from T.S. Eliot's Ash Wednesday
Because I do not hope to turn again
Because I do not hope
Because I do not hope to turn
Desiring this man's gift and that man's scope
I no longer strive to strive towards such things
(Why should the agèd eagle stretch its wings?)
Why should I mourn
The vanished power of the usual reign?
Because I do not hope to know
The infirm glory of the positive hour
Because I do not think
Because I know I shall not know
The one veritable transitory power
Because I cannot drink
There, where trees flower, and springs flow, for there is nothing again
Because I know that time is always time
And place is always and only place
And what is actual is actual only for one time
And only for one place
I rejoice that things are as they are and
I renounce the blessèd face
And renounce the voice
Because I cannot hope to turn again
Consequently I rejoice, having to construct something
Upon which to rejoice
And pray to God to have mercy upon us
And pray that I may forget
These matters that with myself I too much discuss
Too much explain
Because I do not hope to turn again
Let these words answer
For what is done, not to be done again
May the judgement not be too heavy upon us
If the lost word is lost, if the spent word is spent
If the unheard, unspoken
Word is unspoken, unheard;
Still is the unspoken word, the Word unheard,
The Word without a word, the Word within
The world and for the world;
And the light shone in darkness and
Against the Word the unstilled world still whirled
About the centre of the silent Word.
O my people, what have I done unto thee.
Where shall the word be found, where will the word
Resound? Not here, there is not enough silence
Not on the sea or on the islands, not
On the mainland, in the desert or the rain land,
For those who walk in darkness
Both in the day time and in the night time
The right time and the right place are not here
No place of grace for those who avoid the face
No time to rejoice for those who walk among noise and deny the voice
Teach us to care and not to care
Teach us to sit still
Even among these rocks,
Our peace in His will
6 comments:
Rani, can I ask what Lent means to you personally? do you make a sacrafice? is it just a 'giving up' or more to you? why do you do it?
i got my ashes last night, and it's been kicking around in me since about how God wants to use this to move me closer to Him....
I believe that the Lenten season is a time for me, personally, to remember the death of Jesus, the ultimate sacrifice. It is a time of great meditation (chewing on the Word)a a time for me to refect upon my faith and my baptism into the church. In my church we omit praise and alleluia during this season as we reflect upon this awesome sacrifice. We resume these on Easter Sunday. In the early church most baptisms were performed on Easter because of the relationship between Christ's death on the cross for our sins and our cleansing of sin during baptism.
As far as 'giving up'?!!?! I believe it is entirely a matter of Christian freedom. I don't believe it says anywhere in the Scriptures that I am required to give up diet coke, facebook or chocolate. I think it would be wrong for the church to demand this or require this of it's congregation. I have very close Lutheran and Christian friends who do give something up for Lent as a way of remembering and personalizing the great sacrifice that Christ made on the cross for our sins. I whole-heartedly believe that anyone is certainly free to do so and I pray that that person does not judge or look down upon other Christians who do not choose to do this.
In the past I may have given up things for Lent. Although I do not recall when or what that item was. I do, however, remember every year how amazing and awful Christ's death as a human being was. I feel thankful and blessed to be a child of God, and so not worthy.
thanks Rani!
yes, i think that i want to spend the time thinking of the sacrifice God made for us, and being grateful. i have never really thought much about Lent beyond that it was a ritualistic thing. now, starting to think that things become ritualistic for a REASON. i want to concentrate on the Reason.
:)
This is shallow in comparison to your discussion (with which I completely agree), but the fourth line of this poem is taken from my very favorite of Shakespeare's sonnets.
Yes, I'm a word nerd.
Ummmm, you have one of those "I am a Mormon" videos at the bottom of this post.
thanks for the heads up, Karen...I think I fixed that :)
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