Worship Notes: Passiontide

            Sunday, March 22 is the 5^th Sunday in Lent.  This marks the beginning of Passiontide (the final two weeks of Lent), in which the Passion of our Lord intensifies.  Therefore, the Lenten fast also intensifies which we can observe in our worship setting.  The sights and sounds in God’s house are muted even more.  For the past number of weeks, our celebration has been muted in the following ways:

                              There are no Alleluias. 

                              We do not sing the Gloria in Excelsis after the Absolution.

                              There are no flowers on the altar.

            During Passiontide, you will note these additional practices.

                              The Gloria Patri (Glory be to the Father) is omitted from the Psalms

                              All artwork or icons have been removed or veiled.

                              The ringing of the church bell ceases.

                              All music is muted except for the support of congregational singing.

            Our services will practically be barren of celebration, but that is the point.  We are fasting.  We are penitent.  We are intently focusing on the sufferings and death of Jesus.  Ceremony and celebration will return with vigor on Easter Sunday when we rejoice in the resurrection of our Lord which declares that sins are forgiven and that death is destroyed.

Sermon -- Ash Wednesday (February 18, 2026)

RETURN TO ME!

ZECHARIAH 1:1-6

In the name + of Jesus.

     Throughout the Wednesdays in Lent, we will be hearing from the prophet Zechariah.  Zechariah’s message is a reflection of Israel’s past, to the present population of Jerusalem, with an eye on the future Messiah.

     Israel’s past was not pretty, and Zechariah acknowledges that.  “Our forefathers did not listen, nor did they pay attention to me, declares the LORD.  Your forefathers—where are they now?  And those prophets—did they go on living indefinitely?  But my words and my statutes, which I commanded to my servants the prophets, caught up with our forefathers, didn’t they” (Zechariah 1:4-6)?

     The people of Israel wandered away from the Lord and his word.  They were negligent in their worship and self-serving in their lives.  Some ignored the word of the Lord.  Others lived in open rebellion against it—worshiping idols, engaging in licentious behavior, and oppressing the poor.  The Lord was not content to let the people of Israel forsake the covenant, so he sent prophets to them again and again.  Those prophets were mocked, threatened, and killed.  After years and years of stubborn rebellion against God and his prophets, the Lord acted in judgment. 

     As he had threatened through Moses, the Lord raised up an enemy nation which destroyed their nation, killed many, and carried others into exile.  That captivity lasted for decades.  Finally, God raised up a new nation which granted the release of the captives.  The Persian King Cyrus issued a decree that enabled the people to return and to rebuild Jerusalem and the temple.  But those who came back were lax in rebuilding the temple and restoring proper worship.  Later, King Darius renewed the decree.  Nevertheless, the people were still negligent.  They were committed to building up their own homes while the house of God remained in ruins.

     It is to these people that Zechariah was raised up to proclaim the word of the Lord.  “The LORD was very angry with your forefathers.  Therefore, now you are to tell this people that this is what the LORD of Armies says to them.  Return to me, declares the LORD of Armies, and I will return to you, says the LORD of Armies.  Do not be like your forefathers, to whom the earlier prophets proclaimed, ‘This is what the LORD of Armies says.  Return, return from your evil ways and from your evil deeds’” (Zechariah 1:2-4). 

     The people of Israel may have returned to Jerusalem, but their hearts had not returned to the Lord.  They were embracing the very same attitudes which resulted in the exile of their forefathers.  Their return to Jerusalem began with noble intentions.  But once they returned and had to rebuild Jerusalem from scratch, they focused on their homes and businesses.  While those were important, the people lost sight of what they had returned to Jerusalem for.  The Lord was an afterthought.  Life got in the way of faith.  Homes got priority over church.  Commerce trumped over the sacrifices.  The stomach became more important than their hearts.  So, the Lord sent Zechariah to proclaim, “Return to me … and I will return to you” (Zechariah 1:3)!

     How is it possible that the people of Israel did not learn the lesson from their fathers?  Their captivity had lasted seventy years!  If their fathers had not died in Jerusalem due to starvation, disease, or the sword, they died in captivity.  Even though a new generation returned to Jerusalem, it was no easy endeavor.  Just the journey was dangerous and expensive.  When they returned, Jerusalem was a ruin.  There were no homes and no walls for protection.  Fields needed to be cultivated again, and vines and trees needed to be tended.  This journey required a commitment to the Lord and to restoring right worship.  How could they forget so quickly?

     There is nothing new under the sun.  Every year, we return to the Lenten season, and every year we hear the word of the Lord again declaring, “Return to me!  Repent of your ways.”  The call is not because you are criminals who need to be scared straight.  It is because, like those Israelites of old, we become absorbed in daily living.  We are too busy to pray or to contemplate God’s word.  To be fair, we are usually busy.  Few people spend their days with nothing to do.  So, life gets in the way of faith.  Homes get priority over church.  Commerce trumps over prayer.  We hunger for entertainment rather than meditation.  So, Zechariah still proclaims the word of the Lord, “Return to me” (Zechariah 1:3)!

     One of the disciplines of Lent which is often avoided by Lutherans is the practice of fasting.  In the Roman Catholic Church, people were taught that a failure to fast was a sin against God.  There were even specific foods that were forbidden on certain days.  We are all familiar with the fish fries which are the alternative to eating meat.  But there were also butter days and cheese days and so forth.  Since consciences were burdened by failing to keep commands that God has not made, the Lutherans exposed the practice as wicked.  We are not to treat traditions—even laudable traditions—as the commandments of God.  No one is going to hell because he eats a bacon double cheeseburger in Lent.

     But the pendulum has swung the other way.  Many Lutherans have been taught to avoid fasting altogether—either because we don’t have to do it or because it is Roman Catholic.  Today’s Gospel lesson, however, shows us that fasting, prayer, and repentance all go together.  When Jesus instructed his disciples, he said, “Whenever you pray” (Matthew 6:5).  It is not an “if” but a “when.”  God’s people will pray.  Likewise, Jesus said, “Whenever you fast” (Matthew 6:16).  He assumes God’s people will fast.  Repentance is not optional, and fasting, repentance, and prayer all go together.  It is not a commandment; rather, it is discipline for our sinful flesh. 

     St. Paul referred to this when he wrote to Timothy.  “Train yourself for godliness.  For bodily training is beneficial to an extent, but godliness is beneficial in all things, because it holds promise both for life now and for the life to come” (1 Timothy 4:7-8).  Fasting is bodily training.  We learn to control our desires instead of letting our desires control us.  Fasting usually regards food, reducing the number of meals from three to 1 ½ or 2 meals.  Fasting disciplines us so that our stomachs do not control us.  But perhaps you would do better to withhold something else from yourself—social media, entertainment, caffeine—whatever you crave.  Of course, wicked desires should always be put to death. 

     “Bodily training is beneficial to an extent” (1 Timothy 4:8).  We need not despise it.  If you find that it is hard, you discover that your cravings have more control than they ought.  If you fail, you need not quit.  Return to your fast.  You are not sinning against God if you sip coffee, eat chocolate ice cream, or check who posted what on Facebook, but you are learning that such discipline is work and that the flesh is weak.

     When Zechariah called the people of Israel to return to the Lord, he was not calling them away from criminal activities.  They were not committing atrocities.  And while they could argue, “We are not doing what is evil,” the Lord would retort, “But you are failing to do what is good.”  Farming and family, commerce and industry all have their place.  But they become idolatry when they are placed above the Lord.  It is evil when the First Commandment gets demoted.  That is why Zechariah called out, “This is what the LORD of Armies says.  Return, return from your evil ways and from your evil deeds” (Zechariah 1:4).  Even activities that are noble and pious will not save you.  While it is good to be a diligent worker, a dutiful child, and a decent citizen, that does not save you.  While it is laudable to cross yourself or to be marked with a cross of ashes, that does not take away your sins.  While it is right to pray, to fast, and to give alms to the poor, these do not atone for sin.

     Return to the Lord your God.  Devote yourself to his word and sacraments.  For, these deliver to you the salvation that Jesus Christ has won for you.  “Return to me, declares the LORD of Armies, and I will return to you, says the LORD of Armies” (Zechariah 1:3).  The Lord does not delight in the death of the wicked—to the point where he offered up his own Son as a sin offering.  Jesus’ pure motives have atoned for our impure desires.  Jesus’ faithfulness has atoned for our failings.  Jesus’ steadfast devotion to his Father has atoned for our misplaced devotion and priorities.  Jesus substituted his innocent life on behalf of all the guilty.  To cleanse you of all unrighteousness, Jesus poured out his innocent blood.  To paraphrase Zechariah, “Because of our ways and our deeds, the LORD of Armies has done to [Jesus] just as he planned to do to us” (Zechariah 1:6).  Jesus has appeased the wrath of God.  He spares you from the terrible judgment.  Jesus, and Jesus alone, has secured God’s blessing upon you.

      Once again, we being a Lenten journey to the cross.  We have made this journey before.  There are few, if any, surprises.  We offer our prayers.  We hear of Jesus’ sufferings and death.  We look forward to the joyous resurrection.  For now, we heed God’s call, “Return to me.”  For we have not overcome our sins.  We continue to fight against our cravings.  We still become distracted so that prayer and meditation become a chore to cram into our schedules instead of a joyful part of our day that we spend with our Lord.  It is to be a time of peace when God speaks to us in his word, and when we carry to him all our concerns, worries, and fears. 

     “Return to me, declares the LORD of Armies, and I will return to you” (Zechariah 1:3).  He will return to you with blessing and grace and comfort and peace.  The blood he shed for your forgiveness is given to you once again.  The body which bore took your punishment is given to you again.  Here, the Lord strengthens you to engage in the discipline.  Here, the Lord summons you to pray because the flesh is weak.  Here, the Lord pardons all your faults and failings.  Again, to paraphrase Zechariah, “Because of [Jesus’] ways and [Jesus’] deeds, the LORD of Armies [will do] to us just as he planned to do to us” (Zechariah 1:6).  His plan is to raise you up from the dead.  Dust and ashes will give way to immortality.  And the feast will go on without end.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Worship Notes: Passiontide

           The 5^th Sunday in Lent (April 4) begins the season of Passiontide (the final two weeks of Lent), in which the Passion of our Lord intensifies.  Therefore, the Lenten fast also intensifies which we can observe in our worship setting.  

          The sights and sounds in God’s house are muted even more.  For the past number of weeks, our celebration has been muted in the following ways:

          There are no Alleluia's.
          We do not sing the Gloria in Excelsis after the Absolution.
          There are no flowers on the altar.

            Now, you will note these additional practices.

          The Gloria Patri (Glory be to the Father) is omitted from the Psalms
          All artwork or icons have been removed or veiled.
          The ringing of the church bell ceases.

            Our services will practically be barren of celebration, but that is the point.  We are fasting.  We are penitent.  We are intently focusing on the sufferings and death of Jesus.  Ceremony and celebration will return with vigor on Easter Sunday when we rejoice in the resurrection of our Lord which declares that sins are forgiven and that death is destroyed.

Worship Notes: Passiontide

NOTES FOR PASSIONTIDE

On Sunday, March 17, the 5th Sunday in Lent, we begin the short season of Passiontide (the final two weeks of Lent).  Just as the Passion of our Lord intensified the closer we get to Holy Week, so also our Lenten fast intensifies.  We will notice this in our worship as the sights and sounds in God’s house are muted even more. For the past number of weeks, our celebration has been muted in the following ways:
               All Alleluias have been withdrawn from the service.
               We do not sing the Gloria in Excelsis.
               There are no flowers on the altar.

Next week, you will note these additional practices.
               The Gloria Patri (Glory be to the Father) is omitted from the Psalms.
               All artwork or icons have been removed or veiled.
               The ringing of the church bell ceases.
               All music is muted except for the support of congregational singing.

Our services will practically be barren of celebration, but that is the point. We are fasting. We are penitent. We are intently focusing on the sufferings and death of Jesus. Ceremony and celebration will return with vigor on Easter Sunday when we rejoice in the resurrection of our Lord which declares that sins are forgiven and that death is destroyed.

Worship Notes: The Lenten Season (2024)

Forty Days and Forty Nights

           Throughout the Bible, the number 40 is associated with a time of testing or repentance (e.g., 40 days and nights of the rains falling at the Flood, 40 years of Israel’s wandering in the wilderness to the Promised Land, 40 days of Jesus’ fasting and temptation in the wilderness, 40 days between Jesus’ resurrection and his ascension, et al.). Therefore, the Church has adopted a Lenten season of 40 days prior to Easter. Incidentally, the word “Lenten” comes from an Old English word lencten which means “to lengthen,” as in, the day light hours are lengthening.

 

Ashes to Ashes, Dust to Dust
           The season of Lent begins on Ash Wednesday. (Ash Wednesday is February 14 this year.) It is “Ash” Wednesday because of the Church’s custom to put the mark of the cross on the head of the worshipers with ashes. These ashes are a reminder that we are going to die one day. As the ashes are applied, the pastor proclaims to each person: “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you will return,” a paraphrase of Genesis 3:19.

           This reminder is awkward and uncomfortable. But sin and death ought to make us feel awkward and uncomfortable. Such a grave reminder of our sinfulness and mortality is a proper way to begin the Lenten season. These forty days are a time of penitence and reflection. While the whole life of a Christian is to be one of repentance, the Lenten season especially focuses us on our need for repentance.

 

A “Fast” Season
           Fasting is a practice that has long been observed by God’s people, going well back into Old Testament times. In fact, our Lord seems to expect that we will do it. In Matthew 6:16, he states, “When you fast…”, not “IF you fast.”
           Fasting goes hand in hand with repentance (Psalm 35:13; Jonah 3:7-9) and with prayer (Esther 4:15,16). Fasting is a ceremony by which we express our repentance in a physical manner. It is depriving ourselves of something physical to focus on the spiritual. It is praying with the body.

           Fasting also trains our bodies and souls. We discipline our flesh to teach it that it is not to control us. We deny ourselves in those parts of our lives in which we are most prone to temptation. When you intentionally deprive your soul of what it wants, it has to get by without. Why is that important? Your desires, uncontrolled, give in to temptation. They lead you into sin. Uncontrolled desires make idols of what your soul wants: desiring excess food is gluttony; desiring extravagant clothing or cars or décor is greed; desiring a man or woman outside of marriage is adultery. Desiring anything outside of God’s order makes you an idolater.
           Most commonly, fasting involves denying oneself at mealtime. It does not necessarily mean total abstention from food. Rather, meals are scaled back. Instead of eating three full meals a day, one eats the equivalent of about 1 ½ meals. The time that one would have spent eating is then devoted to prayer and meditation. The money that one saves can be given to the poor or to a charity. You could also fast in a way that addresses a temptation or weakness that is particular to you. Think about what tempts you, and limit your exposure. If shopping is your weakness, no shopping sprees or comfort purchases during Lent. Too much time wasted on the internet, or visiting sites you shouldn’t be? Only use it at work or when someone else is with you. If you need encouragement, counsel, or more ideas talk with your pastor.

           Fasting from these areas of weakness will heighten your sensitivity to them. It allows you to train yourself to put these cravings to death. And it enables you to enjoy the festival times all the more.
           Should you choose to observe this discipline, do not feel that you have to go all out. Perhaps you will limit your fasting to just Wednesdays and Fridays, as Christians traditionally did throughout the year. Or instead of scaling all the way back to 1 ½ meals, perhaps you will simply omit one of the meals, as well as snacking in between. In any case, fasting is not something we do to seek reward from our Lord. It is a way that we can more intently focus on our Lord, to meditate, and to pray.

Note: Sundays are never fast days, so go ahead and enjoy the good gifts of creation to their fullest on these days! Also, expectant or nursing mothers, children, and the ill are never expected to fast from food, but to provide the nourishment their bodies need.

 

A Season of Passion

           During the Lenten season, the Christian Church generally increases the opportunities Christians have to pray and to hear the word. On the Wednesday evenings (7:00 PM) throughout Lent following Ash Wednesday, Good Shepherd offers Lenten Vespers (an evening prayer service, from the Latin vespera, meaning “evening”). The focus of Lenten Vespers is the Passion of our Lord. The word Passion is derived from the Latin word passio which means “suffering.” The Lord’s passion (zeal) to redeem us drove him to his Passion (suffering) for us. At each Vespers, we will hear a portion of our Savior’s Passion, beginning with the Last Supper and concluding with the death and burial of our Lord. This year (2024), we will read through the Passion of our Lord from the Gospel according to St. Mark. (In other years, the Passion readings are from the Gospels according to St. Matthew or St. Luke.)

 

Little Easters
           If you count the days from Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday, you will get more than forty days. The reason is that the Sundays in Lent are not counted. They are Sundays in Lent, not Sundays of Lent. The focus on these Sundays continues to be the words and works of Jesus, our Messiah, who battles and conquers sin, death, and Satan for us. While the Lent is a penitential season, the Sundays in Lent are feast days and serve as “little Easters” even within the season of Lent.

Farewell to Alleluia
           While Sundays are little Easters, we do not forget that we are in Lent. To reflect the penitential nature of the season, we mute the joy and praise in our Divine Services. This is noticed mainly by the omission of the Gloria in Excelsis (Glory to God in the Highest) and the Alleluias. We also remove the flowers from the altar during Lent. As we continue to make our way closer to Holy Week, our fast intensifies. We will notice that organ music is restricted to the support of congregational singing. The Gloria Patri (Glory be to the Father) is removed from the Psalms. Paintings, statues, and icons are either removed or veiled. The season becomes more somber as we get closer to the cross, until finally on Good Friday, the altar has been completely stripped.

           These omissions are a fast for our eyes and ears. Perhaps it will seem awkward to be missing these things, but that is the point. Lent is a penitential season; therefore, our celebration is muted. But it all heightens the joy and festivity of Easter Sunday when all of the beauty, the music, and the ceremonies are returned to the Church. The sights, the sounds, the smells, and the Alleluia’s break forth in abundance as we join in worship to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and rejoice in the forgiveness and salvation he brings us.



A Prayerful and Penitential Lent

           One more practice you may want to consider this Lenten season is making use of Private Confession and Absolution. This is a rite in which the penitent can hear in a very personal manner the voice of Jesus declaring through his minister, “I forgive you.” The order of Private Confession and Absolution has been made available at the bulletin board so that you can be familiar with it before you come to your pastor. The pastor would be pleased to walk through the rite with you to help you understand the how’s and the why’s. Confession teaches us to recognize our sins, and the Absolution allows us to hear Christ proclaim his forgiveness for those sins that grieve us and torment us. You may contact the pastor to schedule Private Confession and Absolution.

May God bless you this Lenten season as you prepare to celebrate the joys of Easter.

Worship Notes: The Season of Lent

Forty Days and Forty Nights

            Throughout the Bible, the number 40 is associated with a time of testing or repentance (e.g., 40 days and nights of the rains falling at the Flood, 40 years of Israel’s wandering in the wilderness to the Promised Land, 40 days of Jesus’ fasting and temptation in the wilderness, 40 days between Jesus’ resurrection and his ascension, et al.).  Therefore, the Church has adopted a Lenten season of 40 days prior to Easter.  Incidentally, the word “Lenten” comes from an Old English word lencten which means “to lengthen,” as in, the day light hours are lengthening.

Ashes to Ashes, Dust to Dust

            The season of Lent begins on Ash Wednesday.  (Ash Wednesday is March 2 this year.)  It is “Ash” Wednesday because of the Church’s custom to put the mark of the cross on the head of the worshipers with ashes.  These ashes are a reminder that we are going to die one day.  As the ashes are applied, the pastor proclaims to each person: “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you will return,” a paraphrase of Genesis 3:19.

            This reminder is awkward and uncomfortable.  But sin and death ought to make us feel awkward and uncomfortable.  Such a grave reminder of our sinfulness and mortality is a proper way to begin the Lenten season.  These forty days are a time of penitence and reflection.  While the whole life of a Christian is to be one of repentance, the Lenten season especially focuses us on our need for repentance.

A “Fast” Season

            Fasting is a practice that has long been observed by God’s people, going well back into Old Testament times.  In fact, our Lord seems to expect that we will do it.  In Matthew 6:16, he states, “When you fast…”, not “IF you fast.”

            Fasting goes hand in hand with repentance (Psalm 35:13; Jonah 3:7-9) and with prayer (Esther 4:15,16).  Fasting is a ceremony by which we express our repentance in a physical manner.  It is depriving ourselves of something physical to focus on the spiritual.  It is praying with the body.

            Fasting also trains our bodies and souls.  We discipline our flesh to teach it that it is not to control us.  We deny ourselves in those parts of our lives in which we are most prone to temptation.  When you intentionally deprive your soul of what it wants, it has to get by without.  Why is that important?  Your desires, uncontrolled, give in to temptation. They lead you into sin. Uncontrolled desires make idols of what your soul wants: desiring excess food is gluttony; desiring extravagant clothing or cars or décor is greed; desiring a man or woman outside of marriage is adultery.  Desiring anything outside of God’s order makes you an idolater. 

            Most commonly, fasting involves denying oneself at mealtime.  It does not necessarily mean total abstention from food.  Rather, meals are scaled back.  Instead of eating three full meals a day, one eats the equivalent of about 1 ½ meals.  The time that one would have spent eating is then devoted to prayer and meditation.  The money that one saves can be given to the poor or to a charity.  You could also fast in a way that addresses a temptation or weakness that is particular to you.  Think about what tempts you, and limit your exposure.  If shopping is your weakness, no shopping sprees or comfort purchases during Lent. Too much time wasted on the internet, or visiting sites you shouldn’t be? Only use it at work or when someone else is with you. If you need encouragement, counsel, or more ideas talk with your pastor.
            Fasting from these areas of weakness will heighten your sensitivity to them.  It allows you to train yourself to put these cravings to death.  And it enables you to enjoy the festival times all the more. 

            Should you choose to observe this discipline, do not feel that you have to go all out.  Perhaps you will limit your fasting to just Wednesdays and Fridays, as Christians traditionally did throughout the year.  Or instead of scaling all the way back to 1 ½ meals, perhaps you will simply omit one of the meals, as well as snacking in between.  In any case, fasting is not something we do to seek reward from our Lord.  It is a way that we can more intently focus on our Lord, to meditate, and to pray.

            Note: Sundays are never fast days, so go ahead and enjoy the good gifts of creation to their fullest on these days!  Also, expectant or nursing mothers, children, and the ill are never expected to fast from food, but to provide the nourishment their bodies need.

A Season of Passion

            During the Lenten season, the Christian Church generally increases the opportunities Christians have to pray and to hear the word.  On the Wednesday evenings (7:00 PM) throughout Lent following Ash Wednesday, Good Shepherd offers Lenten Vespers (an evening prayer service, from the Latin vespera, meaning “evening”).  The focus of Lenten Vespers is the Passion of our Lord.  The word Passion is derived from the Latin word passio which means “suffering.”  The Lord’s passion (zeal) to redeem us drove him to his Passion (suffering) for us.  At each Vespers, we will hear a portion of our Savior’s Passion, beginning with the Last Supper and concluding with the death and burial of our Lord.  This year (2022), we will read through the Passion of our Lord from the Gospel according to St. Luke.  (In other years, the Passion readings are from the Gospels according to St. Matthew or St. Mark.)

Little Easters            

If you count the days from Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday, you will get more than forty days.  The reason is that the Sundays in Lent are not counted.  They are Sundays in Lent, not Sundays of Lent.  The focus on these Sundays continues to be the words and works of Jesus, our Messiah, who battles and conquers sin, death, and Satan for us.  While the Lent is a penitential season, the Sundays in Lent are feast days and serve as “little Easters” even within the season of Lent.

Farewell to Alleluia

            While Sundays are little Easters, we do not forget that we are in Lent.  To reflect the penitential nature of the season, we mute the joy and praise in our Divine Services.  This is noticed mainly by the omission of the Gloria in Excelsis (Glory to God in the Highest) and the Alleluias.  We also remove the flowers from the altar during Lent.  As we continue to make our way closer to Holy Week, our fast intensifies.  We will notice that organ music is restricted to the support of congregational singing.  The Gloria Patri (Glory be to the Father) is removed from the Psalms.  Paintings, statues, and icons are either removed or veiled.  The season becomes more somber as we get closer to the cross, until finally on Good Friday, the altar has been completely stripped.

            These omissions are a fast for our eyes and ears.  Perhaps it will seem awkward to be missing these things, but that is the point.  Lent is a penitential season; therefore, our celebration is muted.  But it all heightens the joy and festivity of Easter Sunday when all of the beauty, the music, and the ceremonies are returned to the Church.  The sights, the sounds, the smells, and the Alleluia’s break forth in abundance as we join in worship to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and rejoice in the forgiveness and salvation he brings us.

A Prayerful and Penitential Lent

            One more practice you may want to consider this Lenten season is making use of Private Confession and Absolution.  This is a rite in which the penitent can hear in a very personal manner the voice of Jesus declaring through his minister, “I forgive you.”  The order of Private Confession and Absolution has been made available at the bulletin board so that you can be familiar with it before you come to your pastor.  The pastor would be pleased to walk through the rite with you to help you understand the how’s and the why’s.  Confession teaches us to recognize our sins, and the Absolution allows us to hear Christ proclaim his forgiveness for those sins that grieve us and torment us.  You may contact the pastor to schedule Private Confession and Absolution. 

May God bless you this Lenten season as you prepare to celebrate the joys of Easter.

Worship Notes: Lenten Season

 Worship Notes regarding the Lenten Season

Forty Days and Forty Nights

            Throughout the Bible, the number 40 is associated with a time of testing or repentance (e.g., 40 days and nights of the rains falling at the Flood, 40 years of Israel’s wandering in the wilderness to the Promised Land, 40 days of Jesus’ fasting and temptation in the wilderness, 40 days between Jesus’ resurrection and his ascension, et al.).  Therefore, the Church has adopted a Lenten season of 40 days prior to Easter.  Incidentally, the word “Lenten” comes from an Old English word lencten which means “to lengthen,” as in, the day light hours are lengthening.

Ashes to Ashes, Dust to Dust

            The season of Lent begins on Ash Wednesday.  (Ash Wednesday is March 6 this year.)  It is “Ash” Wednesday because of the Church’s custom to put the mark of the cross on the head of the worshipers with ashes.  These ashes are a reminder that we are going to die one day.  As the ashes are applied, the pastor proclaims to each person:  “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you will return,” a paraphrase of Genesis 3:19.

            This reminder is awkward and uncomfortable.  But sin and death ought to make us feel awkward and uncomfortable.  Such a grave reminder of our sinfulness and mortality is a proper way to begin the Lenten season.  These forty days are a time of penitence and reflection.  While the whole life of a Christian is to be one of repentance, the Lenten season especially focuses us on our need for repentance.

A “Fast” Season

            Fasting is a practice that has long been observed by God’s people, going well back into Old Testament times.  In fact, our Lord seems to expect that we will do it.  In Matthew 6:16, he states, “When you fast…”, not “IF you fast.”

            Fasting goes hand in hand with repentance (Psalm 35:13; Jonah 3:7-9) and with prayer (Esther 4:15,16).  Fasting is a ceremony by which we express our repentance in a physical manner.  It is depriving ourselves of something physical to focus on the spiritual.  It is praying with the body.

            Fasting also trains our bodies and souls.  We discipline our flesh to teach it that it is not to control us.  We deny ourselves in those parts of our lives in which we are most prone to temptation.  When you intentionally deprive your soul of what it wants, it has to get by without.  Why is that important?  Your desires, uncontrolled, give in to temptation. They lead you into sin. Uncontrolled desires make idols of what your soul wants: desiring excess food is gluttony; desiring extravagant clothing or cars or décor is greed; desiring a man or woman outside of marriage is adultery.  Desiring anything outside of God’s order makes you an idolater. 

            Most commonly, fasting involves denying oneself at mealtime.  It does not necessarily mean total abstention from food.  Rather, meals are scaled back.  Instead of eating three full meals a day, one eats the equivalent of about 1 ½ meals.  The time that one would have spent eating is then devoted to prayer and meditation.  The money that one saves can be given to the poor or to a charity.  You could also fast in a way that addresses a temptation or weakness that is particular to you.  Think about what tempts you, and limit your exposure.  If shopping is your weakness, no shopping sprees or comfort purchases during Lent. Too much time wasted on the internet, or visiting sites you shouldn’t be? Only use it at work or when someone else is with you. If you need encouragement, counsel, or more ideas talk with your pastor.

            Fasting from these areas of weakness will heighten your sensitivity to them.  It allows you to train yourself to put these cravings to death.  And it enables you to enjoy the festival times all the more. 

            Should you choose to observe this discipline, do not feel that you have to go all out.  Perhaps you will limit your fasting to just Wednesdays and Fridays, as Christians traditionally did throughout the year.  Or instead of scaling all the way back to 1 ½ meals, perhaps you will simply omit one of the meals, as well as snacking in between.  In any case, fasting is not something we do to seek reward from our Lord.  It is a way that we can more intently focus on our Lord, to meditate, and to pray.

            Note: Sundays are never fast days, so go ahead and enjoy the good gifts of creation to their fullest on these days!  Also, expectant or nursing mothers, children, and the ill are never expected to fast from food, but to provide the nourishment their bodies need.

A Season of Passion

            During the Lenten season, the Christian Church generally increases the opportunities Christians have to pray and to hear the word.  On the Wednesday evenings (7:00 PM) throughout Lent following Ash Wednesday, Good Shepherd offers Lenten Vespers (an evening prayer service, from the Latin vespera, meaning “evening”).  The focus of Lenten Vespers is the Passion of our Lord.  The word Passion is derived from the Latin word passio which means “suffering.”  The Lord’s passion (zeal) to redeem us drove him to his Passion (suffering) for us.  At each Vespers, we will hear a portion of our Savior’s Passion, beginning with the Last Supper and concluding with the death and burial of our Lord.  This year (2021), we will read through the Passion of our Lord from the Gospel according to St. Mark.  (In other years, the Passion readings are from the Gospels according to St. Matthew or St. Luke.)

            It should also be noted that, on Good Friday, the Passion of our Lord is read in its entirety from the Gospel according to St. John.

Little Easters            

If you count the days from Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday, you will get more than forty days.  The reason is that the Sundays in Lent are not counted.  They are Sundays in Lent, not Sundays of Lent.  The focus on these Sundays continues to be the words and works of Jesus, our Messiah, who battles and conquers sin, death, and Satan for us.  While the Lent is a penitential season, the Sundays in Lent are feast days and serve as “little Easters” even within the season of Lent.

Farewell to Alleluia

            While Sundays are little Easters, we do not forget that we are in Lent.  To reflect the penitential nature of the season, we mute the joy and praise in our Divine Services.  This is noticed mainly by the omission of the Gloria in Excelsis (Glory to God in the Highest) and the Alleluias.  We also remove the flowers from the altar during Lent.  As we continue to make our way closer to Holy Week, our fast intensifies.  We will notice that organ music is restricted to the support of congregational singing.  The Gloria Patri (Glory be to the Father) is removed from the Psalms.  Paintings, statues, and icons are either removed or veiled.  The season becomes more somber as we get closer to the cross, until finally on Good Friday, the altar has been completely stripped.

            These omissions are a fast for our eyes and ears.  Perhaps it will seem awkward to be missing these things, but that is the point.  Lent is a penitential season; therefore, our celebration is muted.  But it all heightens the joy and festivity of Easter Sunday when all of the beauty, the music, and the ceremonies are returned to the Church.  The sights, the sounds, the smells, and the Alleluia’s break forth in abundance as we join in worship to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and rejoice in the forgiveness and salvation he brings us.

A Prayerful and Penitential Lent

            One more practice you may want to consider this Lenten season is making use of Private Confession and Absolution.  This is a rite in which the penitent can hear in a very personal manner the voice of Jesus declaring through his minister, “I forgive you.”  The order of Private Confession and Absolution has been made available at the bulletin board so that you can be familiar with it before you come to your pastor.  The pastor would be pleased to walk through the rite with you to help you understand the how’s and the why’s.  Confession teaches us to recognize our sins, and the Absolution allows us to hear Christ proclaim his forgiveness for those sins that grieve us and torment us.  You may contact the pastor to schedule Private Confession and Absolution. 

May God bless you this Lenten season as you prepare to celebrate the joys of Easter.