Must be More : Mardi Gras

Mardi Gras is French (or Haitian Creole) meaning "Fat Tuesday", referring to the practice of the last night of eating richer, fatty foods before the ritual fasting of Lent, which begins on Ash Wednesday.  It can also be called Shrove Tuesday, with "shrove" meaning "confess".


Carnival, meaning "removal of meat", is just another name for the three day celebration of Mardi Gras right before Ash Wednesday.

Celebrated in many places with parades, costumes, dancing and music, some cultures, especially in the Portuguese culture of Brazil, the French culture of Louisiana, and some of the Caribbean cultures such as Trinidad and Haiti, have tended to take on the excesses of wild and drunken revelry.  (which is why I can barely hear myself THINK tonight!)

However, this was originally a festival practiced by the same people who would be fasting during the season of Lent.  The forty days of Lent (Creole "Karèm") is associated with the a trial or preparation in the stories of Noah, Moses and Jonah.  Following in the footsteps of Adam's road and Israel's 40 years of testing, Jesus was taken by the Spirit into the desert for 40 days, fasting instead of following Adam and the Israelites in demanding the food they craved.


But He didn't just fast.  He also resisted Satan's temptation with God's Word... Jesus was the Last Adam and the unwavering, Faithful Israel who fulfilled the trial not only for Himself, but also for us.


Therefore, Lent wasn't historically only a time to fast from foods like Jesus did, but to flee from sin, like Jesus did.  Because people were entering into a time when they were seeking to resist the temptation to sin, as Jesus did in the wilderness, Mardi Gras was originally created as a chance to "get your sins in there" and eat as much as you can (hence: Fat Tuesday) just 
before you had to be like Jesus.


The church in Haiti tries to combat carnal celebrations of Mardi Gras by holding youth retreats at various churches that include 3 or 4 other sister churches.  Matt, Junior and Leandre are spending Monday morning teaching at one such retreat, and the church here in Saccanville is hosting 50 youth from two other churches.  Most of our students are involved in such "set apart" retreats today and tomorrow.   


I wonder if perhaps many Christians' discomfort with Lent today comes simply from a repugnance toward Mardi Gras and its traditional indulgence in sin. 


Perhaps many Christians have also chosen not to observe Lent because we have wrongly considered Lenten fasting, giving things up, ash on your forehead, etc., as evidence that we believe we must do these things to be saved.  


We believe we were saved by grace--and therefore don't have to do any of that!  


But maybe Lent isn't about having to do anything at all.  


That's getting into the really good stuff for tomorrow...


For now, I'm dwelling on what Matt shared at a little tarp church in La Plonge Sunday morning. 


"The death of Jesus does not grant us license to sin.  He never sinned.  We never should.  The same Holy Spirit that dwelled in Him he shares with us.  Because of this, we never have permission to indulge in what is flesh, in what is carnal.  It is our sin that caused Christ's death!  Please don't forget that it was me.  It was you.  It was us that nailed Him to that cross.  May His grace never be in vain!"