A Poem, A Proverb, A Painting, A Prayer: A Lenten Journey Day 33: 5th Sunday in Lent

Today’s Theme: Extravagant Gratitude


Poem: Mary, of Bethany, at your feet a third time
And so you come once more to Bethany,
and share a meal with Lazarus,
a resurrection feast,
foreshadowing, foreshining
all those kingdom feasts you told of:
wedding banquets with long tables
set wide with good things,
with room enough for all,
welcome at your table.

Now, in Bethany, the house is ablaze with light,
shutters and doors thrown open,
all wide open with joy unspeakable,
music, laughter, dancing, wild thanksgiving
for one who was dead is alive again,

And all night, while crowds pour in from Jerusalem,
the feast goes on, and on,
as Mary enters now, cheeks glistening with joy,
past her brother at your side, back from the grave.

She kneels at your feet again,
pours out extravagant nard,
scandalous anointing of your warm, living feet,
unbinds her hair and lets it flow like water
over them, wiping them in such reckless
and tender thanksgiving.
Fragrance fills the room, the house, the night,
as more people pour from Jerusalem to you,
to you, who comes to us in our weeping,
who shares our bread with us,
and brings us to such joy as this.
----------------Andrea Skevington

Proverb:
“Mary’s extravagant love for Jesus makes it possible for Jesus to show extravagant love in what follows — washing the feet of his disciples, handing himself over to be arrested in the garden, carrying his own cross, dying, rising, and ascending. Mary loves Jesus into his future as the fulfillment of, “for God so loved the world.”
-----------Karoline Lewis, biblical scholar, theologian, and pastor



Painting: Anointing at Bethany, Sadao Watanabe, Japan, 1991

     

Prayer: A Prayer of St. Teresa of Avila
May you be blessed forever, Lord,
for not abandoning me when I abandoned you.
May you be blessed forever, Lord,
for offering your hand of love in my darkest, most lonely moment.
May you be blessed forever, Lord,
for loving me more than I love myself.
May you be blessed forever, Lord,
for continuing to pour your blessings upon me, even though I respond so poorly.
May you be blessed forever, Lord,
for drawing out the goodness in all people, even including me.
May you be blessed forever, Lord,
for repaying our sin with your love.
May you be blessed forever, Lord,
for being constant and unchanging, amidst all the changes of the world.
May you be blessed forever, Lord,
for your countless blessings on me and on all your creatures.
-------------St. Teresa of Avila

Scripture Reference: John 22:1-8, Lent 5C