Pastor’s Message

Christus spricht:
“Ich habe für dich gebeten, daß dein Glaube nicht aufhöre“.

Jesus says: “I have prayed for you that your own faith may not fail“

Lukas/Luke 22:32; Jahreslosung/Watchword for the year 2005

Dear members and friends of Zion,

The season of Lent has become many things for many people. Originally a time of intensive preparation for candidates for baptism at the Easter Vigil, it was characterized by intense fasting, study, and prayer, not just of these candidates but for the entire congregation.

Over time, as more and more children were baptized throughout the whole year, the baptismal aspect went somewhat missing, and left behind was a time of penitential sorrow and almsgiving.

Today, you can find all sorts of meanings given to this time: a time of renewal, a time to scale back - like in the very successful German program “7 Wochen ohne / 7 weeks without”, a time of doing something meaningful, “spring cleaning for the soul” etc. Some people have reclaimed the old understanding of Lent as a time of fresh encounter with the central stories and themes of our faith. This is reflected in all kinds of helpful resources, books, kits, study material.

However, for Lutherans Lent has always been a prime time for an encounter with a specific story, and that is the story of Jesus Christ going up to Jerusalem to suffer and die for us – it is “Passionszeit” rather than “Fastenzeit”.

For my taste, some people who try to give Lent a new emphasis (even if it is a very old one) obscure what is central to me: the Passion of Christ.

While I am not a fan of some recent film either, I do think that this is THE most powerful story to tell, the most challenging message to confront yourself with, and in the end the most disturbing and yet paradoxically the most consoling and comforting image of all. And Lent is the time appointed to do just this: to concentrate on this story, and to relate to it with your life and your faith – not be distressed, but to be strengthened by what Christ did for us, for you and me, and the whole world.

The gospel readings appointed for this year bring before us dramatic encounters: Jesus and the Evil One (Lent I), Jesus and Nicodemus (Lent II), Jesus and the woman at the well (Lent III), Jesus and the man born blind (Lent IV), Jesus and Mary, Martha and Lazarus (Lent V), culminating in the encounter with the crowd on Palm/Passion Sunday, going right into Holy Week with its three summits of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter.

We should not shy away from these encounters on our way towards Easter. On the contrary, having gone through Lent and all its stages deepens our understanding, our appreciation, and our joy.

Have a blessed Lent and Easter 2005!
Eine gesegnetePassionszeit und ein frohes Osterfest 2005 wünscht Ihnen

Your Pastor Dr Holger Roggelin

WHAT DO THE SUNDAY NAMES IN LENT MEAN?
Warum haben eigentlich die Sonntage der Passionszeit besondere Namen?

The Sunday names in Lent almost all relate to the beginning of the introit antiphon, the refrain of the entrance psalm for the respective Sunday:

Pastor Roggelin's Archive of Past Messages From Zion