A “National Fast” once helped our nation through struggle. In his first for TJP, Alvaro Pacheco, SJ explores what such a fast could look like for us in our times—both at the end of this Lent and beyond.
Posts in Lent
Returning to God in a Home Depot Parking Lot
What does it mean to return to God with your whole heart? In his first reflection for TJP, Will Hayes, SJ recounts an Ash Wednesday service among migrant day laborers that reveals how God’s invitations often meet us in the most ordinary places.
Finding Hope in Christ the Innocent Lamb
How are humans meant to understand suffering? Jackson Graham, SJ, reflects on a fable by Jane Collier and how it shows us the way that Christ, the true Lamb, empathizes with and accompanies us in our own experiences of suffering.
Ask God First: Rethinking Our Lenten Sacrifice
Before Lent, we often feel a rush of anxiety or excitement as we try to answer the question: “what are you giving up?” As we prepare to enter this new liturgical season, Eric invites us to ask a deeper question, considering what God might desire for us in this time.
Beavers, Muskrats, and the Real Invitation of Lent
As Lent approaches, Brennan Dour, SJ, reflects on the curious historical case of Catholics in New France classifying beavers as fish during Lent, and the reminder it offers that Lent’s purpose is not a rigid intensifying of rules, but God’s invitation to grow closer to him whatever our circumstances.
The Invitation of Holy Saturday: Patient Trust
Holy Saturday spans the cross and the empty tomb. In life, we often find ourselves in such liminal spaces waiting for our suffering to have meaning. Jason explores this mystery reflecting on his experience hiking in Guatemala.
From Running Shoes to a Running Spirit
As we prepare to witness the Washing of the Feet this Holy Thursday, Patrick reflects on his time working with marathon runners and how we might better prepare to be disciples.
Abstinence from Meat as Lifelong Discipleship of Christ
Abstaining from meat is more than an ascetic practice when we know of the harms caused by the meat industry. Daniel explores how our Christian living of God’s hopes for kindness in this world might require us to abstain from meat beyond these forty days of Lent.
What’s the Value of a Grammy? How Ignatian Spirituality can Explain Miley Cyrus’s Acceptance Speech
Miley Cyrus is no longer the mere child star many might know her as. After winning her first major award, her acceptance speech highlighted tensions in the spiritual life that we might be experiencing this Lent.
Lent is a Time for Retreat
Jesus spent forty days and forty nights in the desert before he began his public ministry, and it prepared him for everything after. Ian Peoples, SJ, reflects on how Lent is a time of retreat and preparation.