Lent - Food for thought, word and deed

When we were children, we always asked one another "What are you giving up for Lent?" Invariably it involved denying ourselves candy or chocolate. As we grew older, the realization that we benefited from this kind of fasting took the wind out of our sails and we began to question what we could do that had real meaning. "What are you doing for lent? We started going to daily mass before school, fasting and putting the money we would have spent in to the Lenten collection.

What are you doing for Lent? takes on more meaning as we grow in relationship with God and understand and appreciate the sacrifices He made for us so that we could have eternal life with Him. What can we do with a JPIC focus?

Stan Lemieux, St. Patrick's Fraternity, Montreal sent us Lentsanity, Focus's Social Media campaign to help fellow Catholic students prepare their Lenten resolutions. It's worth a visit for food for thought.

Our National JPIC animator also encourages us to try to link charity to real change. Please visit our Event page to learn more about Development and Peace's (D&P) 2014 Share Lent Campaign. Among the great material they have prepared are two interesting videos: Salt & Light's A New Leaf about West Africa and D&P's  On the Road to Food Sovereignty about Haiti. Both of these link charity to real change i.e. structural sustainable change for the poor.

What are you doing for justice, peace and integrity of creation during Lent? We would love to hear from you. Please use the comment box to tell us what you decide and how you get on.