Praying the Communion Antiphon Series
Praying the Communion Antiphon Series
A
Time Set Apart – Saturday after Ash Wednesday
I
Desire Mercy
Thinking
About the Words
“I
desire.”
These
are strong words. Not suggestion. Not preference. Desire.
What
does God truly want?
“Mercy,
not sacrifice.”
This
does not abolish sacrifice — Lent is full of it.
But it corrects the heart behind it.
Sacrifice
without mercy becomes performance.
Fasting without mercy becomes pride.
Discipline without mercy becomes harshness — toward ourselves and toward
others.
Mercy
is relational.
It bends toward weakness.
It sees clearly and loves anyway.
“I
did not come to call the just but sinners.”
Lent
begins not with achievement but with honesty.
The
antiphon is prayed as we approach Communion — which means we approach not
because we are “the just,” but because we are the ones being called.
Mercy
is not the reward for Lent.
It is the starting point.
Reflection
- Is my
Lenten practice rooted in love or in self-measurement?
- Where do
I need to show mercy — to someone else, or to myself?
- Do I
approach Christ as one already accomplished, or as one being called?
- What
would mercy look like in one concrete interaction this week?
This
antiphon is deeply Lenten. It keeps everything aligned. Not intensity. Not
self-punishment but mercy. It is a wonderful reminder for us as we enter into
the first full week of Lent.
Prayer
Lord,
teach my heart Your mercy.
Let my sacrifice be shaped by love.
Call me again today.
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