Episcopal Relief & Development’s 2025 LENTEN Meditation Journey . . . A COMMONPLACE Lent

[We ought] to be of help to all, to refrain from hurting others out of bitterness. —Bede, Homilies on the Gospels

The world is a complicated place these days—maybe more than ever, or at least more than it has been in my lifetime. Church is complicated, families are complicated and communities are complicated. We have, as the human race, endured and inflicted a lot of pain and trauma in recent memory. So, I will not tell you not to be angry or frustrated if that is how you feel. But I will pray that your anger does not turn to bitterness, that it doesn’t form a chip on your shoulder the size of the hump on Quasimodo’s back. If the energy propelling you forward these days is that chip on your shoulder, know that it will only fuel you for so long. Bitterness runs hot and deep, but it is not regenerative. It is death, not life. It saps joy, isolates you and makes promises you can’t keep. Bitterness is not a good fruit; instead, it is a poison that will use you up, destroy your relationships and leave you in a wilderness of your own making. But thankfully, the wilderness is not
the end of the story.

In the season of Lent, we have the opportunity to begin again. We can choose, with God’s help and the prayers of our community and perhaps professional assistance if needed, to practice fasting from bitter thoughts and habits. We can begin digging up the rotten grapes of unforgiveness and burning off the acidic narratives that blind us from giving and receiving God’s mercy and grace. It is now during Lent that we can begin trusting Love as our guide, even in times of anger and frustration. It may be a long journey, but it is a worthwhile one, and we do not have to travel it alone.

For REFLECTION:

Can you distinguish between bitterness and righteous anger? Is there a spirit of bitterness in your community? If so, what would it take to begin rooting it out
communally?

Click here to read the introduction to the 2025 Lenten Meditation “A Commonplace Lent.”

The Lenten Meditations prepared by Episcopal Relief & Development invite readers to deepen their spiritual practice during the season of Lent, the time of preparation leading to Easter. Our 2025 meditations explore the idea of “A Commonplace Lent.” This concept reflects Episcopal Relief & Development’s tagline: “Working Together for Lasting Change.” We share in common the work of advancing lasting change in communities impacted by injustice, poverty, disaster and climate change.

We also share in common spiritual practices that strengthen our faith—prayer, worship, love, grace, service and so much more. The author explores another meaning of common in the  meditations: finding God in the common and ordinary as well as in the extraordinary mountain-top moments. Each day begins with wisdom from desert mothers and fathers, monastics and other spiritual leaders who offer insight into our common path of faithful discipleship and service. Each meditation concludes with a question for deeper reflection.

Episcopal Relief & Development is the compassionate response of The Episcopal Church to human suffering in the world. Hearing God’s call to seek and serve Christ in all persons and to respect the dignity of every human being, Episcopal Relief & Development serves to bring together the generosity of Episcopalians and others with the needs of the world.

This Lenten Meditation Journey is provided courtesy of Episcopal Relief & Development and was authored by Jerusalem Jackson Greer, co-executive director and agrarian minister for the Procter Center, an Episcopal farm, camp and retreat center in the Episcopal Diocese of Southern Ohio. As former manager of evangelism and discipleship for The Episcopal Church under Presiding Bishop Michael Curry, she co-founded the Good News Garden movement and oversaw Way of Love and Evangelism initiatives for the wider church.