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Resurrection Spiritual Transformation
The proof that God raised Jesus from the dead is not the empty tomb, but the full hearts of his transformed disciples. The crowning evidence that he lives is not a vacant grave, but a spirit-filled fellowship. Not a rolled-away stone, but a carried-away church. Clarence Jordan, Baptist Theologian Easter is the high holy season in which we are dramatically reminded of that which we are called to live every day. Our liturgy, hymns, prayers, and psalms are focused on Christ’s resurrection to lift and empower us to new life in Christ. While the liturgy is beautiful and the season wonderful, it is nothing if not for our own transformation. Our spiritual transformation cannot be separated from Christ’s resurrection; in fact, it is central to it. In order to transcend our current spiritual condition, we must embrace resurrection and our central inspiration and goal. Peter Rollins, author and philosopher, names some actions as central to a resurrection spiritual focus, and others not. I deny the resurrection of Christ every time I do not serve at the feet of the oppressed, each day that I turn my back on the poor; I deny the resurrection of Christ when I close my ears to the cries of the downtrodden and lend my support to an unjust and corrupt system. However, there are moments when I affirm that resurrection, few and far between as they are. I affirm it when I stand up for those who are forced to live on their knees, when I speak for those who have had their tongues torn out, when I cry for those who have no more tears left to shed. Embracing Christ’s resurrection can bring with it many opportunities to serve – help at a food kitchen, volunteer at MCEF, organize a food drive – but more and better that these would be a spiritual awakening. A spiritual awakening can begin from many starting places but always requires the honest desire to know God. Allen Ginsberg’s poem “Footnote to Howl” invites us to a celebratory, life-affirming, visceral embrace of holiness in all things. I offer you a portion of his poem. Take time reading, and perhaps it may be the starting place you are looking for. Holy! Holy! Holy! Holy! Holy! Holy! Holy! Holy! Holy! Holy! Holy! Holy! Holy! Holy! Holy! The world is holy! The soul is holy! The skin is holy! The nose is holy! The tongue and cock and hand and asshole holy! Everything is holy! everybody’s holy! everywhere is holy! everyday is in eternity! Everyman’s an angel! The bum’s as holy as the seraphim! the madman is holy as you my soul are holy! The typewriter is holy the poem is holy the voice is holy the hearers are holy the ecstasy is holy! Holy the unknown and suffering beggars holy the hideous human angels! Holy time in eternity holy eternity in time Holy the sea holy the desert holy the railroad holy the locomotive holy the visions holy the miracles holy the eyeball holy the abyss! Holy forgiveness! mercy! charity! faith! Holy! Ours! bodies! suffering! magnanimity! Holy the supernatural extra brilliant intelligent kindness of the soul! Berkeley 1955 from Collected Poems: 1947-1997 by Allen Ginsberg. May your spiritual awakening begin for the rest of your life. May you open your whole self — heart, soul, mind, and strength — to God’s inspiring call to new life and renewed love. May you feel God luring you, prompting you, and encouraging you — each day and in each new present moment — to practice resurrection. Resurrected in Him, Fr. Bill†
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An “Arts in the Park” Thank-You!!
The build-up was progressive; the anticipation was stressful; the execution was glorious! This past weekend was our car parking extravaganza at Arts-in-the-Park. Despite the threat of weather, we had two days of happy participants and organized parking. Many thanks to all who volunteered. Special thanks to Barbara Jennings, who led the team serving at the City Stadium parking lot, and to Will Burk, who led the way at Dogwood Dell. Both parking locations were very busy, and the rush/retreat was handled without incident. We had many parking veterans this year as well as first timers and several special volunteers. Thank you, first timers and all our faithful returning folks. Thank you to those who pulled double and triple shifts! A BIG thank you goes to members of the AA Wednesday night Men’s Bible Study, who joined us Saturday and Sunday afternoons. I received generous and consistent feedback from visitors as well, and the event coordinators say that this may have been “the best and smoothest parking job yet!” All in all, it was a wonderful two days of service and a blessing of community for all servers and attendees. To commemorate the occasion, Jenny has penned (while she was parking, as I understand it) a poem (ala Dr. Seuss) in tribute to our adventure. That Bill I will, That Bill I will, All on about the parking still: Do you like to park the cars? Do you like them near or fars? I do not like them, Bill I will. But I will park them, even still. Will you park them in the rain? Will you park them on a train? Will the drivers make you go insane? Will you park them in a box? Though non-handicappers try to outfox? Will you park them at the stadium, Midst a lot-shift pandemonium? Will you park them in the Dell? Will you park them all so swell? I will park them, yes I will, I will park them, Father Bill. I will park them in a pinch, I will park them inch by inch. Stand down Vendors, it's a cinch. I will park them in a lurch, Sunday shift means pass from church. In the hot sun, it's no fun, In the rain, it's such a pain. In the heat, on aching feet, I will park them, you will see 't. I will park them, Bill I will. I will park them even still. Here's Will I can, fresh from dashboard cam: He is the man, that Will I can; Laying out his master plan of cars in rows like sardine can. And nothing more seamless than that stadium team-less, Parking in hot sun keeping cool, when overflow traffic breaks the rules and cars outnumber parkers 100/2. Yes, consider yourself lucky to park cars with a Stuckey - or any of the many, many plucky Creator folk who made a good show. We can admit to what we know: It's fun to tell folks where to go! I will try it, I will see. Arts in the Park is right for me. It's not so bad, though some may talk, When the next day they can't walk. Thank you all who donned a vest, To come, help out, and give their best. We are grateful to God we pulled it off, and for next year we heartily--COUGH We heartily agree... That next year we shall wait and see! One thing is for sure and that's this song: our Creator Family has it going on. With thanks and praise to our God above, We did it in His service, sacrifice, and LOVE! Parked. - Fr. Bill+ “[Jesus] presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.” Acts 1:3
Easter Sunday begins a period of time known as the “Great Fifty Days,” or the “Eastertide.” Eastertide, or Easter Time, Paschaltide, the “Paschal Season,” or “Paschal Time” is the fifty-day period following Easter Sunday and ending at Pentecost. During the Easter season, Jesus appeared to and taught the Disciples and followers prior to the Ascension. Jesus ascended on the fortieth day of the Easter Season, and ten days later the Disciples were gathered for Shavuot, when the Holy Spirit descended upon them. Shavuot, meaning “weeks,” was a celebration of the first fruits of the harvest and the giving of the Law to Moses on Mt. Sinai. This was a fifty-day celebration during which the First Fruits of the Spirit were given to the Disciples, just as the fulfillment of the Law was given to them in the person of the Risen Christ. The day of Pentecost, meaning fifty, is the last day of Shavuot. The time between Easter and Pentecost was a time of celebration and learning for the Disciples, and it is still so for us. Paschaltide is an opportunity for us to cultivate a spirit of joy, living without fear as we see the world again for the first time–as with new eyes. Live with Joy Joy of the Lord is a deep spiritual connection to Christ that cannot be taken away, even in the midst of sorrow. The Passion and Resurrection of Jesus teach us that suffering is transformed through faith in the Risen Christ. With this faith, we are able to hold on to an enduring sense of joy even in the midst of the sadness we experience from the loss of a loved one, a failure to achieve an important goal, a setback during recovery from an illness, or a personal crisis. Live without Fear The Resurrection teaches us that God can overcome anything, even death (physical and spiritual). When the Risen Christ appears to the women at the tomb and later to his disciples, his first words are “Do not be afraid!” (Mt 28:5,10) These words speak to our hearts, helping us cope with the fear from the loss of a job, a serious illness, or a crumbling relationship, or cultural upheaval. Our faith allows us to trust that God can overcome our most serious problems. Live with New Eyes Easter means to live with a sense of newness. Just as the return of spring lifts our spirits and makes us feel like the whole world is new, the Resurrection of Jesus makes “all things new.” (Rev. 21:5) The Easter spirit is a spirit of renewal that enables us to show up at work with a positive attitude, to renew relationships that have been taken for granted, and to express appreciation and affection to those closest to us. It means to see the world through new eyes—God's eyes. These fifty days are Jesus' gift to us to read again the experience of the Disciples and to join with them in their growth in God. Embrace this gift and pursue this opportunity as Christ pursues you. Embrace joy, live without fear, and see, in Him all things are made new. Through eyes that see, Fr. Bill+ Alleluia! Alleluia! Christ is risen! The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia! Alleluia!
Happy Easter to all. Our most precious and highest feast of the Christian year has arrived, Easter–the Passover of our Lord! We celebrate Christ’s resurrection–new life born from the old–not only as the celebration of Emmanuel fulfilling the prophecy of old, but as the promise of our new life in Him. The promise of Easter is hope, and not just hope as a possibility, but as a promise. Today, and many years before, our world has been in the depths of chaos, division, poverty, and violence. Where in this world can we turn to find peace and tranquility? How can we pull ourselves out from the toxicity that is weighing us down? The answer is the same then as it is now: we surrender to the risen Christ. The act of self-surrender is something that we have to consciously follow every day. When we consciously try to live a life that is pleasing to God, then we will slowly see our center and order even in the most hopeless situation. New beginnings, at times, demand a logistical move, but this hope is not contingent on money, place, or power. Our hope is found in the focus of our hearts. This may seem a monumental task, but you must remember, in this we are not taking on a thing, but letting go of everything. We are blessed by God to have God as our companion through life and through our relinquishment. Remember, nothing is impossible with God! Relinquishing ourselves to God is the beginning of joy, and joy changes everything. I pray you all have a blessed Easter season and find that, though times may bring wreck and ruin, in Christ Jesus there is light and life forevermore. "Yesterday I was crucified with Him; today I am glorified with Him; yesterday I died with Him; today I am quickened with Him; yesterday I was buried with Him; today I rise with Him. But let us offer to Him Who suffered and rose again for us— you will think perhaps that I am going to say gold, or silver, or woven work or transparent and costly stones, the mere passing material of earth, that remains here below, and is for the most part always possessed by bad men, slaves of the world and of the Prince of the world. Let us offer ourselves, the possession most precious to God, and most fitting; let us give back to the Image what is made after the Image. Let us recognize our Dignity; let us honour our Archetype; let us know the power of the Mystery, and for what Christ died." “Let us become like Christ, since Christ became like us. Let us become God’s for His sake, since He for our sake became Man. He assumed the worse that He might give us the better; He became poor that we through His poverty might be rich, He took upon Him the form of a servant that we might receive back our liberty; He came down that we might be exalted; He was tempted that we might conquer; He was dishonored that He might glorify us; He died that He might save us; He ascended that He might draw to Himself we who were lying low in the Fall of sin. Let us give all, offer all, to Him Who gave Himself a Ransom and a Reconciliation for us. But one can give nothing like oneself, understanding the Mystery and becoming for His sake all that He became for ours.” St. Gregory the Theologian - Homily on Pascha 326 AD. Christ is Risen! Fr. Bill+ Stations of the Cross: Why walk the Via Dolorosa?
From the earliest days, followers of Jesus told the story of his passion, death and resurrection. When pilgrims came to see Jerusalem, they were anxious to see the sites where Jesus was. These sites become important holy connections with Jesus. Eventually, following in the footsteps of our Lord along the Via Dolorosa - the Way of Sorrows - became a part of the pilgrimage visit. Stations, as we know them today, came about when it was no longer easy or even possible to visit the holy sites – the world’s first “virtual” pilgrimage, if you will. In the 1500s, villages all over Europe started creating replicas of the Via Dolorosa by placing small shrines at intervals along their own streets commemorating the places along Christ’s walk to Calvary. Today, the Stations of the Cross are found all over Christendom and are a traditional act of devotion during Holy Week. And they bound him and led him away and delivered him over to Pilate the governor. Matt 27:2 The Stations of the Cross is the traditional route in Jerusalem on which Jesus traveled from the judgment seat of Pilate, also called the Praetorium, to the place of his crucifixion on Mount Calvary. After his judgment by Pontius Pilate, Jesus was beaten, mocked, and spit upon by the Roman soldiers. Then he was forced to carry his own cross through the streets of Jerusalem to Golgotha, where he was crucified. The Via Dolorosa traditionally consists of fourteen Stations marking fourteen incidents that took place along the way. Biblical readings, commentaries, and reflection accompany visual representations of Jesus’ ordeal. Traditionally, the fourteen stations are these: 1. Jesus is condemned to death. 2. Jesus is given His cross. 3. Jesus falls down for the first time. 4. Jesus meets His mother Mary. 5. Simon of Cyrene is forced to carry the cross. 6. Veronica wipes blood off of Jesus’ face. 7. Jesus falls down for the second time. 8. Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem. 9. Jesus falls down for the third time. 10. Jesus is stripped of His clothing. 11. Jesus is nailed to the cross – the Crucifixion. 12. Jesus dies on the cross. 13. Jesus’ body is removed from the cross – the Deposition or Lamentation. 14. Jesus’ body is placed in the tomb. At Creator, we are blessed to have fourteen beautiful hand-painted wood plaques depicting the Way of Sorrows. They were a gift from Sandy Wainwright, whose husband, William E. Wainright, an accomplished artist, painted some forty years ago. The artistry is beautiful, but the images are hard to look at. This is not a light, flowery time of devotion; this is a walk alongside Jesus through his turmoil and death. So why do it? Why walk the Via Delarosa? Praying and meditating upon the suffering of our Lord is a powerful and humbling act of love. Love is what God gave when we were made, love is what God expressed from the Cross, love is the light which shines in the darkness of our lives. God the Son endured pain, torment, and torture for all of humankind so that we human beings would be spared such a fate. The Stations of the Cross reflect our lives back upon us as we realize that our sins are counted as part of the reason why Jesus was crucified. How can we not draw closer to God knowing that our lives - personally - caused the greatest suffering the world has ever known. We, however, are not left with this. Praying the Stations of the Cross brings us face to face with suffering - his and our own. We look at Jesus’ suffering in his travail and we know we are not alone in our suffering. Jesus' suffering is absolute and in every way an offering to the Father of love for the other. His reliance upon the Father is the gift he has given us. In the heart of his story is our own, and through his example we are able to look to our Lord for that strength and comfort during times of suffering in our lives. Suffering is not meaningless. Through the love of God, it can be transformed and redeemed. That is what the Stations of the Cross show us. Everyone suffers, and so we have this beautiful meditative example – this beautiful prayer in the Stations of the Cross - to show us how to endure it. We know that when we enter into suffering, we have a choice. We have a choice in how we respond. I invite you to really step into this meditation, to pray with it, to walk it, to really dig in, to put yourself there along the path of the Via Dolorosa, and allow our Lord to show you how to endure. Allow the Father to imbue you with strength, and wisdom, and grace, and mercy, so that you might serve better. We are gathering tomorrow, Wednesday night at 6:00 at the Church to walk the Way of Sorrows with our Lord. Please join us. Peace along the Way, Fr. Bill+ Holy Week
Observance for life Holy Week is a very special time during the last week of Lent in which the specific events of the Passion are singled out and emphasized. Personally and liturgically, we travel the spiritual road to sublime fulfilment through pain and loss to absolute victory and fulfilment. The services of Holy Week coincide as closely as possible with the events of Jesus' last days. That is why the week is "holy" at all - because it is "set apart." Marking these days is of great spiritual importance as we anticipate that final washing away of the Lenten ash imposed some forty days ago. Holy Week begins with Palm Sunday, when Jesus entered Jerusalem amidst a huge demonstration of support by the common people. Many thought he was going to declare himself a Messiah in the tradition of the conquering Maccabees, whose rebellion against the Seleucid Empire in the 2nd century BC temporarily restored the glory of the Jewish nation. Others believed him to be the Messiah of the Davidic tradition, coming to liberate the people by divine power and war. Still others thought him to be a messianic prophet or a messiah of retribution such as Moses. No matter the expectations, belief and hope propelled all to hail him along the road of his triumphant entry. It was an ironic celebration, as many of those who hailed Jesus as King this day would demand his death just five days later. Holy Week observances continue on Wednesday with the Stations of the Cross, followed by the Maundy Thursday and Good Friday night services. Holy Saturday is a day of reflection and preparation—a time to stop in the eye of the storm. Holy Week delivers us to Easter Sunday, when we gather for a Festal Eucharist proclaiming Jesus' resurrection and our salvation. Soon will our corporate Alleluias sound again! The services of Holy Week are the heart of our corporate observance; however, each day is an opportunity for each of us to reflect personally on the Passion of our Lord. Here below are some of the key passages of Scripture for you to reread and keep close at heart as you prepare for the Day of Resurrection.
Each year we gather during this special week of observance to immerse ourselves in the truth of sacrifice and the example of supreme love. The church has provided this time for us to receive this love and to accept this sacrifice anew, with open hearts and wanting spirits. Come. Come to God in spirit. Use what the Church has provided and accept the Christ as He is. Together our love for each other, in the light of His love for us, can break the bonds that hold us and set us free to accept the saving grace of God. Faithfully in Christ, Fr. Bill+ Dear Creator Family,
In 2017, the Creator Preschool closed. Our preschool was a vibrant and cherished extension of our parish. The school worked with Creator and represented the best of our intentions for education and Christian exposure to the young. It was a sad event when the school closed, collapsing under its own weight, and left us with gap in our ministry (and an empty building). After the school closed, we had many discussions about re-starting the school, but COVID dashed our efforts. Rekindling the flame, Your Vestry decided to start direct efforts to find a school in need of a place. In the past two years, I have conducted interviews and led tours for various schools looking for a new home. Early last year, I met Karri Messina, who was feeling God’s call to start a school. I joined Karri in her enthusiasm as I too felt a rightness about her path, but starting at Creator didn’t work out. Karri traveled an amazing spiritual journey over the past year and returned to Creator with God’s call clearly affirmed. I was excited to see and hear how God had led her over the year and to reflect on how God has brought us together. Affirming her vision and rekindling ours, I am overjoyed to announce the opening of the Oak Tree Christian Montessori School at Creator. I have met with Karri several times over the past weeks and began the BIG process of preparation. I have begun repairs on the play yard fence and gates, and Will cleaned all the debris out of the play yard and around the entire hall. Terri Legars has volunteered to be the Vestry liaison to the school and has met with Karri also. Additionally, a BIG thank you to Terri and family, Hannah, Kayla, Hayden, and nephew Sam, who scoured the property for trash and debris. Karri has begun the move-in process, painting and preparing for the kids on September 1st. With much joy and thanksgiving to God, we are working together to make this happen, and we need help. If you can lend a hand, please let me know as we seek God’s guidance with joyful anticipation of the big day! Always learning, Fr. Bill+ "Lord, lead me to the fullness of your grace."
In the early 16th century, St. Ignatius Loyola began writing about the emotions that took hold of him while reading scripture—feelings of gratitude and anguish, consolation and sadness. Those meditations eventually became a work known as the Spiritual Exercises, which were first published in 1548. The Spiritual Exercises are a compilation of meditations, prayers, and contemplative practices to help people deepen their relationship with God. St. Ignatius knows grace as a free and undeserved gift from God, essential for responding to God's call and growing in holiness. I find his insights a well-timed resource for our Lenten journey. The Hebrew word for “grace” is ḥēn, pronounced like “hen.” Hen translated into Greek is charis. Both hen and charis are translated into English as grace. Grace is God’s favor, blessing, or kindness. God’s grace is God’s acceptance and goodwill to us, regardless of whether we've earned it. In other words, grace is undeserved favor. Grace can't be earned; it is something freely given to us by God. In his Letter to the Ephesians, Paul wrote, “For by grace are you saved, through faith, and that not of yourselves.” St. Paul understood–and wanted us to know–that our only route to God is through God—through God’s gifts of faith and grace. In several of his letters, Paul began by extolling the power of grace. Note that all three–Romans, Ephesians and 1 Corinthians begin with the same salutation: “Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." God is seen as the instigator of grace, and it is from Him that all other grace flows. What does grace feel like? We can understand grace as a disposition or a quality or an inclination in the nature of God, an influence or a force or a power or an action of God. Grace is God at work, God present, God fostering change that works in us to change our capacities for work and suffering and obedience. So what does it feel like? Grace can feel like a sense of undeserved love, forgiveness, and empowerment, leading to relief, gratitude, and a humbling awareness of God's goodness. Through this understanding and in this feeling we are drawn even further toward God and are transformed by God’s presence! How do we access God’s freely given grace now in Lent, and all other times? —ASK. There are plenty of times in life when we have been offered that which would change everything. Companionship, aid, money, physical help, and we turned it down. Why? Maybe we were embarrassed, or afraid, or maybe it was because we didn’t ask for it and so wouldn’t receive it. Perhaps the bigger question is, why didn’t we ask for it? Pride. Pride can be a welcome sense of accomplishment or an unrelenting and unreasonable barrier. Pride goes before the fall (Proverbs 16:18) because instead of asking for help, we grapple with air and hit the ground. Pride is the enemy of faith and the destruction of grace. In order to grow in faith and know God’s grace, pride must be overcome. The only way we can enter into a relationship with God is by way of the faith God has planted in us and by the grace God freely gives. To ask God anything is to pray. When we call on God, God listens. God listens to us and responds to us. Ask God for more faith and an awareness of his grace. Prayer can be a deeply personal experience, and it should be. Prayer should always point us to Jesus, and the closer we draw to Jesus the better we will know ourselves. The better we know ourselves the easier it is to let go of that which drags us down and holds us back because we can identify what that is. The closer we draw to Jesus the easier it becomes to let Christ do what he has promised, to take our burdens and give us peace. If we stay open to graces being offered us from Jesus, who always desires a deeper relationship with him, we will be drawn–reading by reading, story after story–into admiration and affections for Jesus, his way, and his invitation to us. Lent can become a day-by-day process of being more and more aware of the gift being offered us. Faith points us, grace fills us, and soon we realize that both of these gifts are actually the one in the same with the giver. The gifts become a person, and a more intimate relationship with him. We will be drawn to greater freedom, and deeper self-sacrificing, dying to self love –pride, and asking for help. When we let ourselves fall in love with Jesus, and then let our hearts desire to be more like his, Lent comes alive. Then, Lent begins to blend into the other seasons as we celebrate his love for us and offer ourselves to him. Ask God for help. Ask God for grace. Ask, in the words of St. Ignatius, "Lord, lead me to the fullness of your grace." Through God’s grace, Fr. Bill+ To Fast or not to Fast–that is the question!
Indeed–here is a typical Lenten question, but I am sorry to say it’s the wrong one for us. Why are we fasting, or even thinking about fasting–—those are the questions at the heart of the biblical witness of fasting in the Old Testament and in the New. In the earliest expressions of faith, fasting was an offering made to God in response to sin. The believer undertook a fast in response to, or in the face of, their own sin or that of others. Looking into themselves and recognizing that they were in sore need of God and God’s direction, a penitent offered time, energy, reflection, and most of all, his or her obedience to God. The point of fasting was thus not to deny the self some food and suffer in hunger as a form of self-punishment, but to interrupt the regular flow of life. When King David sinned before the Lord, David refused to eat and immediately went into prayer and fasting. David recognized the power of the fast and hoped that he might find grace in the eyes of God. Sadly, he did not because his fast was self-focused and selfish. Properly understood, fasting is something we do, but our focus is on God. In the fast, we offer our restraint and sacrifice essentials as we offer ourselves to God as God’s own possession. Esther fasted and asked the Jewish people to fast with her for three days as a plea for divine intervention. King Ahasuerus had decreed the death of all the Jewish people, and Esther pleaded for a reprieve; in response, God honored her fast and saved the people. When Jonah brought the word to the Ninevites that they were condemned in the eyes of God, they believed Jonah’s proclamation and fasted, seeking God’s mercy—they received it. In the New Testament Jesus teaches on fasting in the Sermon on the Mount saying, “Whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face so that your fasting will not be noticed by men, but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.” Matt.6:16-18 Here in this passage, Jesus continues the Old Testament witness of fasting as an event in the life of the individual, which is primarily between the person and God. The effect is the elevation of the spirit and mind through the deprivation of the senses by interrupting the status quo. This elevation brings us closer to God and illuminates the true essential of God’s purpose and person. Speaking personally, I have experienced the distracting result of fasting, thinking about food when I don’t usually do that, but when I do I am reminded of why I have undertaken this discipline—to delve deeper into the love of God. Yes, it is about the love of God, for to know God and to live into God’s presence is to experience love! This is why Jesus tells us not to look gloomy, because if we do or are, then we have not undertaken our fast with the right mind, heart, or spirit. In contrast, when these three are aligned, the spiritual discipline can be particularly illuminating. Note that in Acts, (chs. 9, 13, 14) the leaders of the church undertake fasting to help them understand the will of God, to help them focus on God’s will. Fasting is always this way. With Jesus and the Apostles, the fast is a way of honoring God and seeking His will and a deeper sense of His presence. I have embraced the topic for our week ahead because we are now fully into Lent– a season of preparation like no other for ready-ing our hearts and minds–preparing our lives–to receive the news of the empty tomb, that much closer to the God who emptied it. And to appreciate the fullness of the spirit found in an empty stomach. Friends, this is our starting point. When Jesus set out on the path of ministry, He began with a fast—for forty days! While we are not called to such duration, I encourage you to adopt the depth and singular focus of a personal fast. A day, a meal, three days, a helping—there are all manner of fasts we can enter into. Put bluntly, there is a fast to fit everyone. If you would like help refining yours, please call me. I am happy to help, pray, and plan it with you. May your Lenten journey be filled with an active emptying, such that only our God can fill—and He will! Going without for God, Fr. Bill+ “Rend your heart, and not your garments…” Joel 2:13a
“Abide in me, as I abide in you.” John 15:4 Miriam-Webster tells us: To Rend: 1. to remove from place by violence 2. to split or tear apart or in pieces by violence 3. to tear (hair or clothing) as a sign of anger, grief, or despair It seems that the third definition comes closest to what most of us think of when we envision rend. To rend is a disturbing act with unwanted emotion. To understand rend this way helps make sense of what God said through Joel. If I were to rend my clothing out of my despair, anger or grief, I would be showing the world my travail. God does not want us preoccupied by what others think or how we should share our burden with them. God wants us all to God’s self. The rending of Lent is not like the cosmetic showmanship of tearing your robe. No, Lent goes deeper, to the heart, the marrow, into the sticky, black darkness of our inner selves that festers all kinds of pestilence which kills and destroys. Lent is the invitation to shine God’s light of truth and grace into these tender spaces and render our hearts clean. Lent calls us to abide in Jesus, to travel with him in the way of suffering. The sacrificial life of Jesus leads us to the same place he goes—the Cross. And just as we fittingly call the Friday he dies “Good,” so too the season of Lent is fittingly—curiously, joyous. Lent offers a unique kind of Joy. That joy comes in the somber realization that our sinfulness can be confessed to God’s open ears. It is a peace that believes that same sinfulness is met in unequal and greater measure by God’s grace, which washes it away. The joy of Lent is the awareness that Jesus walks beside us in the here-and-now, and that he will wipe away every tear shed by a rent heart and make it whole. Accepting His Joy in Lent, Fr. Bill+ |
AuthorFather Bill Burk† Archives
May 2025
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