Miserable Sinners?

The season of Lent is upon us. Our thoughts may turn to the intimations of mortality we receive in the ashes of Ash Wednesday - 'remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return'. They may also turn to theme of penitence - Lent is often referred to as a season of penitence. This is reflected in the solemnity of our liturgy, and that accent on confession, which we find in both Thomas Cranmer's Litany (which is often used in procession in the season of Lent) and more extended forms of confession, which we often use at the University Church during the season of Lent.

Of course, the language of the Book of Common Prayer is not always readily accessible to the modern ear. The repeated refrain in the Litany, 'have mercy upon us miserable sinners', and the forms of confession, where we use phrases like 'miserable offenders', make the season of Lent sound like an ordeal to be endured. The word 'miserable' suggests a degree of wretchedness, unhappiness, misfortune, misery, woe, suffering and distress. Is Lent really a chance for us simply to wallow in misery?

I don't think that this was Cranmer's intention. Words change their meaning over time, and we need to remember the Latin origins of this English word. For Cranmer, the word 'miserable' echoed the 'miserere' of the old Latin rite. In other words, it simply meant someone 'in need of God's mercy'. It reminds us that the gospel is all about mercy.

Lent is a season for us to explore the depths of God's mercy, to discover that we are forgiven and made new through the cross and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Lent is not a season to be gloomy, and it is certainly not an opportunity to believe that it is wicked to be you. It is a season when we are encouraged to discover the depths of God's mercy, and the real joy at the heart of the gospel.