What do you do in Lent?

When talking to Muslims it is often important to try to get into the mind of these friends and neighbours. When we are in the Christian season of Lent they will often ask, ‘What you do in Lent?’ That may be a hard question for many of us to answer – generally, we carry on as normal. The six and a half weeks of Lent (if you include the Sundays), which used to be excluded, means about 40 days, corresponding to the 40 days Jesus spent in the desert (being tempted). But the question, ‘What do you do?’ remains the same. We have a slap-up meal on the evening before Lent begins, but we’re not quite sure why – pancakes are nice any day of the year!

And inevitably our Muslim friends will ask, ‘Do you fast?’ And here we have an obvious connecting point. Often around Lent we will find our Muslim friends in, or preparing for, Ramadan, the annual time (30 days) when fasting during the hours of daylight is obligatory for those who are physically able. Each day it is completed by the Iftar meal, which is experienced by the community coming together for a lot of food and drink – stocking up for the abstinence the following day, which if in summer can be very long and hard. It is the community aspect that is so important, and Muslims who never attend the prayers at the Mosque or are not very devout will often join in the community activity of fasting.

It is with that expectation that our Muslim friends ask us Christians how we celebrate our equivalent time of Lent. Apart from a few days in the Roman Catholic calendar, fasting has never been something that is considered obligatory for Christians. However, it is a good topic to consider when building relationships with Muslim friends. I’m always having to explain that Christianity is not a legalistic religion – we worship God out of love for him, not out of compulsion. ‘But what do you do, to show your love for him?’ and ‘What do you do to show your love and devotion?’ It has meant that I have developed a way of fasting that I’ve practiced for the last 15+ years. From Ash Wednesday to Easter Day I give up a number of things that I am very fond of (to control my addictions, I tell my family and friends) – tea, coffee and alcohol, and cheese, which normally I consume in large quantities! It does make Easter Day even more special, as I tuck into my favourite Stilton. In addition, I will miss meals and try to use the time for prayer – if I miss out on food it will be from the evening meal through the next day and then break the fast at Breakfast (!). But for health reasons now I do this rarely. I never give up water and certainly don’t make a show of it, not advertising what I’m doing. I keep it private and personal – known to me and my Lord.

I explain this to my Muslim friend – it seems so strange to him. It’s not much of a sacrifice, it’s pretty light in terms of hardship (doesn’t feel like it at the time!), and it doesn’t have that wonderful sense of community. But it provides a conversation about Lent – Jesus’ 40 days in the desert, his wrestling with the devil and his preparation for His public ministry and its culmination in his death and resurrection. ‘So why do it if you don’t have to?’ my friend asks. So I explain that my three aims are: it gives me time to pray and think (possibly reading a book), it means that I feel hunger just a little, in solidarity with the millions in our world who live hungry (and we’re hearing that fasting is good for our health) and, for me, it allows me to lose some of those extra pounds that seem to appear without any effort of mine.

And the celebration on Easter Day with the Christian community is all the more special as I sip my first cup of tea for nearly seven weeks.

This all provides a wonderful talking point with my Muslim friends, as we explore the differences in our two faiths. Engaging with Muslim friends is always challenging, as they will ask the hard questions – my response has always been to meet these challenges and to increase my devotion to Jesus, and to be prepared to talk about it, when the occasion arises.

May God bless you both in your celebration of Lent and in your friendships with Muslims.

Phil R of the Mahabba Network