Prayers of the People: From an End to a New Beginning, Palm and Passion Sunday, 6th Sunday in Lent '24 Yr B

For Sunday, March 24, 2024, Readings: Liturgy of the Palms: Psalm 118:1-3, 19-29; Mark 1:1-11; Liturgy of the Word: Isaiah 50:4-9a, Psalm 31:9-16, Philippians 2:5-11; The Passion according to 

Mark 14:1-15:47

  Then those who went ahead and those who followed were shouting, "Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!" [Mark 11:9]

  Who will contend with me? Let us stand up together. Who are my adversaries? Let them confront me. [Isaiah 50:8]

  But as for me, I have trusted in you, O LORD, I have said, "You are my God, my times are in your hand... [Psalm 31:14-15a]

  Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus...and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. [Philippians 2:5, 11]

   Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, The one I will kiss is the man; arrest him and lead him away under guard." So when [Jesus] came [the betrayer] went up to him and said, "Rabbi!" and kissed him. [Mark 14:44-45]

   [Peter] began to curse, and he swore an oath, "I do not know this man you are talking about." At that moment the cock crowed for the second time. Then Peter remembered that Jesus had said to him, "Before the cock crows twice, you will deny me three times." And he broke down and wept. [Mark 14:71-72]

The Sunday of the Passion: Palm Sunday 

  What a day it was! The palms, the cloaks, and branches on the road with cheering and exuberance for this Jesus, heralded as a prophet and a known miracle worker, riding into Jerusalem on a donkey (a donkey was symbol of peace, a warrior king would have ridden a horse). It was all being carefully watched by the Roman occupiers and the Sanhedrin, the Jewish Council who had its own police force and trial court. 

  Just as suddenly as the air fills with joyous gusto, the week turns deadly and the same crowd’s Hosannas turn to shouts of Crucify him! And this is the Sunday we revisit, re-enact, and relive it all through the appointed readings.

  Decades ago the celebration of Palm Sunday and the commemoration of Passion Sunday were two separate successive Sundays. These were later combined into the one-Sunday, two-part Liturgy we have now. At first thought it seems a shame to shortcut the two experiences and yet, I think, it can truly heighten the experience of both parts ~ if we let it. It highlights the stunning speed at which any and many of us can be manipulated into changing what we think we believe, and by virtue of who is telling us, we can be artfully redirected to know that we want to believe whatever he/she/they are saying. 

  Yet, whether we are attending church in person this Sunday, or watching online, how much of the combined readings do we really hear, feel, or think about later in the day, or the week? We’ve heard them all before, or at least we know the story. The readings are long, even if acted out more than simply read. Where am I in this? Am I listening, or watching the clock, warming the coffee or tea in the microwave, answering texts, or thinking about the grocery list for Easter baskets and Easter Dinner and peeps, jelly beans, and chocolate bunnies? 

  Am I willing to look at the world as it is now, with how many examples of crowd-manipulating, politically- and religiously- , sexually-, ethnically-, racially-, and gender- motivated-murders take place every day in my country and around the world? Am I willing to wonder what it is that I could possibly do about it now? Or, at the very least, am I even considering who and what Jesus is to me? 

 When my younger grand-daughter was 4, she loved singing a little happy-clappy ditty she learned in Vacation Bible School, "I am following Jesus" and her volume increased exponentially ~ as she also learned ~ with the line he changed my life forever. So, wise and self-proclaimed Christian grandmother that I think I am, the hard question for myself, again, is how am I following Jesus? Has he changed my life forever, or, more to the point, have I let him? When have I betrayed and deserted him ~ or if that's too hard for me to willingly acknowledge ~ when have I ignored him? Yes, it’s Palm AND Passion today, and it's here all week! And, it's here every day of every year that I choose to profess my faith in all that I think and do ~ often uncomfortably and unpopular in places, but oh so redeeming. 

    Anticipating the Gospel events as they arise this week, I resolve to start over, re-read the lessons, pray with them, and seek the courage and confidence to live into and confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the Glory of God [Phillipians 2:11]. It is time for me to look at each day in this Holy Week, again, as if for the first time, as a sincere period of reflection, penance, and re-commitment. There's no Easter without Good Friday, and when I am following Jesus ~ the real Jesus ~ my life does change, and the rising joy is palpable. Holy Week takes us from an end to a new beginning in, of, and through Jesus, as Christ takes us forward into Forever.

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY
 
Leader:  ~ Jesus, Light of God, today we begin with Hallelujah and Hosanna and end with Heartbreak and Hostility. How quickly the crowds turn, prodded by intentional distortion of truth, political manipulation, and betrayal. Grant us the courage to listen deeply, to walk the path to Your coming death as if for the first time, to stand with You through it all now, and to never deny that You are our Messiah, our Lord.
 
                                                Hosanna! Messiah!                                          
             RESPONSE:           Into Your hands we commit our souls
 
~ Jesus, Light of God, embolden us to earnestly engage the leaders of this World, this Country, and this Community, to confront and eliminate the fear mongering, treachery, and racism, and all  -isms that lead to cruel deaths like Yours. We pray especially for: add your own petitions
 
                                                Hosanna! Messiah!
                                                Into Your hands we commit our souls
 
~ Jesus, Light of God, enfold with Your loving arms all who are ill, desperate, or hopeless, and all who worry and care for them.  We now join our hearts to pray for those in need… add your own petitions

                                                Hosanna! Messiah!
                                                Into Your hands we commit our souls
           
~ Jesus, Light of God, You came to lead us all into the glory of eternal life through Your gift of Salvation. We rejoice in knowing that those we mourn are alive again with You, in everlasting peace. We pray especially for: add your own petitions
 
                                                Hosanna! Messiah!
                                                Into Your hands we commit our souls
 
~ Jesus, Light of God, we pause in this moment to offer You our other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials… add your own petitions
 
                                                Hosanna! Messiah!
                                                Into Your hands we commit our souls
                       
~ Jesus, Light of God, as we begin this sacred week, endow our spiritual leaders with extraordinary grace, that we may all be drawn together, to be opened and accept the same mind in us that was in You, and live always aware of Your continuous life-changing embrace. We pray especially for: add your own petitions
 
                                                Hosanna! Messiah!
                                                Into Your hands we commit our souls
 
The Celebrant adds:  O God of Enduring Mercy, guide our experience this day and through the fullness of the week to come. Grant us awareness of the times when we, too, have deserted and betrayed Jesus by turning first to the ways of this world. Guide us in the willingness to confess through our thoughts, words, and actions, that Jesus Christ IS Lord, to the Glory of You, our God. We ask this through our Savior Christ, Your Holy and Sanctified Son; and the Most Holy Spirit, Your Breath and Wisdom within us; who live and reign with You, One God, now and forever. Amen. 

 

 

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Meditation Moment in Lent ~ Day 29: Give Up, Take On, Pray '24

March 18, 2024 ~ 5^th Monday in Lent 

[A] personal God can become a grave liability…a mere idol carved in our own image, a projection of our limited needs, fears and desires. We can assume that [God] loves what we love and hates what we hate, endorsing our prejudices instead of compelling us to transcend them.

       

~ Karen Armstrong* 

      In an “us and them” world, where do we place “God” as maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen**, in the image of God that we have been given? Is it that there is only one side that God is on? Is it always our side or their side? At what age do we start thinking about what image of God we’re holding, praying to, wondering about? How difficult is it really to let go of any humanized vision of our Creator? Is God in the sun and moon and stars, the breeze that becomes wind that becomes as tornado, rain that becomes a flood or a hurricane? Who, What, and How does “God” look like in your mind’s eye?

Dear God,

     Of course you're on our side ~ don't we always kneel on the field and pray to You before the game to help our team win? Aren't we the correct color, political party, gender, sexual orientation, and citizen of the best country? 

     For today, I will give up trying to have You act on my will. I will take on looking more closely for ways to try to discern Your will. At the very least, I will think more deeply about the teachings of Jesus to love You with all we have and to love others as ourselves ~ to love them as if they were us 

because they and us were ALL created by You. I will pray for the will and the courage to walk this walk for as long as I am given and think differently about what image I serve.  amen.

*Karen Armstrong [1944 - ] is a British commentator and renowned author of a multitude of books on quite a breadth and depth of comparative religion studies. A former Roman Catholic nun, she has given us such books as A History of God: A 4,000 Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam; Through the Narrow Gate; and Jerusalem:  One City, Three Faiths. Her work centers around the commonalities across major religions and, in particular, the importance of the Golden Rule, which spans multiple faith traditions and Compassion.  Her work, research, and authorship has garnered her ~ among many other awards - the $100,000 TED prize in 2008 with which she started the Charter for Compassion: "A document that transcends religious, ideological, and national differences. A cooperative effort to restore compassionate thinking and action to the center of life." Individuals, groups, and even countries can sign and participate in this most human quest to develop humanity to its highest ideal.  http://charterforcompassion.org/

**From The Nicene Creed:   https://www.bcponline.org/

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Meditation Moment in Lent ~ Day 28: Give Up, Take On, Pray '24

March 16, 2024 ~ 5^th Saturday in Lent

 

Every War Has Passionate Reasons on All Sides

And Passionate Supporters and Detractors

Taking Sides Requires Full Knowledge of ALL Reasons, And

In-Depth Self-Examination as to Why One Cause is Chosen Over Another

And Every War has Innocents On All Sides Caught in the Middle

"Racism, prejudice and discrimination still exist in the world, and the Jews have endured the longest continuous manifestation of this racism. I have written that we, as Palestinians, should face Israel candidly and say that we are appalled by the Holocaust, that we should open our hearts "and with a new, magnanimous attitude we should say to the Jews, 'We will accept you and share the land with you. You have suffered for so long. Come share our land. This is God's land. We will live in it together as brothers and sisters.'"    

~ Naim Stifan Ateek* 

    After the discoveries and then acknowledgement of the horrors of the Nazi Holocaust, in which the Jewish people were the largest but not the only targets, a homeland for the Jews was understandably and sympathetically promoted for Palestine as "A Land Without People for People Without A Land," because this desert land would obviously be mostly uninhabited. But the significant fly in the ointment of the great repatriation was there were many people already there for thousands of years: a few Jewish people and also many non-Jewish people ~ Muslims, Christians, and people of a variety of beliefs, cultures, and traditions. But if you’d never been there, it seemed more than reasonable through the publicity campaign that a “deserted” piece of land would be mostly uninhabited and ready for Settlement.

    The debates, the wars, the persecutions, the walls, the barbed wire fences, the guns, the bombs, the bloodshed continue and escalate on a daily basis...and yet, a question always remains: to whom does the land of the Earth really belong? 

    We cannot take the land with us when we die but so many are willing to die ~ or to kill ~ to prove it. While this is one example, think Ukraine, Crimea, "Yugoslavia," Turkey and Greece, Russia and China and Mongolia, Asia, the South Pacific and Caribbean Islands, North/Central and South America, Africa, etc., and everywhere the suppression of Indigenous Peoples occurs. Religion isn't the primary force as it's more like race, ethnicity, gender identity, and intentionally false propaganda, etc. Its true purpose is more likely and simply that it's a useful ruse. 

   The really bad news is that this distorted "hatred" isn't limited to full scale war between or among two or more countries. It happens among a few people that are so dogmatic and doctrinally committed that criminalizing, imprisoning, and even killing others becomes acceptable among otherwise ordinary, "very nice people" who have been taught to disapprove of people of color, people with differences of sexual orientation and gender identity, even those with disabilities, and just because someone who has human power over them and proclaims some "divine" authority tells them it must be done.

   Religion is not the reason, but it can be a useful excuse to exercise power, and, all-too-often to feel better when others engage in ethnic and other human cleansing aka: murder, for God and Country.

God of Heaven and of Earth, and of all the Universes known and unknown:

          We grieve for the pain and suffering, the torment and anger on all sides of this and every other feud over who can, must, should, shouldn't, can't live here or there, do this or do that because... Deep as the core of this earth, the anguish belongs to everyone. We are all Your people: Jews, Christians, and Muslims are ALL Children of Abraham, and the vast millions of others whose beliefs about You are different. But You created EVERY ONE of us ~ please, we implore, we beseech, we beg You ~ show Your care for Your children everywhere and help us all learn to care for each other and to live together in peace, safety, and freedom. Open our eyes, our hearts, and our souls to see ourselves in each other's faces and especially in the faces of all of our children. 
     For today I must give up thinking more about fixing blame and take on learning more about the history of all sides of a conflict whether in the Middle East, Eastern Europe, Africa, Asia, South America, Central America, and the entire world which, of course, includes my own country, my city, and even my family. I pray for the courage to support and participate with those who abhor violence in all forms and who will encourage dialogue to promote understanding among us all. Help us especially with the eternal question: Who really are my neighbors, as Jesus specifically says we are to love as our selves? I entreat You through the Saving Love of Jesus the Christ, and the Wisdom of Your Holy Spirit, who live and reign with You as one, the Creator of ALL, for now, for tomorrow, for eternity. amen.


*The Rev Dr Naim Ateek is a Palestinian priest in the Anglican Church and founder of Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center in Jerusalem. A former Canon of St. George's Cathedral in Jerusalem, Dr. Ateek is a much sought after lecturer at home and abroad and receives support across all denominations and faith traditions including those of the Jewish faith.  Educated at Hardin-Simmons University, Baptist University in Abilene, Texas; and the Church Divinity School of the Pacific, a seminary in the US Episcopal Church in Berkeley, California, Dr. Ateek is a well-respected author of a number of books and articles on Palestinian Liberation Theology, and he has been the recipient of many honors and awards for his work.

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Meditation Moment in Lent, Day 27: Give Up, Take On, Pray '24

March 15, 2024 ~ 5^th Friday in Lent

― Anthony de Mello* 

    If you knew that this would be the very last time we would speak to each other, would our conversation be different?  We have those moments every day with store clerks, shoppers, people on elevators, those we sit next to in church, at a concert, or sporting event. And then there are our families and friends. What feelings, thoughts, awareness arise if you realize we all are dying. A shocking thought! But it’s true. Some sooner, some later. Some at length and painfully, and some quite suddenly. Some will have a comfortably long life and quietly and peacefully just go. Most of us take daily living for granted and yet none of us know the time or the hour [Matthew 25:13]. So let us all LIVE while we can with all that life brings and, yes, even all it takes away. Let us turn our eyes to the Creation that our Creator surrounds us with and look for joy in all the life within it, accepting those moments when joy must await our return, as return to it we will and we must. Let us live for those we’ve loved and who have loved us and who can no longer be in this life, yet from the next they want and will us to go on as they walk with us in heart and memory. Embrace LIFE!

Dear Lord of Life:
     You have given each of us this precious gift of the breath of life; what are we doing with it? Is it wasted on the young, regretted by the old, dismissed by those in-between who are too busy to recognize it for what it is?  For today, I will give up taking breathing and life for granted and take on the understanding and compassion that even if the next breath isn't my last it will be for someone. I'll pray for the fullness of breath that inhales Your love, patience, and understanding and with each exhale to disperse anger, frustration, and bitterness. Today may be the last chance we'll have in this life and any days beyond it will truly be a blessing to be used well. Help us to not waste it by being oblivious to all that we have been given and being thoughtless about the needs of others. Help to make each conscious breath a way to inhale calm and exhale any chronic crankiness. Most especially, may each time we awaken to a new day we simply think or murmur Thank You, Lord, so we are not forgetting to remember You.  amen.   

*Anthony de Mello [1931-1987], was a Jesuit priest from India and a psychotherapist who wrote a number of books and made videos on spirituality with an eastern flavor. His first published book Sadhana: A Way to God contained spiritual exercises influenced by Saint Ignatius of Loyola. Long after his sudden death, then Cardinal-Prefect Ratzinger, later Pope Benedict XVI, convened a commission to study de Mello's work and seemed to find some of his writings and lectures theologically problematic. There was a temporary ban on them for Roman Catholics which has since been lifted. Millions of Catholics and non-Catholics alike, however, have found great wisdom and transformational thought in de Mello's writings, many more of which were published posthumously. 

 

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Meditation Moment in Lent ~ Day 26: Give Up, Take On, Pray ‘24

March 14, 2024 ~ 5^th Thursday in Lent   

Dietrich Bonhoeffer*

   Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s date on the U.S. Episcopal Calendar is April 9, but I've brought him here today because his voice is an important one, especially in our today world. He rises regularly in my consciousness with the strong desire to re-read his writings. Bonhoeffer has long inspired me through his writing and especially through a biography by American Charles Marsh entitled Strange Glory: A Life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, that showed the young and privileged arrogance of a brilliant mind grow into a passionate and compassionate theologian for all of humanity; and, the spiritual torture of deciding to join the plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler.

    He wrote with a particular passion about living in each day seeking and listening for the spiritual messages that we often simply miss: We must be ready to allow ourselves to be interrupted by God. As for all the earth-bound material we chase after, he said, The way to misuse our possessions is to use them as an insurance against the morrow. Anxiety is always directed to the morrow, whereas goods are in the strictest sense meant to be used only for to-day. He also reminds us of another critical lesson that time is the most valuable thing we have, and we only have NOW. What will I do with my time today....what will you?

Holy God of Yesterday, Today, and (maybe) Tomorrow,
       The manna You give me today will not last until tomorrow so  interrupt and cajole me not to waste it or fritter it away or misuse it.  For today I will give up the worry about what might come tomorrow.  I will take on seeing to the necessary business of this day, but more importantly, letting those I care about KNOW, specifically, deliberately, intentionally, definitively, that I care. I will pray that we will each be part of each other's lives for much longer and for the gift of grace to let God, again, interrupt my plans and help me to understand, as Dietrich Bonhoeffer said also, “There is meaning in every journey that is unknown to the traveler.”  amen.

*Dietrich Bonhoeffer [1906-1945], theologian, Lutheran pastor, dissident anti-Nazi.  His book The Cost of Discipleship is considered a modern classic.  Polish by birth, he studied at the University of Tubingen and received his Bachelor's and Master's degrees and his Doctor of Theology at the University of Berlin.  He completed a second doctorate - all before the age of 25. He did post graduate study at Union Theological Seminary in New York and was introduced to and was profoundly inspired by the Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem.  His teachings and writings continue to inspire generations after his death.  With great angst but complete abhorrence of the Nazi dictatorship and violence, he was involved with the German Military Intelligence Office's plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler.  He was arrested by the Gestapo in 1943 and executed on April 9, 1945, 23 days before the German surrender. His "time is the most valuable thing we have..." comes from his Letters and Papers from Prison.  He never justified or excused his action but accepted that he was taking guilt upon himself as he wrote "when a man takes guilt upon himself in responsibility, he imputes his guilt to himself and no one else. He answers for it...Before other men he is justified by dire necessity; before himself he is acquitted by his conscience, but before God he hopes only for grace." There is so much more that can be said about Dietrich Bonhoeffer and all in his own words.

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Meditation Moment in Lent ~ Day 25: Give Up, Take On, Pray '24

March 13, 2024 ~ 5^th Wednesday in Lent

Holding on to anger is like drinking poison 

and expecting the other person to die.  

Holding on to anger is like holding hot coals 

you intend to throw at someone 

but you're the one who gets burned.

 

Anger is an acid that does more harm 

to the vessel in which it is stored 

than to anything on which it is poured.

 

     All of the above quotes, in a variety of similar iterations, have variously been attributed to The Buddha, Mark Twain, Roman Stoic philosopher Seneca, 12-Step programming, and any number of contemporary authors. It is often difficult to pin down the actual origin of almost epigrammatic expressions especially when widely quoted. Nonetheless, whoever said them first, the consensus of the above is that anger is more dangerous to oneself than to others. Anger that escalates to rage and/or combines with desperation, however, can certainly be dangerous for everyone around.

    But not all anger is bad or dangerous ~ it's quite appropriate and justified, when it's directed at or a result of personal loss, instances of gross injustice, discrimination, economic hardship, and so on. It is how we use our anger, how we respond that makes the difference between poisoning ourselves and resolving an issue. Thoughtful response rather than impulsive reaction? Some days are better than others. How can I pull back when pushed over an edge? Counting to 10? Deep breathing? 

   So much depends on when and how the anger surfaces and who is pushing my buttons and what else is going on within me that may be completely unrelated.   

   For one who is constantly seething over things small and large, “itching for a fight” consciously or otherwise, or keeping it all inside unexpressed with an all-gracious exterior, seeking outside help, pastoral and/or professional is a useful step in self-care.

   We all know that Jesus says to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. If I’m spending much of my brief life raging at others, even just inside, it says more about how I feel about me than how I actually feel about her, him, and them. 

   Dear God,

      There are days when I want You to be Your Old Testament Self ~ smiting and plaguing, wrathful and condemning, thundering, destructive, and vengeful, oh my! That gives me permission, sort of, to impose the eye for eye/tooth for tooth thing as I plot my revenge against a perceived enemy.  But mostly, I want ~ and need ~ Your New Testament Self in the form of Jesus who relieves my angst and anger, and shows me a quieter yet equally satisfying path. For today, I'll give up attempting to bend my part of the world to my will by shouted recrimination or internal rage. I'll take on seeking more positive outlets to right injustice, overcome discrimination, promote understanding, or get involved with organizations that work to resolve large issues that affect us all. I'll also work toward calming my inner upsets, examining the why and how of what bothers me, and continuing my quest for the inner peace that will reflect outwardly. I'll pray for the guidance and blessing of the Holy Spirit, the support and friendship of a loving community of faith, and the collective wisdom and love of family and close friends. Oh, and I'll keep working on what I'm thinking about those other drivers when I’m in the car. amen. 

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Meditation Moment in Lent ~ Day 24: Give Up, Take On, Pray '24

March 12, 2024 ~ 4^th Tuesday in Lent

The power of faith is the power of goodness and truth, 

which is the power of God…

The opposite of faith is therefore fatalism...[that] finds expression in statements like 'Nothing can be done about it.' and 'There is no hope.' These are the statements of people who do not really believe in the power of God, people who do not really hope for what God has promised. 

~ Albert Nolan, O.P.* 

Faith....do I have it?  I think I do ~ I must, I go to church, I pray ~ but then there are those moments when I am unsure of what God means to my life. There are times when I am certain there is nothing I can do that will make any useful difference in the world. I even struggle with hope as the world seems to be in constant chaos and turmoil, twisting and turning in violence and calamity. I question my faith often and I suppose I always will. And then what helps is seeing that tiny mustard seed ~ is that really all I need? I think I can muster that much in my way of Faith.

Dear Jesus,
   In the Gospel of Matthew 17:20,You said that if I have faith as small as a mustard seed I can move mountains. I feel that strength and know I can move anything larger than myself on those "good days." On those not so good days, sometimes it's all I can do to move myself. But when I look at that tiny seed, I begin to approach hope. For today, I'll give up pondering the details of what I'm sure I believe and what I'm not so sure of. I'll take on walking through each day with that mustard seed as a tangible sign of Your love and inspiration ~ from its tiny beginnings to its full leafing of surprising height that produces more seeds to give flavor and warmth to my life. I'll pray for more hope and more confidence in my faith. In the meantime, I have faith in that tiny seed's magic ~ within it there is the potential for tremendous growth, just as there is within me when I feel my faith reaching for You. amen.

A Full-Grown Israeli Mustard Tree

*Albert Nolan, OP [1934-2022], was born in Cape Town as a 4th generation South African of English descent. With inspiration from reading the works of Thomas Merton, he entered the Dominican Order in 1954. He taught theology to and had been Vicar General of the Dominicans in South Africa. The author of several books, his 1976, Jesus Before Christianity, is the most well-known and has been reissued several times and as recently as 2001, its 25th Anniversary edition.  In it, Nolan discusses Jesus' radical struggle for the full humanity of the poor in the time of first-century Palestine. Nolan writes that Jesus "challenged the rich to identify in solidarity with the poor," a universal theme that is persistently relevant across time and culture.

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