Ash Wednesday

Reflection

Last year, I sat in class shortly after receiving ashes, and was momentarily horrified when I absent-mindedly scratched at my forehead, lowered my fingers, and saw that they were covered with black soot. For a brief moment, I forgot what that soot was. I had already forgotten about the bold, dark cross thickly smudged in plain sight on my skin. The ashes had begun as a steadfast, eager reply to God’s call to “return to [him] with [my] whole heart, with fasting, weeping, and mourning,” and in that moment, amidst the distractions of every-day life, my eagerness had fizzled. I had already forgotten. What sort of precedent was this setting for the rest of my Lenten journey? Was I the only one who could become so quickly distracted from the promise I had made?

Perhaps we can begin answering these questions by turning to the community of believers with whom we embark on this journey. Every Ash Wednesday, I find reassurance and strength in seeing students, teachers, even people at the grocery store going about their days with the same cross on their foreheads. When the day is done, we will all heed the command in the Gospel to “wash [our] face[s], so that [we] may not appear to be fasting, except to [our] Father who is hidden.” But we will still fast. We will remember what it felt like to recognize ourselves in those around us. We will remember that we all still serve as “ambassadors for Christ” during Lent even during moments of deeply private introspection. In this way, the ashes will always remain visible on our foreheads. May this knowledge serve as a constant reminder and source of strength today and for all of Lent.

Prayer

Loving, merciful God, we hear Your call and gather together in response on this Ash Wednesday.  Help us find continuous strength as we, in community, remind each other of the ashes we bear for the duration of our Lenten journeys. Amen.

Mackenzie Faber, ’18

Scripture

First Reading: Joel 2:12-18

Psalm 51:3-6b, 12-14, 17

Second Reading: 2 Corinthians 5:20—6:2

Gospel: Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18

Daily Scripture readings can be found online at the USCCB website