Lenten Devotional by Princeton UMC

e l a e s e R

A Lenten Forgiveness Journey

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction

Lenten Devotionals Week of Ash Wednesday

Lenten Devotionals Week One

Lenten Devotionals Week Two

Lenten Devotionals Week Three

Lenten Devotionals Week Four

Lenten Devotionals Week Five

Lenten Devotionals Holy Week

e l a e se R

A Lenten Forgiveness Journey

Come along as we embark on a forgiveness journey, guided by the Beatitudes from Matthew’s Sermon on the Mount. We’ll look at what it means to be forgiven by God and how we might forgive, and be forgiven by others.

Worship Sundays

PUMC 10:00am, KUMC 10:30am Or worship on-demand at princetonumc.org

March 6th.......Rev. Jenny Smith Walz

March 6th................Rev. Skitch Matson

March 13th.........................Emma Worrall

March 13th..Pastora Ashley Gonzalez

March 27th...........................Alex Hoshino

March 27th..............Rev. Skitch Matson

April 10th...........Rev. Jenny Smith Walz

April 10th...................Rev. Skitch Matson

March 20th.....Rev. Jenny Smith Walz April 3rd....................Rev. Skitch Matson

March 20th.............Rev. Skitch Matson

April 3rd............Rev. Jenny Smith Walz

Tuesdays in Lent - 12:00pm Mid-Week Lenten Worship & Discussion @ PUMC and PrincetonUMC.org March 8th..............Rev. Jenny Smith Walz

March 15th..................................Alex Hoshino March 22nd.....Pastora Ashley Gonzalez March 29th.............................Emma Worrall April 5th........................................Hyelim Yoon

April 12th..........................Tayler Necoechea

I came that they may have life, and have it

abundantly. -Jesus, John 10:10b

Dear Beloveds of Kingston and Princeton UMCs,

You’ll notice that each Sunday practice invites the

There is perhaps nothing more core to our faith

use of prayer beads. Know that you don’t need

addition, it’s one of our least understood practices,

prayer beads can truly be anything that suits you

and more difficult to practice than forgiveness. In

prayer beads to engage in this practice. And also

with various cliches and ideas that are at best

or that you have on hand: knots tied in some

unhelpful and at worst quite harmful.

string, pebbles tied into a strip of cloth, buttons or

During Lent, you are invited to embark on a

shells or washers strung on some yarn, etc. The

forgiveness journey. We will have several guides to

image here (and the basis of our practices) is of

help us on the way. You are encouraged to read

a set of Protestant Prayer Beads, which are

Flora Slossen Wuellner’s book Forgiveness: The

configured differently from a Roman Catholic

Passionate Journey. This is a powerful, insightful

rosary, with which you might be more familiar.

book about forgiveness through the lens of the

Prayer Beads are meant to “help you experience

Beatitudes from Matthew’s Sermon on the Mount

God’s presence, increase your focus and comfort

(Matthew 5:1-12). Labyrinth Books in Princeton has

level in prayer, and be still and know God’s love for

ordered some copies to have on hand! In worship

you.” (Kristen Vincent)

we will walk slowly through the Beatitudes each

Perhaps the most important guides for our

week, allowing Jesus’s Kingdom values to guide us.

Lenten Forgiveness Journey are God and one

also guide the way toward forgiveness release.

have life and have it abundantly (John 10:10), is

We hope the set of devotional practices here can

another. God, whose deep desire is that we might

There are practices for each day in Lent, but use

closer to us than our breath. And you have a

them in whatever way works best for you. Perhaps

church family through and with whom we learn

one or three practices a week is more fitting for

and practice forgiveness.

you than seven. If so, choose the one(s) that most

Through Lent, with the many guides along the

resonates or choose which day(s) of the week you

journey, I trust that we will more fully receive God’s

works best for you. The theme for each week is

forgiving others and ourselves, that we will seek

will focus on. The best approach is the one that based

the

Fourfold

Path

forgiveness, that we will lean into the practice of

Forgiveness

forgiveness from others, all to the extent that we

described in Desmond Tutu’s and Mpho Tutu’s The

are ready.

Book of Forgiving. You’ll find a personal response to

May we experience release from all that binds

this text on page five.

us. May we have life and have it abundantly! Peace and Love, Pastor Jenny

February 27 - 12:00pm Lenten Prayer Bead Workshop

@ KUMC and PUMC and on Zoom Sign up at princetonumc.org/events

Above: Prayer Bead Diagram from Kristin E. Vincent; Right: Prayer Bead making kit from Prayer Works.

Our bodies are receptacles of the presence of God. We can use our bodies in many ways – by singing, by bowing our heads or kneeling, or by touching something–to help us connect the immaterial to the material. - Claudio Da Silva

Orthodox Prayer Rope, Etsy

Barbara Fox

Beginning with Ash Wednesday, the season of Lent can be a time of meditation and prayer to prepare ourselves for the joy of Easter. Often billed as the time to “give something up,” Lent can also be the inspiration to add a devotional practice to our prayer lives. For this Lenten season, participants at KUMC and PUMC have the opportunity to focus on prayer beads. Prayer beads? What are prayer beads and how would we use them? Using prayer beads can be a healthy way to experience the power of the Word of God, suggests Claudio Lamsa DaSilva, leader of PUMC’s adult formation team. “Touching a physical thing when you pray can help you stay in the present moment,” he explains. When we think of “prayer beads,” the Roman Catholic tradition of the rosary comes to mind. Pastora Ashley Gonzalez, pastor of adult formation across our multi-site ministry, grew up Catholic and remembers how her family prayed with rosary beads. The complete set of prayers that comprise the rosary is extensive; it recalls all the events in Jesus’s life according to the liturgical calendar. The main prayers never change: the Hail Mary (“Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee, blessed art thou among women…), the Apostles’ Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, and the “Glory Be” or what Protestants know as the Doxology. Komboskini beads, or knotted rope bracelets from the Orthodox tradition, have been used at midweek prayer services held by KUMC. Each bead represents a subject. “The fingering of each bead allowed one to have another sense involved with the words of the prayer for the subject,” says KUMC’s Jim Chamberlain.

PRAYER BEADS

Prayer Beads from Prayer Works

In her personal prayer life, PUMC’s Susan Davelman discovered that repetitive prayer can be a spiritual tool. “Raised Catholic, I was given rosary beads for my First Communion but never used them. I didn’t know how. Fast forward 50 years; as a Stephen Minister, I was introduced to a newly widowed woman -- a strong Christian, prayer warrior, and devout Catholic. The Rosary was a foundation of her faith. Intrigued, I asked her to explain it to me and we said the full rosary for several of our meetings. Now I have modified it to a format that I can easily remember.” The practice of repetitive prayer, counting with beads or a knotted rope, is central to such Asian religions as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism, and Islam. Buddhists from many traditions use a Japa Mala, a garland of 108 beads, so they can focus on a mantra or a divine name rather than on an exact count. Prayer beads called “subha” are part of the Islamic tradition as well. The name “subha” is derived from a word that means “to glorify God (Allah).” For those of us who were raised in a Protestant denomination, using an object or even an image as a worship tool may seem strange, even heretical. When I was six years old, I kept at my bedside a little wax angel who glowed in the dark. I loved saying my prayers to her. This disturbed my mother, when she took it away, I was desolate! Guidance about how to use prayer beads in a way that is consonant with United Methodist beliefs comes from Kristin E. Vincent, a Christian counselor, author, and retreat leader. “For many of us, just ‘being’ doesn’t come easily. Our minds wander, we get anxious, we judge ourselves for not being good at prayer- or stillness. Prayer beads can help us stay focused, serve as a physical reminder of God’s presence, and enable us to feel more comfortable with prayer." Kristin advocates using the ‘Protestant’ version of prayer beads. Created by an Episcopal priest in the 1980s, they use symbols familiar to Protestants. Typically, Protestant prayer strings have 33 beads or knots, one for each year of Jesus’s life. But – as Protestants like to do – each person can create their own, according to how they want to pray, and for whom they would like to pray. At KUMC and PUMC, we will have the opportunity to craft our own set of prayer beads. Kristen Vincent will lead a group Zoom session at each campus on Sunday, February 27 at noon. For more information, visit princetonumc.org/events or call the office: 609-924-2613.

Prayer strings need not follow a pattern; They can symbolize your concerns about people or goals.

THE BOOK OF FORGIVING Lessons in

When I volunteered to read The Book of

Forgiveness by Desmond Tutu and his daughter,

Mpho, an Anglican priest, I expected to learn more about his work with South Africa's post-Apartheid

Healing

Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Established

in 1995, the commission's goal was to build a new South Africa through truth-telling and forgiveness.

What I found between the pages was a lesson

plan of sorts on how to forgive and how to ask for forgiveness. For the Tutus, forgiveness is essential

Kate Lasko

for healing ourselves and the world.

The book is structured so that each chapter ends

The Tutus include in their book gut-wrenching

with exercises to nurture self-reflection on the

reading. There are meditations, stone rituals, and

accounts of loss at the hands of others. In each of

could asking and granting forgiveness be? I

couldn't understand forgiving a drunk driver for

these examples, the victim's family forgave. I

journal topics. I was skeptical; how complicated

killing

thought about how casually people throw around

two

daughters

forgiving

the

men

responsible for stabbing to death a complete

"I'm sorry": to the woman we jostle at the

stranger. Forgiveness was a gift the guilty did not

supermarket, to the colleague we interrupt at a

deserve. I could not accept the Tutus’ belief that

meeting, to the friend we pick up for the movies 10

no act is unforgivable and no person is beyond

minutes late. Knowing his vast goodness and

redemption. Had I not been asked to read the

granite faithfulness, I was also skeptical that his

book, I most likely would have put it down.

lessons could relate to me whose relationship with

Before reading the book, my understanding of

faith is at times anemic.

forgiveness was lopsided. I thought it benefited only the guilty. But the Tutus make clear that

forgiving can have a powerful healing effect on

the victim: "Forgiveness feels as if a weight has been lifted off you and you are free to let go of the past and move forward in your life." In part two of the book, they lay out their "Fourfold Path for

Healing Ourselves and Our World." Here they articulate the benefits of forgiving and make clear

that true forgiveness is a very hard process that can take years to complete.

Left: Mpho Tutu, Right: Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Photo from npr.org. The first step is Telling the Story; then comes Naming the Hurt, followed by Granting Forgiveness, and

finally Renewing or Releasing the Relationship. As I read through each step and reflected on each

example, I couldnt̀ help but place myself on the path. I thought of an important friendship I had lost due to my own stubbornness. I did not answer her calls or respond to her letter. I’d show her! Fifteen

years later through Facebook, we reconnected, but renewing the friendship never happened. Because I had not shared with anyone in any meaningful way my feelings at the time of the injury, reconnecting with her called forth the pain, anger, and sorrow I had felt 15 years ago.

Over the course of a lifetime, each of us has been on both sides of forgiveness many times: either

asking for or granting it. While most of the book deals with forgiving others, the last section focuses on self-forgiveness. What if the persons we harmed refuse to forgive us? How do we move past the guilt,

the sorrow, or the shame we feel? The Tutus concede that those feelings may never go away, but give assurances that “When we know we are doing all that we can to make amends, we make it possible to forgive ourselves for our actions.” We learn to stop thinking of ourselves as “bad.”

I am glad I finished the book, but I have to admit my feelings about the Tutus’ “Fourfold Path” are

mixed. It helped me understand why certain relationships of mine have unraveled and given me

guidance on how to renew or release a relationship. What I struggle with is their belief that no act, no matter how horrifying, is beyond forgiveness. My faith in humanity’s goodness pales before theirs.

Pick up your copy of The Book of Forgiving today at Labyrinth Books or anywhere books are sold.

A PERSONAL REFLECTION ON

forgiveness Michael Cabus

I had not seen my father in years, the day I

Florida, and leave their two very young kids (3

I discovered my father had died through a

before they leave, saying they will be right back,

learned he had died.

friend, who one morning knocked on my

apartment door, a newspaper under her arm.

Noelle was native to Alaska, and could claim

that deeply as she came from a long

succession of Inuit people; her matter-of-fact way of speaking always threw me off, as if

nothing alarmed her, or nothing happened that

and 1 years of age) at a neighbor’s house but then never coming back for weeks.

I have no memory of this so my memory is

filled in like this, by this story. Child services

arrives, takes me and my brother away, and

then we drift from orphanage to family member after family member.

My mom disappears, my dad shows up every

she did not expect already.

5 years or so, often with a new girlfriend, once

knew a Frank Cabus, as the last name was not

then my uncle's (never at the orphanage).

It was with this frankness that she asked if I

a common one.

This image fits with my memories of Noelle,

her drinking coffee, and reading entry after

entry of people who have gone on, who they

with a new wife, visiting me at my grandfather's, I told Noelle this story, and in her serious way

suggests I go to the funeral.

"No," I tell her, "Why bother? I barely knew him." "You realize," she tells me, "that you should for

were survived by.

the ceremony, the ritual? That it is about you

recognized a name, and I had to admit to her

weigh on you."

She must have found it providential she

that Frank Cabus was my father.

It revealed an omission I had made, really to

every one of my friends: I had described myself as an orphan, not a complete lie I felt as I never

met my mother, and my father disappeared for such long passages of time, there was little

opening your horizon, finally, because this must We had moved to the kitchen table, drinking

coffee.

"I'll go with you," she offered, but I decline. "I will figure it out," I told her.

I had not accounted for my brother, though.

What is it about my family that lends itself to

chance anyone would know any different.

being reclusive? I feel that pull, too, and I can't

story.

brother embraces the tendency, much like my

Besides, it saved me from telling the long What was the long story... it had many

versions, but at its root was a young couple, my parents, who leave their home in Ohio to go to

say it is because of being anti-social. My

father, so I am surprised that the second time

that day my family makes a presence in my life.

--------------------------------------

"Did you hear about dad?" he asks. I have, and he is surprised by this. You want to ride to the funeral together, he begins, I figure we can leave here tomorrow... "I'm not going," I interrupt, followed by a, "why would I?" to counter his surprise. "Dad was never around," I explained, "so why am I going to see someone I barely know, dead? It's too late now." "It's not about that, Michael....what if I needed you there?" This is a big admission on his part, that he needs someone. "For you, yes." Noelle said to see it as a path to forgiveness, but it wasn't. I can't say his funeral was not attended, it was, but I did not know many of the people. My father's only constant employment was with the circus, as an animal handler. Many of his circus friends were there, as were the various families he was part of at one time or another. Noelle, for all her Inuit wisdom, was wrong about the funeral bringing any kind of closure. It did not. I left as soon as I could, and never looked back.

It is now 2021 and after our COVID

years, I find myself trying to find my father's grave, in an effort to appease my newly discovered half-sister.

I found her through Ancestry, and I was

elated; a chance to have a real family connection.

We were enumerating the things we could

do together in Ohio, and when she expressed that we could find our father's grave, I was

disappointed. In all the ways our newfound

family represented the future, why on earth did she want to go back to the past?

I had spent considerable time in meditation

between my father's death and this moment,

even going to weeks' long retreats with nothing but meditation, but I had to admit that despite all this enlightenment, I was still angry with my father.

I had masked it so well as indifference, and

the only credit I could give to my exploration of Hindu meditation was that I could at least recognize it as anger.

I agreed to try to find the grave site; I wanted

my newfound sister to know people would show up and be there.

Except we couldn't find it.

On the drive to the cemetery, my sister tells

me she learned my father could not afford a

true headstone, that all he had was a wooden cross.

"What are your memories of him?" I ask.

She tells me the stories she remembers, in

her Kentucky accent. I love listening to her

speak; it is like a home I have been looking for, the accent I remember growing up with.

She tells me once she fell off her bike in the trailer park they were living in and hopped home on one leg. My father, seeing her hurt, picked her up and carried her into the trailer, hugging her until she fell asleep. She remembered his trailer with its makeshift rooms, created by hanging curtains. That he was protective of her, until one day he left and never came back. She, too, bounced around between family members. She, too, had anxiety, did not want to leave her house, all the things the other children of my father collected like they were inheritance. I would like to get him a proper headstone, she tells me, and I can't believe she would want to, so I say as much. "He abandoned you," I say, somewhat exasperated, "we are going to his gravesite, it is more than he would have done for you." "First," she says, "you don't know that.. we can't know that: maybe he would have done what he could for us, had he been able to. Second, doesn't everyone deserve to be remembered?" I recoiled at first at the simplicity, but I looked at her and saw someone wanting to create meaning, even out of what could have been hurt. In my arrogance, I thought driving out to Ohio would be about being a role model: a successful brother. Instead, the roles are reversed, and I see the power she has found in simple forgiveness. I am confident the gravesite will stand out; in a sea of people who died well remembered, the lone cross would stand out. It had rained in the morning, the cemetery seemed to be flooding, the land seemed to be sinking. I notice the superhighway a few feet away, am aware of climate change and wonder if this place will even exist in a few years.

Instead, the roles are reversed, and I see the power she has found in simple

forgiveness. My confidence starts to wane as I see the

size of the cemetery; I never went to the gravesite, leaving after the service. My sister

was relying on her memory of it at 8 years old,

and it became obvious: we were not going to find it.

I offer that we have a moment's silence and

say what comes to us.

My sister confesses she does not know what

to say.

We sit in silence, and I know how much she

now means to me, this person who gets easily lost like I do, who is also prone to selfsabotage but finds their way through with humor.

As we both realize we have no idea where

we parked the car and become lost in a

cemetery, I think, my father would have liked this: something good he created but did not have to spend much effort creating.

Before, in my mind, I thought of him as still

out there, wandering; searching for something. Now, I think he has finally stopped, he is resting, finally, free of whatever was holding him down.

March 2nd

9:00 am to 6:00pm

Prayer, Labyrinth Meditation, & Self-Imposed Ashes @ PUMC

7:00pm

Ash Wednesday Worship Service @ KUMC and on Zoom

DAILY DEVOTIONAL MAR

Ash Wednesday “Remember that it is from dust that you have come, and to dust you will return.” These are the words that are said when ashes are put on your foreheads on Ash Wednesday. With the smudge of ashes on your forehead, try looking into a mirror and repeating these words letting yourself hear them again. What do they mean to you? What is it like to hear them alongside the ashen cross you

wear? (if you don’t have ashes from church, a smudge of anything earthy will do - fireplace ash, mud or soil, etc.)

Thursday Prayer Beads are an ancient prayer tool that is visual and tactile.

Just seeing them can remind us to pray. They remind us of God’s

presence, and invite us into that presence. Being able to hold and touch them, following the path of the beads focuses our minds,

giving us a touchpoint to bring us back to the present moment and our connection with God. Beads provide structure and rhythm to

our prayer, allowing us to break prayer down into segments and cycles. You are encouraged to pray with prayer beads during Lent.

Each Sunday there will be a new prayer bead practice. Use these weekly or daily as you feel led. Or create your own practice!

Friday Create or otherwise obtain some prayer beads today. You can find the recording of our Prayer Bead Workshop, led by

Kristen Vincent on our Online Campus, along with a list of materials needed. There’s also a link to Kristen’s Etsy Shop, PrayerworksStudio,

where you can buy kits to make your own or already made prayer beads. Know that you can create prayer “beads” with many things you already have around the house: buttons, shells with holes,

washers, even dry macaroni noodles! You can tie knots in some

yarn or string. You could tie pebbles into a strip of scrap fabric. Make them yours! What’s most important is your prayer tool is yours and is useful to you as you pray. (See page two.)

Saturday

ASH WEDNESDAY

Consider the word “Release”. Likely there are some things in your life that, if you were able to release them, you would

be more able to find rest and peace. Simply make a list of these things that come to your awareness. A shortlist of possibilities: tension in your body, a physical belonging, a worry, something contributing to busyness, an unhealthy relationship, a bad habit, a lingering grudge or resentment.

*source: Kristen E. Vincent

1st Sunday of Lent Prayer Bead Practice Cross: God of light,

Invitatory bead: help me to speak my truth

Resurrection bead: by the power of your Son, Jesus Christ

1st cruciform bead: I hear Jesus asking me, “Do you want to be healed and find release?” Week beads, set 1: Use each bead to listen to Jesus’ question.

2nd cruciform bead: I wonder if I’m truly ready to be healed and find release

Week beads, set 2: Use each bead to lift up any fears, concerns, or questions you have about your readiness for healing and release.

3rd cruciform bead: I don’t know what to expect on my journey of forgiveness.

Week beads, set 3: Use each bead to envision what your forgiveness journey might look like, being as specific as possible. What will you feel, what will happen, who will be involved, what

will you need, where can you go for comfort, and what activities will nurture you along the way?

4th cruciform bead: I ask for your help and guidance along the way.

Week beads, set 4: Use each bead to pray for a sense of God’s presence, comfort, and guidance along your forgiveness journey.

Resurrection bead: In the name of your Son, Jesus Christ,

Invitatory bead: who has the power to heal, release, and forgive. Cross: Amen.*

07 08

Monday Make a list of the people you need to forgive in your life. Make another list of all those you would like to have forgive you.** Is there one situation or person in particular that you feel led to focus on during this season of Lent?

Tuesday For Conversation, Journaling, or Creative Expression Recall stories of Jesus’s teaching and practice of forgiveness. What aspects of these stories encourage and attract you? What aspects challenge or discomfort you?

What would you like to ask Jesus about forgiveness?

What would you like to tell Jesus as you consider the invitation to undertake this journey of forgiveness and release?

*adapted from Vincent, Kristen E. Beads of Healing. Upper Room Books, 2016, pg. 25 **source: Tutu & Tutu, The Book of Forgiving, digital ed. p. 30

Wednesday Prayer Before the Prayer

I want to be willing to forgive

But I dare not ask for the will to forgive In case you give it to me And I am not yet ready

I am not yet ready for my heart to soften

I am not yet ready to be vulnerable again

Not yet ready to see that there is humanity in my tormentor’s eyes

Or that the one who hurt me may also have cried

I am not yet ready for the journey

I am not yet interested in the path

I am at the prayer before the prayer of forgiveness Grant me the will to want to forgive Grant it to me not yet but soon*

How does this prayer resonate with you and your experience?

WEEK ONE

Thursday Go to https://storycorps.org/ or https://themoth.org/ and search for “forgiveness.”

Listen to one or more of these stories of forgiveness.

Friday Check in with your body today.

Start with your feet, moving upward toward your head, and then down your arms to your fingers. Slowly connect with each part of your body, part by part. What sensations are

you aware of? Is there tension? Calm? Pain? Connection? What do you notice about your body and your embodiment?

Saturday

Sabbath practice: Inviting God into the Mundane

As your Sabbath practice for today, invite God to participate in the mundane parts of

your life. This might feel strange at first, and that’s okay. Ask Jesus to be with you when you answer emails. Ask God to walk with you to the store. Invite the Spirit to cook dinner with you.

Ask yourself: did anything change about my posture towards myself, others, or my tasks when I invited God to do them with me?

*source: Tutu & Tutu, The Book of Forgiving, digital ed. p. 8

2nd Sunday of Lent Prayer Bead Practice Cross: God of light,

Invitatory bead: help me to speak my truth

Resurrection bead: by the power of your Son, Jesus Christ.

1st cruciform bead: I hear Jesus encouraging me to tell my story.

Week beads, set 1: Use each bead to listen as Jesus invites you to tell your story.

2nd cruciform bead: I have worried that the story of my hurt and pain defines me.

Week beads, set 2: Use each bead to consider how and when you have felt defined by your pain.

3rd cruciform bead: I have been afraid to tell my story.

Week beads, set 3: Use each bead to offer up your fears about speaking your truth. 4th cruciform bead: I need your help to speak my truth and hear your response.

Week beads, set 4: Use each bead to pray for a sense of God’s presence, comfort, and guidance along your forgiveness journey. Listen for the words God is speaking to you in response.

Resurrection bead: In the name of Jesus Christ,

Invitatory bead: who has the power to heal, release, and forgive. Cross: Amen.*

Monday Telling the Story is the first step on the Forgiveness Journey. What story of hurt do you carry within you?

What truth are you ready to tell about your wounds?

What kind of safe space do you need in order to put words to your story? Who do you need to tell your story to?

Maybe it’s a journal or letter, a trusted loved one, God, the one who caused the wound. This week, to the extent you are ready, speak your truth, tell your story.**

Tuesday

For Conversation, Journaling, or Creative Expression Forgiveness is not: Weakness Injustice

Forgetting Easy

Quick

Are any of these myths about forgiveness holding you back from offering forgiveness? How? In which instances?***

*adapted from Vincent, Kristen E. Beads of Healing. Upper Room Books, 2016, pg. 41 **source: Tutu & Tutu, The Book of Forgiving, digital ed. chapter 4 ***source: Tutu & Tutu, The Book of Forgiving, digital ed. p.41

Wednesday

Thursday

Use your prayer beads or just the rhythm of your breath. With each bead or breath, say “I am God’s beloved”, aloud or silently.*

Contemplate this diagram.* Where have you seen the Revenge Cycle at work in your life and in the world? When have you seen the Forgiveness Cycle at work in your life and in the world?

WEEK TWO

Friday

Mindfulness Practice: Truth Telling

Experience the spiritual practice of truth telling today. Truth telling can begin with a word

or phrase that you know to be true and will carry throughout your day. This phrase can come from your favorite hymn, passage of scripture, or poetry. Some examples are: I am beloved.

The Lord is my refuge.

God hears your prayers.

Consider telling others about this truth today. A friend, family member, or a loved one. How might they be blessed by this truth?

Saturday Sabbath Practice: Giving Thanks

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good and his steadfast love endures forever. -Psalm 107.1 Sabbath is a time of uninterrupted worship to spend time with our creator and experience renewal. This sabbath day, take some time to give thanks to God. Grab a

journal or pray out loud. Even call a friend to give thanks to God together. Recall God’s blessings in your life and in the life of others.

*source: Kristen E. Vincent, Beads of Healing, p. 93 **source: Tutu & Tutu, The Book of Forgiving, digital ed. p. 49

3rd Sunday of Lent Prayer Bead Practice Cross: God of grace,

Invitatory bead: heal my spirit

Resurrection bead: by the power of your Son, Jesus Christ. 1st cruciform bead: Listen as I describe my hurt.

Week beads, set 1: Use each bead to describe your hurt to God - what it looks like, feels like, sounds like, and so on.

2nd cruciform bead: Hear me as I tell you the impact this hurt has had on me.

Week beads, set 2: Use each bead to state the effects this hurt has had on your life. 3rd cruciform bead: Help me to recognize that you are hurting with me.

Week beads, set 3: Use each bead to consider times in your life when you may have seen

signs that God hurts with you. If you cannot remember any such times, use each bead to ask for help in identifying these signs.

4th cruciform bead: Knowing that you are present and sharing in my pain, I ask you to bring healing and release.

Week beads, set 4: Use each bead to pray for healing and release and to recognize that God is present in your pain.

Resurrection bead: In the name of Jesus Christ,

Invitatory bead: who has the power to heal, release, and forgive. Cross: Amen.*

Monday Naming the Hurt is the second step on the Forgiveness Journey.

What have you lost through the events of the story you are telling of your wounds?

Did you lose trust? Safety? Dignity? Someone you loved? Something you cherished?

Name the feelings that come with these losses. I am angry. I am sad. I am heartbroken. I am afraid. What words can you put to what your heart, soul, and body are telling you? This week, to the extent you are ready, name your pain, so it can be healed.**

Tuesday For Conversation, Journaling, or Creative Expression Meet me here. Speak my name. I am not your enemy I am your teacher. I may even be your friend. Let us tell our truth together, you and I.

My name is anger: I say you have been wronged. My name is shame: my story is your hidden pain. My name is fear: my story is vulnerability.

My name is resentment: I say things should have been different.

My name is grief. My name is depression. My name is heartache. My name is anxiety. I have many names. And many lessons. I am not your enemy. I am your teacher.*** How does this prayer poem resonate with you and your experience? *adapted from Vincent, Kristen E. Beads of Healing. Upper Room Books, 2016, pg. 49 **source: Tutu & Tutu, The Book of Forgiving, digital ed. Chap. 5 and p. 116-118 ***source: Tutu & Tutu, The Book of Forgiving, digital ed. p.113-114

Wednesday

Thursday

Use your prayer beads or just the rhythm of your breath. With each bead or breath, say “Jesus weeps with me”, aloud or silently.*

Consider wounds inflicted within communities, nations, peoples. Have

you ever been to or taken a virtual tour of a museum or memorial that tells the stories of these communal wounds, such as a Holocaust

Museum? The Legacy Museum? The National Memorial for Peace and Justice? The National Museum of the American Indian? The Apartheid Museum? 9/11 Memorial and Museum?

What have such experiences been like for you? Why is it important to have such museums and memorials?

Friday Mindfulness practice: Ignatian Prayer of Examen

St. Ignatius of Loyola taught us to pray the prayer of Examen to help us see God’s work in our daily lives. You might choose to participate in this prayer out loud with others, through journaling, or before you go to bed.

Begin with silence. Be aware of the Spirit’s presence as you breathe in

WEEK THREE

and out.

Where was God present today? Where did you notice the Spirit’s

movement in the last 24 hours? Was there a time you felt most connected to God or yourself?

Where were you the most detached today? Did you notice a moment where it was difficult to connect with God or yourself?

Invite Jesus into these moments of detachment. Resist feelings of shame, but allow God’s spirit of renewal in these moments.

Just as you began, focus on your breathing as you thank God for God’s mercies that are new every day.

Saturday Sabbath Practice: Unplug

Invite yourself to unplug from technology. Whether you choose to do this for a whole

day, or just an hour, this is a time of rest. If you find yourself feeling lazy or unproductive without technology, remind yourself that Holy rest is good. Sabbath is a way to resist the world’s pace, and lean into God’s peace. Sabbath is actually a productive time, though

not in our economic standards. It doesn’t have to be perfect, but know that you are resting in the Perfect One.

*source: Kristen E. Vincent, We are Beloved, p. 49

4th Sunday of Lent Prayer Bead Practice Cross: God of love,

Invitatory bead: help me to experience your peace

Resurrection bead: by the power of your Son, Jesus Christ. 1st cruciform bead: I need to offer forgiveness.

Week beads, set 1: Use each bead to confess your need to forgive. Consider why forgiveness is important in your journey.

2nd cruciform bead: It feels impossible to offer forgiveness.

Week beads, set 2: Use each bead to acknowledge the difficulty you face in offering forgiveness.

3rd cruciform bead: Help me participate in the forgiveness you offer. Week beads, set 3: Use each bead to ask God to forgive the person or people you need to forgive.

4th cruciform bead: Help me to see others as you see them.

Week beads, set 4: Use each bead to watch how God sees other people. Resurrection bead: In the name of Jesus Christ, Invitatory bead: who offers his peace. Cross: Amen.*

Monday Granting Forgiveness is the third step on the Forgiveness Journey.

This can only happen when we’ve spoken our truth, our story, our hurt. It can only happen when we are ready. It is our choice to forgive, and it cannot be forced. We may also find that we need to forgive, not just once, but multiple times or in steps.

Part of forgiving includes seeing the person who harmed you as a human being, a beloved child of God, and finding empathy for them.

Another part of forgiving involves telling a new story, one that recognizes a shared humanity between you and the person who hurt you, one in which you are not only a victim.

This week, to the extent you are ready, tell a new story, recognize a shared humanity and belovedness, grant forgiveness.**

*adapted from Vincent, Kristen E. Beads of Healing. Upper Room Books, 2016, pg. 100 **source: Tutu & Tutu, The Book of Forgiving, digital ed. chapter 6 ***source: Tutu & Tutu, The Book of Forgiving, digital ed. p.139-140

Tuesday

For Conversation, Journaling, or Creative Expression I can draw you as a cypher So unlike me

I can make you less than human I can erase your story

Then I will have no work to do And nothing to forgive

But there is this pile of pain waiting for me

And I cannot remove it without facing your story There is a pile of pain waiting for me And to clear it away,

I must admit our common humanity.*** How does this prayer poem resonate with you and your experience?

APR

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Use your prayer beads or just the rhythm of your breath. With each bead or breath, say “I am healing”, aloud or silently.*

WEEK FOUR

Listen to Good Shepherd Music Collection’s version of Brother. Look it up on YouTube or your preferred digital music source.

Mindfulness practice: Breath Prayer

Breath prayers are a type of prayer that allows us to "pray without ceasing" as Paul talked about. Of course, you can't really do much without ceasing, except breathing. This is a way to embody prayer. Each time you inhale and exhale, you say a word or phrase. Inhale. I am enough. Exhale. Because God is enough.

Sabbath Practice: Nature

Spend time praying in nature today. Perhaps you’ll choose to take a walk around the neighborhood or sit in your backyard. What do you notice around you? What do you hear, see, smell, feel? Consider Psalm 150:6, Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Experience the renewal of Christ through Creation’s song.

*source: Kristen E. Vincent, We are Beloved, p. 66

5th Sunday of Lent Prayer Bead Practice Cross: God of new life,

Invitatory bead: help me to further my journey of release,

Resurrection bead: by the power of your Son, Jesus Christ. 1st cruciform bead: I give thanks for the journey so far.

Week beads, set 1: Use each bead to recall your journey of forgiveness and release. What steps have you taken? What has been healing along the way? Have you gotten stuck anywhere along the way? Where have you known God’s presence with you? 2nd cruciform bead: Help me name my need.

Week beads, set 2: Use each bead to name what you need in order to take the next step of forgiveness.

3rd cruciform bead: Help me participate in the wholeness you desire for your children.

Week beads, set 3: Use each bead to explore whether you are ready to renew or release the relationship, to be released from victimhood. Which will make you more whole? 4th cruciform bead: Sin and death do not have the final word. Love does.

Week beads, set 4: Use each bead to see God’s love flowing into you and those you are trying to forgive.

Resurrection bead: In the name of Jesus Christ,

Invitatory bead: who has the power to heal, release, and forgive. Cross: Amen.

Monday Renewing or Releasing the Relationship is the fourth step on the Forgiveness Journey

Releasing is choosing not to have the person who hurt you in your life, your head, or heart any longer. You release them with no wish of ill will. You release the old story of the relationship Renewing is to create a new relationship out of suffering, telling a new story of a transformed relationship. Is there anything you need from the person who wounded you in order to renew or release? Naming it has power, even if you are unable to receive it. This week, to the extent you are ready, renew or release the relationship, move into a new future.*

Tuesday For Conversation, Journaling, or Creative Expression

Forgiveness is my back bent to clear away the dead tangle of hurt and recrimination. And make a space, a field fit for planting. When I stand to survey this place. I can choose to invite you in to sow seeds for a different harvest. Or I can choose to let you go. And let that field lie fallow.**

How does this prayer poem resonate with you and your experience?

*source: Tutu & Tutu, The Book of Forgiving, digital ed. Chap. 7 **source: Tutu & Tutu, The Book of Forgiving, digital ed. p.157

Wednesday

Thursday

Use your prayer beads or just the rhythm of your breath. With each bead or breath, say “God calls me to wholeness”, aloud or silently.*

Look

information

about

different

Truth

and

Reconciliation

Commissions (TRCs). Perhaps start with Wikipedia, which can point you in a number of directions from there.

Or watch a movie or read a book about TRCs. Many are available with an internet search.

As you learn and discover, what is hopeful to you? What is concerning? What is surprising?

Friday Mindfulness practice: Breastplate Prayer

WEEK FIVE

Christ with me (you). Christ before me (you).

Christ behind me (you). Christ within me (you).

Christ beneath me (you). Christ above me (you).

Christ to right of me (you). Christ to left of me (you). Take a few centering breaths. With each phrase of the “Breastplate Prayer” of St. Patrick above, focus your attention on the aspect of your embodiment that phrase describes.

Become aware of Christ’s presence with you in each dimension of your embodiment as

you move through the prayer slowly. Then, as you are ready, move through it again

slowly, focused on the person who has harmed you and Christ’s presence in each

dimension of their embodiment. If you are ready, move through it once more, aware of Christ’s presence with you both simultaneously.**

Saturday Sabbath Practice: Cooking

Make yourself a good meal today. As you meditate on renewal and release, nourish your

body and soul through good food. You don’t need to spend hours cooking over your stove or to stress about the final product. Let this sabbath practice be restful. Whether

you microwave leftovers or pull out that new cookbook, may you experience God’s restoration. Feast and remember the goodness of Christ. *source: Kristen E. Vincent, Beads of Healing, p. 123 **source: Amy Oden, Right Here, Right Now, digital ed. p. 60-61

Palm Sunday Prayer Bead Practice

Cross: Jesus, you reigned over sin by being lifted onto the cross. Invitatory bead: Release me from all my sins,

Resurrection bead: including the sin of thinking I am sinless.

1st cruciform bead: God of truth, help me name what I have done, or failed to do, to cause hurt and pain.

Week beads, set 1: Use each bead to confess ways you have caused hurt and pain. 2nd cruciform bead: God of suffering, help me recognize the pain I have caused.

Week beads, set 2: Use each bead to open yourself to the harm you have caused, without minimizing or justifying, asking God’s help to move beyond your current awareness. 3rd cruciform bead: God of mercy, forgive me.

Week beads, set 3: Use each bead to speak God’s mercy over all you have named. 4th cruciform bead: God of grace, give me courage to seek full release.

Week beads, set 4: Use each bead to envision the next steps in your forgiveness journey,

being as specific as you can. Who do you need to ask for forgiveness? How will you acknowledge harm? How will you seek to make things right? How will you seek to repair or release the relationship?

Resurrection bead: In the name of Jesus Christ,

Invitatory bead: who has the power to heal, release, and forgive. Cross: Amen.*

Monday We can also journey down Tutu’s Fourfold Path of forgiveness when we are the ones in need of forgiveness. We can admit the wrong we have done. We can apologize and seek to understand the harm we have done. We can ask for forgiveness. We can make amends and respect the decisions of others to renew or release the relationship. Is there a broken relationship that you are ready to be released from? How will you begin?

Tuesday For Conversation, Journaling, or Creative Expression

We deny God’s grace in two primary ways, sometimes simultaneously: We don’t think we truly need God’s grace. Our sin and brokenness isn’t severe, especially not compared to others that come to mind. We don’t think that God’s grace is powerful enough to release us and forgive us from our sin and brokenness. So we continue to hold onto the harm that we have done and the good we have failed to do, not able to forgive ourselves or accept God’s forgiveness. How does this idea resonate with you and your experience?

Wednesday Use your prayer beads or just the rhythm of your breath. With each bead or breath, say “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner”, aloud or silently.**

*adapted from Vincent, Kristen E. Another Bead, Another Prayer. Upper Room Books, 2016, pg. 42-43 **source: Kristen E. Vincent, A Bead and a Prayer, p. 49

Maundy Thursday Fill a basin with water. Get a towel. With their permission, wash the feet

of someone you love. As you do so, hear again Jesus’s commandment to love one another.

Good Friday Find or create or draw a cross. Hold it in your hands or position yourself

in front of it. Take a few centering breaths. Just be with this symbol of God’s love for a time. Recall the story of Jesus’s passion, the love that

brought him to the cross. Let the cross be a reminder of the lengths God will go to love you, to heal your brokenness, to bring you release from all that binds you.

Holy Saturday

WEEK SIX

Sabbath Practice: Stillness and Silence

Stillness and silence is a way to connect with God in the midst of our busy world. It is often difficult to find space to slow down and just be. I invite you to take time to just sit in

silence. Perhaps you’ll choose to do so for an hour, or just a few minutes at a time. This might be difficult for you, or maybe it'll be easy. Whatever your experience is with the stillness and silence, know that it is good. If your mind wanders, maybe you'll pick up your journal and doodle while you think and talk to God.

Easter Sunday Prayer Bead Practice

Cross: God of love, Invitatory bead: Alleluia! Resurrection bead: Christ is risen! 1st cruciform bead: I rejoice at the resurrection of your Son, Jesus Christ. Week beads, set 1: Use each bead to rejoice at Christ’s resurrection. 2nd cruciform bead: You have released me from sin and death because you love me so much, and I am grateful. Week beads, set 2: Use each bead to offer gratitude to God for the gift of life. 3rd cruciform bead: As your beloved, help me to share the news of your love to all I meet. Week beads, set 3: Use each bead to ask God to guide you in sharing the news of Christ’s resurrection. 4th cruciform bead: I am your beloved, Lord. This is my truth! Week beads, set 4: Use each bead to affirm and own your beloved truth. Resurrection bead: In the name of Jesus Christ, Invitatory bead: who gives us the gift of new life. Cross: Amen* *adapted from Vincent, Kristen E. We Are Beloved. Upper Room Books, 2016, pg. 96-97

HOLY WEEK Palm Sunday

Maundy Thursday

10:00 am at Princeton, Live Stream 10:30 am at Kingston, Zoom

7:00 pm Princeton, Live Stream

Good Friday Tenebrae

Holy Saturday 10:00 am Princeton, Live Stream

7:00 pm at Princeton, Live Stream 7:00 pm at Kingston, Zoom

Easter Sunrise

Easter Sunday

6:30 am Carnegie Lake on Princeton Kingston Road

10:00 am at Princeton, Live Stream 10:30 am at Kingston, Zoom

Throughout Holy Week Open Hours at Princeton for Prayer and Labyrinth Walking

The Protestant Prayer Bead books and materials from Kristen E. Vincent guided much of the prayer bead practices and information. Thank you to Jenny Smith Walz and Tayler Necoechea for contributing the devotionals and thanks to Barbara Fox, Kate Lasko, and Michael Cabus for their contributions, as well.

THANK YOU

The Book of Forgiving by Desmond Tutu and Mpho Tutu provided the basic weekly framework for the devotional.