"God created you from dust and to God you shall return." I'm sure those aren't exactly the right words, but it is what I say to parishioners and visitors alike as I place slightly too oily ashes on their foreheads or hands.

Growing up, Lent was a Catholic thing, by which I mean everyone in our community was engaged. The three protestants in my elementary school classroom showed up on-time on Ash Wednesday, and we waited for our ash marked friends to show up after church. Our cafeteria served meatless lunches. I knew that Lent was about fasting although we called it "giving up for Lent."

What I didn't know was that Lent has three penitent activities: prayer, fasting, and charity. Interesting that I didn't know the charity component! (Although I remember now that my church's "Bunnies for Bolivia" fundraising was during Lent.) What is really interesting is that in 1966 Pope Paul VI in chapter III of the Apostolic Constitution, changed the approach to fasting. Where economic well-being is prominent, the pope writes that the church witness of asceticism is important. Where people live in poverty, however "it will be more pleasing to God the Father and more useful to the members of the Body of Christ if Christians—while they seek in every way to promote better social justice—offer their suffering in prayer to the Lord in close union with the Cross of Christ."

Essentially, everyone engages in prayer, but people with excess should practice Lent with asceticism and charity, while those without enough should simply offer the suffering they already experience as their penitence. And that everyone should, as part of their Lenten practice, “promote better social justice.”

I encourage congregations to focus on what they can do for justice during this Lenten season. Instead of giving something up, consider doing one action every day to protect people who are trans, to protect people who are immigrants, or to protect the environment. Choose something that helps maintain our social safety net. Imagine that your act of penitence this season could be to protect the people in our nation.

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The Lukan version of the transfiguration (Luke 9:28-36) is unique among the gospels in at least two ways. (Check out Andrew's Version by Andrew McGowan for background information for your sermon.) Luke emphasizes that Jesus is at prayer, and includes Jesus' conversation with Moses and Elijah about his exodus. Although sometimes translated as "departure", the Greek definitely implies the connection to Moses freeing the slaves in Egypt.

The transfiguration is followed by Jesus healing a boy by rebuking an unclean spirit (Luke 9:42), and then in 9:44 predicting the passion: “Let these words sink into your ears: The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into human hands.” What does it mean to think about the connection of the passion to the Exodus story? To imagine that Jesus' journey is only toward crucifixion is to end the story of exodus at the sea of reeds. Exodus does not end in the wilderness, but in the continued life of the people in promised land. Jesus death, resurrection, and ascension is a journey toward the church--the body of christ--doing God's work in the world.

Which returns us to prayer. In Luke 5:16, 6:12, 9:18, and 11:1 Jesus turns to prayer before and during significant events (McGowan). Prayer is not a private spiritual discipline that Jesus engages to be removed from the world, but rather is preparation for being in the world. It is connection to God that keeps Jesus going. How much more so we must turn to prayer to maintain our connection to God!

Jesus' public ministry begins with a proclamation of the year of the God's favor, as evidenced by good news to the poor, release to the captives, recovery of sight to the blind, and freedom for the oppressed (Luke 4:18-19). His earthly exodus is one that ushers in a church called to continue the proclamation of God's Kingdom. In times like these, when the future for the oppressed seems impossible, we remember Moses leading the exodus, and Jesus standing firm against the powers-that-be.
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We must focus on bringing about exodus for the oppressed, departing out of violence of oppression and into God's promise. We do that with prayers to keep us connected to God, and with action to be God's hands and feet in the world. We do that with Jesus, the anointed, guiding us, and the Holy Spirit giving us the power and courage to act.

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