February 17, 2010 - Ash Wednesday, Year C (RCL)
Today,
is one of the most solemn days
in the Church’s year.
It’s a day when we stop
and take stock
of our lives,
when we look with honesty at ourselves
from the perspective of God,
and begin the pattern of confession and absolution
that continues through this season of Lent
until Good Friday,
when we remember the full cost of our sin
and the incredible provision of our Savior Jesus Christ
through whom
we are forgiven.
It used to be the tradition
that on this day
the service of Commination was held.
It’s not in the Prayer Book we ordinarily use today;
but it was in the very first prayer book of the Church of England
in 1549, our mother prayer book, if you like,
and many others since.
It begins this way:
RETHREN, in the prymitive churche there was a godlye disciplyne, that at the begynnyng of lente suche persones as were notorious synners, were put to open penaunce, and punished in this worlde, that theyr soules myght bee saved in the day of the lord. And that other admonished by theyr example, might he more afrayed to offende. In the steede [stead] whereof until the saide disciplyne maye bee restored agayne; (whiche thynge is muche to bee wyshed,) it is thoughte good, that at thys tyme (in your presence) shoulde bee read the general sentences of goddes Cursyng agaynste impenitente sinners, gathered out of the xxvii Chapter of Deuteronomie, and other places of scripture. And that ye shoulde aunswere to every sentence, Amen: To thentente that you beeyng admonished of the greate indignacion of God agaynste sinners: may the rather be called to earneste and true repentaunce, and maye walke more warely in these daungerous dayes, fleyng from suche vices, for the whiche ye affirme with your owne mouthes: the curse of god to be due.
We no longer use this service;
although it’s incredibly powerful
and certainly achieves the effect
of making the participants aware of their own sin,
even though
it ends with a strong affirmation
of God’s forgiveness of us,
in our culture, the extremity of it
seems more likely
to lead to despair
than hope,
to self-loathing
than thankfulness.
But what is behind it
is still important,
the sense that we need to be honest
in our relationship with God,
honest not only in our prayers for what we need,
but in our conversation with God
about the realities of our lives - and those realities
include our sins and our failures,
the things we have done
and the things we have left undone.
And of course, that’s what is behind our readings today.
Because what both our Old Testament and Gospel readings suggest
is that it’s one thing
to take on the outward trappings of confession,
to publicly confess our sin
and even wear fast for a season and wear ashes;
it’s another
to seriously consider our lives,
to measure them up
to the measure of God’s values
and see where
we have fallen short.
To look with honesty,
and ask for forgiveness
and then, then
actually do something
about it.
To change our ways.
To stop making
excuses.
To live out our faith.
Notice that in our reading from Isaiah,
when God asks
what an acceptable fast,
the answer is not
that humbling yourself
and fasting and having ashes is bad;
it’s that those things alone
are not enough.
Living with justice,
sharing what you have with those who are in need,
they are what
God is also looking for.
God isn’t looking
just for what we do in church,
God is looking for the whole of our lives.
And God is looking
for honesty from us.
For some of us
that will be admitting
that we really don’t
live in ways that are just,
it might mean
leaving this service
and going to the grocery store
to buy food for those in need - and then setting aside part of our weekly food budget
for others.
For me,
it’s going to be showing up at my spiritual director’s
tomorrow afternoon
for my monthly meeting
and telling her that no,
I haven’t done the prayer discipline that she suggested I take on.
No excuses.
I just haven’t done it.
And tomorrow
I get to
own up.
Being honest with God.
That’s at the heart
of what we do in Lent.
And when we are honest,
and honestly turn to God for help in changing our ways,
we have the assurance
that God will hear us,
God will hear us,
and be merciful on us,
and forgive us and strengthen us.
As that 1549 service of Commination remds us:
Although we have sinned yet have we an advocate with the father Jesus Christ the righteous, and he it is that obteyneth grace for our sinnes; for he was wounded for our offences, arid smitten for our wickednes: let us therfore returne unto him, who is the merciful receiver of al true penitent sinners, assuring ourselfe that he is ready to receive us, and most willing to pardon us, if we come to him with faithful repentaunce: if we wil submit ourselves unto him, and from heceforth walke in hys waies: if we wil take his easy yoke and light burden upon us to folowe hym in lowlynesse, pacience, and charitie, and bee ordred by the governaunce of his holy spirite, seking alwayes his glorye, and serving him duely in our vocacion with thankesgevyng. This yf we doe, Christe wil deliver us from the curse of the law, and from the extreme malediccion whiche shall lyght upon them that shalbee set on the left hand: and he wyl set us on his right hand, and geve us the blessed benediccion of hys father, commaundyng us to take possessions of hys glorious kyngdome, unto the whiche he vouchsafe to bryng us al, for hys infinite mercye. Amen.
© Raewynne J. Whiteley 2010