#lent devotion

Bonswa zanmi:  Today is Fat Tuesday, or Mardi Gras, the last day of partying before tomorrow’s Ash Wednesday which is the beginning of the Lenten Season.

Vodouizan of all stripes observe Lent in some way. Most Vodouizan also practice Catholicism and will do typical Catholic Things during Lent: go to Mass, say the Rosary, etc. Some Vodou houses completely shut down during Lent and have no ceremonies at all, and their clergy do no work for clients. Others shut down only during Holy Week. 

This is a time of spiritual reflection, of spending more time in prayer and meditation. Many people use fasting and abstinence during Lent to focus on the spiritual side of life and put less emphasis on the body. 

What you do to observe Lent (if you do so) is up to you, but here are a few suggestions:

-If you’re Catholic-minded, try going to Mass once a week during Lent. Tell your spirits (if you already serve the lwa) that you’re going to Mass and they can come with you and you’re doing this for them. Offering Mass for your spirits is an excellent way to “feed” them spiritually.

-Give up a bad habit. Some people do things like give up chocolate or alcohol for Lent, and that’s great if it works for you. But you can also do things like give up criticizing others, or gossiping. It’s good to pick something that you struggle with, and use the time of Lent to replace that habit with something positive

-Set aside a specific amount of time per day for prayer, meditation, or writing in a journal. 

-Do charity for others. It could be as simple as forgoing snacks for a week and giving that money to the poor. You could volunteer at a soup kitchen. You could write to someone in prison. Be creative!

Bonjou Zanmi. Well, Carnival season has come and gone as of midnight last night. Today is Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent.

Most Vodouizan are also practicing Catholics, so they will likely follow Catholic Lenten practices. Some of these include:

-Fasting on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday (Catholic Church fasting rules are that you abstain from meat, and you only eat one full meal that day, and the option of 2 small meals that put together aren’t as big as the main meal; also, no eating between meals)

-Getting your head marked with ashes on Ash Wednesday

-Giving up a bad habit or abstaining from a practice (i.e., giving up chocolate or alcohol)

Most Vodou houses won’t hold any fetes during Lent; some manbos and houngans don’t do any magic work or readings for clients during this time. I won’t be doing readings or magic during Holy Week, the week that leads up to Easter. The idea is to give your lwa a time to rest and recharge. Your focus should be on God and contemplative prayer.

Even if you don’t identify as Catholic, there are some things you could do to deepen your spiritual connection to God and to the world during this Lent season:

1. Try giving up a habit; stop gossiping on Twitter or Facebook, stop smoking and give the money you would have spent on cigs to charity.

2. Volunteer: even if it’s one shift spent stocking shelves at a food pantry, that’s a donation of positive energy.

3. Visit someone who’s a shut in, or has no friends or family. Go to a nursing home and spend time with the residents; I can tell you that, as a nurse, the number one killer of the elderly is loneliness.

4. Write a letter to a soldier serving in the military; they love getting mail. One website that can help is Operation Gratitude

5. Write a letter through Amnesty International for a political prisoner. .

6. Commit to spending 5-10 minutes in prayer per day. 

7. For the Catholic minded among you, there’s always the Rosary. Even if you can do just one decade a day, it’s a great devotion.

Have you ever been in a place in your life where you have thought, “I never thought I would ever be here.” Maybe your health declined. Maybe a tragedy happened and you felt alone. Maybe God moved you to the other side of the country or world, away from all that was familiar. You felt alone and by yourself. 

Jeremiah reassures you that you’re never alone. God is with you. He has a plan for you even in the unfamiliar. He’s with you to give you peace, a future, and a hope. He wants you to call on Him and pray. Tell Him all that is on your mind. Every hurt. Every fear. Every disappointment. He wants to hear it all. He’s the ultimate listener. He actually yearns to listen to all that’s on your mind. 

In this moment, right where you are, lay it all out to Him. He’s listening.