Lenten Meditations: Tuesday 5 March 2024

Mar 5, 2024 by Jill

THIRD TUESDAY OF LENT:  St. Kieran/ Ciaran of Saigher, Monk and Bishop, 4^th Century

LITURGICAL THEME OF THE DAY: Today in the west we mark the date for St. Kieran, a 4^th Century saint from the south of County Cork.  He left Ireland before the arrival of St. Patrick. Already a Christian, and of royal Ulster blood, he had determined to study for the Church; hence, he secured an education at Tours and Rome. On his return from France, he built himself a little cell in the woods of Upper Ossory. He was ordained a bishop and on his homeward journey, he met St. Patrick who instructed Kieran to travel until he came to a well where he should find a monastery. Patrick gave him a bell, which was not to ring until such a time as Kieran reached the correct well. He at last reached a well called Uaran, where he built his monastery known as Saighir-Kiaran, which is in County Offaly. His monastery flourished and he ordained many holy men to the priesthood. He was not content to preach to the native Irish but also spent time in Cornwall, Brittany, Wales, and Scotland. The name St. Kieran is still remembered in many of these places with gratitude.

BIBLICAL MEDITATION OF THE DAY:  The Psalm today is divided into morning and evening prayer but recounts the deeds and the power of the Lord so that the people will come to know the One who gives them life. While the God of the Old Testament gives the people commandments by which to live, he does so in the context of covenants which are outward signs of God’s unyielding love. As we look toward the remainder of Lent and the culmination of this journey at the Great Vigil of Easter, we know that this faithful God in Covenant parted the sea, brought water from the rocks while they were in the desert; brought streams out of the cliffs; and let them through the hard wilderness. As we consider the power of God in the images of this Psalm, it is also an opportunity to consider all the good things God has done for us in this day and age. As God’s people, what do we need to remember? What have we forgotten about the covenant God put forward for us? As we are making this Lenten journey can we ponder how God blessing us?

PRAYER OF THE DAY: Gracious God, deepen my trust, on this day. O Lord, I pray that you be mindful of me when during the times my heart longs for what can only come from you in the fullness of time. Give me a calm assurance that your will for me is grander than anything I could ever imagine. Still, my mind and heart are in your love so that I am mindful of the grace you are draping around me every single day, every single moment. I ask this for the sake of your love. Amen

ANCIENT WISDOM/PRESENT GRACE:  ‘We are all to pray to God to take from us the opportunity of sinning; so frail we are, it is no sooner offered but we are ready to embrace it – God help us.”. – Blessed Jeremy Taylor

Lenten Lyrics:  God All-Powerful – New Wine Worship. https://youtu.be/w2vQeuVeiOM?si=w18ZpYLFSKn2iRpO

Lenten Discipline – Note today on your phone or a notepad how you have seen God’s power in the world during the day. At the end of the day give God the praise for all that you have witnessed and then share the reflections with another.

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