Ramblers Reflect on Lent

From Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday, Christians around the world observe Lent, a 40-day period of prayer, fasting and almsgiving. Lent is often associated with individuals’ personal abstinence from a specific thing — like giving up soda or chocolate — but it’s also a time for community, especially at a Jesuit Catholic university like Loyola.

David Inczauskis, a Jesuit deacon, chaplain for the men’s volleyball team and doctoral student in philosophy, said Lent is a time of intensified prayer and reflection. Inczauskis said the Lenten practice of abstaining aligns with a Jesuit principle of freedom, or holy indifference, which encourages people to detach from material objects and instead find fulfillment in faith.

“You’re saying in a small way to God, ‘I love you and other people and the Earth more than I love this particular thing — and I have freedom from it,’” Inczauskis said.

Inczauskis started discerning his entry 12 years ago to the Society of Jesus and gave up potatoes for Lent. This year, he’s giving up potatoes again, honoring his decision to become a Jesuit in anticipation of his priestly ordination in June. He said while it’s beneficial to enjoy good things, the pain of giving something up reminds people they’re living for more than just enjoyment.

“God wants us to be happy and all of that, but there are greater things than the taste of a potato,” Inczauskis said.

Besides abstention, Catholics are encouraged to deepen their prayer and donate money or goods to charity. Inczauskis said another form of almsgiving is pushing for justice, which three of his fellow Jesuits did in March by protesting outside of the city’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement office. 

The protest was led by the Coalition of Social and Public Leadership, a Chicago-based organization which draws on the Catholic movement of liberation theology.

“On Lent, it’s also a time of conversion and of repentance, and so the idea was to call upon ICE to repent for the social sin of deporting our sisters and brothers,” Inczauskis said.

Inczauskis said Lent’s length derives from the significance of the number 40 the Bible. In Numbers, Jewish people wandered for 40 years after being freed from slavery in Egypt. In Luke and Matthew, Jesus battled temptation for 40 days in the desert.

Fourth-year mathematics and philosophy major Grant DeRaedt said for Lent, he and a friend walk barefoot on the lakeshore and share what they’re grateful for. DeRaedt said he was inspired by St. Francis of Assisi, who, along with St. Clare, introduced religious orders to the custom called discalceation, meaning going without shoes.

“It’s a little bit of a humiliating act because people are going to class and they’re seeing you without shoes and maybe it’s not that big of a deal, but there’s sort of that act of, ‘This is not my normal routine,’” DeRaedt said. “It’s just good, positive gifts from the Lord that are being expressed and staying away from the complaints that can manifest.”

During Lent, Catholics traditionally abstain from eating meat on Fridays, while other Christians, including Orthodox Christians, follow a strictly vegan diet for all 40 days. DeRaedt, a Catholic, said he’s giving up meat on all days except Sundays, as well as soda, beer and short-form social media.

“There are things that I can kind of crutch on that aren’t the Lord, and so by giving those up, that’s one less thing, one less pleasure that I’m leaning on,” DeRaedt said. “Hopefully by doing that, I can focus more on leaning on the Lord.”

Vincent DeStazio, a second-year mathematics major, said he looks forward to Lent every year as a time of rebirth and renewal. He said the difficulties of Lent remind him to act with intentionality.

“In everything I do, I should remember that there is an intention, and in some way, my actions come from and should return to God,” DeStazio said.

DeStazio, a volunteer math tutor, said Lent coinciding with an uptick in math exams packs his schedule. He said the increased workload — combined with him contracting bronchitis two weeks before Lent — pushed him to prioritize his health for the season, focusing on sleep, eating well and taking cold showers.

DeStazio said when he arrived at Loyola, he didn’t plan to get involved in his faith with other people but changed his mind when he found other people openly discussing religion who invited him to join in. He said he underwent the rite of confirmation last spring, during Lent, and his girlfriend will join the Church this Lent as well, making it an especially meaningful time.

“It’s been really important for me, too, because of how important she is to me,” DeStazio said.

Rather than taking a solely inward-focused approach to Lent, Inczauskis said looking outward is important, too. Connecting with community — neighbors, friends and partners — uplifts both personal and interpersonal fulfillment, he said.

DeRaedt said he wants to avoid the temptation of returning to the way things were before Lent. Lent, he said, should be a transformative time — one that lasts past the celebration of Easter.

“Whatever fruit came with this Lenten season, I don’t just let that slip through the cracks,” DeRaedt said. “I actually take it with me for the next stage of life.”

Correction: A previous version of this article ran with the headline “Ramblers Relent for Lent.” The article was updated April 9, 2025 to correct the wording of the headline.