From the Rector…
During the Vietnam War, the U.S. government conducted experiments involving drugs and soldiers’ performance. Some service members were intentionally exposed—and in some cases became addicted—to substances such as LSD and other psychedelics, amphetamines, and barbiturates. As soldiers prepared to return home, they were placed in detoxification programs. Some completed these programs “in country,” while others entered treatment after arriving back in the United States.
Researchers later noticed a striking difference. Soldiers who detoxed overseas before returning home had a significantly lower rate of relapse. Those who came home first and then entered detox were more likely to struggle. At first, investigators examined the programs themselves. Were the same treatment models being used? Were qualified professionals leading them? The answer in both cases was yes. So, researchers began to ask a deeper question: What else might explain the difference?
One answer had to do with habits.
Habits are behaviors that become woven into the fabric of our daily lives. The longer we practice them, the more automatic they become. Think about the first thing you do when you get out of bed. Or the route you instinctively drive to work. Smoking, exercising, scrolling on your phone, shopping, pouring a drink at the end of the day—any of these can become habitual. Not all habits are harmful, but many are shaped and reinforced by unconscious cues in our environment.
You’ve probably experienced this yourself. You set out to drive to a doctor’s appointment, your mind wandering over the day ahead, and before you know it you are headed toward work instead. The familiar route takes over. Or you walk into the grocery store planning to buy milk, but your body automatically turns toward the produce section because that is what you always do. The cue triggers the routine before you even think about it.
The same dynamic effects more serious behaviors. For some, finishing a meal or feeling anxious can trigger the urge to smoke. For others, arriving home at a certain hour cues the habit of fixing a drink. Over time, these patterns become linked to places, times, emotions, and relationships. Each of us lives with our own set of unconscious triggers.
Researchers concluded that soldiers who returned home before detox were re-immersed in environments filled with powerful cues—neighborhoods, routines, relationships, and daily rhythms associated with drug use. By the time they entered treatment, new habits were already reforming. Their recovery required not only freedom from a substance but also the painful work of untangling deeply embedded associations. They often had to change routes, avoid certain places, and reshape daily routines just to reduce the triggers around them. Those who detoxed overseas did not face the same immediate environmental cues and, as a result, experienced greater success.
There is a spiritual parallel here for us in Lent. When we give something up, we are in a sense choosing a kind of detox. Whatever we relinquish—chocolate, social media, alcohol, or something else entirely—is usually connected to more than simple enjoyment. It is often tied to emotion, stress, boredom, or comfort. The practice of self-denial is not merely about resisting a craving. It is about becoming aware of how that craving has quietly attached itself to certain moments and feelings in our lives.
As you continue your Lenten disciplines, especially those involving abstinence, I invite you to look beyond the surface. Pay attention to the habits that shape your days. Notice the cues that pull at you. Lent offers us not just the chance to give something up, but the grace to become more conscious, more intentional, and ultimately more free.
Light and Life,
Candice+