Bishop’s Advisor on World Development

DIOCESE OF SHEFFIELD LENT CHALLENGE 2012

Last Updated on Monday, 06 February 2012 10:11

Diocese of Sheffield Lent Challenge 2012

An invitation from the World Development Adviser and the Board of Faith & Justice

This Lent we are inviting church members across the Diocese to reduce the amount of meat they eat in Lent.

WHY?

In solidarity with the poor.
One fifth of the world’s population in the North consume 46 per cent of all the world’s meat production, For most people on the planet, meat is a luxury and a special treat.

Because more people can be fed that way.
Eating a vegetarian diet requires much less land to feed the same number of people.
From 25 acres (10 hectares) of land it is possible to produce enough meat to feed two people, maize for ten people, grain for 24 people, and soya for 61 people. 

To protect the environment and reduce our carbon footprint
Meat production requires greater use of fossil fuels than producing a vegetarian diet and produces methane (a highly potent greenhouse gas) and higher carbon emissions..  Meat production requires more water, leads to greater erosion of topsoil and, in some cases, leads to loss of rain forest habitat as the land is produced to graze cattle.

HOW?

People across the Diocese will be coming from very different starting points – we hope that everyone will be able to find a way to join in so that we are all traveling in the same direction

If you normally eat meat most days of the week, then you could

• Eat a vegetarian diet on Fridays in Lent (as well established in the Catholic tradition.  The Roman Catholic Bishops Conference of England and Wales called for their congregations to abstain from meat on all Fridays from September 2011)

• Choose any day of the week to go vegetarian.  There is a movement called “Meatfree Mondays” that encourages people to have one meat free day a week (it doesn’t have to be Monday!) – see www.meatfreemondays.co.uk

If you are already vegetarian or eat meat only occasionally anyway then you could try one of the following

• Try a new vegetarian recipe once a week and try to use seasonal ingredients wherever possible.

• Try to have one vegan day a week (no dairy products or eggs)

• Invite friends round for a vegetarian meal to help others realize that vegetarian food can be enjoyable and exciting.

• Choose one of the “other ideas” below

If you are already a vegan then you could

• Invite friends round for a vegan meal

Other Ideas

• Send in your favourite vegetarian/vegan recipe – we can put them up on our website for sharing.

• Have a vegetarian church meal together on Sunday – see the website for some easy to prepare ideas.  Have a substantial meal and encourage people not to eat meat when they get home!

• Have a vegetarian “Come Dine With Me” event with your friends

• More difficult to organize (because it would need a kitchen with several cookers) – a vegetarian “Masterchef”  or “Ready Steady Cook” evening 

• Donate any extra money you would usually spend on meat to a Christian Development agency.

• Grow some of your own food during Lent  - mustard and cress will be easiest!  But it will be the right time of year to plant other vegetable/herb/salad seeds to grow in pots or in a garden to be ready later on in the year

BUT…

I always give up meat on Fridays in Lent so this isn’t anything new for me
Then this year, you could give up fish as well on Fridays (if you normally eat fish) or choose to have a second vegetarian day in the week, or make Fridays a vegan day or choose from one of the other suggestions.

My church tradition doesn’t think that Lent is about “giving up things”
Then think of this challenge as a way of celebrating and enjoying all the non-meat foods that are available.  Vegetarian food does not have to be noticeably penitiental!

Surely Sundays are not included in the Lenten fast so why have a meat-free church meal on a Sunday?
See above – meat-free food can be delicious and Sundays can be a good day for churches to eat communally.  Don’t think of it as fasting, but as a celebration of other food.

Please do send us your news/recipes/photos - we will have a Lent Challenge website at www.dioceseofsheffieldlentchallenge.blogspot.com where we can share news and encourage each other.  You can email recipes, photos and ideas to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it to go onto the blog.