circle of prayer 30. reconciliation: lent (spring)

"give them grace, when they hurt each other, to recognize and acknowledge their faults, and to seek each other's forgiveness and yours." (prayer from "the celebration and blessing of a marriage," bcp 1979)

i was reared in a baptist church in a small southern town where we were convinced that roman catholics were followers of the whore of babyon. one of the proofs was that all catholics had to do to have their sins forgiven was to confess to their priest. little did we recognize how difficult true confession is. the closest we came was "revivals," at which just about the only sin confessed was drinking, although there were occasional mentions of "that jezebel."

the difficulty of making a good confession has a long history. in the baptismal covenant we are asked "will you persevere in resisting evil, and, whenever you fall into sin, repent and return to the lord?" adam and eve should have had the advantage of such a question. when they fell into sin, the holy one, who if omniscient knew they had eaten the forbidden fruit, came to walk with them in the cool of the day as usual. rather than repenting and returning, they dissembled and blamed whomever was convenient except themselves. (genesis 3:8-13)

although we tend to agree with crosley, stills and nash that "we've got to get back to the garden," most of us have no clue how to do so. we remain in the ignorance from my childhood, maybe convinced that creation was originally good, maybe even believing that in baptism our sins are forgiven and our innocence restored; but we look around at a world that seems deeply mired in hopelessness.

hence the strength of the little bombshell embedded in the marriage liturgy and quoted above, a prayer for grace to recognize our faults and to seek forgiveness, knowing we will hurt each other. it is too simple for us to accept. we are like naaman, who came to elishah to be cured of leprosy and expected some elaborate ritual. he was told to wash seven times in the jordan. his response was like my childhood distrust of the roman catholics. how could healing, how could salvation, be simple? (2 kings 5:1-12) how could spring, with its thousands of blossoms, follow the dead of winter?

lent means spring. (because the days lengthen then).although the lenten practice of repentance began as a method to restore "notorious evil livers" to the communion of the church, it has become popular for anyone as a time of annual repentance, often leading to a renewal of baptismal vows. this reflects the understanding of the early church, and the continuous understanding of the eastern church, that repentance serves as a second baptism.

in many ways the traditional service of reconciliation is a recapitulation of our whole lives and of the sacraments of the church:

"The Penitent says:
Holy God, heavenly Father, you formed me from the dust in
your image and likeness, and redeemed me from sin and
death by the cross of your Son Jesus Christ. Through the
water of baptism you clothed me with the shining garment of
his righteousness, and established me among your children in
your kingdom. But I have squandered the inheritance of your
saints, and have wandered far in a land that is waste.
". . . I confess to you [the priest] and to the Church. . .
. . .
"Therefore, O Lord, from these and all other sins I cannot
now remember, I turn to you in sorrow and repentance.
Receive me again into the arms of your mercy, and restore me
to the blessed company of your faithful people; through him
in whom you have redeemed the world, your Son our Savior
Jesus Christ. Amen.
. . .
"The Priest concludes:
"Now there is rejoicing in heaven; for you were lost, and
are found; you were dead, and are now alive in Christ Jesus
our Lord. Go (or abide) in peace. The Lord has put away all
your sins.

"Penitent: Thanks be to God."