That All May Be One / Fr. Rick Ginther

The penitential seasons of Lent and Ramadan begin on the same day this year

There are some coincidences in time that are attention getters.

This year, we have one such: Christian Lent begins the same day as Islam’s Ramadan.

Our season of Lent begins on Ash Wednesday. But the date varies from year to year. To find that date, we count backwards from Easter Sunday.

Easter Sunday arrives on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox (the first day of spring). It is tied to the lunar calendar, and so it’s variable.

Ash Wednesday can occur as early as February 4 and as late as March 11.

Ramadan’s beginning is noticeably more variable.

The Islamic calendar is lunar. It spans 354 days. That is 11 days shorter than the Gregorian solar calendar of 365 days.

This difference causes Ramadan to occur in all four seasons over a 33-year period!

Both Ramadan (29-30 days) and Lent (40 days) are deeply reflective periods of prayer, fasting and almsgiving.

On Ash Wednesday, we hear the Lenten call to these practices in the Gospel reading for Mass that day (Mt 6:1-6, 16-18).

Our prayer is to be more frequent, with an emphasis on penitential conversion of heart. Added devotional prayers (e.g., Stations of the Cross) are encouraged.

Our fast is to be focused—from something pleasurable, with an emphasis on discipline, leading to letting go into the Spirit.

Additionally, prescribed days of fasting are Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. Abstinence from meat days are Ash Wednesday and all Fridays before Easter.

Our almsgiving is to be intentional—often focused on hunger (e.g., Operation Rice Bowl) or the needs of others (e.g., visiting the sick, lonely neighbors, etc.).

For Muslims, the Ramadan fast is daily: no food or drink from dawn to sunset. Before the fast, there is a pre-dawn meal (suhur), while a meal at sunset (iftar) breaks the fast.

This fasting is to redirect the heart away from worldly activities and to cleanse the soul by freeing it from harmful impurities.

Fasting is not required for those who are ill, pregnant or breastfeeding. The elderly and pre-pubertal children are also exempt. Those traveling or menstruating are exempt but are obliged to fast later to make up the missed days.

Muslims devote more time to prayer during Ramadan. They are encouraged to read the entire Quran over the 30 days as a commemoration of the Prophet’s reception of the Muslim holy book.

During Ramadan, Muslims practice sacrifice and empathy for those who are less fortunate. They are encouraged to practice actions of generosity and compulsory charity (zakat).

Zakat, or “the poor-rate,” is the annual fixed percentage of income a believer is required to give to the poor; the practice is obligatory as one of the pillars of Islam Many Muslims donate a large portion—or even all—of their yearly zakat during Ramadan.

Among Muslims, common greetings during Ramadan are “Ramadan mubarak” and “Ramadan kareem”: (have a) “blessed Ramadan” and “generous Ramadan” respectively.

Among Christians, there seems to be no common Lenten greetings.

However, on Ash Wednesday the late Archbishop Daniel M. Buechlein was in the habit of saying “Happy Lent” as he met someone. I don’t know if this is or was of Benedictine origin. But it seems to me it is jarring enough to encourage a more joyful embrace of our Lenten practices as we move toward Easter.

Let us pray this Lent for our own good practices to bring us to Easter.

Let us also pray for our Muslim neighbors: that their good Ramadan practices bring them to Eid-ia-Fitr, the joyous celebration that ends Ramadan.
 

(Father Rick Ginther is director of the archdiocesan Office of Ecumenism and Interreligious Affairs. He is retired from full-time pastoral ministry, but is still active as a priest of the archdiocese.) †