December 3/First Tuesday of Advent His delight shall be the fear of the LORD. ~ Isaiah 11.3 Midway through a retreat I was leading for faculty and staff of a Jesuit high school some years ago, a young teacher sitting in the back raised her hand. “How,” she asked with a hint of exasperation, “do I explain ‘fear of the…
Author: Betsy Cahill
Keeping Advent 2: Higher Up
December 2/First Monday of Advent In days to come, the mountain of the LORD’s house shall be established as the highest mountain and raised above the hills. ~ Isaiah 2.1 In an age of discord and incivility, we are in desperate need of a vision of hope. The prophet Isaiah — writing perhaps as early as the 8th century before…
Keeping Advent 1: Stand and Deliver
December 1/First Sunday of Advent But when these signs begin to happen, stand erect and raise your heads because your redemption is at hand. ~ Luke 21.28 We begin the season of watching for the light with a reminder that we are a people who dwell in darkness. Luke’s apocalyptic text in today’s Gospel reading might have been lifted right…
Advent Reflections 2024
Friends, Again this year, I will be offering Advent reflections by email. These brief meditations are accompanied by a prayer, a musical offering, and a link to the day’s lectionary readings. The reflections will begin on the first Sunday of Advent, December 1, and will conclude on Christmas Eve. The sign-up form is located in the righthand corner of the…
Song 40: A Gracious Plenty
March 30/Holy SaturdayEaster Vigil You make springs gush forth in the valleys; they flow between the hills, By the streams the birds of the air have their habitation; they sing among the branches. From your lofty abode you water the mountains; the earth is satisfied with the fruit of your work. LORD, how manifold are your works! In wisdom you…
Song 39: Broken
March 29/Good Friday I am forgotten like the unremembered dead; I am like a dish that is broken. ~ Ps 31.12-13 Years ago I had the opportunity to help create a mosaic, and participating in that process intensified my fascination with the form. The process of taking irregular and broken pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic and creating a…
Song 38: Debt Service
March 28/Holy Thursday What shall I return to the LORD for all his benefits to me?The cup of salvation I will raise, and on the name of the Lord will I call. ~ Ps 116.12-13 At the day’s end, I spend a few moments reflecting on the gifts that God has given me. They can be large — decent health,…
Song 37: The Saving Turn
March 27/Wednesday of Holy Week Insult has broken my heart, and I am weak, I looked for sympathy, but there was none;for consolers, not one could I find. But I am lowly and in pain; let your salvation, O God, protect me.I will praise the name of God in song, and I will glorify him with thanksgiving. ~ Ps 69.21, 29,…
Song 36: Our Help in Ages Past
March 26/Tuesday of Holy Week For you are my hope, O LORD; my trust, O God, from my youth.On you I depend from birth; from my mother’s womb you are my strength. ~ Ps 71.5-6 As I prepare to attend my [big number here] high-school reunion next month, I find myself thinking a lot about the gift of abiding friendships. …
Song 35: Lead, Kindly Light
March 25/Monday of Holy Week The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom should I fear?The LORD is my life’s refuge; of whom should I be afraid? ~ Ps 27.1 It is Monday morning — but not just any Monday morning. The hullabaloo of Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem on what we know as Palm Sunday is over. The…