The Craft of Preaching
Resources to strengthen authentic biblical preaching
Currently in Preaching & Worship
What we hear on Ash Wednesday when Lent begins is this: "... give alms...pray...fast...do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth...For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."
These are important and weighty words. It is no wonder Lent has long been approached as a ponderous time. It should be. Away with facile words! Now is the time for deep focus, a going-into rather than a skating-across.
Columnist Profile
Melinda Quivik
Professor of Liturgy and Homiletics
The Lutheran Theological Seminary
Philadelphia, PA
As I survey the Gospel texts assigned for Lent during Year C, I see them raising questions about life and what it means to live and flourish in the space carved out by God's grace.
I am not surprised that what I see has to do with living. I am biased. I have little patience for Lenten practices, liturgies, and especially sermons that do not lead me beyond passive introspection or that consist chiefly of macabre reflections. Lenten preaching should take life as seriously as it takes death. I want Lent to address my humanity as much as (if not more than) my mortality.
The Lenten image of the biblical wilderness has particular resonance for congregations this year.
The Lenten image of the biblical wilderness has particular resonance for congregations this year. Not only has the Great Recession brought suffering and austerity to many communities, upending settled patterns of life and prosperity, but congregations are also wrestling with powerful currents of change sweeping through society and the wider church. This has brought conflict, displacement, and loss. Underneath it all is a deep and disquieting question: who are we in this strange new landscape? This is the question of the biblical wilderness and a key question to ask ourselves as the church in Lent.
In case you haven't heard, Google Wave is the latest innovation by the company upon which many of us rely for most of our day.
It's meant to combine email, social networking, file sharing, wiki/nings, and instant messaging. It's still in "preview" stage — not even beta — and you can't get on it without an invitation (which you can get if you find someone on Twitter giving them away).