From the Vicar

February 2012

Dear Friends,

Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, a day for fasting and abstinence with the opportunity to be anointed with the sign of the cross made from the burnt palm crosses of last year, as a sign of our repentance of sin before God, and that without God's love and life giving Spirit, we will one day become and remain eternal dust.

Lent offers us the opportunity for spiritual growth and reflection and please do use the opportunities provided by each of the Christian fellowships within the town to meet and discuss; to pray; to take on a personal commitment to do something that draws you to God and enables you to reflect on the passion and resurrection of Our Lord.

Lent is derived from Anglo-Saxon, `Lencten' which means lengthening days. In the Early Church the period was one of preparation for people to be baptized at Easter, and, for some, to be reconciled with the Church at Easter after they may have been estranged through sin. The weeks of Lent were established as ones for penitence and amendment of life, and preparing for one of the highlights of the year, the Easter Communion. Forty days recall the time Jesus spent in the wilderness being tempted during the preparation for His ministry. Forty days is long enough for you to remember your experience and feel that you have been refreshed and emptied of the things that hold us back from embracing God.

Don't be tempted just to give up something in Lent that you know isn't good for you, but to be prepared to discover what God has given you (a task; responsibilities; your gifts and talents etc) and to ask and discern how these are or could be used in serving God within the world, our community, our relationships etc. How does God give meaning and direction to your life?

Lent gives you permission to remove things that distract you on your journey of discovery. Lent encourages you to have some `me time' with God, to be still before Him, to reflect and pray, to think about the meaning of the Cross. You don't have to be good at spirituality to get the most out of Lent, but to just want to put and find God in your life and activity.

Please contact the local Christian communities for details of their Lenten activities, or to ask for support and help to make Lent 2012 a meaningful experience. With love and prayers.