Tag: Christianity

It’s February 2nd. Happy Candlemas to you!

February 2nd is Candlemas and if you are a devout Christian you likely know about it and celebrate it. For most, however, it is likely a forgotten event, unlike Christmas or Easter.

I think that’s too bad. I like the idea of a ceremony that creates blessed candles “to be lighted at times of stress – during storms, in sickrooms and at the bedside of the dying” (as this piece explains). We could all use such candles, whatever our beliefs, to get us through hard times. Even to get us through winter.

If you are struggling to get through this difficult winter and this difficult month, might I suggest you acquire your own blessed candles — even if you have to bless them yourself — and get them out and light them when the time arises. You deserve no less.

P.S. When it comes to February, Austin Kleon provides plenty of ways to look at the month in a positive way. I’ve written about that here and here. I also recommend you check out this post he made in 2023.

P.S.S. If you are wondering if there are other -mas holidays you’d like to know about, I’ll direct you to this. There are ALOT, including Michaelmas, Marymas, Hallowmas, and many more.

Image is of the painting “Candles” by Gerhard Richter.

 

On Lent, Sacrifice, and Giving Things Up


Atheists and agnostics like myself sometimes find themselves longing for or at least missing elements of the religious life. (Alain de Botton explored this in his book, Religion for Atheists.) One of these are periods of reflection and sacrifice, like Lent. Some people support something like a secular Lent, while others argue that “secular Lent” misses the point, and that:

Lent, fundamentally, is about facing the hardest elements of human existence — suffering, mortality, death. That the season has turned into giving up Twitter shows that we haven’t gotten good at talking about them yet.

Agreed. But that doesn’t mean you can’t benefit from making personal sacrifices for a period of time in order to see yourself and your place in the world in a new and different way. A period of chosen sacrifice can be a spiritual practice no matter what you believe. And choosing to do it at this time of year may be the best time to do it.

If you agree and you want help with quitting something, this can help. If you want to know more about Lent, this can help. If you are not religious but this appeals to you, consider reading de Botton’s book.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do.