The Church belongs to Christ. He purchased her with his own blood. He calls her servants, cleanses sinners, gives gifts, and remains the Shepherd beneath every faithful shepherd. Because the Church is his, we can pray with confidence that he will continue to give what his people need.
And as we pray for those discerning Holy Orders, we should pray for ourselves as well. Are we listening closely enough to obey what Christ has already made clear? Lent is a good season for that question because it strips away some of the noise with which we avoid hearing difficult things.
The burden may indeed be too heavy for us. The harvest is too great for us, the needs are too deep for us, and the future of the Church is too important to rest upon human strength. Yet the God who gave Moses the seventy elders has not stopped caring for his people.
Ember Days hold these truths together without confusing their order. Their primary Prayer Book purpose is prayer for those called to Holy Orders. Their broader horizon is a Church in which every gift is received from God and ordered toward the building up of Christ’s Body.
The Great Litany endures because the needs it names endure. The Church still needs mercy. We still need deliverance from sin, error, violence, disaster, temptation, and death. The Church still needs faithful bishops, priests, and deacons. The nations still need peace and justice.
Friday fasting gives the Christian week a regular rhythm of repentance, prayer, self-examination, and mercy, returning the Church again and again to the Cross of Christ.