Holy Week - 2010
By Pat Lee | April 2, 2010
Holy Saturday:–Acceptance
Reading: Matthew 27: 57-66
Reflection: From the conclusion of the Good Friday service until the Holy Communion at 5:00 on Saturday we observe Holy Saturday. In our spiritual tradition, we believe that on Holy Saturday Jesus “descended to the dead” (Apostle’s Creed) to proclaim the good news of salvation (1 Peter 3:19). No-one was or is or ever will be out of the reach of the saving power of Jesus. Jesus was, is and always will be the Saviour of the world, whose healing forgiving, reconciling love is accessible to all, across all time and all space. There is an icon that depicts Christ breaking down the doors of hell, grasping the wrists of Adam and Eve and lifting them victoriously toward heaven. Adam and Eve do nothing to help. Today we are reminded of a very powerful reality. We cannot heal the brokenness or imperfect state of being human. We cannot restore our wounded nature. We need to accept ourselves as we really are. We need to accept a God who has, in Jesus, revealed himself to be the God who can do for us what we cannot do for ourselves. Adam and Eve’s salvation, like ours, like all humanity’s– is a gift from God in the person of Jesus. All we need do is accept the gift and let it affect our lives. Such acceptance is what we, as Christians, are about between Good Friday and Easter.
Prayer: Father, through the resurrection of your Son Jesus, you are doing for me what I cannot do for myself. Help me to accept my limitations and imperfections, so that through such acceptance I can experience the victory of the Risen Jesus in my life. I ask this in Jesus’ name.
The Resurrection of Jesus
Topics: Easter | No Comments »
Holy Week - 2010
By Pat Lee | April 2, 2010
Good Friday—The Crucifixion of Jesus
Reading: John 18:1-19:42
Reflection: The Passion account in John is a narrative of how the Word of God made flesh—Jesus—became immersed in all of human life. To be with Jesus we need to be willing to live life as fully as we can. We need to reach out in trust to others. We need to acknowledge our doubts and fears. We need to accept our hurts and pains. We need to acknowledge our sin and accept God’s forgiveness. We need to accept the good and the bad that come with living life and know ourselves as people who need Jesus.
Prayer: Father, through the passion and death of your Son Jesus you revealed your willingness to be with me in the most critical aspects of human life. Help me to fully accept my humanity so as to be with Jesus in all that is human. I ask this in Jesus’ name.
Topics: Easter | No Comments »
Holy Week - 1020
By Pat Lee | March 31, 2010
Wednesday in Holy Week : March 31, 2010
Reading : Matthew 26: 14-25
Reflection: “If Jesus knew that Judas would betray him, why didn’t he have Judas removed? Why didn’t he turn his back on Judas?”
Jesus, in not turning Judas away from himself, reveals a God who not only desires to be with us when we do the “right” or “holy” thing, but also a God who wants to be with us in all the aspects of our lives.
In Jesus we do not find a God who desires that we reach some state of perfection before he will be with us; rather we find a God who is actually willing to work with us as we journey to the completion of who we are as human beings.
In Jesus we find a God who is not only the goal of our journey through this life, but also a God who desires to be with us as we make that journey. Our journey may at times be challenging. We may stumble and fall. We may even take a wring turn or two along the way. Today’s reading, however, reveals a God who will not give up on us. Today we are reminded of how determined our God is to be with us and how much he wants us to be with him.
Prayer: Father, through your Son Jesus you are with me in all things. Help me to know that you are with me in my failures and mistakes as well as in my accomplishments and successes. I ask this in Jesus’ name.
Topics: Lent | No Comments »
Holy Week - 2010
By Pat Lee | March 30, 2010
Tuesday in Holy Week : March 30, 1020
Reading : John 13: 21-38
Reflection: We may desire to complete an important project either for ourselves or for others. We may desire to reach some goal with all our heart. All too often we can fail in our attempts. Such failure can lead to feelings of disappointment and may, at times, cause feelings of guilt.
Today we are reminded of our need to consult and include Jesus in the pursuit of our goals. We will need his strength if we are to complete the good we seek to do. We will need to be nourished by him if we are to succeed in our goals.
There may indeed have been a very good reason why the first disciples were called to spend time with Jesus before they ventured out on any mission. There may be a very good reason why Jesus cautioned Peter about trying to follow him into the passion before Jesus himself had risen from the dead. There may be a very good reason why we need to be very careful about setting goals for ourselves before we have spend sufficient time in prayer, reflection and worship in the presence of Jesus. It may be that we, like the first disciples, need to spend time with Jesus before we begin any important task.
Prayer: Father, through your Son Jesus you have revealed yourself to be the One who can bring me to completion. Help me to spend time with your Son before I begin important projects in my life. I ask this in Jesus’ name.
Topics: Lent | No Comments »
Holy Week - 2010
By Pat Lee | March 29, 2010
Holy Week
We begin the holiest week of the Church Year. It is the holiest because during these upcoming days the climatic events of our salvation, namely the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus, will once again be made present in the way the Church remembers those events.
Monday in Holy Week : March 29, 2010
Reading : John 12:1-11
Reflection: We seek the presence of Jesus. In our seeking we engage in activities such as personal prayer, scripture reading, acts of service, gathering with others in worship, sharing in the blessed bread and wine of the Eucharist and others. We are often able to experience the presence of Jesus in such activities, but there are times when we do not. Jesus is present but we do not experience his presence. Such moments of “absence” do not necessarily mean that we are doing anything wrong.
Today’s reading reminds us that the presence of Jesus is sometimes hidden from us. Although it is important to maintain our faith activities and especially important that we continue in personal prayer and communal worship, there is no guarantee that the “hidden presence” of Jesus will be made known through what we do. Jesus is not a genie in a bottle accessed through an incantation.
What is important is that we enter into our faith activities no matter how absent or dry they may seem to be at the time. Part of our faith is a willingness to allow Jesus to make his presence know to us in ways of his choosing. We do not have control over such revelation. It is, however, important to our faith that we continue to go to where he may be found.
Prayer: Father, through your Son Jesus, you reveal your presence with me. Help me to persevere in my attempts to experience his presence so that I may be open to finding him when his presence is revealed to me. I ask this in Jesus’ name.
Topics: Lent | No Comments »
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