3 February 2008

Welcome to St Alban’s Anglican Church 

Today's Scripture (HC) : Exodus 24: 12-end    2 Peter 1: 16-end    S. Matthew 17: 1-9

Today's Liturgy: 8.35 a.m. BCP Matins;   9.00a.m. Scripture Study;   9.30 a.m. Holy Communion;   EP 6.00 p.m. ;

This Week: Tues, Thurs, Fri: Midday Prayers 12.30 p.m.;    ASH WEDNESDAY 8.35 a.m. Matins;9.00a.m. COMMINATION, IMPOSITION OF ASHES AND HOLY COMMUNION.

Quinquagesima

O Lord, who hast taught us that all our doings without charity are nothing worth; Send thy Holy Ghost, and pour into our hearts that most excellent gift of charity, the very bond of peace and of all virtues, without which whosoever liveth is counted dead before thee: Grant this for thine only Son Jesus Christ’s sake.

CHRISTMAS ENDS - OFFICIAL (February 2nd)

For most of us, Christmas is now a distant memory, apart from maybe having to pay off the credit card bills! But for the Church it’s February 2nd, the Presentation of the Lord, that officially closes the season 40 days after the feast itself.

The Presentation of the Lord is also known as Candlemas. In the liturgy of the day Christians recognise Jesus as the light that came into the world to enlighten all the nations and guide them on their way to God. It’s the epilogue to Christmas and the liturgy invites us to seek that light and be that light for our world today.

WEAR THEM WITH PRIDE! (February 6th)

On Ash Wednesday we begin Lent by putting ashes on our forehead (an ancient symbol of being a penitent). The ashes, of course, are only a symbol. They remind us that one day we will return to ashes at the end of our life and that in the meantime we need to ensure that we deepen our commitment to the gospel and turn away from sin. Once we have washed ourselves the ashes will no longer be visible to others. But we can carry them spiritually with us for the six weeks of Lent as an inner sign to ourselves that each day we are trying to die to our bad habits and so rise to glory with Christ at Easter. Even though others can’t see your inner ashes, wear them with pride!

WHEN SCIENCE DISCOVERS the centre of the universe, a lot of people will be disappointed to find they are not it.

(Bernard Baily)

MARRIAGE ON THE MAP (February 7th-14th)

Over 2,000 years ago Cicero said "The first bond of society is marriage". Christians have always recognised the importance of marriage, raising it to the status of a sacrament or a holy mystery. In the face of a secular disregard for marriage, National Marriage Week seeks to keep marriage well and truly on the social map, to support those who are preparing for marriage and encourage those who have committed themselves to each other for life. As they say, a wedding takes a day but a marriage takes a lifetime:

Love the family! Defend and promote it as the basic cell of human society; nurture it as the prime sanctuary of life. Give great care to the preparation of engaged couples and be close to young married couples, so that they will be for their children and the whole community an eloquent testimony of God’s love. (Pope John Paul II)

LENT - WHEN?

The timing of Lent changes every year. This is because it is the period that leads up to Easter and the date of Easter changes each year due to its being calculated according to the moveable lunar cycle of the Spring Equinox. In the western Church the earliest it ever falls is March 22nd and the latest is April 25th. So Lent comes six weeks before these dates.

LENT - HOW LENT IS STRUCTURED

After a four-day prelude that takes us from Ash Wednesday to the first Sunday of Lent we begin our season in earnest.

The first two weeks of Lent form a unity. The first Sunday introduces us to the humanity of Jesus. Like us he too was tempted; but he didn’t succumb to temptation. To refuse all the attractions that the world can offer is a radical choice. It’s not easy, and it’s a choice that our baptism demands of us daily since our baptism is not a once and for all thing but something that has to be renewed with each dawn. On the second Sunday we see the opposite side of the coin: the divinity of Jesus. We too are called to share in that divine life both here on earth and afterwards for eternity. ...

... The heart of Lent is found in the third, fourth and fifth weeks. These change according to a three-year cycle but are best characterised by Year A (the lectionary this year). These weeks offer the catechumens (and therefore us too) an overview of what it means to become a Christian and follow Jesus. The images from the gospel of water, light and life are shown as the primary symbols of the new Christian status. This is about a living water that satisfies us deep down; a light that helps us to see things in a different way; and a life that makes sense of our world and is offered for ever.

The sixth week of Lent is called Holy Week. It concentrates on the forthcoming Passion of Jesus and invites us to die with Christ to sin and so rise with him to a new form of life. The Triduum comprises Maundy Thursday (the institution of the eucharist and the commandment to follow Christ’s example of love), Good Friday (his triumph over sin and death on the Cross) and the Easter Vigil on the Saturday night (Christ’s resurrection, our sharing in new life, the baptism of catechumens etc.).

DOING IT TOGETHER

Lent remains, as it always has been, the Church’s preparation for Easter. This preparation is both baptismal and penitential. Catechumens are selected for Easter sacraments. Every member of the parish is invited to prepare for the Easter renewal of baptism by entering into penance and renewal. This preparation is also social and outward. It is not enough for us to make only private promises and to endure individual and inward deprivations.

THIS WEEK’S BIBLE READINGS:

Mon: Genesis 37:1-11, Galatians 1, John 3: 1-21

Tues: Gen 37:12-end, Gal 2:1-10, John 3:22-end

ASH WEDNESDAY: Joel 2:1-2, 12-17, 2 Cor 5:20b - 6:10, Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

Thur: Gen 39, Gal 2:11-end, John 4: 1-26

Fri: Gen 40, Gal 3:1-14, John 4: 27-42

Sat: Gen 41:1-24, Gal 3: 15-22, John 4: 43-end

NEXT SUNDAY (1^ST IN LENT): Gen 2:15-17;3: 1-7, Romans 5:12-19, S. Matthew 4: 1-11