ashes? Will you call this a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord?
As we continue in this season of Lent together, Isaiah 58 provides a poignant counterpoint to the action of fasting in which religiosity is criticized and the question posed: what does it mean to truly fast?
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