Dear Friends
I write these words on Easter Eve, just hours after the end of Lent on a day that always seems replete with expectation and excitement.
In most of our parishes we very properly take Lent seriously - we go to extra services and study groups, we address some of our bad habits. But I often wonder do we carefully balance the discipline of Lent with an extended and infectiously joyous celebration of Easter.
So, from Easter day right up to Pentecost - which this year falls on 27th May - the very stones of our churches should sing of Resurrection. Each service should begin with the ancient Easter greeting 'Christ is risen' to which all respond enthusiastically The Lord is risen indeed. Alleluia! Hymns should be appropriately seasonal and joyful throughout the fifty days, with constant reference to Easter and the singing of Allelluias. In many churches a Paschal candle will burn at the front of the church at every service. The Venite is replaced by the singing of the Easter Anthems. Readings from the Old Testament are normally replaced by passages from the Acts of the Apostles, indicating the amazing growth of the young church in the power of the Resurrection. Some will have carefully prepared their Easter Gardens, a reminder of the scene on the first Easter morning and also a symbol of growth and new life. All these things may seem small and detailed, but taken together they transform and energise Easter liturgy. Those who witness us at worship during this season will realise that we actually are what we so often claim to be, namely an Easter people.
And at the end of it all, we come to Pentecost, the feast of the Holy Spirit,the third Great Festival after Easter itself and Christmas. All too often Pentecost fails to get the attention it deserves - but what could be more important in these days than cultivating the Spirit's gifts, whether through Confirmation, in renewal or by quietly seeking the Spirit's guidance so as to judge rightly how to cast one's vote in the forthcoming General Election. The central importance of Pentecost is displayed by the fact that the Prayer Book prescribes that on that day 'Holy Communion is celebrated in every cathedral and parish church unless the ordinary shall otherwise direct' (And this Ordinary (i.e. bishop) is most unlikely to take any other view!)
When I was in parish ministry I used to encourage every member of the congregation to wear something red on Pentecost - red is the liturgical colour of the season, a reminder of the tongues of flame that we are told descended upon the waiting apostles. A small detail again - but one which made quite a visual impact at worship. It affirmed the desire of worshippers indeed to be Spirit-filled, and also stressed that the gifts of the Spirit are not just for the clergy but for the whole baptised people of God. Not only the clergy can dress liturgically!
So continue to relish the great 50 days of Alleluia and infectious joy. Easter Day is truly diminished if it is not properly and energetically followed through...
Michael Cashel + Ossory
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