the church of the
ascension
in the city of
new york
Friday, February 08, 2008
Friday after Ash Wednesday
by Isabel Spencer
Psalm 51:1-10
Isaiah 58:1-9
Matthew 9:10-17
The psalm, widely known as the Miserere, sets the tone for Lent. It's no wonder that it's been set to music by some of the greatest composers. (The Allegri is perhaps the best-known. There's a lovely Byrd setting on one of the Voices of Ascension recordings)
There are so many verses we recognize: "Create in me a clean heart, O God ...", "Open my lips, O Lord ...", "The sacrifice of God is a troubled spirit ...," etc. Verse 15 has a central place in Jewish liturgy; Verse 7 is part of the Roman Catholic mass.
(Interestingly, the verse numbers in the Book of Common Prayer are different from those in the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, because the prayer book makes two verses out of Verse 4.)
I enjoyed talking psalms in Father Mark Wood's recent class. He emphasized, for instance, how the verses are often in two parts, with each paraphrasing and augmenting the other. One exercise he recommended is elongating the pause at the asterisk when you read.
All in all, it's tempting to read this psalm verse by verse. There is so much to ponder in each: Just the first verse, for instance, asking for God's mercy. Later, in Verse 4, the psalmist contrasts mercy with justice. God is justified in passing judgment, the poet writes. But what he is asking for is mercy. This brings to mind the totally inadequate understanding we have of God's justice, or God's peace, or God's mercy.
Looking at the beauties of the individual verses, though, we miss some of the overarching meaning. I am very struck by the psalmist's request that God more or less ignore our sins -- blot them out, hide from them, almost as if our sins are too great even for God to look at. The psalmist knows his own sin, but he wants God to look past that, to find the secret truth or goodness within. And then, he says, "Wash me and I shall be clean indeed."
The other lessons for the day seem to build on this psalm. The passage from Isaiah deals with how we fast. The gospel contains one of Jesus' most hope-inspiring remarks, "For I have come to call not the righteous, but sinners."
Our job during Lent is to "know our transgressions," and to pray for God's mercy. Only then can we be ready for the bright whiteness of Easter.
Psalm 51:1-10
Isaiah 58:1-9
Matthew 9:10-17
The psalm, widely known as the Miserere, sets the tone for Lent. It's no wonder that it's been set to music by some of the greatest composers. (The Allegri is perhaps the best-known. There's a lovely Byrd setting on one of the Voices of Ascension recordings)
There are so many verses we recognize: "Create in me a clean heart, O God ...", "Open my lips, O Lord ...", "The sacrifice of God is a troubled spirit ...," etc. Verse 15 has a central place in Jewish liturgy; Verse 7 is part of the Roman Catholic mass.
(Interestingly, the verse numbers in the Book of Common Prayer are different from those in the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, because the prayer book makes two verses out of Verse 4.)
I enjoyed talking psalms in Father Mark Wood's recent class. He emphasized, for instance, how the verses are often in two parts, with each paraphrasing and augmenting the other. One exercise he recommended is elongating the pause at the asterisk when you read.
All in all, it's tempting to read this psalm verse by verse. There is so much to ponder in each: Just the first verse, for instance, asking for God's mercy. Later, in Verse 4, the psalmist contrasts mercy with justice. God is justified in passing judgment, the poet writes. But what he is asking for is mercy. This brings to mind the totally inadequate understanding we have of God's justice, or God's peace, or God's mercy.
Looking at the beauties of the individual verses, though, we miss some of the overarching meaning. I am very struck by the psalmist's request that God more or less ignore our sins -- blot them out, hide from them, almost as if our sins are too great even for God to look at. The psalmist knows his own sin, but he wants God to look past that, to find the secret truth or goodness within. And then, he says, "Wash me and I shall be clean indeed."
The other lessons for the day seem to build on this psalm. The passage from Isaiah deals with how we fast. The gospel contains one of Jesus' most hope-inspiring remarks, "For I have come to call not the righteous, but sinners."
Our job during Lent is to "know our transgressions," and to pray for God's mercy. Only then can we be ready for the bright whiteness of Easter.
