ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGS
February 27, 2020
A Prayer To Begin Lent:
A journey begins and the life of Jesus leads us.
Merciful and Holy Guide,
the walk to Easter requires us
to see and experience
-the rejection by the very people
who called Jesus friend;
-the pain inflicted by an Empire
that sought to make his suffering an example;
-the loneliness brought about
by the denial of his closest followers;
-the darkness of the tomb where life was lost.
Merciful God,
as we receive ashes
and commence upon forty days
of deep reflection and honest confession,
we seek to know the life of Jesus
with new clarity,
gaining an appreciation
that confronts and confounds
a value system that continues
to place profit and power over people.
Leave nothing out of this journey,
Holy God,
as our destination of resurrection
will fall short if time is not spent
along the road
where Jesus was reviled and abandoned.
Be gracious to us, Lord,
as we follow and learn –
and allow ourselves to be transformed
in this journey to the cross.
Amen.
