Fifth Sunday of Lent, 6 April

To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice. Proverbs 21:3

Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world. James 1:27

I never liked the word ‘sacrifice’ since the first time I learned how to write it in Chinese. The word ‘sacrifice’ in Chinese is ‘牺牲’ which consists of two characters ——’牺’and’牲’. ‘牺’ originally means ‘animal of a uniform colour for sacrifice’ and ‘牲’ initially meant ‘animal which is sacrificed with its whole body ’. ‘牛’ as one part of both characters actually means ‘cow’. Therefore, every time when I write the word ‘牺牲’ I have this image of a white cow being killed in front of a temple. The contrast of the bright red of the blood and the pure white of the fur is so vivid and harsh.

I still didn’t like the word ‘sacrifice’ when I grew a bit older and started learning history, when I read the story of those heroes who sacrificed their lives to protect the people. I am deeply grateful for their sacrifice for righteousness and justice. However, at the same time, I struggle. I questioned myself again and again: could I sacrifice my life like these heroes? I am ashamed that I don’t have a clear answer. I doubt whether I would be brave enough.

I was amazed by the word ‘living sacrifice’ when I first came to UK and started to recognise God. That was the moment when I realised killing an animal or to sacrifice my own life to achieve righteousness and justice was not what God wanted. Instead, God wants us simply to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep ourselves unstained by the world because a sacrifice has been made for us.

Hengyi Wang

St Clement’s