LENT A SPECIAL TIME WHEN GOD CALLS OUT TO US IN MERCY
“God writes straight with crooked lines.” I’ve heard this phrase a number of times. We had turned our backs on God in the Garden of Eden, and yet God did not abandon us. He entered into our crookedness, our sinful situation, in His Son, Jesus. Even though Adam and Eve disobeyed God, God decided, instead, to look on us with love, to bear with, care for and save the creatures who had turned away from Him. God became one of us, being born as a real human being in a barn on the outskirts of a socially insignificant town, as a member of a politically conquered, subservient people. The Lord Jesus grew up as one of us, and then, as an adult, went about preaching the truth and doing nothing but good for everyone He met. He then was condemned and carried our sins to His Cross – for love of us, God’s crown of creation. The Prophet Isaiah reminds us in the fourth Suffering Servant Song (Isaiah 52:13 – 53:12 which we will hear on Good Friday): “Yet it was our infirmities he bore... our sufferings he endured ... being pierced for our offenses, crushed for our sins... taking on the chastisement that makes us whole.”
Lent invites us to focus on the Cross of Jesus, once a symbol of disgrace and defeat, now a symbol of redemption. Hopefully we are aware of our need for the reconciliation that God offers us and take advantage of the wonderful gift of His forgiveness by making a good Confession prior to Easter. There are many opportunities throughout our deanery and in the parish for this Sacrament of Healing. When forgiven and given the grace of strength and transformation, we can more fully celebrate the victory of the Cross at Easter. We might still struggle with the crooked lines of our lives, but God’s hand is always there, reaching out to us. Please see the bulletin and our parish website for dates and times for this Sacrament.