Day 1 – mortification

Day 1! Will I get through to the end? Maybe not a great question for the first day.

As this is Day 1, The Circumcision of Christ, the first spilling of blood, I am going to share some insights from Morning Prayer

Stand in awe, and sin not : commune with your own heart, and in your chamber, and be still.
Offer the sacrifice of righteousness : and put your trust in the Lord.

Psalm 4:4, 5

Almighty God, who madest thy blessed Son to be circumcised, and obedient to the law for man; Grant us the true circumcision of the Spirit; that, our hearts, and all our members, being mortified from all worldly and carnal lusts, we may in all things obey thy blessed will; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

I read a book on the spirituality of the Prayer Book that emphasised its monastic origins. Life is structured in prayer – Morning, Evening, and Mass. But the other side of monasticism – mortification or asceticism – did not get a mention. The 1662 BCP has a system of days of fasting, abstinence, and feasting.

So, Day 1: “mortified from all worldly and carnal lusts” and “offer the sacrifice of righteousness“.