Lent Is Here—Choose Justice, Love, and the Beloved Community
So, yes. As of yesterday—Ash Wednesday—Lent has begun.
Lent is a season of reflection, repentance, and renewal—a 40-day journey inviting us to walk more closely with Christ. Many of us mark this time by giving something up, taking something on, or creating space for deeper spiritual practices.
It’s true. We find ourselves in a charged, fractured, and dehumanizing time in our culture. It’s also time to remember who we are called to be. Lent invites us not just to look inward but to look outward—to consider what it means to be the kind of people through whom God’s love, justice, and peace are made visible.
This year, I invite you to consider Lent as a time to cultivate Beloved Community.
Dr. Arthuree Wright, in The 25 Traits of the Beloved Community, paints a picture of what this kind of community looks like—one shaped by love, justice, and mutual care. It’s a vision deeply rooted in the gospel and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s belief that “power at its best is love implementing the demands of justice.”
The Beloved Community is not just a dream for the future—it’s a call for how we live right now. It’s a commitment to:
Radical hospitality—welcoming each person as part of the family of God.
Authenticity and respect—seeing and honoring the image of God in others.
Listening with empathy—not just hearing, but understanding.
Truth-telling in love—confronting injustice with grace and courage.
Peacemaking—working through conflict in ways that heal, not harm.
Faith in action—blending our spirituality with real engagement in justice.
What if this Lent, instead of (or in addition to) giving something up, we took on one of these traits as a spiritual discipline? What if we let this season form us into people through whom God’s love and justice take root in the world?
The Beloved Community isn’t just a beautiful idea—it’s the reality God calls us to embody. As we journey toward Easter, may we take steps—small or big—toward making this vision real, in our church, in our neighborhoods, in our daily lives.
I encourage you to read the full resource, The 25 Traits of the Beloved Community, and reflect on which trait you might intentionally cultivate this Lent. You can find it here: 25 Traits.
What step will you take toward Beloved Community this season?
Much love,
Pastor Gregg