Communications : Message from the Presiding Bishop

February 27, 2012

Feast of St. Leander of Seville

Dear Friends, Clergy and Seminarians of the UACC,

"When you give alms, do not blow a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets to win the praise of others." "And when you pray," Jesus continues in Matthew 6, "do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by men." Rather, we are taught to let our alms-giving and our prayer be secret. "And your Father, who sees in secret, will repay you." In this Gospel reading from Ash Wednesday, we are reminded of the real reward that can be ours—the profound, conscious union with God—if we truly "take care of business" instead of just go through the motions.

"What are you giving up for Lent?" we ask ourselves and each other, as if the lack of chocolate, for example, suddenly makes all things right between us and God. Remember those New Year's resolutions we made a couple months ago, now most likely abandoned and forgotten? We sometimes respond to Lent as if it were no more serious than the promises we made at midnight on December 31. The reality is that the Season of Lent is a gateway. A gateway from winter to spring. A gateway from deep penitence to the ultimate joy.

And a call to self-examination far more arduous than the giving up of this or that. Which is exactly why we don't do it. It's hard. It's not typically a part of our daily routine. It requires that we take an honest look in the mirror and see what God sees: yes, our holiness, certainly, but our, well, the ways in which we're not so holy as well. Or perhaps "wholly" is the better word. God sees where we are not whole and offers us the Lenten Season in which heal: to prepare for and endure the crucifixion necessary to maximize our ability to receive the great light that resurrection will bring.

It is my hope, therefore, that you embrace these Lenten disciplines once again, drawing strength from our growing solidarity with the Jesus who today still suffers with us and with the Christ who gave his all for our salvation. Then will our brief time in the desert of our forty days not be a time of superficial dalliance in self-denial but a time of spiritual growth. Our Father who sees in secret will reward us.

Blessed and Spirit filled Lent,

Most Reverend Anthony Hash
Presiding Bishop