God of the refrigerator

by Terry Mattingly

All of the clear plastic half-bubbles in our egg rack are empty now, sitting right there at eye level every time I open the refrigerator door.

The drawer that usually contains bacon, sausages, lunchmeat and chicken is full of flour tortillas. I still haven't thought of what to put in the three slots that normally hold cheese. The butter has gone AWOL, too, unless you count apple butter.

This is Lent and, in million of homes around the world, the cooks are in a state of shock.

For Eastern Orthodox believers, this season of Great Lent began with the candlelight Forgiveness Vespers on Sunday, Feb. 25. Thus, our family will be trying to follow a host of ancient Christian fasting traditions that ask us to shun meat and dairy products until the glorious feast of Holy Pascha (Easter) on April 15. This year, the church calendars in the East and West churches are on the same page, which means that for Western churches Lent began with Ash Wednesday on Feb. 28.

There is more to Lent than the ritual avoidance of certain foods and our attempts to embrace truckloads of fruits and veggies. This is supposed to be a season of reflection and confession. As the old saying goes, Lent without prayer is just a diet.

And many people observe Lent in different ways. In Western churches, some mark the season by giving up a specific pleasure -- such as candy or soft drinks. Some go much further and surrender all caffeine or meat. A friend of mine gave up email, one year. A few church leaders have even suggested that families give up television during Lent, to make more time for fellowship, worship and other activities that can bring loved ones closer to God and to each other.

But for those of us who worship in churches that stress Lenten disciplines, this is a time when we venture way outside of our culinary comfort zones. Face it -- following a fast of this kind isn't easy in America. This isn't Greece, where one particular fast-food chain even offers a "McLent" menu.

Do the math. Let's say that your house contains a boy under the age of 10. If you give up all meat and dairy, this means you will not be eating cheese. This means you will not be eating macaroni and cheese. Got the picture?

Of course, the church isn't asking us to sacrifice the health of our children, requiring them, for example, to stop drinking milk. But most Orthodox parents still believe this is a season to make radical changes, in order to discipline ourselves and to reflect on the awesome sacrifice that Jesus made for us.

But why place such an emphasis on food? Does anyone really think it's spiritually better to eat dark chocolate (no milk) during Lent than it is to eat milk chocolate? Some people forgo steaks or fried chicken, but then manage to eat their weight in forms of seafood that are allowed during the fast, such as shrimp or clams.

A friend of mine who is a priest faces a unique temptation. He has an abiding passion for peanut butter, a substance that Orthodox Christians see a lot of during Lent. He would happily eat peanut butter several times a day. Is this good for him? Or is that a temptation? Perhaps it would be a better spiritual test for him to give up peanut butter instead of real butter. Go figure.

The bottom line is that our appetites do matter. St. Paul warned the early church to avoid the sinful ways of those whose "end is destruction, their god is the belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things." But the Bible also warns believers not to turn ancient spiritual disciplines into showy gestures, planting the seeds of pride and arrogance.

Yet it's good to open your refrigerator door and have to ask the question: Who's in charge here?

"If God isn't in charge of my refrigerator, then He isn't in charge of the rest of my life," said one Orthodox friend. "If God isn't the God of my refrigerator, then He isn't the God of my check book, or my Day Timer, or my television or any of the other THINGS that try to run my life."

The politico facing Tim Russert was Vice Present Al Gore and their testy dialogue was one of the memorable moments during the 2000 White House race. [more]...