Lent - continued

I missed the memo. There is some kind of "Get the Lent Out..." going on this year in the churches 'round the globe. Suddenly the season of fasting is a springboard for pet issues. A scorecard:

Irish bishops are calling for a season of temperence. Yup, put down that Jameson, because:

The bishops are trying to tackle what they see as an out-of-control binge-drinking culture that has seen the alcohol intake in the Emerald Isle soar by 40 per cent in under a decade - 10 years in which economic wealth has soared.

They have been planning for some time to "encourage a society-wide debate" on the mounting problems of alcohol abuse and saw Lent as the ideal moment to address the public.

They will make their plea in a letter to be read at every Mass in the country this Sunday, which they have designated a "day of prayer and temperance".

Not to be outdone, the priests of my SoCal homeland are calling for Lent to be a season of... immigration reform. Yup:

In Orange County, the church asked people to fast — consuming liquids only — for one day between March 26 and 30 as an appeal for citizenship opportunities for undocumented immigrants and reductions in visa application backlogs for the families of immigrants.

The church also called for a temporary worker program.

In Los Angeles, before 3,000 people at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, Cardinal Roger M. Mahony said his focus for Lent would be the children of immigrants.

"They are innocents impacted by an unjust system that has failed and will continue to fail them and our society until true comprehensive reform is passed by Congress and the president," he said.

This in addition to more traditional projects, such as donating the money saved by eating simple Leten meals towards alleviating:

During Lent, Operation Rice Bowl participants pledge to pray, fast in solidarity with those who hunger, learn about the global community and the challenges of poverty overseas, and give sacrificial contributions to those in need.

And the Episcopalians? Fasting for clarity about "the gay thing."

Great. I'm all for temperance. Social action? Go team.

But isn't this a heavy load for a season of sobriety and private reflection? I'm not one to chapter and verse, but I seem to remember a passage in the Book of Matthew -

"When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. (Matthew 6:16-18 NIV)

Fasting for a cause seems like fasting loudly to me. But who am I to judge? Just a religion hack intoxicated by the fishwich season.