Thorburn-Sutherland's River Pastoral Charge

Gracious God, send us your Holy Spirit so that we may hear your voice speaking in the scriptures. Lead us to encounter your Living Word, and give us the courage to follow, no matter the cost. Amen.

Last Wednesday saw the beginning of the season of Lent which began with Ash Wednesday. When I started looking at sermon ideas for this time of year, I noticed that there are a number of special days in the church calendar in the period up to Easter Sunday which were not all that familiar to me, so I started to have a closer look to see the reason behind each of them.

As Protestants, we’re not nearly as familiar with these so-called holy days as our brothers and sisters in the Roman Catholic and Anglican churches. Our tradition has been to celebrate Palm Sunday, Good Friday, and Easter Sunday, and over the last number of years, Shrove Tuesday; after all everyone likes a good meal of pancakes. Other than that, I was aware of the names, but not the reasons for celebrating the other special days.  But as I looked into why they are celebrated, I discovered that not only knowing the reason for these special days is important but also that understanding them can help us in our spiritual growth.

So, let’s begin with the season itself, Lent. The word Lent comes from the Old English word lencten, which means spring. This only makes sense as Easter always occurs in the spring of the year. Lent is the period of the church year leading up to Easter. The traditional purpose of Lent is preparation through prayer, repentance, works of charity, and self-denial for the annual remembrance during Holy Week of the suffering and death of Jesus, which ends on Easter Sunday and the celebration of his resurrection. It is tradition in the Roman Catholic and Anglican churches that the season of Lent be celebrated by fasting, both from food and parties, and is also a time for reflecting on our lives through prayer, in preparation for the resurrection of Jesus.

Traditionally, Lent is forty days long, starting with Ash Wednesday and ending with the Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday. It’s important to note that there are actually 46 days between Ash Wednesday and Holy Saturday, but Sundays, which celebrate the resurrection of Jesus, are not counted as fast days.

Lent originated in the very earliest days of the Church as preparation for Easter, when the faithful rededicated themselves and when converts were instructed in the faith and prepared for baptism. By observing the forty days of Lent, the Christian marks Jesus’ withdrawal into the wilderness for forty days before beginning his public ministry. During that time, he faced temptation and doubt as he prepared himself for his upcoming mission.

The period of forty days is a special length of time in the Bible and thus when it occurs it is a sign of something important taking place. Some of the most familiar are the forty days Moses spent on Mount Sinai when God gave him the Ten Commandments. Also, Moses and the Hebrew people wandered for forty years in the desert after leaving Egypt. And then we have the Great Flood of Noah which lasted forty days.

The day before the beginning of Lent is known as Shrove Tuesday. The word “shrove” comes from the word shrive, which means to absolve. The idea is that a person fasted during the period of Lent, or at least gave up a favourite food, such as chocolate, as way to atone for their sins. The tradition of eating pancakes came from wanting to have one final, rich treat before beginning the forty days of self-denial. Other names for this day are Mardi Gras, which is French for Fat Tuesday, in reference to the fat used in the pancakes, and Carnivale, which is Latin for “farewell to meat”, as it was once common for people to give up meat during Lent.

The day following Shrove Tuesday is Ash Wednesday, which marks the first day of Lent. In the Catholic and Anglican faiths, it’s the day when the ashes of the burned palms from the Palm Sunday of the previous year are used to place the mark of the cross on the foreheads of the people. It is common for the priest to say at this time, “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” This is a reminder of the words God spoke to Adam after the Fall, “‘…you are dust, and to dust you shall return.’” (Genesis 3:19)

The next feast day occurs during the first Sunday of Holy Week and is called Palm Sunday. Palm Sunday commemorates Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. People stood along the road and waved palms as he passed by. Many churches hand out palms to the worshippers in remembrance of this event, which is something we do here. The history of Palm Sunday comes from Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem while riding on a donkey, as the crowds waved palm branches and laid them at his feet as a sign of honour.

This is one of the few events in the life of Jesus which is recorded in all four Gospels. Here is the version from Matthew’s Gospel, “When they had come near Jerusalem and had reached Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, ‘Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, just say this, “The Lord needs them.” And he will send them immediately.’ This took place to fulfil what had been spoken through the prophet, saying, ‘Tell the daughter of Zion, Look, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’ The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them; they brought the donkey and the colt, and put their cloaks on them, and he sat on them. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road.” (Matthew 21:1-8)

Then we have Maundy Thursday, which commemorates the night of the Last Supper, when Jesus held that first Communion with his disciples. The name “Maundy” comes from the Latin word mandatum, meaning commandment, reflecting Jesus’ words “‘I give you a new commandment.’” Communion is celebrated at this time and within some faith traditions the feet of some of the worshippers are washed as a reminder that on that night in that Upper Room, Jesus washed the feet of his disciples.

We then come to Good Friday, marking the day on which Jesus was crucified. Christians observe Good Friday as a day of sorrow, penance, and fasting, remembering the sacrifice that Jesus made for the sins of humanity. Traditionally churches mark the day with a somber service of worship. It seems strange to call that day good, considering what took place, but that comes from a less common meaning of the word “good”, being pious or holy. We use it in that way when we talk about the Bible being the “Good Book.”

Then the culmination of the Lenten/Easter season comes with Easter Sunday, the day we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus. The name Easter comes from the name of a spring festival which was held at the time of the Saxons in England. Easter Sunday is the most important festival of the Christian church, and it commemorates the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. Certainly Christmas, marking the birth of Jesus, has by far become the most popular celebration in the church calendar, but Easter, marking the resurrection of our Lord, is much more important to our Christian faith. Many churches of all denominations will hold a sunrise service in addition to the Easter service at their normal worship hour.

So, we’ve seen that the period of Lent is a special opportunity to grow closer to God and to prepare ourselves for the celebration of Easter, the greatest celebration of our faith. But what does Lent mean for us as Christians? Why should we observe these forty days of penance and reflection?

Well, just as the word Lent comes from an Old English word meaning spring, which is a time of new life, of renewal, of hope, so is Lent a time of spiritual rebirth, of refreshing our souls, of restoring our hope in God’s mercy and love. Lent is a time to remember who we are and whose we are. We are God’s beloved children, created in his image and likeness, redeemed by his Son, and made holy by his Spirit. We are called to live as disciples of Jesus, following his example and obeying his commandments. We are called to love God with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength, and to love our neighbours as ourselves.

But we know that we often fail to live up to this high calling. We know that we are less than perfect, that we fall short of God’s glory, that we disobey his will, that we hurt ourselves and others by our words and actions. We know that we need God’s forgiveness, healing, and grace. We know that we need to repent and change our ways. That is why Lent is a time of penance and conversion. Penance means expressing sorrow for our sins and making amends for them. Conversion means turning away from sin and turning back to God. Penance and conversion are not just one-time events, but ongoing processes that require our constant effort and cooperation with God’s grace.

One of the ways that that we practice penance and conversion during Lent is by prayer. Prayer means communicating with God, listening to his voice, speaking to him from our hearts, praising him for his goodness, thanking him for his blessings, asking him for his help, confessing our sins, seeking his guidance, and interceding for others. Prayer helps us to deepen our relationship with God, to align our will with his will, to grow in faith, hope and charity, to receive his grace and peace and to share them with others. Prayer is not a duty or a burden, but a privilege and a joy: to be in communion with God who loves us infinitely.

Another way that we practice penance and conversion during Lent is by works of charity. Charity means giving generously of our time, talent, and treasure to help those in need. Charity helps us to overcome our selfishness and greed, to recognize the dignity and value of every person, to respond to the needs of our brothers and sisters in Christ, especially the poor, the oppressed, the marginalized and the suffering. Charity is not an obligation or a sacrifice, but an opportunity and a blessing: to be instruments of God’s love and compassion.

Above all, Lent is a time of renewal. We call it the “springtime” of the Liturgical Year and we pray that God would help us with the important task of inner renewal. Lent is the promise of a new start for all of us, not a time of discouragement or sorrow. Rather, it is a time when we rejoice that God is a God of refreshment, of new life, of new beginnings. And these promises are not empty ones but are full of the power that comes from the Christ who comes back to life in resurrection. During Lent, we can have confidence that Christ is bringing us with him into a new and wonderful life.

So, let us embrace this holy season of Lent with faith and enthusiasm. Let us fast with joy, pray with fervor and give with generosity. And may we all, by the grace of Christ, observe a holy and prosperous Lent this year. Let us repent of our sins and renew our commitment to follow Jesus. Let us prepare ourselves for the glorious mystery of Easter: the death and resurrection of our Lord and Saviour. Let us remember the meaning of Lent: to love God more and to love our neighbour better.

Let us Pray:

Lord, as we begin this season of Lent, we ask for your grace and strength to be faithful to you. Help us to turn away from sin and to follow you more closely. Teach us to love you with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love our neighbours as ourselves. Amen.