Let us return to the Lord (Ash Wednesday, 2021)

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INTRODUCTION

We’ve entered a very special season in the Church, a season in which we are seriously confronted with our fragility (our sinfulness); a season in which we specially recommit ourselves to the mercy of God as we mourn for our sins. A machine that is not serviced occasionally will certainly knock and malfunction one day. This is a special period for heart and soul servicing. It is another golden opportunity for us to be very sorry and remorseful for those times we’ve manhandled our souls through sin; a time for us to rethink, reexamine, recollect. As a step towards this journey of repentance, let us be remorseful for our many sins and ask for God’s pardon and mercy. 

REFLECTION

The Israelites traditionally express their sorrow and remorse for sins committed by smearing themselves with ashes, tearing of garments, wearing of sackcloth and intensive fasting. At one of those moments of faith crisis in Israel, the Prophet Joel made known to them what the Lord told him to tell them: “Return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and tear your hearts and not your garments” (Joel 2:12-13). It should no longer be the practice of tearing of garments in order to demonstrate their sorrow and remorse for sins. Now, they are expected to tear their hearts, not their garments. It should not be a time for merriment or for pleasurable living: “Let the bridegroom leave his room, and the bride her chamber” (Joel 2:16). 

Their sins were so great that wearing of sackcloth and ashes, sacrificing of bulls and animals and so on may not be enough for expiation and remission. For them to be thoroughly repentant of their sins, the journey of conversion must be a sincere business of the heart. The heart must be the target. And that is why there is an emphasis on tearing of their hearts, not their garments. It is the same journey that we embark today. Our sins are huge; we have distanced ourselves from God and we ask just as the Psalmist prayed that “the Lord may have mercy on us, His people, for we have sinned” (cf. Ps 51:3a). There’s no need for us to wait for some other time to go back to God. St. Paul says that “NOW is the acceptable time; NOW is the day of salvation” (2 Cor. 6:2). As we think of all these things, “let us not harden our hearts; but let us listen to the voice of the Lord” (cf. Ps 95:7,8) calling us to repentance.

The ash that we will receive today is a reminder that “we are dust, and unto dust we shall surely return”. The ash is a reminder that the self or the flesh is dust; it is nothing and should not be gratified or satisfied at the detriment of the soul. It’s a period we are called to develop a habit of moving away from the “self”. Christian life is all about journeying with Christ, Christ who walked the path of the cross on the way to glory. One of the chief enemies of the cross is the self. So, if we mean to undertake this journey with Christ and go far with Him, we must pay no attention to the demands of the self or the flesh. 

Inspired by the Scriptures, the Church recommends three practices that will make our special Lenten journey with Christ more fruitful and beneficial: FASTING, PRAYER AND ALMSGIVING. When we fast, we deny the self the pleasure derived from the satisfaction of our appetites. It’s a sacrifice that we generously undertake not just for ourselves but for the sake of others. When we pray, we deny ourselves the pleasure emanating from the feeling of self-sufficiency, because prayer is a sign of our dependency and reliance on God. It is a sacrifice willingly undertaken for the wellbeing our souls and those of others. When we give alms, we deny ourselves the pleasure of amassing material things for selfish ends. Again, it is a sacrifice generously done for our own sake and for the sake of others. At the end of the day, having done all of the above willingly and generously, our souls will be at peace with God and with others. The bottom-line is that all selfishness must be eschewed: WE MUST DENY OURSELVES, TAKE UP OUR CROSSES AND FOLLOW JESUS. 

In Matt. 6:1-6.16-18, Jesus counsels us to stick to doing these things (fasting, prayer and almsgiving) sincerely and without any intention of “showing-off” so that “our Father who sees in secret will reward us” (cf. Mt 6:18). 


    

  



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