the YALE LOGOS
an undergraduate journal of Christian thought.
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Elijah and the Provision of the Wilderness
March 1, 2023 | Lukas Bacho SM ‘25
Though the season of Lent brings the drama of wandering the wilderness to the fore of our spiritual lives, the liminal state the desert represents never seems too far off. As I write this, I sit isolated in my dorm room with COVID-19, having taken my health for granted just days ago. Though my lack of symptoms and the low number of cases on campus are signs of how far we’ve come in three years, the to-go boxes piled up by my door and the KN-95 mask on my desk are grim reminders of what we all lived through if we were lucky. Yes, isolation has been a nuisance. But I’d be lying if I said this social fasting hasn’t provided welcome time to decelerate, catch up on work, and take stock of my life—this minor wilderness recalling other wildernesses, from the pandemic and even earlier, right in time for Lent.
A Persistent God
February 27, 2023 | Caleb Mangesho BK ‘26
In mourning, “good” meant showing emotion, but not too much. “Good”, irrational as it seemed, meant keeping my naked grief to myself. So I let my sadness settle into an open resentment of God, this savior who left me to suffer alone in the darkest moment of my life, and the people around me who encouraged me to follow Him. I wouldn’t let myself be loved. I came to Yale sure that God and his love would wither away like a rose, pretty in the summer, dead in the winter.
A Short Defense of Fasting
February 24, 2023 | Justin Ferrugia (TD ‘24)
Lent, per its origin, is a time of solitude and fasting. It is meant to mirror Christ’s solitary journey for forty days and forty nights after his baptism. Many Christian traditions including the Catholic Church still require that Ash Wednesday and Good Friday be days of fasting for adults, and many choose to devotionally fast more frequently during Lent and throughout the year. However, in our modern culture, it seems fasting has either become the newest trick to lose weight, or written off as a medieval practice of corporal mortification for the overzealous.
Broken Cycles: Christ’s Repentance and the Comfort of the Cross
February 22, 2023 | Zeki Tan (PM ‘25)
My recitation of the Daily Office, which is the liturgy of morning and evening prayer in the Anglican Church, invariably begins with these two verses of repentance: a confession of sins and shortcomings, and a plea for forgiveness from God. Repentance occupies a central place in all levels of Christian life, from the Pope’s worldwide exhortations to the private prayers of individuals in their homes, but it is especially important during Lent: a time when Christians commemorate the one whose act of sacrifice justified humans before God and surpassed any human act of penance—Jesus Christ.
Driving Through the Desert
February 20, 2023 | Amelia Dilworth (BR ‘23)
I think Lent is like this. Representing the forty days Jesus spent in the desert fasting, praying, and overcoming temptation in the desert, Lent is not a season of self-deprivation or self-punishment. Rather, Lent is a time when we follow Jesus into the desert because nothing in the city can quench our thirst for God.
Life After Violence in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
February 18, 2023 | By Karis Ryu YDS’23
Like many superhero fans, I bounded over to the nearest movie theater within a week of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’s release in November. A film of pain, hope, and power, I appreciated its muted volume, both auditory and visual, and how Ryan Coogler’s vision clearly included space for grief, both on and off screen. Grief and rage are integral to the story’s central message of healing and renewal: for Shuri, Wakanda, and the world they live in.
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