Seasons Of Compassion

I was reminded by Muslim friends that Ramadan just ended on March 30. Ramadan is the month in the Islamic calendar that celebrates the first revelations of the Quran given to Muhammad.

This year, Ramadan and the Christian season of Lent overlapped, Lent running until Holy Week and then Easter on April 20. Lent, like Ramadan, is a yearly season of fasting, a time of controlling our desires so we can draw closer to God.

And this year, both Ramadan and Lent nearly overlap with the celebration of Jewish Passover, beginning on April 12.

While each of these sacred seasons has its own meaning, there are some similarities that seem especially significant this year. One of these similarities is the emphasis on showing compassion and empathy to those near us and not so near us who are in need.

Muslims are promised that being generous in Ramadan both purifies the soul and brings blessings from God. Charity or almsgiving is also a necessary part of Lent for Christians, a practice that helps Christians focus on the neighbor, not just the self. And in the celebration of the Jewish Passover, the stranger who has nowhere else to go is invited to join the family for the Seder meal.

In teaching the history, beliefs, and practices of these three great Western religions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam—I enjoyed the chance to emphasize the unbreakable connection between loving God, on the one hand, and loving one’s neighbor, on the other hand. All three religions point out that religion is distorted when it is reduced to one dimension, the individual’s relationship with God. Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all insist that a person cannot claim to love God unless he or she cares for the neighbor in need.

In fact, the proof of one’s love for God is not in how many services a person attends or how many passages of sacred scripture a person reads and memorizes. Instead, the proof of love that God looks for is empathy and compassion for others.

Of course, sacred seasons such as Ramadan, Lent, and Passover are not meant to be the only times of the year when we show compassion for others. Perhaps we should consider these sacred seasons as a type of religious “spring training,” when compassionate acts are offered more consciously and intentionally in the expectation that they will become habits of the heart that we will practice all year long.

Passover, Lent, and Ramadan are times of renewal; this year all three are occurring in Spring, the time of nature’s renewal. Looking around at nature, we see the explosion of colors in the trees and in our gardens and lawns. It is as if all of nature is inviting us to wake up and be part of the new life appearing.

The astonishing insight of religions is that we experience new growth in our own lives by meeting the needs of others.