We never fully understand how God is planting seeds for the future through the work we are doing now. We are almost at Easter, and the end of Lent has brought spring. The weather outside has been beautiful these past few days, and the irony is that we are limited in how we may enjoy it. The church reminds us that one definition of Lent is spring, and during Lent we observe practices that help God grow our faith.

A few years ago we began the public reading of the Daily Office at St. Mark’s. I am told that before that time, St. Mark’s had minimal experience with the offices of Morning and Evening Prayer, except for the occasional Evensong offered by the choir. When we first began the practice, many in the parish found the Daily Office dry and boring. Others expected the evening office to be a choral performance. Some placed the expectations of the Eucharist upon all forms of worship, and St. Mark’s was super-centered on the mass. When we began the Daily Office, I did not want to take away from the mass, but rather the goal was to deepen our Anglican identity. The Daily Office was another way to enhance our liturgical life as a parish.

Historically, the Daily Offices of Morning and Evening Prayer are an Anglican gift to Christianity. These offices distinguish us from other churches. They give us our unique identity. One can receive the Eucharist in Lutheran, Orthodox, or Roman Catholic churches, but our reformed offices are uniquely ours. Certainly they are rooted in the ancient monastic offices that other churches share, but their development within our tradition is especially cherished. The choral heritage of music composed for the Anglican offices is one of our greatest treasures as a church, and the tradition of reading the scriptures within our offices is how Anglicans learn the Bible. We may share the Eucharist with other Christians, but the Anglican Daily Offices define us.

Now that the parish has done the Daily Office for many years, we are seeing how those seeds have sprouted. Last year during Lent we observed a Prayer Book Lent. We taught more people how to pray the offices, and many began to read and pray the offices at home. This prayer at home was a nice addition to those who gathered faithfully at the church every day. We were also able to schedule officiants for every day of the week, so that both offices were read daily as public worship.

Then came COVID-19. We are now gathering online twice each day to read the Daily Office, and our participation numbers are higher than ever. What used to be a minimum of two or three for each office at the church is now consistently 10 to 15 people. I would have never guessed that Morning Prayer on a Monday morning would be so well attended. Who knew so many years back when we began this project, that we would be preparing ourselves for this current situation. God was planting seeds of prayer within us for the future. When COVID-19 came, we naturally had a way to gather in prayer online. This quarantine is incubating our prayer in ways that is healing us now and equipping us as the church for the future.

Each and every day, St. Markers gather online for the Daily Office. With their prayers they also bring their joys and fears of the current day. Amidst all of this COVID-19 confusion, the Daily Office and our prayers remain a balm of calm and peace, bringing people back to Jesus Christ. If you have not been able to join us, please come as you are. The best way to learn this Anglican form of prayer is to attend regularly. You will discover that what seems boring and dry at first is actually a great strength. I am particularly grateful that we have employed clerical and lay leadership in these offices. So often online worship has become a show of the clergy doing everything. Increased technology does not assume increased lay participation.

We do not know how long this quarantine will last. Many are saying that it will go beyond April 30. During these times it is too difficult to predict the future, and I have stopped planning too far in advance. Every day seems to bring about new changes and challenges. I still find myself annoyed that Holy Week has been reduced to online worship, but I also realize that complaining is useless. The Gospel requires that we move forward with God when challenged.

I hope you can join us online for worship, for Holy Week and for the Daily Office. Easter always promises new growth, and it is beautiful to see how the seeds we have planted in the past have brought fruit, even during a pandemic. No matter what the circumstances, Christ always bursts forth from the tomb. Even when we are physically isolated and quarantined in our homes, Lent promises spring, and death always resurrects into life.

I wish you and your loved ones a happy Easter.

Father Paul Lillie+