Amanda Scurry holds her 13-month-old daughter, Samantha, during the 3 p.m. Ash Wednesday mass at St. John Student Parish, 327 M.A.C. Ave.
During Lent this year, it’s not about what people are giving up, it’s about what they are giving back.
People across the globe pledged their Lenten promises Wednesday, but one trend in East Lansing deviates from the norm. Instead of giving up the usual vices such as sweets and meat, many MSU students are adding something to their daily routine to better themselves.
“If anything, I’m thinking about doing something more,” mathematics senior Kelli Roberts said. “I’m thinking about volunteering. I’m really big about showing my love of God. Spread some happiness — the way the world is today, we need some.”
Many students are turning to service during the Lenten season as an alternative. Activities range from helping the less fortunate to being with family for the holiday.
“I always give up sweets and stuff, but I always find something else I can do,” prenursing freshman Corryn Szewczyk said.
“I just stay with my family. We all go to mass each Sunday together and just spend time with one another.”
Lent, which is the period between Ash Wednesday and Easter, is a Catholic religious observance of the 40 days Jesus Christ spent fasting in the desert, where he was tested by Satan, according to scripture. Usually during Lent, observers will give up something to symbolically represent Jesus’s own fast.
“It’s a way to re-evaluate things, to put things back into perspective,” said the Rev. Mark Inglot, of St. John Student Parish, 327 M.A.C. Ave.
“It’s like looking into a mirror. If you don’t like what you see, it’s time to really think about how you can change that.”
The most common observance of Lent is to give up certain foods, though students are getting creative and acquiring better habits to help resist temptations.
Doing something, such as exercise, can help curb cravings for forbidden treats.
“You go by the dessert table and go, ‘No, I can’t have that,’” computer science sophomore Brooke Rapson said. “This way, it’s more like, ‘Well, I’ll just go do this instead.’ It just makes sense.”
Inglot said St. John can have as many as 1,000 visitors at each service for Ash Wednesday. Astrophysics senior and St. John parishioner Ryan Norris estimates that more than 6,000 MSU students will stop by St. John on Ash Wednesday.
“A lot of people grew up with it, so they continue it in college,” Norris said. “Their parents aren’t forcing them to go, it’s more like them being responsible for their own faith.”
Support student media! Please consider donating to The State News and help fund the future of journalism.
