Lenten Reflection: Joshua Bourgeois

I once heard a friend ask, “What if we had just read the Bible, by ourselves, with no knowledge of the Church [ancient or contemporary]. Would we have come to the same conclusions, or at least close enough?”

Now, your short answer and mine are probably the same: no. At the heart of my friend’s question, I believe, was a frustration with doctrinal differences and schisms within the Church. I feel like we’ve all been there. But here's why I say no: tradition matters, and it matters a lot. I’m kicking myself for not remembering the origin of this quote, but it stuck with me: “The Bible is not an instruction manual for a church in shrink wrap…” The prophets and the Apostles were writing to people who were already aware of the Law; they were writing to the early Christians about how to refine their walk with God. They did not build their customs from the ground up, either, but had a long history of tradition. Tradition gives us stability. It saves us from creating something novel and alluring every single Sunday, which eventually will evolve into an ugly thing that is no longer worshiping God but serving our ego. Tradition, as another quote I heard, can be described as the “banks of a river, where the river is set in its course and we can simply jump into the flow, secure in the banks…” Tradition is critical in our lives as Christians. The faith has been passed down, not merely in writing, but in practice from our fathers and mothers. In particular, during this season, I’m talking about Lent.

The Lenten season should not be overlooked. Earlier, I mentioned doctrinal differences. Some Protestant traditions give little to no attention to Lent or other ancient Christian practices, that are in themselves good practices. But here we are! ‘Tis the season to dial back, or eliminate altogether, the things that distract us from God, and in all that spare time we freed up, turn to God. I write this post to myself as much as I write it to you. Don't let Lent be a liturgical blind spot. Eagerly await it every year. Plan for it as much as you plan for Christmas. Prepare yourself by evaluating what you can give up; if you’re not sure, your phone will tell you what apps take up most of your battery life, and examining how you spent your day at the end of every day for, say, three days will tell you where your time has gone. Fill the gaps with prayer. Fill them with reading wisdom from the saints, current Christian writers or monks (the Benedictines and Franciscans are legit) who are way better at meditating than we are. Fill them with Christian podcasts. Your attention is a precious thing. Who do you allow to have it? And how often? Who influences you? And why? Even if you start Lent a little late, 30 out of 40 days ain’t bad. God wants your attention, and He won’t let it go unnoticed. Happy Lent, y’all.

Josh Bourgeois is a Wesley Alum with his Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science and has been married Sarah Bourgeois (former intern) for three years. Josh is passionate about farming and is currently a teacher at Lincoln Prep. Josh and Sarah are both beloved members of our Wesley community.