40 Crosses for 40 Days: 3rd Cross - the Recycled Paper Cross

Today is the first Friday of Lent. On this day, we pay some attention to what we eat - or rather, don't eat- by abstaining from meat. For most of us, that's really no big deal. We'll be just fine with some cheese pizza, fish sticks or stuffed ravioli. Maybe we'll toss in a salad and some extra bread for good measure, to round out our meal. Then, we'll wake up on Saturday morning and not give it another thought, at least. not until next Friday.

That's why this cross, the Recycled Paper Cross, is so important. The reason we fast from meat on Fridays is not just to check a box on a Things We Do During Lent list. Rather, it's to remind ourselves of one of the three practices of Lent: fasting. We fast from meat for several reasons:

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  To remind ourselves of a spiritual hunger that can only be fed by Heavenly Bread.
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  To practice a bit of self-discipline in restraining our appetites instead of indulging them
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  But most importantly, we fast in solidarity with those who have no choice but to fast at every meal, every day.

The cross above was purchased through a Fair-Trade organization called Serrv, which partners with artisans in Vietnam to produce goods so that those artists can provide the basic necessities of life for their families. At first glance, this cross looks pretty cheap. It is, literally, made of long pieces of recycled paper, bits of old newspapers and magazines. But on closer scrutiny, this cross reveals it is composed of items of great worth.

First of all, it was made by human hands. A person sat down and put hours of time into preparing those long strips of paper so that they were each exactly the same width. Then, more hours went into expertly winding these bits of paper into a pleasing, creative design, before assembling it into a finished cross. Next, other people had to collect this cross and take a picture of it, so that it could be shown to people who could buy it. Then more people had to transport it from Vietnam to the US.

This one simple Recycled Paper Cross was made with the very valuable materials of Ingenuity, Creativity, Patience, Fortitude, Participation, Cooperation and Faith. Mounds of Human Capital went into this creation, from beginning to end. It's kind of a small miracle that it exists, here, in this form, in another country, instead of floating around as bits of old paper somewhere across the ocean.

That's why we fast - so that we remember our own hunger, and those hunger pangs move us to help feed others.

Let us pray: Holy Trinity, help us to fast well. Help us to feel our own hunger and recognize our need to be fed and feed others in imitation of You. And in all things, let us praise you. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

The Strawberry Vine - Cultivating a Catholic Imagination