Invitation to the Way of Lent

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3 Invitation to the Way of Lent Lent again? I invite you, therefore, in the name of the Church, to the observance of a holy Lent, by self-examination and repentance; by prayer, fasting, and self-denial; and by reading and meditating on God's holy Word (BCP pg. 265) Lent is the 40 days preceding Easter and comprises a season of fasting, examination and prayer. Since every Sunday is considered the Lord s day and a celebration (i.e. Feast) of the Resurrection, Sundays are omitted from the 40 days. Originally Lent was a period of preparation for baptism, catechumens fasted and prayed during this instructional period just as Christ did in the wilderness prior to the beginnings of His ministry. As infant baptism increased, eventually Lent became a season of prayer and sacrifice for everyone. The early church saw Lent as the season where we, as the people of God, return to normal human life: life that often gets lost in the throws of everyday schedules, appointments and busyness. The early church did not see Lent as this stringent, overly pious, and gloomy season of self -denial. In fact the word lent comes from an old English word meaning spring. The early church saw Lent as a season of light, joy and renewal (the springtime of the church) because it was the season in which they returned to God as the source and center of their lives. So Lent began and still is a season that calls us back to our senses, back to God and back to life as it was intended to be. So Lent doesn t have to be 40 days of no caffeine, no chocolate, no Facebook or no alcohol. Instead Lenten habits might be the beginning of a sustainable way of life for the entire year. Lent is the invitation to care for those things which ultimately matter and to leave behind those things which inhibit our participation in the LIFE of God and LIFE around us... 3

4 Invitation to the Way of St. B s The Invitation for our Community Some historic editions of the Book of Common Prayer suggest that Lent be a time when we re-evaluate our lives under six particular categories (mirrors if you like): worship, internal formation, external formation, evangelism, action & stewardship. This Lent we invite you to take time to consider each of these disciplines and the role each plays in your life. Frequently as a community, we reference and talk about these six things. This Lent, though you will be encouraged to not only reflect on these things but practice them, also, a different one each week. Our hope is that by Easter we might be ready to take pen to paper and carve out our own individual rules of life based on The Way of St. B s. Space will be made at the Easter Vigil to offer your rules to God as we renew our baptismal vows. Why a Rule of Life? In a crazy busy world, these touchstones help to keep us balanced and attain a rhythm that allows us to both know Christ in all we do as well as be known by Christ. Often times, in our walk with God, it seems that only when we are at the edge of our comfort zone that real growth takes place. Our intention is not to create discomfort or guilt, but rather to invite you to an honest examination of your life with God and to try some new ways of practicing these familiar disciplines. The goal is that of the early church: to return to our senses and to normal human life with God, each other and this world. An invitation to practice a rule of life in accordance to the Gospel, the faith and the tradition of the church.! Worship: re g u la rly a tte n d co rp o ra te worship and receive Holy Com m union.! In tern al Fo rm atio n : co m m it to private prayer, Bible study, and selfdiscipline.! External Formation: p u t th e teaching and exam ple of Christ into the details of daily life.! Evangelism: b o ld ly o ffe r w itn e ss to his or her faith in Christ.! Action: se rv e th e C h u rc h a n d in th e com m unity.! Stew ardship: giv e financial reso urces as able for the support of the w ork of the Church at home and abroad. 4

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6 Ash Wednesday Reading Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent. Ash Wednesday gets its name because we are invited on this day to receive the imposition of ashes, the sign of the cross in ashes on our forehead the same place where we were marked as Christ s own forever in baptism. As we are marked with ashes, which come from the palm fronds burned after Palm Sunday the year prior, we hear remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return. The ashes are a powerful outward sign of our humble beginnings and common end. Ash Wednesday is our reality check to remember that we are neither super heroes nor God. We are so very mortal. As Lent begins take the next few days to reflect on this journey we are beginning again: A journey that begins here in the dust of ashes. A journey that includes death and suffering and sacrifice; a journey that ends in beauty, resurrection and joy; a journey that takes us into community, through the cross and onto life on the other side To begin this journey, read the story of Jesus in the Wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11; Luke 4: 1-13; Mark 1: 9-13) Reflecting What temptations might you encounter on this journey? What ministers to you? for this journey? What s the implication of Lent being about a journey not just giving something up? What does it mean to say yes to this journey? You might want to think concretely as well as figuratively. o What will this journey look like? o What might your days look like if you say yes to this journey? The journey is equally, if not more, important as the destination on this Lenten pilgrimage. How you travel is important. o What things do you need for this journey? 6 Days: February 18-21

7 Ash Wednesday Responding: - - What is your desire for this journey? What is it you seek from God this Lent? What words or phrases linger in your mind from the Readings or from the Ash Wednesday liturgy? The liturgy can be found on pg. 264 of the Book of Common Prayer. - From the above, write a short breath prayer for this Lenten journey. These prayers, 8-14 syllables, usually arise from the reading of the Scriptures and are repeated frequently in sync with your breathing. The Jesus Prayer (Jesus Christ Son of God have mercy on me a sinner) is the most well known breath prayer. 7 Days: February 18-21

8 Week 1: Worship Worship: regularly attend corporate worship and receive Holy Communion. Reading Ascribe to the LORD, you heavenly beings, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength. Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness. - Ps 92:1-2 Biblical religion is primarily concerned with what God does for his people (Mk. 10:45). This is particularly evident in the NT, where words expressing the human activity of worshipping God are surprisingly rare in descriptions of church meetings (Heb. 13:15f.; 1 Pet. 2:5). Worship is the human response to a gracious God, and it needs to be placed in this context if it is to be properly understood. If worship is our response to God s presence and goodness, then our response (our offering) should include all of us heart, body, soul and mind. Good worship could be defined as anything that brings delight to God. Reflecting - We worship what we give our hearts to or what holds worth in our lives, so what do you worship? -How does worship keep us tethered to God (to the throne of Grace)? -What benefit do I receive when I join the community to worship? - If the purpose of worship is to lose oneself, then honestly, how much do I determine the value of worship by what I get out of it or how it makes me feel? -How does the rest of the community suffer if I chose to stay away or go somewhere else? -What does God require of us in worship? -What things help you in offering true and good worship to God? -What does the word regularity mean when it comes to worship? 8 Days: February 22-28

9 Week 1: Worship Responding -Take out your calendar for the week. Consider (perhaps plan) what a real (and realistic) rhythm would look like, if your life were centered (grounded) in authentic worship? What if your weeks were ordered around worship instead of worship being one of many things in your week? - The Psalms tell us that a tree worships God by simply being a tree. Stop and consider a tree this week. What do the trees teach you about worship? - Our activities often reflect who we are. Which activities that you regularly participate in might,with the turn of the heart, become worship? 9 Days: February 22-28

10 Week 2:Evangelism Evangelism: boldly offer witness to his or her faith in Christ. Reading How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news! Romans 10:14-15 God s will for evangelism is more important than food. Jesus, when physically hungry, declined food, choosing instead to concentrate on the opportunity for evangelism, which He knew, would shortly arise. He made a point of informing His disciples of this, and the Holy Spirit has made a point of preserving His words for us. To proclaim the Good News of the resurrection is not, for Christians, to speak of a doctrine to be learned by heart or a piece of wisdom to meditate on. To evangelize means above all to bear witness to a transformation within a human being: because of the resurrection of Christ, our own resurrection has already begun. Taize Evangelism is believing and living as if this is really good news, as if it's incredible news and we have something to say. Evangelism also means that we learned to say it the way Jesus said it and not just the way we want to say it. We have to learn his methods as well as his truth. So we learn to treat people with dignity. Eugene Peterson Reflecting -What response does the word evangelism or evangelist stir up in you? -Why is it that I am so apprehensive to share my faith with others? -Can I actually attest to some way that God might be at work in my life today, or is my testimony stale? -What does evangelism look like in this day and age? How has it changed? -The word evangelize can be translated to announce good news. What is the good news, we re supposed to be announcing? What is the hope that is offered to the world today through the Resurrection of Christ 2000 years ago? 10 Days: Mar. 1-7

11 Week 2:Evangelism Responding -Spend some time this week attempting to translate the good news into the details of every day life? Put it in the language of today s people? What does this good news look like? What does it mean for life in this world, life today? -What creative ways might you share this good news and still be a good neighbor, treating people with dignity? What indirect ways? -Jesus kept saying very simply to everyone He met, come. Practice saying come this week. 11 Days: March 1-7

12 Week 3: Internal Formation Internal Formation: commit to private prayer, Bible study, and self-discipline. Reading And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. (2Cor 3:18) The indwelling, of the Holy Spirit secured by union with Christ becomes the source of a new spiritual life, which constantly increases in power until everything uncongenial with it is expelled, and the soul is perfectly transformed into the image of Christ. God s story, i.e. the Bible, isn t about how we might use it but instead it s about how we might participate in it. It s not so much for information but transformation. Now is the time, God's reign is present, change your life, and believe some very good news" (Mark 1:15). Yes, we do need an emotional charge to make most decisions, adopt specific behaviors, "give up candy for Lent," or make some changes in our life. But Jesus is not talking about changes. He is talking about change! Many changes might well be good and even needed, and surely some changes will result from any shaking of the foundations, but they are not what we mean by Biblical conversion or transformation ("changing the form itself"). These things do not change the seer as such, but only his or her acceptable self image -- and usually for a short while. It is the old and perennial problem of putting the cart before the horse, or thinking that lots of carts ("changes") will eventually create the horsepower. It never finally works. -Richard Rohr Reflecting --Honestly, what does my private prayer life look like? Serious time with God, or a few minutes in a busy day (when I think about it)? -Discipline is almost a swear word today unless it will advance my career, increase my income or make me more popular. How about discipline to get to know and respond to the God who disciplined Himself to the point of dying for us? -What gets in the way of intentional, personal time with God? What would help me make space for internal formation? -If the Bible helps to make sense of our lives, just what am I doing to get to know the unfolding story of God better? -How do I read the scriptures? For information or transformation? For answers or for questions? As a moral code or a map of God s reality? -What tools help you connect with God (scripture, writing, drawing, reading, music, walking, quiet). Is it time to find something new? Or return to something old? -Why do 90% of us feel guilty because we don t pray enough? r 12 Days: March 8-14

13 Week 3: Internal Formation Responding -Do I need to establish some benchmarks by which I can determine if in fact I am drawing closer to the living God? -Prayer, bible reading and discipline are only as good as the state of your heart. How can you increase your desire to want to be more regular in these areas? -As challenging as it may be, try this week to practice the holy habits of silence and solitude. Mark out the time on your calendar, even if it s only ten minutes. Take with you the tools that help you connect with God. Be with God. Listen for God. -Take some time this week to listen to your life. Listen to the rhythms of your days and try to notice the natural openings, pauses or places where you might regularly meet with God (sometimes thinking outside of the box might be helpful). 13 Days: March 8-14

14 Week 4: External Formation External Formation: put the teaching and example of Christ into the details of daily life. Reading So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. 2Cor 5:16-20 The more we read God s story, the more we come to understand that we are part of that story today. We are being called upon to earth the story in our daily lives. We are called to talk and know of God but we are also called to embody and live out those words and knowledge. The power of the logos (the word of God) becoming flesh (embodied) and dwelling among us, exemplifies this call. 1-2 So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you. Romans 12. Reflecting -Do I segment my life, leaving a small space for God and His ways while living the rest according to the acceptable practices of our culture? -What are a few areas in which I might begin to allow the teaching of Jesus to change me? -What examples in Christ s life could be reflected in the way I live mine? -How am I in my relationships? How do I react and respond to others? What language do I use? Where could I grow in how I relate and treat others? -How well do you take care of yourself physically? How well do you balance rest, play and work? Do you practice Sabbath time? Do you exercise? Trite but true, God needs physical bodies that are healthy and lively on earth. 14 Days: March 15-21

15 Week 4: External Formation Responding -Find something you do regularly and choose a new way to embody, practice or live out the good news of the Gospel. -Choose something you do regularly (something ordinary and mundane) and practice this week doing it for the love of God. (i.e. driving someplace, shopping at the grocery store, brushing your teeth). - Consider the balance in your life: Take pen to paper; look at your calendar. When is the last time you took a retreat? Have you made a pilgrimage recently? How do your weeks look regarding work, play, rest, community, silence, solitude, conversation? How is your body? How do you feel physically? How is your diet and your exercise routine. 15 Days: March 15-21

16 Action: serve the Church and in the community. Week 5:Action Reading In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death even death on a cross! (Phil 2:5-8) The bible calls us to use our time and talents for the extension of God s Kingdom as well as the service of the body of faithful believers. If every baptized Christian served in one way then the backs of a few would not be broken with the burden of service. Ministry starts in solitude. Solitude is where we listen to God. Ministry starts and is anchored in claiming that you are the beloved of God. This allows you to go into the world and touch people, heal them, speak with them and make them aware that they are beloved, chosen and blessed. When you discover your belovedness by God, you see the belovedness of other people and call that forth. Henri Nouwen Reflecting -What am I holding back from God? -Everyone serves something or someone, whom do you serve? Who or what gives you marching orders? -How might I be called to partner with God? -What gifts have I been given? Where might they be used to build the Kingdom? - When it comes to action, service, ministry, where do you feel limited? Where do you feel vulnerable or inadequate? What do you fear? What might Jesus response be to such fears? 16 Days: March 22-28

17 Week 5:Action Responding - Vocation comes from the Latin vocare, to call, and means the work a person is called to by God. The kind of work God usually calls you to is the kind of work (a) that you need most to do and (b) that the world most needs to have done (Frederich Buechner). o List the things you need (or want ) to do o List the things that the world most needs or St. B s o Where might God be calling you. - - If you haven t taken a spiritual gifts inventory before or if its been a while, you might try one this week. If your action is mostly in the church, perhaps consider choosing a place outside of the church to participate with God in. If your action is mostly in the world, then consider choosing a place within the church. 17 Days: March 22-28

18 Week 6: Stewardship Stewardship: give financial resources as able for the support of the work of the Church at home and abroad. Reading Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. (1 Cor 4:2) Historically, stewardship was the responsibility of the servants to bring food and drink into the dining hall. It was then expanded to refer to the responsibility to take care of and manage household and domestic affairs. Eventually, it came to refer specifically to the responsibility to care for the domestic needs of passengers on a train, plane or boat. Generally speaking stewardship refers to the responsibility to care for something that belongs to someone else. A man doesn t decide to become a steward after he has been saved, nor after he begins to make good money. He is a steward good or bad when he becomes a Christian. Stewardship in the Christian life demands that a man take good care of his financial (indeed all of his) affairs because he has been commissioned by Christ to manage those affairs for the Lord. Reflecting -Why am I so afraid to actually release what I think is mine, when intellectually I know it all belongs to God? -What do I horde? What do I fear giving? What do I not put under Christ s rule? -What has been entrusted to me? Think big and wide. -What responsibilities come with stewardship? What does God ask of us regarding stewardship? -How do I do with the little things entrusted to me? -How can I begin the journey toward surrendering my all? Every journey starts with one step. -How is my stewardship of time? Of talent? Of money and resources? 18 Days: March 29 - April 1

19 Week 6: Stewardship Responding -Find a park or street this week and pick up trash and debris: take part in restoration and beautification of this world -Take pen to paper and list all that has been entrusted to you. Choose one or two things on the list to step into a deeper stewardship of. -How will you respond to God for the gifts, He has entrusted to you? Choose something in your life to give back to God. Maybe find a sacramental way to mark this. -Practice being a steward of time: set the alarm on your phone for sometime in the day (or night). When it goes off, stop for a brief moment, breathe deep, be quiet, be still and remember God. Pray: Our times are in your hands. 19 Days: March 29 - April 1

20 Holy Week Liturgies Lent concludes with Holy Week: an invitation to live the story with Jesus through the last week of His life. The ancient and unique liturgies during Holy Week lead us on a journey with Jesus from his triumphant entry into Jerusalem all the way through to the empty tomb. By far these are some of our most creative, symbolic and oldest liturgies in the church. The great mystery of our redemption story contained in the Scriptures is that somehow, it didn t just happen 2000 years ago in a town called Jerusalem and on a hill call Golgotha. Somehow it all still happens today in Nashville, TN. Mysteriously this is not just Mary s, John s and Peter s story, this is our story. And Holy Week, gives us the chance to live it. The Liturgies PALM SUNDAY OR THE SUNDAY OF THE PASSION: March 29 8:30 & 10:30 Choral Eucharist The dual nature of the liturgy begins with the pomp and glory of the triumphal entry into Jerusalem with shouts of Hosanna to our King, but these hosannas soon change to crucify him, crucify him, as the Passion is narrated and dramatically proclaimed. The cries of hosanna and the laying down of palms as Christ entered Jerusalem in the Biblical story, were actually battle cries of a people who believed their King was about to claim back their Holy City. The thought of victory through dying on a cross, was far from their minds. The word passion actually means to suffer and so this Sunday begins the week in which we are invited to live the suffering of Christ. Red is the liturgical color for Palm Sunday, marking Christ s passion. MAUNDY THURSDAY: April 2, 6:30 p.m. Maundy is the Latin word for command (mandatum), and it refers to the command given by Jesus to his disciples to love one another on the night Christ washed the disciples feet and transformed the passover meal. In this liturgy we don t simply remember such mandates,but we participate in them by washing each other s feet and receiving the bread and the wine. This liturgy, also, initiates a time of watching, waiting, and contemplating, as the altar and sanctuary is stripped bare as Christ was stripped of his clothes. The last of the reserved Sacrament is consumed; the tabernacle is left open and the sanctuary lamp blown out. 20

21 Holy Week Liturgies Good Friday: April 3, Noon The service dates back to the third century and certainly marks the solemnity of this day. The Passion and death of our Lord is read from the Gospel of John, followed by a homily and what are known as the Solemn Collects. The prayers of the people call us to remember our responsibility and continue the mission of Jesus in the wake of his death. The liturgy concludes in silence. Stations of the Cross: April 3, 5:30 p.m. The stations are another ancient way of praying through Christ s journey to the cross: from his arrest through his passion. Numerous ways have been written, drawn and created to help us walk with Christ through his suffering. On Good Friday at St. B s, we follow the stations around the path outside, sharing the burden of carrying a large wooden cross. The Easter Vigil: April 4, 6:30 p.m. This liturgy is one of the oldest in the Christian tradition. Converts after their Lenten preparation would be initiated into the faith through baptism on Easter Eve. The liturgy is made up of three parts. The first being the Service of Light: A fire is lit in the back of the church dating back to the time of Patrick of Ireland and marking the resurrection of Christ sometime in the night. From this fire the Paschal Candle is lit and, following then the congregant s candles. The second part is the Service of the Word where we hear the story of God s people told through the reading of lessons. Finally the liturgy includes baptisms and our renewal and recommitment to Christ, His church and His mission in the world. The vigil continues unofficially until sunrise and the first Eucharist of Easter. Families and individuals are invited to camp our on the church grounds, keeping the vigil until sunrise. Easter Sunday: April 5th 8:30 & 10:30 a.m. The Great Feast Day has arrived and joy is in the air. The Feast of Easter is celebrated through the music, the choirs, the trumpets, the flowers, the colors and all the preparations seen and unseen. The Paschal Candle, lit at the Vigil, the night prior, stands on the chancel steps through all 50 days of the Easter season as a reminder of how we, with Christ have passed from death into new life. The Eucharist takes on a renewed meaning as we share in the body and the blood of Christ with a new sense of commitment. And even the postcommunion prayer echoes louder: And now Father, send us out to do the work you have given us to do, to love and serve you as faithful witnesses of Christ our Lord. 21

22 For all intensive purposes a rule of life is nothing more and nothing less than a set of holy habits (spiritual disciplines) that help us live life with God and each other in this world. Together these habits become like a map which helps keep us on the path of life so that we can be participants in God s restoration of this world. A Rule of Life How will we practice the Way of St. B s? After a season of reflection and practice, we invite you to take pen to paper, once again. Prayerfully and realistically, we invite you to write down the rule of life that will serve as a guide, a support, a rhythm and a structure for your life with God and each other in this world. The Latin w ord for rule is regula from w h ic h o u r w o r d s r e g u la r a n d r e g u la t e d e r iv e. A r u le o f lif e is n o t m e a n t t o b e r e s t r ic t iv e, although it certainly asks for genuine co m m itm ent. It is m eant to help us establish a rhythm of daily living a rule of life, like a trellis, curbs o ur tendency to w ander and suppo rts o ur frail eff o rts to gro w spiritually. - M a rjo rie T h o m p so n When writing a Rule, consider being concrete and practical, as well as, all aspects of life. Consider that the purpose of a rule of life is to help us live full, balanced lives: to help us return to our senses. We invite you to offer these rules at the Easter Vigil service as a sign of recommitment to a life with God and each other in this world. 22

23 Crafting My Rule of Life A rule of life can function a bit like an anchor, which is why we invite you to write it down and keep it in place where you can return it. Share it with someone who can not only offer accountability but who can be a check for how realistic and balanced it is. Worship: Internal Formation: External Formation: 23

24 Crafting My Rule of Life Evangelism: Action: Stewardship: 24

25 Offering My Rule of Life We invite you to copy your Rule of Life onto this page and then tear it out and bring it with you to the Easter Vigil. We will have a place for you to offer to God your rule in the way of St. B s. Worship: Internal Formation: External Formation: Evangelism: Action: Stewardship: 25

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28 4800 Belmont Park Terrace Nashville, TN Thank you to Nita Andrews and Christie Holmes for contributing graphics.