Starting Off Towards Pascha

It has become an annual tradition for me to read, on days like these, Father Alexander Schmemann's book "The Great Lent". The book is of paramount importance, whether in terms of knowledge, as it pertains to the "Triodion period," or the author's ability to delve into our depths, in order to provide us with the richness that the depth, our depth, is the beloved dwelling place of God. Every time I read it, the book challenges me with its richness, with its ability to make the reader feel that what he is reading, whether a portion or much of it, is new to him. How does newness emanate from a book you have come to almost memorize by heart? This is one of the mysteries of the Word which Father Schmemann, in our time, particularly in relation to the liturgy of our Church or to what the sanctified life therein entails, is unparalleled. Here, in this book, as in the liturgy, you are the target, your repentance, urging you to become increasingly aware that you exist for God, for praising and serving Him. This is the secret of those who have come to understand that all of life, indeed, all of it, is a starting off towards Pascha.