Welcome to Lent

When the day drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem.  Luke 9:51

In last Sunday’s gospel, Jesus and his three favorite disciples—Peter, James, and John—met on the mount of transfiguration where they heard the voice of God booming from the cloud, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him.”  It’s an iconic scene and, in some ways, the narrative high point of the gospel:  Jesus’ identity, first proclaimed at his baptism, is confirmed again, by God no less.  But the disciples still have a lot to learn about Jesus and what kind of Messiah he will be.  Once they come down that mountain, Luke tells us Jesus set his face to go to Jerusalem, where Jesus will face head-on the violence, cruelty, and despair of the world.  The story doesn’t end there, of course.  The new dawn, the new hope, and the new life of Easter await.  But we have to get there first.

If ever there was a year we needed Lent, this may be the one.  In the corruption and chaos roiling our political life, in the disdain in the halls of power for the welfare of both our planet and its most vulnerable creatures, in our fraying social fabric where loneliness has become a prime public health concern, the violence, cruelty and despair of the world are on display for everyone to see.  It doesn’t have to be this way.  There is another, better way to live.

It begins with confessing the ways we have failed to love our neighbors as ourselves.

It begins with acknowledging how much we mortal beings have in common despite our differences; after all, all of us are dust and to dust we shall all return.

It begins with accepting the power of Love to redeem what has been lost, to remake what has been broken.

Lent begins today, and we need it more than ever.

We worship at 7:00 this evening to observe the solemnity—and unexpected hopefulness—of Ash Wednesday.  These will be the closing words of that service:

Go forth into the world to serve God with gladness;

be of good courage; hold fast to that which is good;

render to no one evil for evil; strengthen the fainthearted;

support the weak; help the afflicted; honor all people;

love and serve God, rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit.

…and Easter will come again.  It always does.

In hope,

Pastor Sue