| Tue Mar 24 | am: 121, 122, 123 pm: 124, 125, 126 | Exod 5:1-6:1 | 1 Cor 14:20-40 | Mark 9:42-50 |
FIFTH TUESDAY OF LENT: Walter Hilton of Thurgarton, Mystic, 13th Century
LITURGICAL THEME FOR THE DAY: Born in 1343, Walter Hilton studied Canon Law at Cambridge, but after a period as a hermit, he joined the community of Augustinian Canons at Thurgarton in Nottinghamshire. Highly regarded in his lifetime as a spiritual guide, he wrote in both Latin and English and translated several Latin devotional works. Controversy with the Lollards gave a sharper definition to his exposition of the aims, methods, and disciplines of traditional spirituality. Amongst his major works, Ladder of Perfection (Book Two) declares that contemplation, understood in a profoundly Trinitarian context as awareness of grace and sensitivity to the Spirit, may and should be sought by all serious Christians. (The Lollards followed from the teachings of John Wycliffe, a prominent theologian at Oxford in the mid 14th Century. They wanted reform of the Church and taught that piety was a requirement for a priest to be a “true” priest and perform the sacraments. They also maintained that a pious layman had the power to perform those same rites, believing that religious power and authority came through piety and not through the Church hierarchy.
BIBLICAL MEDITATION OF THE DAY: Psalm 121 sets an excellent tone for today as we are reminded on this journey in life and lent that God is with and for His people. These are important words for us because there are times we stumble and fall and lose our way and are in danger of losing our sure footing. It is in these times that we must depend on the Lord. The lesson for us is that it is not our own agility and balance that keep us focused and on course, but the grace of God. Psalm 121 is a particularly beautiful reflection on God’s sustaining role in our lives. Sometimes it may feel to us that God is absent; more often, we get so caught up in our lives that it may not occur to us how God is present.
PRAYER OF THE DAY: Almighty God, who holds all things in your loving care, embolden within me a realization of the manifold ways in which you constantly hold my life in your care, and keep me conscious of your desire for me. Create in me a thankful heart – for your presence and sustenance in every moment of my day this day. Amen
ANCIENT WISDOM/PRESENT GRACE: “Therefore, desire of God as much as thou wilt or canst, without measure or moderation at all concerning any thing that belongs to His love or Heaven’s bliss, for he that can desire most of God shall feel and receive most; but work as thou mayest and cry God mercy, for that thou canst not do.”-– Walter Hiltons.
LENTEN DISCIPLINE – new patterns to pray sounds as if it is something that we should welcome, but we don’t embrace that which we do not understand. Today, as part of the desert journey of Lent, spend your prayer time utilizing the principles of contemplative centering prayer. To get oriented, go to https://contemplativeathome.com/meditations as a basic primer for this experience of being the mystic Christian.
SONG OF THE HEART, SONG OF THE SEASON – God Moves in a Mysterious Way by William Cowper