Lenten Daily Reflection 2020-04-10
Lamentations 3:1-9, 19-33
3 I am one who has seen affliction
under the rod of God’s * wrath;
2 he has driven and brought me
into darkness without any light;
3 against me alone he turns his hand,
again and again, all day long.
4 He has made my flesh and my skin waste away,
and broken my bones;
5 he has besieged and enveloped me
with bitterness and tribulation;
6 he has made me sit in darkness
like the dead of long ago.
7 He has walled me about so that I cannot escape;
he has put heavy chains on me;
8 though I call and cry for help,
he shuts out my prayer;
9 he has blocked my ways with hewn stones,
he has made my paths crooked.
19 The thought of my affliction and my homelessness
is wormwood and gall!
20 My soul continually thinks of it
and is bowed down within me.
21 But this I call to mind,
and therefore I have hope:
22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases,*
his mercies never come to an end;
23 they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
24 ‘The Lord is my portion,’ says my soul,
‘therefore I will hope in him.’
25 The Lord is good to those who wait for him,
to the soul that seeks him.
26 It is good that one should wait quietly
for the salvation of the Lord.
27 It is good for one to bear
the yoke in youth,
28 to sit alone in silence
when the Lord has imposed it,
29 to put one’s mouth to the dust
(there may yet be hope),
30 to give one’s cheek to the smiter,
and be filled with insults.
31 For the Lord will not
reject for ever.
32 Although he causes grief, he will have compassion
according to the abundance of his steadfast love;
33 for he does not willingly afflict
or grieve anyone.
under the rod of God’s * wrath;
2 he has driven and brought me
into darkness without any light;
3 against me alone he turns his hand,
again and again, all day long.
4 He has made my flesh and my skin waste away,
and broken my bones;
5 he has besieged and enveloped me
with bitterness and tribulation;
6 he has made me sit in darkness
like the dead of long ago.
7 He has walled me about so that I cannot escape;
he has put heavy chains on me;
8 though I call and cry for help,
he shuts out my prayer;
9 he has blocked my ways with hewn stones,
he has made my paths crooked.
19 The thought of my affliction and my homelessness
is wormwood and gall!
20 My soul continually thinks of it
and is bowed down within me.
21 But this I call to mind,
and therefore I have hope:
22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases,*
his mercies never come to an end;
23 they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
24 ‘The Lord is my portion,’ says my soul,
‘therefore I will hope in him.’
25 The Lord is good to those who wait for him,
to the soul that seeks him.
26 It is good that one should wait quietly
for the salvation of the Lord.
27 It is good for one to bear
the yoke in youth,
28 to sit alone in silence
when the Lord has imposed it,
29 to put one’s mouth to the dust
(there may yet be hope),
30 to give one’s cheek to the smiter,
and be filled with insults.
31 For the Lord will not
reject for ever.
32 Although he causes grief, he will have compassion
according to the abundance of his steadfast love;
33 for he does not willingly afflict
or grieve anyone.
There is nothing like Lamentations to express the depths of our human emotions. I, like you, have been witness to the unfolding catastrophe of the Covid-19 pandemic. Helpless, I have seen the numbers increase, the desperate measures taken, my own isolation. “I am one who has seen affliction,… he has driven and brought me into darkness without any light.” Yet, I was one of the fortunate ones. I was retired, I didn’t have to brave the subway and go to work. My husband Martin was with me in my isolation, I am blessed with friends and family who love me.
And then we both got sick—fever, aches and queasiness. My temperature went up and down. All I could do was sleep. “He has walled me about so that I cannot escape; he has put heavy chains on me.” For over a week I was sick—it is only in the last few days that I have felt more myself.
Even with recovery, sadness closes in: we discover today that our next-door neighbor has died due to Covid-19. The angel of death has descended so close to us.
Still, life in its goodness carries on. We keep our religious traditions. We have a tiny Passover Seder, we observe Maundy Thursday. “It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.” Waiting quietly is what we are called to do. It is sufficient-dayenu.
And then we both got sick—fever, aches and queasiness. My temperature went up and down. All I could do was sleep. “He has walled me about so that I cannot escape; he has put heavy chains on me.” For over a week I was sick—it is only in the last few days that I have felt more myself.
Even with recovery, sadness closes in: we discover today that our next-door neighbor has died due to Covid-19. The angel of death has descended so close to us.
Still, life in its goodness carries on. We keep our religious traditions. We have a tiny Passover Seder, we observe Maundy Thursday. “It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.” Waiting quietly is what we are called to do. It is sufficient-dayenu.