| February 17, 2016
When our management group from the General Council Office had its all day meeting in January, (something we do around that time every year), we started the day with a Bible study. The passage we used, Romans 1:8-17, challenged us because it emphasized a word that many of us were not fully comfortable with: righteousness.
We tend to hear “righteousness” in a negative way because it is usually heard in the context of “self-righteousness.” Yet over and over again, the Bible speaks of God’s righteousness and calls us to aspire to righteousness. I’ve been noticing the word a lot this week because I’m reading through all the Psalms as my Lenten practice. The Psalmists certainly weren’t afraid to use the word “righteousness.” The conversation with colleagues last month, and my reading of the Psalms through Lent, serve to remind me that it is good to take time with things in the Bible that I’m less comfortable with, not just the ones that immediately speak to me.
I’m not sure how I came up with the idea of reading the Psalms through Lent, when there are so many ways to focus one’s reflections through these 40 days.
Have you seen the Moderator’s Lenten invitation on YouTube? There is no better place to start your Lenten Reflections. And if you want to offer something on video yourself, you are invited to share your own “not alone” message in a short video. Social media gives us new ways of engaging with others in our church community and beyond.
This year’s United Church devotions are in a little book called With Us Always, edited by Alydia Smith. Each day’s reading lifts up a biblical text and relates it to the theme from a movie. It’s perfect given that the Academy Awards are presented during Lent.
I like to look around the Web at this time of year to get a sense of what is happening in congregations for Lent. Lots!
I can’t begin to list all the things here, but without going into all the rich and beautiful detail, they include:
- A comparative study of the beliefs of Christianity and Islam
- Reflections on what it means to be in Christian community
- Weekly Bible study based on the lectionary readings
- Another weekly Bible study on the theme of spiritual growth
- Weekly discussions based on the films that are part of the series “Growing Through the Poetry of Pain”
- Lenten “Conversations that Matter”
- Daily prayer for the minister, congregation, and one another through Lent
- an ecumenical retreat
These are just a few. It’s fun to see the wealth of creative approaches that are offered across our church.
Oh, and did I mention that some people have the practice of giving things up for Lent too. That isn’t so much my practice, although I have done it on occasion, but it is an excellent way to use discipline and structure to keep us focused on Lent.
My cousin circulated something that suggested that people should look in their closets, drawers, etc. and find one item each day to discard. Then at the end of 40 days, give those things to someone who could use them.
I hope you have found a practice, or sacrifice, or study, that is working for you during this time of Lent. It is good to take time to go deeper.
Peace and blessings,
Nora
This message has been sent to subscribers to the General Secretary's Letter, "Note from Nora." To subscribe, visit the United Church website.
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