March 28/Fourth Monday of Lent
At nightfall, weeping enters in, but with the dawn, rejoicing.
You changed my mourning into dancing. ~ Ps 30.6
Nightfall seems to have been on an endless loop these past two pandemic-laced years, and we have experienced more than a few false dawns, as well. And now the brutality sweeping Europe by an unhinged madman prolongs our weeping, and renders rejoicing elusive. We may feel drawn so deep into the maze of worries and troubles that we can’t envision a way out; we grasp for the thread that will lead us back to wholeness. From runaway inflation to the specter of nuclear war, we are full of trepidation, of “what ifs.” We may pay lip service to the truth that change is a constant and that joy and sorrow come in waves, but is that truth solidly ensconced in our hearts? Today’s verses may help steady our wavering spirits. The psalmist doesn’t deny the darkness: for him, the hostility of enemies and the dangers of “the pit,” for us, the ordinary challenges of life topped by the depredations of COVID-19, inflation, and national and international turmoil. He even acknowledges that weeping and lamentation get the upper hand at times — and certainly they do for us, too. But, buoyed by an infinite trust in God, he also avers that joy eclipses suffering, that light conquers darkness, that love is stronger than death. Yes, as night comes, weeping often barges into our homes and hearts (and the concrete meaning of the Hebrew verb here is to “stay overnight, to lodge”); but in the morning, as the psalmist says so vividly: “shouts of joy.” Life will stir again; the morning will break. Again this year, Lenten days of penance and sorrow can seem dark and long, but God will ultimately transmute our waiting and wailing into a dance of joy, as we look hopefully towards the Easter dawn.
O God of tears and laughter, Bestow upon me a hopeful patience as night falls and I await the morning’s shouts of joy. Amen.
For today’s readings, click here: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/032822.cfm
To hear “The King Shall Come When Morning Dawns,” click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rB73usEtxg
