Ash Wednesday

 

Ash Wednesday

Like most of my pastor colleagues, we began planning the Ash Wednesday service months in advance.  Rather than having snow and ice as a potential obstacle, our timeline must align with a sea day rather than a port day.  If we’re in a port, then guests are off the ship involved in an activity; whereas, a sea day means we are traveling between ports and all on-board activities are a go.  Given the uncertainties of sea conditions as well as world news, we are never sure about schedule changes.

Gratefully, Ash Wednesday fell on the only sea day before 10 port days in a row.  Helen A. Worley**, the retired Anglican priest and I met with the British couple who act as hospitality liaison with the ship’s leadership.  We started these planning sessions in late January, resisting the impulse to look ahead to Holy Week and Easter, because we have absolutely no idea where the ship will be by then, let alone whether it will be a sea or port day.  Here are some of the on-a-ship-without-a-church office conundrums:

·        How do we get ashes?  Fires are not allowed on the ship and we have no dried palm branches left over from last year.  Thank God for Amazon.com.  The small bag of ashes was picked up in San Diego when we stopped there in February. 

·        How do we make a bulletin? Helen was able to have a copy of the Anglican service emailed to her.  Okay.  We had the words (pretty much the same as our Lutheran A.W. service).

·        What should we do about music?  Helen and I found a mutual love of Taize music, so we found and taught “Ubi Caritas” to our British friends who—I may have told you—have a deep and lengthy history in London’s West End, Broadway’s British mirror.  They will help teach it.

·        Who would we invite to the service? Our deepest desire was to invite any of the 420 crew who wished to observe Ash Wednesday.  Unfortunately, this was denied by the cruise higher-ups and their reason made sense:  opening the door for one religion means that all religions would need to be recognized and observed.

·        How would we publicize the service to the guests on board?  This is not a Christian ship, but the Sunday worship services (when we’re at sea) are quietly listed on the daily itinerary delivered to each cabin.  But how can we announce a Wednesday service—ideally at the nightly announcements spoken by our ship’s cruise director after the evening performance?  Thankfully, our cruise director is savvy.  On Fat Tuesday night, he said, “Oh, tomorrow’s Ash Wednesday.  You may have noticed that the location for the service was listed as the ship’s library.  That’s my error.  The Ash Wednesday service at 8:30 will be held here where all the other worship services happen.”

That morning, the service went without a hitch, thanks to the Holy Spirit’s presence and prayer beforehand.  We realized that we’d ever fully introduced ourselves and our denominational affiliation. Helen introduced herself first and included a bit of her vitae, so that allowed me to step up with more of my own.  I included that these people in attendance would be the first for me to impose with ashes since my retirement.  And, although the ship was rocking somewhat, everyone came forward to receive ashes—even the Missouri Synod couple…and doubtless others who I know nothing of their backgrounds.

We wore our ashes all day.  One of the crew on a food deck looked at me and immediately said, “Today’s Ash Wednesday!  I had forgotten!  I’m Catholic.  Most of us from the Philippines are Catholic.  Who did that to you?”  So I could explain to him that we’d wanted to invite the crew, and I could also tell him that I’m a pastor.

Thanks be to God for opportunities to declare the magnificence of God’s boundless grace, forgiveness, and love.

**See her children’s book on Amazon: Hope Lives in a Garden: a tale of whimsy and healing

 


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