Category: Triduum

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Benedictine Spirituality Christ Cross Divine Office Good Friday Gospel Holy Week Lectio Divina Lent Liturgy Scripture Triduum

Being There.

Image © Ally Barrett (www.reverendally.org) and used by permission

BACKGROUND READING MARK 15:1-41 AND
JOHN 19 17-37 OR JUST JOHN 19 17-37

Salome was one of women who followed Jesus through his passion and death to his resurrection.

Salome’s story is about remembering and forgetting. She remembers her friendship with Mary growing up in Nazareth. She remembers it falling apart after the angel’s visit, and being rediscovered after Mary, Joseph and Jesus returned from Egypt. She remembers how she initially followed Jesus for Mary’s sake, until his words touched her and she begins to follow for herself.

She remembers how, when they hear of Jesus’ arrest, they follow him to his trial and passion. She tells us that, with breaking hearts and dying hopes, they keep vigil at the cross while he dies.

Salome also knows what it feels like to be forgotten. She repeatedly reminds Peter and the other disciples that not all of Jesus’ followers ran away at his arrest. She admits that this might have been habit as much as virtue:

“It’s what I’ve always done. When disaster strikes and I don’t know what to do, I do what I normally do – day in, day out – until the moment comes when I do know what to do again. So, when we heard, when it felt as though the world was collapsing around us, we did what we’d been doing for the past few years. We followed him.”

When we come to the cross on Good Friday we are invited to remember the marginal. We are called to stand with those society rejects, ignores, and pushes aside. We are challenged to become one with them in Christ.

The cross also invites us to bring those parts of ourselves that we reject and ignore. We are called to bring them to the cross, to be welcomed into Jesus’ gaze of “pure love”.

As you stand before the cross this Good Friday where do you need to feel the pure love of Christ your life?
You can hear Salome’s story here:

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Benedictine Spirituality Christ Easter Vigil Lectio Divina Liturgy Resurrection Triduum

In the early morning.

Photo by Jonathan Marchalon unsplahh.com

My head is full of the riches of our Easter vigil. It’s my favourite liturgy of the year, I love how it ties everything together, laying out the story of our salvation in word, action and sacrament. I find myself revisiting it over and over during Eastertide, allowing different aspects of it to enrich and nourish me. Today, This morning I’m reflecting on this from an Easter hymn by St John of Damascus:

“Let us rise in early morning
and instead of ointment bring
Hymns and praises to our Master
And his resurrection sing.”

I’m touched by the wisdom that it has carried through the centuries, passed from one generation of Christians to another, sometimes lost and forgotten, only to be rediscovered and valued anew.

It’s a call to sing the praises of the Risen Christ continually, whatever we are living through, whatever the prevailing view of our society. Nothing can separate us from his love, and nothing can undo the wonderful and mysterious reality of his resurrection.

However challenging or uncertain life is, he will be there inviting us to go out to meet him. Each year the challenges we face seem to become more daunting, leaving us more aware of our fragility. Yet however difficult our lives are, the risen Christ is there calling us.

He invites us to follow Mary of Magdala out into the dark of the early morning to meet him, to rejoice in his presence and to carry his love to our needy world.

As we begin to move through Eastertide where is the Risen Christ inviting you to go out and meet him?

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Benedictine Spirituality Christ Cross Divine Office Holy Saturday Holy Week Lectio Divina Lent Liturgy Scripture Triduum

In the empty spaces.

Photo by Anton Maksimov on unsplash.com

The 46th word in my Lent lexicon is:

EMPTINESS.

After the high drama of Good Friday People often talk of holy Saturday as a “tomb day”, a time to sit with the emptiness that follows death, to allow the events of Good Friday to sink in. I recognise the yearning for that and its wisdom yet, it’s not an experience I recognise from monastic life.

In practice for many of us Holy Saturday is very much a hybrid day, we are aware of its emptiness, the mourning and the uncertainty. We also have to acknowledge that the Easter vigil is fast approaching and that Easter liturgies and treats do not plan themselves. So it is also a day of preparation and anticipation that can be very busy.

As we move through this hybrid day I’m reflecting on these words from the lamentations of the prophet Jeremiah from this morning’s Office of Readings:

“The favours of the Lord are not all past, nor his kindnesses exhausted; every morning they are renewed: great is his faithfulness. My portion is with the Lord says my soul, and so I will hope in him.”

Even in the midst of his lamentation Jeremiah is able to acknowledge the kindness and faithfulness of God, and to put his hope in that. His words speak to me of the hybrid reality of the day.

It seems to me that the emptiness of Holy Saturday calls us to imitate God’s kindness to others as we get on with the many preparations for Easter, and to ourselves as we seek small moments of quiet during the day.

In the emptiness of Holy Saturday where are you aware of the Lord renewing your capacity for kindness?

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Benedictine Spirituality Christ Cross Divine Office Good Friday Holy Week Lectio Divina Lent Liturgy Scripture Triduum

Hope in a dark place

The 45th word in my Lent lexicon is:

DEATH.

Image ©Turvey Abbey

In many ways it sums up the essence of Good Friday, the day compels us to look death in the face with all the pain and suffering that brings. At Office of Readings on Good Friday we sing the Lamentations of the Jeremiah. This morning I was struck by their opening lines:

“All of you who pass this way, look and see, is any sorrow like the sorrow that afflicts me?”

It perfectly sums up Good Friday, especially in such hard and uncertain times when we all carry so much suffering and when our society often seems determined to choose death over life. In such times the cross is the only place that can hold our suffering and our fear of death.

Yet, in Lauds I found the Lamentations were given a new and broader perspective by these verses from the Byzantine liturgy:

“How can you die, Christ our Life?
How can you lie in the tomb?
By your death you will destroy the power of death,
And you will raise the dead from their tombs.”

They echo the heart breaking sorrow of Jeremiah, giving us a place to acknowledge our own heartbreak and suffering. Yet, they also carry us beyond that. They point out that our faith doesn’t stop at the cross. The cruel death of the Cross is a staging post on our journey to new life in the resurrection.

They remind us that the Christ who lay in the tomb is already risen. He is with us in the sufferings and uncertainties of our times and will lead us through that to the new life that his resurrection promises.

As we face death before the cross this Good Friday where are you inspired by the hope of the new life Christ promises?

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Benedictine Spirituality Christ Gospel Holy Week Lectio Divina Lent Maundy Thursday Scripture Triduum

A new commandment

The 44th word in my Lent lexicon is:

LOVE.

Image © Turvey Abbey

It’s the second time this word has made an appearance in my lexicon, but it seemed worth revisiting. Listening to Paula Gooder’s reflection on the women of Holy Week I was touched Susanna’s words to the other women after Jesus and the disciples head to Gethsemane, leaving a sense of dread behind them:

“That’s the problem with extravagant love, it brings with it extravagant heartbreak.”

Her words seem sum up all everything this Holy Week journey, and indeed the whole gospel is about, the call to love with all its delights and costliness.

This love is symbolised on Maundy Thursday by Jesus washing his disciples’ feet. It’s an act of love, service and fellowship that touches my heart every year. It recalls the thousands of services we are called to perform for each other every day. Its simplicity and practicality encapsulates everything from loading the dishwasher to listening to and supporting the broken hearted.

As we carry out the action in our liturgy we hear these words from John’s Gospel:

“I give you a new commandment: that you love one another just as I have loved you.”

Jesus’ love is complete and wholehearted. It takes a clear-sighted view of his disciples, seeing all their faults and still loving them. It’s extravagant and generous. It calls us to love in the same way, both accepting and giving love wholeheartedly and extravagantly.

It seems to me that those are equally challenging. As we begin to celebrate the Triduum I am aware of how much our broken hearted world world needs that transforming, extravagant love.

Where are you called to accept the extravagant, heart breaking love of Christ this Holy Week?

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Benedictine Spirituality Christ Divine Office Easter Sunday Easter Vigil Eastertide Gospel Lectio Divina Liturgy Resurrection Saints Scripture Triduum Uncategorized

Going out to meet Christ.

Photo by Jonathan Marchal on Unsplash

A post from the archives for Easter morning…
I love how the Easter vigil lays out the whole story of our salvation in word, action and sacrament. I find myself revisiting it over and over during Eastertide, allowing different aspects of it to enrich and nourish me. This morning I have these words from an Easter hymn by St John of Damascus running through my head:

“Let us rise in early morning
and instead of ointment bring
Hymns and praises to our Master
And his resurrection sing.”

This wisdom has been passed down through the centuries, from one generation of Christians to another, sometimes lost and forgotten, only to be rediscovered and valued anew.

It’s a call to sing the praises of the Risen Christ continually, whatever we are living through, whatever the prevailing view of our society. Nothing can separate us from his love, and nothing can undo the wonderful and mysterious reality of his resurrection.

However challenging or uncertain life is, he will be there inviting us to go out to meet him. Each year the challenges we face seem to become more daunting, leaving us more aware of our fragility. Yet however difficult our lives are, the risen Christ is there calling us.

The grieving Mary of Magdala found the courage to go out in the dark of the early morning to meet him. She discovered a joy she never expected or dreamt of. He invites us to follow her so we too can discover and rejoice in his presence, and to carry his love to our needy world.

As we begin to move through Eastertide where is the Risen Christ inviting you to go out and meet him?

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Benedictine Spirituality Christ Cross Divine Office Holy Saturday Holy Week Lectio Divina Lent Liturgy Scripture Triduum Uncategorized

Grief and hope

A Holy Saturday reel from the archives based on the Byzantine liturgy. I love that it’s full of hope and allows space for grieving…

Where do you need to find space for grieving and hoping this Holy Saturday?

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Benedictine Spirituality Christ Cross Divine Office Gospel Holy Saturday Lectio Divina Lent Liturgy Prayer Scripture Triduum Uncategorized

Kindness in empty times.

Photo by Francesco Ungaro on Unsplash

Some thoughts from the archives on Holy Saturday…

There is always an element of relief in arriving at Holy Saturday, if only because we’ve moved through the high drama of Good Friday to a quieter, more reflective space. People often talk of Holy Saturday as a “tomb day”, a time to sit with the emptiness that follows death, to allow the events of Good Friday to sink in. I recognise the yearning for that and its wisdom yet, it’s not an experience I recognise from monastic life.

In practice for many of us Holy Saturday is very much a hybrid day, we are aware of its emptiness, the mourning and the uncertainty. We also have to acknowledge that the Easter vigil is fast approaching and that Easter liturgies and treats do not plan themselves. So it is also a day of preparation and anticipation that can be very busy.

As we move through this hybrid day I’m reflecting on these words from the lamentations of the prophet Jeremiah from this morning’s Office of Readings:

“The favours of the Lord are not all past, nor his kindnesses exhausted; every morning they are renewed: great is his faithfulness. My portion is with the Lord says my soul, and so I will hope in him.”

Even in the midst of his lamentation Jeremiah is able to acknowledge the kindness and faithfulness of God, and to put his hope in that. His words speak to me of the hybrid reality of the day. It seems to me that Holy Saturday calls us to imitate God’s kindness to others as we get on with the many preparations for Easter, and to ourselves as we seek small moments of quiet during the day.

As we celebrate Holy Saturday where are you aware of the Lord renewing your capacity for kindness?

Categories
Benedictine Spirituality Christ Cross Divine Office Good Friday Gospel Holy Week Scripture Triduum Uncategorized

A second chance.

Photo by Cdoncel on Unsplash

A post from the archives for Good Friday.

This week I’ve been listening to Amy Jill Levine’s courses on Holy Week and the Good Friday. One of the things she highlighted is how often Jesus offered people a second chance, Zacchaeus, all those tax collectors and sinners, the woman taken in adultery come to mind and there are many more.

It has an added significance as we revisit the passion, and see the second chance offered to those who denied and betrayed him, to those who sat on the side lines or runaway, or who only found the courage to come to him under the cover of darkness.

As we come to Good Friday, facing the stark reality of the Cross, it can feel like the time for second chances has run out. As we commemorate the crucified Christ it can seem as though we have reached the end of the story, and that our hopes are ending in death, disgrace, betrayal and failure. On Good Friday we begin Lauds by singing these verses from the Byzantine liturgy:

“Life-giving Lord, it is right to sing your praise, for your hands were stretched out on the Cross, and so you destroyed the power of death.”

We start Good Friday by acknowledging Christ as our “Life-giving Lord”, a powerful reminder that the Cross is not the end of the story, but a gateway to new life. The Cross is an essential part of our faith, we need to face it, acknowledging the suffering and death it represents. And, we need to accept the second chance it offers us with it’s promise of new life.

What second chance is Christ offering you this Good Friday?