Lint.. er...Lent
I never grew up with Lent. Without counting Christmas and Easter, I never grew up with any knowledge of the liturgical calendar. All the other Christian holidays or events I knew about were associated with the ocean of popular Roman Catholic culture that I grew up in. While my Protestant minister parents didn't demonize Catholics as many of the other people in the missionary community did, there was definitely a sense of otherness between "us" and "them." It is little wonder, for even our most basic expressions of faith were very different. Even today, the Protestant church in Spain rarely embraces any traditional liturgical forms, for most of the Spaniards who convert to the Protestant branch of Christianity are often looking for an encounter with Christ separate from the Roman Catholic culture that has oppressed their country for centuries. Though I feel somewhat apologetic to any Roman Catholic readers, I use the word "oppress" in a very conscious w...