Saturday, February 29, 2020

Lent and O Canada

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I decided that I would stir myself to blog, after my absence yesterday and being slow off the mark today. I have been enjoying the sunshine, getting outside to walk and ski. And there is something about the week past which has got me pondering, listening, rather than speaking via this Lion Lamb platform, such as it is.

There has been a lot written about how Canada is broken, as our relationship with Indigenous peoples is a mess, and regions of the country are carping at one another in an endless blame-game, The looming pandemic of COVID19 sure doesn't help, and a Canadian hero, Jean Vanier, has been exposed as a predator and a liar. We also seem to be incapable of addressing what we have declared as a climate emergency. 

In a way the coincidence of this "winter of our discontent" and the commencement of Lent make sense. Sometimes we have to sift through the ashes and take stock of our mistakes and self-absorption on the road to healing and, yes, resurrection. I don't believe that Canada is as busted as some want us to believe. 

I do think we need to repent and develop new ways of living as people who have been blessed in so many ways while others have been marginalized and suffered. We need to figure out how to live within our carbon means and not just hum louder as the world heats up. We need to remember that the persons we put on pedestals tend to tumble off, and ask how we can all live in a manner which respects others. 

I wonder how I can make the decisions to do this as a Christian who can make a difference where I live, today. I still have most of those 40 days of reflection and contemplation to prayerfully do so. 

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