40
Matthew, Mark, and Luke all agree that Jesus went out to the desert for forty days. Matthew and Luke somewhat agree on what happened out there. Mark gives few details. Christendom built Lent around this forty day time, not including Sundays. Depending on what branch of Christian witness one practices, Lent is a time of recognizing one’s own temptations that separate a believer from God. It is a time to “give up” that which tempts you or to do without something that feels necessary for life to connect more with the passion of Jesus which Christian tradition thinks of as Jesus’ last 48 hrs of life. I would argue that Jesus’ passion is best understood in the Sermon on the Mount [Matthew 5 and Luke 6:20-49]. It has been my experience that Christians observing Lent often blend several different interpretations of Lent traditions to create their discipline for these forty days.
I was sitting in a Sunday school class with junior high and high school youth the Sunday before the beginning of Lent which is marked by Ash Wednesday. The conversation was centered on what, the adults leading and the youth present, would be doing or giving up during Lent. Many spoke of the Internet, soda, or texting. Some spoke of not bringing their device to the dinner table. Some talked of adding journaling and prayer to their day. I suggested adding silence, forty minutes of silence, to their day. Turn off the phone. No music. No reading. No distractions. No talking. Silence. Eyes open or eyes closed. Pick one spot or a different place to sit in silence and listen. I wonder, could you stay awake for forty minutes just sitting in silence?
In the film, “The Last Temptation of Christ,” there is a scene with just Jesus and John the Baptist. Judas watches from above a short distance away while Jesus and the Baptist talk sitting near a small fire. It is evening, maybe the evening following Jesus’ baptism. John and Jesus are arguing about the state of the world. They are arguing about their individual visions and interpretation of the mission given them by God. Does the world need a heart that loves it or a hand with an ax to change it? They don’t agree.
The Baptist asks, “If you won’t listen to me who will you listen to?”
“God.” replies Jesus.
The Baptist responds, “The God of Israel is the God of the desert. If you want to speak to him [sic] then you’ll have to go to the desert. Be careful. God isn’t alone out there.”
(“The Last Temptation of Christ.” Paul Schrader, screenplay. Based on a novel by Nikos Kazantzakis. Martin Scorsese director. 1988)
People that know me might be surprised that I like silence. I discovered silence my second year of college thanks to a TCU religion professor and his course about mysticism. Hat tip to Dr. Andrew Fort and the TCU Religion department. It was a Buddhist Temple in Arlington, TX where I discovered how silence challenged me; and continues to challenge me today. That’s what I’m doing during Lent this year. Forty minutes of silence every day, including the weekend. No, car time doesn’t count for me. Part of the silence is being still. Not exactly safe to do behind the wheel of my Jetta.
Would you teach me silence?” I asked.
“Ah!” He seemed pleased. “Is it the Great Silence that you want?”
“Yes, the Great Silence.”
“Well, where do you thin it’s to be found?” he asked.
“Deep within me, I suppose. If only I could go deep within. I’m sure I’d escape the noise at last. But it’s hard. Will you help me?” I knew he would. I could feel his concern, and his spirit was so silent.“Well, I’ve been there,” he answered. “I spent years going in. I did taste the silence there. But one day Jesus came — maybe it was my imagination — and said to me simply, ‘Come, follow me.’ I went out, and I’ve never gone back.”
I was stunned. “But the silence . . .”
“I’ve found the Great Silence, and I’ve come to see that the noise was inside.”
(Theophane the Monk, Tales of a Magic Monastery, (Crossroad: New York) 1994. p 55)
I read one of these parables before my silence.
Leven [Matt 13.33b, Luke 13:20b-21]
Good Samaritan [Luke 10:30-37]
Dishonest Steward [Luke 16:1-9]
Vineyard Laborers [Matthew 20:1=15]
Mustard Seed [Matthew 13:31b-32 / Mark 4:31-32 / Luke 13:19]
The last input, stimuli before my silence is often a song by U2 . . .
or Pink Floyd.
PS: I’m not usually a gospel music or Christian praise music person. I don’t listen to Christian radio because it is not my theological palate, but this song by the Del McCoury Band represents a theology that I think Jesus of Nazareth would tap a toe to.