Spiritual Reflection
Five Lenten Rules for the Road
By Canon Andrew Rank
As we begin another Lenten season, given the difficulty of our times, here are five rules for the road that can be of great assistance as we journey forward in our quest for spiritual growth:
1. Trust the process, it works. God is here. As one who has participated in many alcohol interventions, I’ve seen people at the start overwhelmed with fear and doubt, only to emerge from a treatment center a month later healthy and with a new lease on life. I’ve seen countless numbers of people go to their first AA meeting ready to run for the hills, only to be proudly leading meetings, healthy and sober a year later. The process of spiritual growth and coming to terms with our demons works. God guarantees it because God is at the center of it.
2. Push against the darkness. All growth comes through pain and struggle. After struggle comes the peace, not before. Although Henri Matisse was nearly 28 years younger than Auguste Renoir, the two great artists were dear friends and frequent companions. When crippling arthritis confined Renoir to his home during the last decade of his life, Matisse visited him daily. Renoir, almost paralyzed by arthritis, continued to paint in spite of his infirmities. One day as Matisse watched the elder painter working in his studio, fighting torturous pain with each brush stroke, he blurted out: "Auguste, why do you continue to paint when you are in such agony?" Renoir answered simply: "The beauty remains; the pain passes." And so, almost to his dying day, Renoir put paint to canvas. Renoir completed one of his most famous paintings, The Bathers, just two years before his death and 14 years after this disabling disease struck him.
3. Keep plodding. Jonathon Hunt was born in Paxton, Massachusetts in 1760. He was only fifteen years old when he fought in the siege of Boston. However, Jonathon served with distinction in his country’s fight for autonomy and independence as a private from the Battle of Bunker Hill to the English surrender. He was one of those valiant soldiers in General Washington's army who almost froze to death during the winter at Valley Forge. After discharge from the army, Hunt moved to what is now New York State near the Pennsylvania border, married, farmed, and raised ten children. One of his descendants is our own Canon Barnabas Hunt.
4. Don't get discouraged. In 1209, Francis of Assisi led his first eleven brothers to Rome to seek permission from Pope Innocent III to found a new religious order. At first, his attempt to speak with the Pope was refused. However, the next night, Pope Innocent had a dream in which the church was falling apart and a poor man appeared to hold it up. The next day, recalling the poor man from Assisi, Pope Innocent recognized him as the man he saw in his dream, and decided to change his verdict.
5. Act as if everything depends on you. Pray as if everything depends on God. Mary Mendoza was appalled at the conditions of the Le Mesa Prison in Tijuana, Mexico. The facility was overcrowded. Within its walls lived not only prisoners but also their wives and children of all ages who had no place else to go. The children were undernourished and uneducated. Disease was rampant in this environment. Although Mary Mendoza had no money, she had a great heart and prayed that God would show her the way. Mary began by renting a small house near the prison grounds and preparing breakfast for the children. Through Mary Mendoza’s hard work and prayer Dorcas House was born. Today it is a ministry of St. Paul’s Cathedral and supported by many parishes and individuals in southern California. Up to fifty boys and girls from Kindergarten age to high school live there and call it home. This year we have students applying for college scholarships! We have regular busloads of people visiting Dorcas House on VolunTour weekends. Our Bishop and Dean celebrated the Eucharist there the Sunday after Thanksgiving. Terri Mathes helped cook a traditional Thanksgiving Dinner. It was a great weekend.
With these five rules for the road as our guide, we can all reap the rewards of spiritual growth during this holy season
