Christ is Risen

These are Mama's Eggs from 2009

The Church is wise to lead us into Great Lent gently.  In the West, I always thought it was so abrupt, stark.  In the East, we enter slowly, preparing our selves for The Fast weeks before hand by dietary changes and through hymns and prayers.  By the time we get to the beginning of Great Lent, we all know what is coming and we have thought about what we are going to do to strengthen our love of God and our brother.  We enter Great Lent with Forgiveness Sunday Vespers.  I love this service.  At the close of the service the priest begins the ritual of forgiving.  Each of us goes to our brothers in Christ (priest included) and asks each for forgiveness.  The Orthodox have what might be explained as the butterfly effect of view of sin.  I might offend someone personally, but that does not encompass all of sin.  I might consume more than what I need, and make it more difficult for my brother to get what he needs. My actions pollute the world.  This is why we don't say, "If I have offended you, forgive me."  We say, "Forgive me a sinner."  We even are to think of ourselves as The Sinner.  This is what attracted me to the Church.  I am not to judge anyone because I have not loved my brother as Christ loves us.  How can I judge anyone?  I can't even love my own brother.  So as not to leave us in despair , we sing the Pascal Cannon as a telos. I don't like to use Greek, but target and goal are not what I want to say.  Pascha is the already, but not yet.  It is the point to which we look for hope.  It is the end and the beginning.  It is our point of departure and our destination.  At Seminary, my friend and I would stay to almost the end singing the Cannon because we both loved to sing those hymns and then we would go around the church together asking for forgiveness.  The final words of the service are, "Christ is risen!"  The church reminds us of the Light of the Resurrection even as we enter the race of Lent.  In the services of Great Lent we double the Alleluias.We are given joy to strengthen us.   She is so wise to us, comforts us and nurtures us.  I wish all a good and fruitful Lent.  Chris is risen!