Rhonda VanDyke Colby and i were planning for our Lenten series. Although her extensive training and experience have prepared her well to follow prescribed liturgical rituals, she is always open to suggestions. When discussing burying the "Alleluia" for the season of Lent until Easter, she shared with me fond memories of ceremonious burials done with children in order to resurrect it on Easter with jubilant praise.
I shared with her my preference, which is to refrain from burying Alleluia this year. It has been a tremendously difficult year: most of us are affected by unemployment of self or a loved one, we find ourselves amid crippling winter storms, many among us have lost loved ones to the earthquake in Haiti, and even more have spouses, parents, and siblings serving our armed forces in this time of seemingly endless war. It seems cruel to deprive those with whom we minister of the hope of Alleluia. Besides, aren't we taught in the gospel of Luke that the rocks are crying out in praise when we keep silence? Lifting our Alleluias from the darkness of our downheartedness seems to be a mandate during times like this.
Like i said: Rhonda's flexible. Also insightful, bold, and artistic. She called me back with lyrics set to Leonard Cohen's "Alleluia" that i recorded. My partner, Sarah, made it into a video using her photos from SU's Ash Wednesday service at our 10pm student-led service, Wednesday Night Live. I described it on my Facebook page as "reverent & blasphemous."
In the words of Don VanDyke Colby, our preacher for this service, "Happy Ash Wednesday... HUH?!?!???"
www.youtube.com/watch?v=O67Np5SCpHk
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(Please cut-and-paste the URL if you have trouble clicking the hyperlink. Thanks!)
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