It may sound strange that we preach the Gospel of Judgment within the Church. And yet, that is what we do. We confess that the Day of the Lord is not fear, but hope, and we declare together with the whole Church: "Amen, come Lord Jesus" (Rev. 22:20).

If we struggle to articulate this, then something important is missing from our Christian consciousness. No matter what we say, we are still idolaters dressed in evangelical clothing. We are still Christians for whom God is a God "out there," for whom His coming is darkness and fear, and for whom His Judgment is not our redemption, but our condemnation. We are Christians for whom the encounter with the Lord is a terrifying event, and not what they long for, what has become the purpose of their lives. If we do not realize this, then Lent cannot be joy, because Lent brings with it both Judgment and responsibility: we judge ourselves in order to change ourselves, so that we can reach the Day of the Lord, the Resurrection, with an open heart, with faith, ready to celebrate the fact of His coming. Every coming of the Lord is a judgment!