Saint Mark the Evangelist

The Collect
Almighty God, by the hand of Mark the evangelist you have given to your Church the Gospel of Jesus Christ the Son of God: We thank you for this witness, and pray that we may be firmly grounded in its truth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
~BCP, p. 240

The Psalm
2

The Readings

Isaiah 52:7-10     +     Ephesians 4:7-16     +     Mark 1:1-15

Break forth into singing, you ruins of Jerusalem; 
for the LORD has comforted his people, he has redeemed Jerusalem.
The LORD has bared his holy arm before the eyes of all the nations;
and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God.
~Isaiah 52:9-10

This has been a strange Easter season. This is our season of celebration--"the feast of victory for our God, alleluia!"--but it's harder this year to feel that celebration, separated as we are from the physical presence of so many loved ones, and from our own church community. How shall we sing the LORD's song upon an alien soil? asks the psalmist, plaintively (incidentally, the raw honesty of the psalms has been as powerful as ever to me in these past weeks).

Though no one would wish for this current situation (and any theology that asserts this time as a punishment or "lesson" sent by God is sorely deformed), it is worth reflecting on what we might be learning in these days, and indeed what God might teach us. One thing that I am reminded of again today is just how much of the Bible is written from and to a place of great hardship. Much of the Old Testament is written explicitly from the perspective of the enslavement or exile of Israel. And even much of the scriptures that are not explicitly exilic in content were compiled and edited while Israel was in fact in exile in Babylon. And, of course, the New Testament is situated entirely in the context of people living under the coercive power of the Roman Empire--a power that brutally executed Jesus.  The passion is the central narrative around which everything builds in Mark's Gospel (and in the other Gospels, for that matter). And yet, throughout the scriptures, the people of God rejoice. Even amidst the ruins, the Lord comforts his people. Even in the wilderness, the Kingdom of God is proclaimed. Even in the fear and confusion and disillusion following the crucifixion, on that first Easter morning the angels declare to the women, He has risen, he is not here . . . go, tell his disciples. 

This basic context of suffering, exile, and hardship that underlies almost all of our scriptures can be, understandably, easy for us to forget or even fail to notice in modern America. But one unexpected blessing now may be that our current time of trial can serve as an opportunity for us to realize in new and powerful ways the depth of Christian faith--that it is and must be firmly grounded in the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ the Son of God. No other foundation will suffice.

Closing Prayer

Almighty God, stir up in us the flame of that love which burned in the heart of your Son as he bore his passion, and let it burn in us to eternal life and to the ages of ages; through the same your Son our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.  

~ adapted from a prayer in the Order for Evening, BCP, p. 113

Maundy Thursday (at home, with kids)

I'm breaking with the normal format of this blog today. Because this is a different kind of Holy Week. But it is still Holy Week, and today is still Maundy Thursday. So we're doing our best to observe these sacred days, and to help others to do so. To that end, I created (borrowing generously from the creativity of others) a Maundy Thursday "home liturgy" for our parishioners. After I put it together, I felt pretty good about it--pastorally appropriate, creative but still theologically sound, etc.

Then came yesterday, another day at home with the kids (we have five, ages 3 to 13)--and I wasn't feeling it. Because I know how these things go in my house. Even the most simplified family prayer time is rarely smooth. Even grace before meals, somehow, inexplicably, often results in fighting and tears (don't ask me how). So yesterday, I (me, the priest) was wondering if we would do anything at all today as a family. Because that's how I was feeling.

So it was good for me to remember and return to these words I read last week from Allison Sandlin Liles at the Grow Christians blog.

Typically I find this sort of creativity inspirational, but it instead reminded of how overwhelmed and underprepared I am for this holy time.

So before I continue, I want to say, that no matter how you observe Holy Week this year, the stone will roll away and Jesus will rise. It’s okay if you don’t cut greenery from your yard on Sunday and wave it around in your living room while watching a live streamed donkey walk down a cobblestone road in Jerusalem. It’s okay if you don’t wash your toddler’s feet on Maundy Thursday or keep watch by a home altar later that night. It’s okay if you can’t find a quiet ten minutes to pray the solemn collects on Good Friday because your house is anything but quiet right now. It’s okay.

No matter how we engage Holy Week, Easter will come.

Amen. Easter will come. And the resurrection of our Lord does not depend upon our ability to celebrate as we see most fit, nor does it depend upon the solemnity with which we keep these final days leading up to Easter. As beautiful and powerful as Holy Week is, with its proper liturgies fully observed, they should be kept in perspective--especially this year. Indeed, the first Easter was hardly observed or celebrated by anyone--and still he rose.

So, at this point, Maundy Thursday in our house will look like this: a meal, a prayer (brief), a children's story Bible account of John 13, and foot washing. Hopefully. Maybe. But regardless of how it goes (or not), our Lord will be present here. As he will be present with you, as he is present in every heart and home that seeks to welcome him, however so humbly or imperfectly.

I pray you blessing in the remainder of this Holy Week.

From the Children of God: Storybook Bible, a personal favorite