Lent 4: A Tender and Grimy Grace


A Tender and Grimy Grace © Jan L. Richardson

Reading from the Gospels, Lent 4 (April 3): John 9.1-41

The season of Lent invites us to get up close to the things of the earth. Ash, wilderness, water, dirt, mud: these days impress upon us what an elemental fellow Jesus was. Throughout his ministry we see him touching the world around him, employing the things of earth to reveal the things of heaven.

In this week’s Gospel lection we see Jesus use earthly elements as he brings sight to a man who is blind. His acts of healing, of teaching, of preaching, of praying do not come from thin air: Jesus grounds these acts in, well, the ground. Although the Christian tradition, as it developed, would make sharp distinctions between matter and spirit, Jesus seems less inclined to do so.

I have dug into this muddy text previously and welcome you to take a look at Lent 4: Here’s Mud in Your Eye. In this Lenten week, how are you seeing? Is there anything you need to clear from your field of vision so that you can see more clearly? How grounded are you these days? Where do you perceive the presence of Christ in elemental, earthy things?

Here’s a blessing for this stretch of your Lenten path. Peace to you in this season.

Blessing of Mud

Lest we think
the blessing
is not
in the dirt.

Lest we think
the blessing
is not
in the earth
beneath our feet.

Lest we think
the blessing
is not
in the dust

like the dust
that God scooped up
at the beginning
and formed
with God’s
two hands
and breathed into
with God’s own
breath.

Lest we think
the blessing
is not
in the spit.

Lest we think
the blessing
is not
in the mud.

Lest we think
the blessing
is not
in the mire,
the grime,
the muck.

Lest we think
that God
cannot reach
deep into the things
of earth,
cannot bring forth
the blessing
that shimmers
within the sludge,
cannot anoint us
with a tender
and grimy grace.

Lest we think
that God
will not use the ground
to create us
once again,
to cleanse us
of our unseeing,
to open our eyes upon
this ordinary
and stunning world.

[To use the “A Tender and Grimy Grace” image, please visit this page at janrichardsonimages.com. Your use of janrichardsonimages.com helps make the ministry of The Painted Prayerbook possible. Thank you!]

Resources for the season: Looking toward Lent

Blogging also at Sanctuary of Women during Lent…

3 Responses to “Lent 4: A Tender and Grimy Grace”

  1. Nancy Denmark Says:

    Beautiful. I do find his presence in the earthy things and they are constant reminders for me of the blessings in life. Digging in the dirt can be so purifying, and humbling. Love all the visual imagery the poem provides. Living in the country with March winds and freshly plowed fields I see dust storms often during Lent and this gives me new meaning to ponder when I see them. New blessings. I am a believer in the grimy grace!

  2. claire Says:

    Ah, thank you for the poem, I love it. It has a Teilhard feel to it.

    the mire, the grime, the muck, the sludge… I remember many years ago telling an old nun that the only thing I could offer Godde these days was the stench in my heart. And she told me to offer it up, as Godde would transform it in a thing of beauty.

    Isn’t Lent a time to open up the closed stinky corners in our mind, heart and soul, air them out, and let the Spirit sweep through?

    Thank you, Jan, for a great post! As always :-)

  3. Rosalie Nelson Says:

    I’m really loving your poems! Thanks…
    Rosalie

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