This webpage gives some suggestions for activities/prayers during Lent.
The Three S’s of Lent
Taken from Rev Gary’s reflections in the February Parish Magazine
Lent is fast approaching, it’s earlier this year! Will it be business as usual, or are you planning to do something different? Traditionally, Lent leaves many of us wondering what we should give-up, or perhaps take-up. Many people want to keep a good, and perhaps holy, Lent, but are unsure as to how to go about it. Peter J. Gomes, former Chaplain to Harvard University, suggests that we organise our Lenten practices around the three S’s of: Silence, Study and Service.
For ‘Silence’ he recommends that we find time for 15 minutes of absolute quiet at least once a week during Lent. This, he said, could be scheduled forany appropriate place at any time, though he did counsel against scheduling the silent time for bedtime, saying wisely, ‘You will fall asleep, and although sleep is silent, it is not the silence of which we speak!’ See what happens in the silence?
For ‘Study’, again he advises setting aside 15 minutes one day a week for some ordered reading of suitable texts. To those who wish to read from the Bible, he proposes working through one of the 4 Gospels, or reading through the psalms. You may also consider reading the Archbishop’s recommended Lent book for 2024, ‘Tarry Awhile’ by Selina Stone. See what stands out for
you?
In relation to ‘Service’, Gomes again suggests a 15 minute investment each week, this time in some work of charity or kindness, lest we (in his words) become ‘too private and self-absorbed.’ How can you help someone else? To those who might say that these 15 minute recommendations, a total of just 45 minutes a week, are hopelessly inadequate, Gomes offers this reply:
‘It is better to succeed in little than to fail in much, and more Christians have been lost to the faith by attempting so much that they are destined to fail, unable to do anything. Spiritually, as in other matters, we must crawl before we walk, and walk before we run or leap. My counsel is to try the routine as proposed until at least mid-Lent and then adjust it as you wish.’
Watch and Pray
The Church of England’s Lent theme for 2024 is Watch and Pray: Wisdom and hope for Lent and life.
This year’s resources have been inspired and informed by the 2024 Archbishop of Canterbury’s Lent book, Tarry Awhile: Wisdom from Black Spirituality for people of faith by Selina Stone (SPCK). The daily reflections booklet for adults (CHP) exploring the same themes has been written by Carlton Turner, and there is also a daily challenge booklet for children and families (CHP).
Watch and Pray invites us to seek God in both familiar and unfamiliar places this Lent: in darkness and in quiet; in movement and migration; in the healing and transforming work of the Spirit; in the weeping of Holy Week and in the joy of Easter morning.
- Reflections via email: Sign up and get free daily Lent reflection emails (except Sundays) delivered straight to your inbox from Ash Wednesday to Easter Day. Our daily emails will offer Bible readings, short reflections and a practical challenge, as well as prayers linked to weekly themes.
- Reflection booklets: Daily reflections will also be available as booklets for both adults and children and are available to pre-order from Church House Publishing.
- Campaign app: The free Watch and Pray app for both iOS and Android will be released in early February. Sign up to make sure you get an email as soon as it becomes available.
- Smart speakers: Audio versions of the Lent reflections will also be available for free on Alexa-enabled smart devices from Ash Wednesday (14 February).
To learn more, go to Watch and Pray – Resources for Lent 2024 | The Church of England.
Carbon Fast for Lent
This Lent, we encourage you to take up our Lent challenge – living more simply and finding new ways to cut your carbon footprint.
How the Carbon Fast works:
Beginning on 14th Feb, you will receive a weekly email containing some key facts, suggestions for how you could reduce your carbon footprint, and a prayer. Sign up for the 2024 Carbon Fast for Lent at: https://www.climatestewards.org/resources/carbon-fast/
Connect with our Creator and God’s creation during Lent
EcoChurch Resources from A Rocha
The 40-day Lent period before Easter gives us the opportunity to reflect on the practice of fasting and commit to giving up something that brings a real benefit to nature and helps address climate change. Keep reading for ideas to use as a church, as a family or as an individual.
Connect with our Creator and God’s creation during Lent – A Rocha UK
Foodbank – AdLent
Donate an item of food each day throughout Lent to the CCP box at St Peter’s or to another Foodbank. See examples from Wetherby and District Foodbank’s AdLent 2024 Campaign in the list below:
