Articles - From the Vicar

On reaching the gates of Canterbury early in 1171, on his way to atone for his role in the murder of Thomas à Becket, Henry II is said to have donned a hair shirt. These garments, made from horsehair and coarse wool and worn next to the skin, were used extensively by Christians in the Middle Ages for both penitential and ascetic purposes. If you were a penitent, the discomfort induced by the garment made you determined not to repeat the offence; while if you were an ascetic the same discomfort was thought to divert your thoughts from sin, the world and the devil and so keep you safely under the banner of Christ.

Asceticism and penitence are two words often associated with Lent, the season of preparation for Easter upon which we embarked at the very end of February. Personal asceticism in Lent is nowadays usually limited to a pledge to give something up, a custom that is still surprisingly widespread even amongst those who would not regard themselves as practising Christians. Such a custom, though often based on a somewhat partial understanding of Lent, can nevertheless provide Christians with a constructive starting point in their attempts to spread the news about the significance of Lent, Holy Week and Easter for the Christian community.

For that community itself, however, both asceticism and penitence can and should have a corporate as well as a personal dimension. Giving something up for Lent might make us feel good about ourselves. But Jesus' answer to the question 'Who is my neighbour?' serves to remind the Church of the dangers of institutional complacency when faced with the needs of those who have nothing to give up, who exist on the edge of society's highways. Lent challenges us to remember that it is only by collective obedience to the Gospel demands of justice and peace that the Church will be enabled to travel as the Samaritan once did from Jerusalem to Jericho: with eyes fully open.