Opening Prayer

Krizevac--Cross Mountain--Medjugorje

Grant, O Lord, that we may begin with holy fasting this campaign of Christian service,

so that, as we take up battle against spiritual evils, we may be armed with weapons of self-restraint. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. 

 --from the Roman Missal 

Opening Collect for Ash Wednesday

I like the new Roman Missal.

Black Crosses and Temple Tables

Passion of the Christ Movie--Jesus clears Temple

You all know the drill.
Even with the Tabernacle in the center of the Sanctuary--people still look around at each other.  You need to know who's there and who they are with--and what they are wearing.
Don't get me wrong--this isn't just a Roman Catholic thing.

My son was leaving the pew to go up to Communion.
The woman, marked with the black cross of ashes on her forehead, sitting directly behind us, (with the black cross of ashes on her forehead) turned to the person sitting next to her and said; "Why would someone wear a pair of jeans like that to church?" That's what she said--that woman marked with the black cross of ashes on her forehead.
Did I mention she had a black cross of ashes on her forehead?
So what it that supposed to stand for?

That image of Jesus going loose on the money changers at the temple is an image for Lent--We get comfortable practicing the same spiritual practices every Lent.  We belly up behind our tables and settle in for forty days.

Here's some of the tables we sit at: 
opinion, gossip, judgement, incessant need to be right, self pity, pride, lying, gluttony, lust, greed, rationalizing addictions and venial sins.

Yeah...time for some temple tables to be tossed.