Search Results for: forgiveness

The final penitential psalm, Psalm 143, takes us to the foot of the cross on Good Friday. The psalmist — perhaps David, on the run from his own son Absolom — has reached the end of his rope.  His “spirit faints,” his heart is “appalled” (vs 4).  He feels trapped and abandoned even by God, […]

One of my enduring memories of 9/11 is the odd yet absolute right-ness of the packed church that night.  Nobody was told to come, there was no mass, no scheduled prayer service – the people just came.  We came together in our grief, our fear, our incomprehension.  We huddled in silent prayer and wept.  Instinctively, […]

The beginning of the end of my Grandmother’s life came early one morning.  I knew she had cancer; but to my young and hopeful mind she would survive. What signaled the change I do not know, but I woke to hushed whispers and frantic activity.  A blood cot to the brain, they said. I loved […]

When I was nine, I stole a big, fat, sugary Boston cream pie from the refrigerator and ate the entire thing behind the trees in the backyard. It wasn’t mine to take.  We didn’t have the open-frig, eat-when-you-want policy that children have today—and we never had desserts that looked like that.  But even worse, I […]

It’s popular today to deny the concept of sin.  There are only bad choices, mistakes to move on from, and other people to blame. Behind that dislike of calling things “sin” is outrage that God would pass judgment on me and my actions.  How dare he!  To that person, God is a tyrant.  What a […]

When I set out to read the penitential psalms this Lent, I expected them to draw me into dust and ashes, into mourning for my sins.  I still think that – but what a surprise to read the second one, Psalm 32, and find myself lifted into joy! Here, then, is the reason for this […]

Every Friday during Lent, I will provide a brief guide for reflecting on one of the seven penitential psalms.  For centuries, these have been a powerful source of prayer and reflection during Lent.  Together they invite us to recognize our sin, express our sorrow to God and ask his forgiveness, and experience the healing touch […]