When it comes to liturgical celebrations, there are so many that use signs and symbols that we are not used to as a reminder of something important and essential to liturgical year- as well as our spiritual life. Already over the course we have celebrated God becoming man- which is symbolized by the Nativity scene that was present in our churches and in many of our homes. We know all about Palm Sunday, and the triumphant entry into Jerusalem. We know about all of the things that lead up to Easter- and they each have their own gravity and importance- and the same can be said for what we celebrate for this day- Ash Wednesday.
To be fair, Ash Wednesday is somewhat of an anomaly when it comes to liturgical celebrations. It isn’t really a holy day of obligation, and barely comes out above a normal weekday- and it certainly isn’t up to the level of a high feast or solemnity either. Yet- that does not mean that it is not important, and that it doesn’t carry it’s own gravity and weight for the next forty days. In fact, if we understand this very moment- it is a commissioning and a sending out into the desert where we arrive at a time of repentance and renewal. Yet, why are we here- and why are we doing what we do?
If we go back to the first reading, we hear a passage that comes to us from the book of the prophet Joel. As a whole, this passage is actually rather comforting in its demeanor and approach, and yet it actually carries a substantial and weighty idea. The very first thing he says: “return to me with your whole heart, with fasting, and weeping and mourning.” Truly, this seems like a rather odd commission, and yet it is one that is so essential in his mind that he has to explicitly state it. He could just say this in an unqualified way- but he really wants to paint out why this need for return is there- and that can be found in the result of sin.
When Joel speaks of the reality of one’s relationship with God- he speaks about a Lord who is gracious, merciful, slow to anger, rich in kindness, relenting in punishment. All of these qualities are excellent qualities for God- but they are also great, because Joel is addressing the reality of sin- a three letter word that we so often really don’t want to speak about. Nonetheless- it is about that repentance and the reminder that we need to repent of our sinfulness and we need to convert our hearts back to him yet again- but it is possible. This isn’t just done on an individual level, but Joel wants to see it done as a community- something that may be very present to us even today!
Saint Paul as he speaks in his second letter to the Corinthians again takes up that very similar theme of “repentance.” When he speaks of this he says “we are ambassadors for Christ, as if God were appealing through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ- be reconciled to God.” Be brought back into relationship with him. Get rid of all of the things that get in the way of that relationship with him! This is an important task! Yet, it may have a question of when this should be done- especially by those in the church of Corinth. Paul answers this very clearly: “Now is a very acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” This is very clear, and gives them encouragement- they aren’t to repent at leisure- but they are rather to very quickly start to pursue this repentance. They cannot and should not wait for another time but should rather see- the time of salvation- and the time to work for salvation- is right here and right now.
Yet, that can lead to another question- what does repentance look like? How do we know when we have reached the fullness of this return to God? We find the answer in Matthew and the Gospel offered to us to hear today. There are three primary things that are offered as avenues of grace- to gain “recompense from your heavenly Father.”
First, there is the encouragement to give alms, but in a very specific way- secretly. One is not to announce the giving of alms before others with a trumpet- but they are to rather do it in silence- and to not allow for one’s right hand to know what the left is doing.
Next, there is the need for prayer- yet there again is a qualified way in which one is supposed to do this. They are not to stand in synagogues and to pray that others may see them- but they are to go to the inner recesses of their home and to pray there. Then they will receive their reward.
Finally, there is the encouragement to fast- and there again is a certain way to do this- not to look gloomy like the hypocrites. They do all of these things to gain attention- but it should not be so amongst God’s people. Rather what should occur is that they are to look as if they aren’t so as to gain the fruit of their labor.
Thus, this is the reality of what the Lord is asking for- but why is he asking for all of these things? Because these next forty days are a time where we do wear ashes- in a certain manner of speaking- out of sorrow for our imperfections and the things that get in the way of our relationship with God.
Thus, our task for the next forty days- we are to repent. Not when we get to it but right here, and right now. We are to take up giving up alms- or giving in charity to our neighbor. We are to pray- and to speak to God in a very real and present way! Yet, we should finally take up fasting and mortification- giving up those things that can hinder us from God or make it seem as if our relationship with Him is inconsequential. If we do these three things- bound up in the theme of repentance- and do them today- we will not only capture the meaning and theme of Ash Wednesday- but we will be grateful for the eternal fruit and reward in this temporary work that we do today and every day of our Lenten Journey.
This isn’t just a task for today- but one that we celebrate for a time. Let us be truly faithful to the task at hand- and seek after our Lord and our God with our acts of almsgiving, of prayer, and of fasting.
