Struggling through Lent

Lent is about struggling. Jesus struggled against Satan in the desert for forty days. We struggle against idleness by taking on new tasks for the benefit of others. We struggle against forgetfulness of our status as God’s children by taking on new spiritual disciplines. And we struggle against selfishness by undertaking all these efforts as a corporate body.
 
Hymns are full of the language of struggling and overcoming struggles. The traditional Palm Sunday hymn, “The Royal Banners Forward Go” (No. 124 in the old green hymnal), depicts Jesus’s death on the cross as God’s enthronement as king. Jesus’s death is seen as a sign that "God is reigning from the tree" and the blood he shed became a royal purple robe for him. At the end of Lent, this hymn reminds us that our struggling is coming to an end, for our victory comes through Good Friday and on Easter Sunday.
 
I love the language of struggling to think about what we do in Lent. But this hymn reminded me of the dangers of using such language. The banners that are a part of the title of this sixth-century hymn are banners for war. The author of this sixth-century hymn imagined Jesus entering Jerusalem as a military leader returning after winning a battle. This language of struggling and battling has been used to justify wars against people of other faiths and against other Christians throughout history. Jesus was seen as a conqueror of others rather than God who died for all on the cross.
 
Perhaps because of the militaristic imagery in this hymn, it was taken out of our current hymnal. I am sympathetic to those who are uncomfortable with this sort of language in a worship setting. But, I wonder, are we missing anything by giving up on this language? Might there still be a place to use the language of struggling for our Lenten disciplines?
 
As I talked over this question with a friend this week, he provided one suggestion. In spite of the hymn, Jesus did not come into Jerusalem as a heroic victor. His victory, and ours, came through his death. He was an anti-hero. Struggling may still be a useful way of describing the activities we undertake in Lent, if we understand that our victory does not come through our efforts but has already come through Jesus’s death. We struggle not to get ahead in life, but to learn to deny ourselves and take up our cross to follow Christ (Matthew 16:24).

Contributed by Philip
Sunday April 17, 2011
Liturgical Year A: Week 21
Liturgical Color: Purple
Sunday Gospel reading: Passion Sunday