Introit
Rejoice, Jerusalem and gather round,
all you who love her;
rejoice greatly with her,
all you who were in sorrow.
Delight and be replenished
with the consolation flowing
from her comforting breasts.
Isaiah 66:10-11
I rejoiced when they said to me,
"Let us go to the house of the Lord."
Psalm 122:1
Joshua 5:9-12
9 The Lord said to Joshua, "Today I have rolled away from you the disgrace of Egypt." And so that place is called Gilgal to this day. 10 While the Israelites were camped in Gilgal they kept the passover in the evening on the fourteenth day of the month in the plains of Jericho. 11 On the day after the passover, on that very day, they ate the produce of the land, unleavened cakes and parched grain. 12 The manna ceased on the day they ate the produce of the land, and the Israelites no longer had manna; they ate the crops of the land of Canaan that year.
Halfway through Lent!
This midway Sunday takes a break from penitential purple or violet with vestments and paraments in lighter, brighter rose or pink. It's often called Laetare or "rejoice" after the first word of the introit or entrance prayer. Refreshment Sunday is another name, this Sunday is Mother's Day in the UK and in some other countries.
Readings for Today
• Geography and chronology both are a bit confounded, but broadly, the first reading from Joshua with no more "reproach (disgrace, derision, ridicule, stigma, shame) of Egypt" that scholars interpret as imperial slavery and/or as not being uncircumcised, leads to Israel enjoying crops of the promised land after celebrating the Passover freedom feast.
• Responsive Psalm 32 is about individual confession, forgiveness, and restoration.
• The gospel is the Prodigal Son, Waiting Father, Resentful Older Brother, Surprise Party, Forgiving Father, Family Reunion from Luke 15:11-32. This is one of the stories that's exclusive to Luke. What would you call it?
• In 2 Corinthians 5:16-21, the Apostle Paul announces that like Jesus Christ, we are ambassadors who bring the message of reconciliation with trespasses (transgressions, sins, offenses, guilts) wiped out to leave a clean slate. Paul even says we are new creations in Christ!
Forgiveness
With God's forgiveness in Christ and our gifts of forgiveness to each other so central to the Gospel and to the Christian life, it's important to be cautious. Not so much about Martin Luther's "sin boldly, and trust even more boldly in the risen Christ," or avoiding what Dietrich Bonhoeffer called cheap grace that claims because we know Christ has forgiven us, we might as well keep on sinning because God loves to forgive.
Both as the frequently noted "gift we give ourselves" and for the person or even institution or group that offended us, forgiveness always is an option. You may have lived enough years to realize forgiveness typically is a step by step process. Many times we need some understanding of "why" they did that to us in order to start the process.
We need to be cautious because forgiveness always is possible, but reconciliation sometimes is not possible.
Reconciliation
Like the waiting father in Luke's parable, God in Christ has removed the shame of sin and guilt from us and even called us to be ambassadors of reconciliation. You may long for everything again to be the way it was in the long ago past, but too much may have happened for that to be possible.
Forgiveness always is possible, but reconciliation sometimes is not possible.
To reconcile with an abuser can be dangerous on many levels. To place yourself again in any unhealthy or dangerous situation usually is unwise. If you're uncertain or confused, consult a therapist, pastor, or counselor, who knows you or possibly with a professional (therapist, pastor, counselor) who doesn't know you at all and can assess your history with some objectivity.
Reconciliation may be impossible at this moment, but with prayer, waiting, hoping, and understanding maybe in the future? Or possibly not.
A Few More Notes
The passages from Joshua and Luke are about God's tangible and earthbound provision for us.
Israel had just celebrated Passover before the gifts of manna ended and they feasted on food harvested from the land of promise. Like our sacraments, passover was [still is!] remembrance, real-time reenactment, and anticipation of God liberating, providing for, and shaping the people into a community whose daily life reflects and enables forgiveness and liberation.
God renamed the place Gilgal that sounds similar to rolled away in Hebrew. God rolls away doubts, pasts, fears, regrets, sins, and anything else that's been getting in the way. God rolls in newness and freedom. "Today" "on that very day" "on the day" all are here and now. We need to keep living as if we still were in the desert wilderness where everything is gift; whenever we lose the sense of uncertainty and preciousness of the desert and start to feel comfortable… then we start trusting ourselves.
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