Ash Wednesday – February 17, 2010

The central tapestry kneeler represents the season of Lent.

Jesus’ feet are seen up on a precipice as he looks over the earth.

His transparent robes reflect that he is of God.

His bare feet firmly planted on earth, reflect his humanity.

Here, he is tempted in the wilderness three times.

We see the stones he was tempted to turn into bread.

Such an act of power would satisfy his own hunger and feed the world.

If only stones could be turned into bread.

He is then tempted to prove himself as the Son of God by being invincible to all harm;

to hurl himself off the pinnacle of the temple would be

to set himself apart from the vulnerabilities of being human

in order to be worshipped – to be a god.

Lastly, from the height, he is tempted to claim power over the world.

If I could only win the lottery, I would do so much good with it!

The gold coins at Jesus’ feet convey such wishes.

And yet, rather than holding all the power for himself,

he chose to call us to join in sharing the life-giving power he shared with God.

So often it is when we want to take things into our own hands,

depend upon our own power without turning to God and community for blessing and guidance

that we give into temptation that draws us from partnership with God.

I have been blinded before by my own justifications of getting or doing what I wanted.

Hindsight tells me clearly that, while the goal seemed worthy,

it, in the end, pulled me out from God’s overall goodwill for me and for community.

As far as fasting goes –

our spiritual life and our physical/material life,

just like Jesus’ robes and his feet,

are not two separate realities – but one.

To make physical room for intentional openness to God -

to empty our bodies, our time, our consumption, our own power,

helps us to understand our bodies, our environments, our relationships

as intricately intertwined with the holy.

Our baptismal vows give us direction of what we might make space in our life for:

Inner time with God – whatever shapes that takes, it is prayer.

Building and mending relationships.

Practicing words and actions that show love toward God and neighbor.

Seeking justice and peace for others rather than justification of self.

------

Back to our kneeler:

After Jesus overcomes temptation, he will go forth into his ministry.

In the river a fishing boat recalls Jesus’ call of the disciples.

On the other end of his ministry palms strewn on the road await his entry into Jerusalem.

Thorns lean toward Jerusalem as a foreshadow of his trial and arrest there.

But, on that mountain, he chooses not to go it alone.

He chooses God and he chooses us to travel with him,

to forego delusions of power that subordinate us to ‘the powers that be’

so that we might have the real freedom of moving with him and calling others

in new life.