Penitential Rite

Lenten Worship: Introducing the Penitential Rite
Beginning this Sunday and continuing throughout Lent, the 10:30am Sunday Eucharist will begin with the Penitential Order (BCP 351).

The Penitential Rite is a prayerful way for the Church to gather honestly before God, acknowledging our need for mercy and receiving again the assurance of God’s forgiveness and grace. Especially as we move toward Holy Week, and Easter, opening our worship in this way will help us enter more fully into the Good News that we are a people beloved by God and being drawn continually back into the heart of God’s reconciling lovingkindness.

On the First Sunday of Lent (February 22), we will begin the liturgy with a responsorial reading of the Decalogue (the Ten Commandments), followed by the General Confession and Absolution. This practice is meant to clarify the intentions of our hearts, rather burden us, preparing us to keep a holy Lent and to rejoice more fully in the new life of Easter.