Spring as Lent Begins

Dogwood and Spanish Moss
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LENTEN FLOWERS

Primrose, anemone, bluebell, moss
Grow in the Kingdom of the Cross

And the ash-tree's purple bud
Dresses the spear that sheds his blood.

With the thorns that pierce his brow
Soft encircling petals grow

For in each flower the secret lies
Of the tree that crucifies.

Garden by the water clear
All must die who enter here!

- Kathleen Raine

I See His Blood

Driftwood Cross
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I see his blood upon the rose
And in the stars the glory of his eyes,
His body gleams amid eternal snows,
His tears fall from the skies.

I see his face in every flower;
The thunder and the singing of the birds
Are but his voice—and carven by his power
Rocks are his written words.

All pathways by his feet are worn,
His strong heart stirs the ever-beating sea,
His crown of thorns is twined with every thorn,
His cross is every tree.

- Joseph Mary Plunkett

Foolishness of the Cross

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and to more easily read the text.)

For God’s foolishness

is wiser than human wisdom,

and God’s weakness

is stronger than human strength.

(1 Corinthians 1:25)