It has been noticeably lighter in the mornings and in the evenings over the past few days. The dawning of spring coincides with the progress of Lent; we are now halfway through the season of penance, fasting and almsgiving, looking ahead to the brightness that will come with Easter joy. To mark the halfway point of Lent the Church names this Sunday ‘Laetare Sunday’, a call to rejoice in the hope of the resurrection. For this one Sunday the liturgical colour of violet will be replaced with a brighter and more joyful rose. We can look forward with hope.
The world around us can sometimes seem like a ‘dark’ place. I often hear people say that they no longer watch the news, because the news is so often depressing or upsetting. In the midst of turmoil it is important to retain hope and confidence that darkness will be replaced with brightness. In our Christian context that hope and confidence is rooted in prayer. ‘In you, O LORD, do I take refuge,’ begins Psalm 31, a psalm which concludes: ‘Be strong, and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for the LORD!’
As we prepare and wait for Holy Week and then for Easter, and as we long for peace in the world, let us do so in prayer, and by putting our trust in the God who loves us all.
