Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Ash Wednesday: Our fast has been imposed by others


Shower of Stoles representing the ministry of LGBT people.

We celebrate Ash Wednesday with an excerpt from “Rite for Lent” by Chris Glaser, published in Equal Rites: Lesbian and Gay Worship, Ceremonies, and Celebrations. Lent is a time of fasting and reflection in the weeks before Easter.

One: Jesus,
     our fast has been imposed by others,
     our wilderness sojourn their choice more than ours.
Many: Our fast from the sacraments,
     our fast from ordination:
     our only choice was honesty.
One: With the scapegoats of the ancient Hebrews,
     sexual sins of generations
     have been heaped upon our backs,
     and we have been sent away,
     excommunicated, into the wilderness to die.
Many: Yet we choose life,
     even in our deprivation
One: Jesus, lead us to discern our call
     parallel to your own:
     rebelling against the boundaries,
     questioning the self-righteous authorities,
     breaking the Sabbath law
     to bring healing.

_____
Chris Glaser is a gay Christian author and activist. After 30 years spent struggling with the Presbyterian Church for the right to ordination as an openly gay man, he was ordained to the ministry in Metropolitan Community Churches in 2005. He currently pastors at Virginia Highland Church, a progressive Baptist and United Church of Christ congregation in Atlanta.

A valuable resource on ordination of LGBT people is the Shower of Stoles project at:
welcomingresources.org/sosp.htm

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