Pastor’s Column for Trinity Lutheran Church, March 2019 Epistle

Dear friends in Christ,
I love this time of year. I love that the days are getting longer. I love the season of Lent—the journey, the ritual, the disciplines, the hymns in minor keys. I love preparing for the great three days—Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Vigil. Taken on their own or collectively as one continuous worship service, they remind me of why we keep trying to live as faithful disciples. The commandment Jesus gives on Thursday (and then demonstrates with foot washing) inform so much of the servanthood embraced by Trinity members. The story of the crucifixion and the veneration of the cross on Good Friday remind me of what resulted in Jesus’ bringing in the new reign of God and of God’s great love for the world. The Vigil on Saturday ties us to all of God’s people through the reading of scripture and the sharing of the Lord’s Supper.

 A Palm Sunday at Trinity

While I give thanks for the great Triddum and its place in the liturgical year, this year I also give thanks for time spent with the new members we will officially welcome on Easter Sunday. Our three sessions together during Lent reminded me of some of the gifts of our ordinary Sunday worship. In particular, people new to our tradition recognized two things. In our tradition, Holy Scripture is a living breathing word that is interpreted each week in our particular context. The cross and resurrection are the interpretive lens we use to interpret everything else in the Bible. The second part of the Sunday assembly lifted up by new members was our Prayers of Intercession. Turn to page 105 in the front of Evangelical Lutheran Worship and you will see the pattern we use each week: for the church universal; for the well-being of creation; for peace and justice; for the poor, oppressed, sick, bereaved, lonely; for all who suffer in body, mind, or spirit; for the congregation. Praying those prayers weekly is transformative, I was told. Indeed. Sometimes I want the people of Trinity to be assured that they can speak with God without beautifully worded prewritten prayers. And yet I know for myself that hearing our prayers of intercession together each week has shaped my personal prayer life. I loved getting to know our new members during our time together after worship in March and I anticipate them enriching our community in the months and years to come.

Peace, Pastor Meggan