Friday, February 27, 2009

Beneath Thy Cross by Christina Rossetti

Am I a stone, and not a sheep, 
That I can stand, O Christ, beneath Thy cross,
To number drop by drop Thy Blood's slow loss,
And yet not weep?

Not so those women loved
Who with exceeding grief lamented thee;
Not so fallen Peter weeping bitterly;
Not so the thief was moved;

Not so the Sun and Moon
Which hid their faces in a starless sky,
A horror of great darkness at broad noon -
I, only I.

Yet give not o'er,
But seek Thy sheep, true Shepherd of the flock;
Greater than Moses, turn and look once more
And smite a rock.

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

A Prayer for Entering into Lent

"O God of peace, who has taught us that in returning and rest we shall be saved, in quietness and in trust shall be our strength: by the power of your Spirit lift us, we pray, to your presence, where we may be still and know that you are God, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen."

Book of Common Prayer, page 832
as quoted by Ruth Haley Barton
www.thetransformingcenter.org/pdf/ash09.pdf