Although not commanded Biblically, the tradition of the imposition of ashes does go back centuries. The early church father Terullian in the third century AD said confession of sin should be accompanied by lying in sackcloth and ashes (On Repentance, ch 9). His examples from...
This is Misericordias Domini by the old method of naming the Sundays after Easter – call it Easter Three now, that’s easier. Today we’ll talk about the old Latin name for this day, and the Psalm from which that name derives. We’ll be singing “I Know...
He is Risen! He is Risen Indeed! Hallelujah! In the Lenten season I’ve not greeted you with that call and response – Lent is no time for hallelujahs. But here we are, at last: Easter Sunday! So let it rip: He is Risen! He is Risen...
Imagine attaching the name Good to a day in which watch a man murdered in that horrific way. The Good we see in this day is not apparent for another few days; on this day we remember the sacrifice of one man, the Anointed One,...
What sort of word is Maundy, anyway? Short for the Latin maundatum, or mandate. It is a day we remember Jesus’ mandate to love, from the 13th chapter of John’s gospel: “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must...
A Triumphal Entry! Hosanna! And then… the hosannas fade. Jesus knew the party would not last. He rode toward His capitol astride the foal of a colt, as Scripture says, as was prophesied so long before. He rode toward His own exodus (Luke 9:51) as appointed by...