23.01.2019
BACI Lent Studies Launched – Young Irish Writers Explore Repentance
The Biblical Association of the Church of Ireland (BACI) officially launched its 2019 Lent study in Church House, Dublin, yesterday (Tuesday January 22). The launch was performed by the Archbishop of Armagh, the Most Revd Dr Richard Clarke, who commended the study for use throughout the Church of Ireland and beyond.
This is the 9th year that BACI has produced a Lent study. The theme for 2019 is “Transforming Repentance: Coming Home to God” inspired by the Lent Gospel readings from Luke. It is produced by UCD chaplain, Scott Evans and his team of writers at RevoLectionary, an online platform for young Irish writers to contribute to the discussions on the weekly readings from the Lectionary, offering fresh perspectives for clergy and laity on the Gospel readings for the following Sunday.
For the 2019 Lent study, the team decided to explore what Luke could teach about repentance in a world where the word has passed out of style. In the introduction, Scott notes that: “The Hebrew word for repentance (“teshuvah”) combines two verbs: ‘to return’ and ‘to feel sorrow’. It means to grieve the ways in which we so easily forget who we are, what we were made for and who we are invited home to. It means to come home to the One who is redeeming, rebuilding, restoring and reconciling all things to himself. When we understand repentance in this way, it is very hard to confine our conversations about it to the academic and the abstract”.
Launching the study, Archbishop Clarke said that we now live in a victim culture and we want others to apologise. However, he said that repentance goes beyond apology. Apology is simply an explanation while repentance comes from the Greek word ‘metanoia’ which means the changed mind, or in the Bible it is used to mean ‘changed heart’. It means not only to turn away from something but to turn to God. “Repentance is coming home,” he stated. The Archbishop added that repentance also has a cost.
The contributors to the study are Katie Lynch who writes on ‘Temptation – resisted by coming home’; Philip King who writes on ‘Repentance – turning towards our death’; Scott Evans who writes on ‘From roots to the fruits – the barren fig tree’; and Emily Murtagh who writes on ‘Coming home – the Prodigal Son’ and ‘All my love – Mary anoints Jesus’s feet’.
The Bible Study booklets are available from BACI treasurer, Barbara Bergin (berginba@gmail.com) and the Bookwell in Belfast (www.thebookwell.co.uk) at the usual price of €2.50 or £2.25 plus postage. The studies can also be downloaded from the BACI website <www.bibliahibernica.wordpress.com>