Good news! I have filled my paper journal! Now it's time to start a new one!
Isn't that an awesome feeling??
Isn't that an awesome feeling??
Wednesday, April 03, 2013
Tuesday, April 02, 2013
He is Risen--He was DEAD but is Now Risen
I'm finding such gratitude and sanctuary in the church calendar as of late. Most of my church life has been spent in non-denominational contemporary Protestant churches, but the past three of it has been spent in this lovely little Lutheran congregation--somewhere I never expected to find family or a place to call home. In this time in this church where sacraments are performed seriously and joyfully, where scripture is read aloud betwixt songs and sermons, I have found new awe. There is purpose in the liturgy, in the church calendar, in the liturgy.
Just as we set aside time leading up to Christmas to anticipate Jesus' birth, we also set aside time leading up to Easter to anticipate Jesus' resurrection. And that time builds to a climax during Holy Week. On Palm Sunday, we enter the crowd welcoming Jesus into Jerusalem...with recognition that five days later we are in the crowd again, shouting "Crucify him!" At my church we are given palm fronds to wave during service. I saved mine from last year, and had them sitting on my dashboard. And every once and a while, I would consider that, and reflect on that. (I think that season is now come and gone, and it's time to get rid of the palm fronds. But only did I realize that this weekend.) On Maundy Thursday, we consider the Last Supper, where Jesus washes his disciples feet. On Good Friday, we reflect on the crucifixion We remember the nails driven into his hands and into his feet, we remember the crown of thorns shoved onto his head, and we remember the flogging and the piercing and the hanging and the death of Jesus. My church reads through the passion story in a Tenebrae service--Service of the Shadows, where as the story is read responsatorily, candles are extinguished and lights are dimmed, until the sanctuary is in total darkness. We leave in complete darkness and silence. This year, the part that struck me most was the loud sound played to signify the closing of the tomb. I resisted shrugging off the (emotional and physical) reverbs of that sound in discomfort, and let the finality of that sound register.
In Lent, in Holy Week, we enter a season of remembering the hardship and the price of the cross. We enter a season of recognition that the life of Jesus was not an easy one, and that our lives as his followers are not either. I hope that we take the season of Lent seriously. I think it's important to enter the season of Lent, and not rush to Easter, as would our inclinations be. Because as amazing as Easter is, it cannot have it's place, and it's worth cannot be fully grasped without Good Friday. We must grow in our capacity to understand the death of our Savior in order to grow in our understanding of the life of our Savior. And I am grateful for the church calendar that reminds us that there are seasons. That there is a time both for joy and for mourning, and each season brings new growth.
Sunday, we celebrated that He has risen!! Hallelujah!
And this week, I celebrate that HE IS STILL RISEN! Hallelujah and Amen!
Just as we set aside time leading up to Christmas to anticipate Jesus' birth, we also set aside time leading up to Easter to anticipate Jesus' resurrection. And that time builds to a climax during Holy Week. On Palm Sunday, we enter the crowd welcoming Jesus into Jerusalem...with recognition that five days later we are in the crowd again, shouting "Crucify him!" At my church we are given palm fronds to wave during service. I saved mine from last year, and had them sitting on my dashboard. And every once and a while, I would consider that, and reflect on that. (I think that season is now come and gone, and it's time to get rid of the palm fronds. But only did I realize that this weekend.) On Maundy Thursday, we consider the Last Supper, where Jesus washes his disciples feet. On Good Friday, we reflect on the crucifixion We remember the nails driven into his hands and into his feet, we remember the crown of thorns shoved onto his head, and we remember the flogging and the piercing and the hanging and the death of Jesus. My church reads through the passion story in a Tenebrae service--Service of the Shadows, where as the story is read responsatorily, candles are extinguished and lights are dimmed, until the sanctuary is in total darkness. We leave in complete darkness and silence. This year, the part that struck me most was the loud sound played to signify the closing of the tomb. I resisted shrugging off the (emotional and physical) reverbs of that sound in discomfort, and let the finality of that sound register.
In Lent, in Holy Week, we enter a season of remembering the hardship and the price of the cross. We enter a season of recognition that the life of Jesus was not an easy one, and that our lives as his followers are not either. I hope that we take the season of Lent seriously. I think it's important to enter the season of Lent, and not rush to Easter, as would our inclinations be. Because as amazing as Easter is, it cannot have it's place, and it's worth cannot be fully grasped without Good Friday. We must grow in our capacity to understand the death of our Savior in order to grow in our understanding of the life of our Savior. And I am grateful for the church calendar that reminds us that there are seasons. That there is a time both for joy and for mourning, and each season brings new growth.
Sunday, we celebrated that He has risen!! Hallelujah!
And this week, I celebrate that HE IS STILL RISEN! Hallelujah and Amen!
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