Meditations for Every Wednesday and Friday in Lent: On a Prayer of S. Ephraem

After reading Meditations for Every Wednesday and Friday in Lent: On a Prayer of S. Ephraem by S. C. Malan, you'll have a much deeper understanding of Lent by considering prominent themes in Scripture throughout Jesus' last week on Earth.

You'll learn about:

• A distinguishing feature of Christian morality: our utter and hopeless inability to work out our salvation in our strength, and why we must trust in God's grace to help us for that work
• How Jesus modeled work versus idleness, and what the believer can learn from it
• Discouragement—why it is like a sickness and where its sources lie
• Idle talk and where it can unknowingly lead the Christian
• The virtue of humility and why Christians must strive to live a contrite life
• And more

The devotions are contemplative yet challenging, inspiring the reader to strive to be more like Christ. Consider this entry on idleness from pages 31–32:

Lord and Master of my life, keep from me a spirit of inactivity and idleness! Grant that my days which are so short, may not be spent in worldly vanity and idleness; grant that the talents intrusted to me may not be buried in the earth of forgetfulness and of sloth; grant that through dislike of labour or trouble, I may not reckon a burden what Thou givest me to do, and thus deface Thine own image in me! But give me to be bold in every good and blessed work; give me to labour without weariness in the cultivation of my nature for eternity; and grant that whatever I do, be done to Thy glory, O Lord, and not for my own pleasure. Amen."

Plus, in a section at the end of the volume that includes homilies by S. Chrysostom, S. Severian, and S. Ephraem, all focused on Passion Week, you'll explore various facets of faith through topics like Palm Sunday, the broken and penetrant Mary Magdalene, Peter's denial of Christ, and the suffering and death of Jesus. You'll be challenged, humbled, and inspired to follow after those who have gone before us and worked out their salvation "with fear and trembling," knowing God ultimately works in us to will and act all things.

Meditations for Every Wednesday and Friday in Lent: On a Prayer of S. Ephraem by S. C. Malan is a unique devotional designed to help readers journey through Passion Week focused on Jesus. The book is divided into sections by days during Lent: the first Wednesday in Lent, Friday of the first week of Lent, Wednesday the second week of Lent, and so on. A quick prayer that encompasses the theme for the entry that follows opens each meditation, like this one for Friday the second week of Lent:

"Lord and Master of my life, keep from me an ambitious spirit!”

Commentary follows based on a prayer by Saint Ephraem with additional prayers inserted throughout the meditations, like this one guiding the reader through a prayer on humility:

“True disciple of Christ, make humility thine own; for from it as from a well-spring of grace, flow all other virtues. It will bring thee nearer to God, and place thee in the company of Watchers and of Angels on high. It will open to thee hidden mysteries; it will fill thee with all wisdom; it will lay bare before thee depths of knowledge; and make known unto thee things hidden from others. For humility brings low thy pride, and keeps under the haughtiness of thy spirit. It says peace to all that is within thee, and clothes thee in a precious garment. It puts lowly thoughts into thy mind, and gives beauty to thy countenance. It subdues anger in thy heart, it roots out all passion from thy soul, and it drives away from thee all jealous and wicked feeling. It fills thee with love and peace, with joy and gladness; not the joy of the earthly ones, nor the gladness of the great, but with the joy of the Spirit, and with the gladness of wisdom, and it brings to thee the love of other men, and friendship with God.”

You'll also read short homilies for Holy Week, one as an introduction and others at the end of the work, along with a homily of S. Chrysostom for Palm Sunday and another of S. Severian on the sufferings and death of our Lord. This journey through Passion Week will present to you witnesses from the land, past and present, and through the journey, you'll see the same simple Spirit is felt throughout time.