March 19/Second Saturday of LentSolemnity of St. Joseph The steadfast love of the LORD I will sing forever; through all generations my mouth shall proclaim your faithfulness. ~ Ps 89.2 The other night my father was reminiscing about his grandfather, a genteel agnostic who ferried his portly Aunt Georgie to church every Sunday, waiting in the car until the service was…
Song 15: On the Job
March 18/Second Friday of Lent When the LORD called down a famine on the land and ruined the crop that sustained them, He sent a man before them, Joseph, sold as a slave. ~ Ps 105.16-17 Two years into COVID, beset by inflation, supply chain shortages, and a collateral pandemic of anger and resentment that has infected our social polity,…
Song 14: Water, Water Everywhere
March 17/Second Thursday of Lent He is like a tree planted near running water, That yields its fruit in due season, and whose leaves never fade. ~ Ps 1.3 My husband has remarked more than once that the surest way to kill a plant is to put it under my care. He has a point. I have lost count of the…
Song 13: Words to Live By
March 16/Second Wednesday of Lent Into your hands I commend my spirit; you will redeem me, O LORD, O faithful God. ~ Ps 31.6 “Into your hands I commend my spirit.” Is there a more compelling and powerful expression of trust in the entire Bible? Jesus uttered it from the cross at the moment of his death, and that cry has…
Song 12: Keeping Up Appearances
March 15/Second Tuesday of Lent “Why do you recite my statutes, and profess my covenant with your mouth, Though you hate discipline and cast my words behind you?To him that goes the right way I will show the salvation of God.” ~ Ps 50.16-17, 23 The other day while I was chatting with a friend, her husband heard me commenting…
Song 11: Age to Age
March 14/Second Monday of Lent Do not remember against us the iniquities of our ancestors . . . Let the groans of the prisoners come before you; according to your great power preserve those doomed to die.Then we your people, the flock of your pasture, will give thanks to you forever; from generation to generation we will recount your praise. ~ Ps 79.8a,…
Song 10: All In
March 12/First Saturday of Lent Happy are those who keep his decrees, who seek him with their whole heart. ~ Ps 119.2 How many of us can honestly say that we seek God with our whole hearts? Do we make a genuine effort to carve out time each day for prayer and reflection — or do we let the press…
Song 9: The Judgment Seat
March 11/First Friday of Lent If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities, Lord, who could stand? But with you is forgiveness, that you may be revered. ~ Ps 130.3-4 As our society has succumbed to the increasing dominance of social media as our preferred mode of communication, we have become breathtakingly judgmental of the perceived flaws and errors of others —…
Song 8: Giving a Hand
March 10/First Thursday of Lent Your right hand saves me. Your kindness, O Lord, endures forever; forsake not the work of your hands. ~ Psalm 138.7-8 As I re-accustom myself to social graces that have fallen into disuse over the past couple of years, I find myself often uncertain about whether to shake someone’s hand. Like the germophobic detective Adrian…
Song 7: Making It Right
March 9/First Wednesday of Lent A clean heart create for me, O God, and a steadfast spirit renew within me. ~ Ps 51.10 Acknowledging our mistakes, iniquities, transgressions, errors, sins — call them what you will — is hard work. To admit fault goes against the grain for many of us who think of ourselves as generally well-intentioned people, and…