Ash Wednesday 2025 - Pope Francis' Message & The Lenten Journey

 At the beginning of February, prior to his hospitalization for his serious illness, Pope Francis offered a message to the world for the season of Lent which we begin today.

He wrote: “Dear brothers and sisters, We begin our annual pilgrimage of Lent in faith and hope with the penitential rite of the imposition of ashes. The Church, our mother and teacher, invites us to open our hearts to God’s grace, so that we can celebrate with great joy the paschal victory of Christ the Lord over sin and death, which led Saint Paul to exclaim: “Death has been swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?”. Indeed, Jesus Christ, crucified and risen, is the heart of our faith and the pledge of our hope in the Father’s great promise, already fulfilled in his beloved Son: life eternal.”

So in that opening passage, the Holy Father calls our attention to several themes of the Lenten season: that Lent is a pilgrimage meant to open our hearts to God’s grace which deepens our hope in God’s promise of eternal life.

He then went on to explain how Lent is a journey. He said, the idea that we are pilgrims on a journey “evokes the lengthy journey of the people of Israel to the Promised Land, as recounted in the Book of Exodus. This arduous path from slavery to freedom was willed and guided by the Lord, who loves his people and remains ever faithful to them. “

You know this story right? The people of Israel had become enslaved in Egypt, and God led them out of slavery over a period of 40 years, much like the 40 days of Lent, through the desert to the promised Land. Through those 40 years, God sought to strengthen their faith and purify his people from the sins that they had adopted in Egypt, sins which were a sort of spiritual slavery.

When we allow selfishness and cruelty and faithlessness and self-centeredness and perversion and disobedience to God and disordered attachment to the things of the world—when we allow these things to rule our life—we are in a sort of slavery. But God made us to be free from these things that degrade our human nature.

And the season of Lent is part of the journey we must all take if we wish to be free. We fast, we pray, we give of ourselves because we want to be free. We have ashes placed on our foreheads today because we want to be free to live as disciples of Jesus, free even from the fear of death. Which is why the Holy Father quoted that line from St. Paul, “death where is your sting” meaning, that the Christian is so free, that the fear of death has no control over us.

But fearlessness and freedom are only obtained when we take the journey with the Lord Jesus—the journey into the Lenten desert—the desert journey in which we are strengthened in faith, purified from sin, where we learn to fast and pray and give with generous open hearts for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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As we begin our Lenten journey, we bring our needs before the Lord, trusting in His desire to free us from sin and lead us to the joy of the Resurrection.

For the Church: That all Christians may embrace this Lenten season as a pilgrimage of faith and hope, opening their hearts to God’s grace and growing in holiness.

For Pope Francis: that during this time of serious illness, the Holy Father might know the merciful presence of the Lord and give us all an example of patience and faith.

For those who feel enslaved by sin or hopelessness: That they may discover in Jesus Christ the path to true freedom, finding courage in prayer, fasting, and self-giving to break every chain that oppresses the human heart,

For all in positions of authority and responsibility: That they may promote justice, peace, and the dignity of every person.

For those who are sick, suffering, or near death: That they may be freed from fear and know the consoling presence of Christ crucified and risen, who conquers even the sting of death.

For our beloved dead: That, having completed their earthly pilgrimage, they may enter into eternal life with Christ, sharing in the full victory over sin and death,

Merciful Father, as we mark ourselves with ashes, lead us on the desert road of Lent to freedom in Your Son. Hear our prayers, and grant us all we need to walk confidently toward the Easter victory. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

 

2nd Week of Lent 2023 - Tuesday - Righteous deeds for God's glory

 On Ash Wednesday, we heard the Lord’s instruction: "Take care not to perform righteous deeds in order that people may see them…” Well, in the Gospel today, the Lord condemns the Pharisees for using their positions as religious leaders to draw attention not to God, but to themselves. As Jesus said, “All their works are performed to be seen.”

The pharisees were the original virtue-signalers. Their works were for performed for the purpose of gaining fame and honor for themselves instead of furthering the kingdom of God. They wanted to draw people to themselves instead of to God. 

Christians, to be certain, are to perform righteous deeds, good works, works of charity. St. James says, faith without works is dead. But the manner of our deeds is the opposite of the Pharisees. The Lord teaches his disciples to let their lights shine before men so others would see their good deeds and glorify the Father in heaven (Matt. 5:14–16). 

How do we ensure that our deeds are being done for God’s glory and not simply our own? Prayer and discernment certainly help that end. We pray are to pray before our actions, during our actions, and at the completion of our actions. We pray, Lord let this work be done for your glory. Draw souls towards your love and goodness through this work done in your honor.

In essence, we are to cultivate humility. C.S. Lewis wrote, “By this virtue [of humility], as by all others, [God] wants to turn [our] attention away from self, to Him and [to our] neighbors.” Humility is not a matter of thinking less of ourselves—but less ABOUT ourselves, forgetting ourselves and turning outward in love. The motivation for righteous deeds are not to be seen by others, but out of true concern for the needs of others and spreading God's kingdom.

And so humble prayer is needed--humble prayer which keeps us oriented toward God--prayer which asks God for the grace to further His kingdom rather than our self-interested ends.

In Matthew 15, the Lord laments how the Pharisees draw near to God with the lips, but allow their hearts to remain far from God. We must draw near to God, we must bring our hearts nearer to God this Lent through humble prayer and fasting, that our almsgiving and our righteous deeds, which the Lord commands, may be done for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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That the season of Lent may bring the most hardened hearts to repentance and bring to all people purification of sin and selfishness.

For those preparing for baptism and the Easter sacraments, that they may continue to conform themselves to Christ through fervent prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.

That we may generously respond to all those in need: the sick, the suffering, the homeless, the imprisoned, and victims of violence. 

For all who have died, and for all the poor souls in purgatory, and for X. for whom this Mass is offered.

Grant, we pray, O Lord, that your people may turn to you with all their heart, so that whatever they dare to ask in fitting prayer they may receive by your mercy. Through Christ our Lord.

Ash Wednesday 2023 - 40 Days

 

Today begins the 40 days of Lent. 40 days. Why 40 days?

Certainly we think of the 40 days our Lord spent in the desert. Immediately after his baptism in the Jordan, the Lord fasted and prayed for 40 days in the wilderness—as he prepared to begin his public ministry which would culminate in the sacrifice of the cross and his resurrection. 40 days prepared him for Good Friday and Easter Sunday.

The number 40 appears several times throughout the Bible. 40 days of unrelenting rain flooded the earth to cleanse the earth of wickedness. Those 40 days of purifying rain prepared Noah and his family to enter into a new covenant with God—a new beginning for humanity.

For 40 days Moses stayed on Mt. Sinai, enwrapped in a cloud in which he prayed and conversed with God. Those 40 days of prayer for Moses prepared him for delivering the commandments to the Israelites, a new beginning for the Israelite people in which they would follow the laws of God.

For 40 years, the Israelites wandered through the desert to prepare them for the promised land.

For 40 days, the prophet Jonah preached to the Ninevites, calling them to conversion, warning them of destruction if they failed to repent. And after those 40 days, the Ninevites did repent, beginning a new life turned toward God.

Elijah went 40 days without food or water at Mount Horeb, and after those 40 days, Elijah was able to detect the voice of God whispering to Him on the winds calling him to faithfulness in his prophetic ministry.

40 days in the bible always represents a time of preparation—a preparation for some special grace, preparation for a new way of life.

These 40 days of Lent in 2023 are no different. During these 40 days we prepare for the liturgical celebration of Easter, but to prepare for new graces and perhaps a new mission.

Lent prepares our hearts for God’s will—whatever that might be. God’s declared purpose is to make all things new (Ap 21:5). He is almighty in his creativity, not just in a generic fashion, but in the lives of each one of us. What matters is to give him access to our lives — and to let him act freely.

Our Lenten observances of 40 days of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving are inviting God more deeply into our lives, that he might prepare us for the Easter mission. Folks, don’t waste these 40 days. They are precious. They are hard, but they are precious.

We are marked by ashes today, and we are humbled. Remember that you are dust. But, God can do amazing things with ashes! He created life—human life—from ashes, from dirt. If he can do that, imagine what he can do, if you gave him more. Imagine what he could do if you gave him 40 days of fervent prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. 40 days when you turned away from the things that are trivial, in order to be prepared for something more.

May we be generous with God in our Lenten observances, that God may prepare us for what eyes has not seen and ear has not heard for those who love him, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That this season of Lent may be a time of profound renewal for our parish and the Church as we engage in the penitential practices of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.

That God will rescue all those who live at a distance from him because of self-absorption or sin.  We pray to the Lord.

That all families will recommit themselves to fervent prayer this Lent so as to grow in greater love and holiness. 

That this Lent we will be faithful to fasting and to all the ways that the Lord sanctifies us.  We pray to the Lord.

For those preparing to enter the Church at Easter: that they will be profoundly blessed in their preparation for full initiation into the Body of Christ.

For all those impacted by the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, for the victims of the earthquakes in Turkey, for the defense of our nation from all threats foreign and domestic, for those who struggle because of addiction, mental illness, chronic sickness, unemployment, inclement weather, or ongoing trials of any kind.

 

For all those who have died, for all the poor souls in purgatory, for those who have fought and died for our country’s freedom, and for [intention below], for whom this Mass is offered. 

Mercifully hear, O Lord, the prayers of your Church and turn with compassion to the hearts that bow before you, that those you make sharers in the divine mystery may never be left without your assistance. Through Christ our Lord.

 

Ash Wednesday 2022 - Remember that you are dust

 “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return”. These words, spoken for the first time by God to Adam after he had committed sin, are repeated today by the Church to each of us, as ashes are imposed on our foreheads.

“Remember you are dust”, here is a truth that is difficult for us to grasp. Our inflated egos, our pride, our arrogance hate these words. For we spend an awful lot of time and energy trying to prove to others we are anything but dust. We want people to see how creative we are, how smart we are, how strong we are, how popular we are, how rich we are, how powerful we are. And today, the Church says, forget about all of that, “remember you are dust.”

Dust, the ashes which are placed on our foreheads, they are anything but powerful and significant. They can be dispersed with the lightest breath, brushed off absentmindedly. It’s the most invaluable of earthly substances. Less valuable than air. We need air to breath, we don’t need dust for anything.

“Remember you are dust” is a humbling reality and reminder of our past, present, and future.

It’s a reminder of our past, our creation. For Genesis tells us, that God made Adam from the dust of the earth. We wouldn’t even have life if God had not given it to us. Here is a reminder to not take our life for granted. Lots of people walking around as if their life belongs to them. No. You exist because God made you. And we have the utmost responsibility to make sure that we use that life according to God’s plans, and not just our own. And to be grateful for the life that we’ve been given.

Remember you are dust, is a reminder of our future. Remember you are dust and to dust you shall return. Here is a reminder of our mortality. We will die. Our earthly bodies will return to the earth. And immortal souls we will face God as our judge. We get into a lot of trouble, we fall into a lot of sins, perhaps all of them, because we forget this fact, the fact that our actions have consequences, and that we will be judged for our sins.

And remember you are dust, is a reminder, that in the present we are to not allow ourselves to become inflated with sin. Ashes today are a pinprick to burst the balloons for our inflated egos. We were made from nothing, our finite lives and intellects are as nothing compared to the omniscience and omnipotence of God, the number of likes we received on social media are nothing.

But are nothingness is a good and holy thing to contemplate King David contemplated his nothingness before God in Psalm 38, when he wrote, “O Lord, my substance is as nothing before Thee.”  

Remember, too St. John the Baptist says, I must decrease, so that Christ may increase.

This imposition of ashes, in the end, is about Christ. The humility of Ashes helps us to become more like Christ, which is the aim of Lent, the purpose of Lent. We seek repentance and purification of our sins, so that we can become like Christ. We engage in prayer, fasting, and almsgiving so that we can become like Christ. We turn away from earthly vanity so that we can become like Christ. So that we can decrease in order for the life of Christ to increase in us. “God despises nothing that He has Made” and desires our salvation.

So, “remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return” for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That this season of Lent may be a time of profound renewal for our parish and the Church as we engage in the penitential practices of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.

For “an immediate end to the hostilities in Ukraine, for a restoration of peace and for the safety of all Ukrainian citizens. And for the Ukrainian community in Northeast Ohio, that their friends and family members in their beloved homeland be kept out of harm’s way.”

That God will rescue all those who live at a distance from him because of self-absorption or sin.  We pray to the Lord.

That all families will recommit themselves to fervent prayer this Lent so as to grow in greater love and holiness.  

That this Lent we will be faithful to fasting and to all the ways that the Lord sanctifies us.  We pray to the Lord.

For those preparing to enter the Church at Easter: that they will be profoundly blessed in their preparation for full initiation into the Body of Christ. 

For the needs of the poor, the hungry, the homeless, those who are sick, unemployed, or suffering from addiction, mental, or physical illness, and those most in need: that the Lord in his goodness will be close to them in their trials.  

For all those who have died, for all the poor souls in purgatory, for those who have fought and died for our country’s freedom, and for [intention below], for whom this Mass is offered.  

Mercifully hear, O Lord, the prayers of your Church and turn with compassion to the hearts that bow before you, that those you make sharers in the divine mystery may never be left without your assistance. Through Christ our Lord.

Ash Wednesday 2020 - We implore you to be reconciled to God

“We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.”

St. Paul couldn’t use stronger language to try to convince the people of Corinth to do everything in their to turn back to God.

He uses the word “implore”, I “implore you”, I beg you, I plead with you with tears in my eyes. Paul was deeply concerned that the Christians of Corinth were allowing sin and division to turn them away from God. They were in danger, their souls were in danger, because they were allowing sin to reclaim them. They were allowing the powers of darkness and selfishness to reenslave them. They were acting as if Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross was for nothing.

And so he appeals to them “I implore you on behalf of Christ”, he reminds them exactly of what Jesus did for them. Jesus embraced suffering, he embraced death, he died for them, he freed them and liberated them. Remember who you are, O Christians, remember who died for you, remember who you are supposed to be and how you are to act.

“Be reconciled to God”. That word reconciliation, as I’ve mentioned, is a wonderfully descriptive word. It means to turn your face, your eye lashes in fact, back to God. Where you turned your eyelashes away from God by sinning, by coldness, by division, by focusing on earthly matters and selfish pursuits, turn back to God. Everyone of us here, in some way, has taken our eyes off of God.
Maybe we haven’t been praying as we should. Maybe we’ve been to focused on pleasure. Maybe we’ve allowed our earthly business to take precedence over our faith. Maybe you’ve been angry with God or a family member and you need to let go of that anger, you need to forgive. Maybe you’ve been selfish or arrogant and refused to believe the teachings of the Church.

Today is the day where we admit that we have taken our eyes from God, and we receive ashes on our forehead as a sign, that over these next 40 days, we will do everything we can to be reconciled to God. We will fast from food, as a way of showing that we do not live for the pleasures of the flesh alone. We will fast from activities which get in the way of our faith—activities like television, video games, internet browsing, social media. We will pray, we will make extra time every day for prayer, we will go to our inner room and shut the door, as Jesus tells us in the Gospel, and pray, and listen to God. And we will give alms, we will think less about ourselves and more about others, we will consider the ways we can help them. We will turn away from sin, we will go to confession, the sacrament of reconciliation.

We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God: through prayer, fasting, almsgiving and the confession of sins for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That the Church will experience the graces of profound renewal during this season of Lent.  We pray to the Lord.

That God will rescue all those who live at a distance from him because of self-absorption or sin.  We pray to the Lord.

That all families will recommit themselves to fervent prayer this Lent so as to grow in greater love and holiness.  We pray to the Lord.

That this Lent we will be faithful to fasting and to all the ways that the Lord sanctifies us.  We pray to the Lord.

For those preparing to enter the Church at Easter: that they will be profoundly blessed in their preparation for full initiation into the Body of Christ.  We pray to the Lord.

For the needs of the poor, the hungry, the homeless, those who are sick, unemployed, or suffering from addiction, mental, or physical illness, and those most in need: that the Lord in his goodness will be close to them in their trials.  We pray to the Lord.

For all those who have died, for all the poor souls in purgatory, for those who have fought and died for our country’s freedom, and for [intention below], for whom this Mass is offered.  We pray to the Lord.

Ash Wednesday 2019 - "Return to me with your whole heart"

“Return to me with your whole heart”, the first words of the first reading of Lent, sums up pretty well, the entire purpose of the Lenten season. We have ashes imposed upon our foreheads as a stark reminder of the need to return to the Lord with our whole heart. It’s the purpose we abstain from meat today and fast: as a reminder that we need to return to the Lord with our whole heart.

You and I are here today because there is at least a portion of our heart is for the Lord—a portion of our heart which recognizes the need for God—the need to love God, follow God, and serve God. But God doesn’t want just one piece of our heart-he wants all of it. “Return to me with your whole heart.”

Since the Garden of Eden, from that first sin, mankind has had that terrible affliction of keeping our whole hearts from God. But we were meant to, and we were made to love God with our whole hearts. As ashes are placed on our foreheads we will hear today those words, “Remember you are dust” recalling that we were made by God from the dust of earth. This is the call to remember who made us, and why He made us. He made us to love Him and each other, he made us to trust Him, to obey Him, to follow Him…always. He made us from the love in His heart, that we may love Him back with our whole hearts.

“Remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return” is a reminder of the consequences of our failure to love God with our whole hearts, our sin. “The wages of sin is death”. We return to the dust of the earth from which we were made as a result of sin. We are excluded from heaven because of our sin, for heaven is the place not just for those who love God with some of their hearts, but for those who love God with all of their hearts.

We place ashes on our foreheads, we fast, we pray, we give alms, we make a Lenten confession, as a way of saying, God help me. I fallen into sin, I have failed to love you, help me, to return to you with my whole heart.

Each of us have strayed from God in our own ways: my sins are different from your sins, but what brings us all together today is the recognition that we have sinned, and we need God’s help.  For we are in such a sorry state, we can’t return to God on our own, we need God’s help, we need the grace of His Son Jesus.

Allow the grace that flows from Jesus’ Sacred Heart to repair your broken hearts, to enflame your tepid hearts, to purify your lust-filled hearts, to expand your selfish hearts, to humble your prideful hearts, to embolden your fearful hearts, to discipline your rebellious hearts, to teach your foolish hearts, to heal your wounded hearts.

Look to Jesus this Lent as often as you can, that you may have Him as your example, of the one whose heart is on fire with Love for the Lord, whose heart is wholly and fully devoted to doing the will of God no matter the suffering involved. Let his Sacred Heart help you to love God with your whole heart that you may be counted among his blessed ones in eternal life for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That the Church will experience the graces of profound renewal during this season of Lent.  We pray to the Lord.

That God will rescue all those who live at a distance from him because of self-absorption or sin.  We pray to the Lord.

That all families will recommit themselves to fervent prayer this Lent so as to grow in greater love and holiness.  We pray to the Lord.

That this Lent we will be faithful to fasting and to all the ways that the Lord sanctifies us.  We pray to the Lord.

For those preparing to enter the Church at Easter: that they will be profoundly blessed in their preparation for full initiation into the Body of Christ.  We pray to the Lord.

For the needs of the poor, the hungry, the homeless, those who are sick, unemployed, or suffering from addiction, mental, or physical illness, and those most in need: that the Lord in his goodness will be close to them in their trials.  We pray to the Lord.

For all those who have died, for all the poor souls in purgatory, for those who have fought and died for our country’s freedom, and for [intention below], for whom this Mass is offered.  We pray to the Lord.

2nd Week of Lent 2018 - Monday - Lent is a season of Hope

Over in the Academy last week, I was talking about the theological and cardinal virtues. Alongside the western wall here at St. Clare, the theological virtues, faith hope and love, and the cardinal virtues of prudence, justice, temperance, and fortitude, are depicted symbolically in our stained glass windows.

I’d like to speak this morning about the virtue of hope. Hope is depicted so often in Christian symbology as an anchor, as it is here, on one of our stained glass windows. The anchor was an early Christian symbol commonly found in the Roman catacombs as a symbol of the hope we have in the promises of Christ. Imagine you are a first century Christian taking refuge in the catacombs: three of your close friends have just been thrown to the lions or burned at the stake, or crucified and set ablaze as torches at one of Emperor Nero's garden parties. The anchor is a symbol that amidst the storms and uncertainties and suffering, Christ is our anchor, Christ is our hope.

Letter to the Hebrews speaks of hope as an anchor: "We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure."

Hope helps us to remain anchored in the truth, anchored in reality. Lent is a season of Hope. The ashes of Ash Wednesday remind us of the all too real reality of suffering and death, the result of sin, but it is a day of hope, the ashes are placed on the head in the sign of the cross, an expression of our hope to be saved from sin and purified from sin through Lent.

Yesterday’s Gospel, for the second Sunday of Lent, is filled with hope. Jesus’ glory was revealed in dazzling display on the Mount of Transfiguration. This was to give his disciples hope, that though he would suffer and die, the cross was not the defeat of God, but God’s defeat of sin and death.
I thought of this image of the anchor of hope today, in light of our readings today, in which we find Daniel confessing his sins and the sins of Israel to the Father in the first reading, and which speak of the Father’s forgiveness and our need to forgive in the Gospel.

The Virtue of Hope is discovered between two vices: the vice of despair and the vice of presumption. Despair claims that my sin is so great, God will never forgive me. Presumption claims that it doesn’t matter what I do, I am assured of salvation, so I don’t have to make any attempt to amend my life.

True Christian Hope is rooted in the truth, that Yes, God is full of grace, mercy and forgiveness for the sinner, but as sinners, like Daniel, we are called to confess our sins, and show mercy and forgiveness, as the Lord teaches in the Gospel. “For if you do not forgive, the Father will not forgive you.”

May our Lenten practices help us to grow in authentic Christian hope which leads us to acknowledge and confess our sins, amend our life, forgive others and lead others to the fountain of God’s mercy, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That those despairing of God’s mercy and those presumptuous of God’s mercy may come to know and practice authentic Christian Hope.

That those preparing for baptism and full Christian initiation at Easter may be strengthened in Faith, Hope, and Love through the Church’s prayer and witness.

For the Holy Father’s prayer intention for the month of February, that those who have material, political or spiritual power may resist any lure of corruption. We pray to the Lord.

That we may generously respond to all those in need: the sick, the suffering, the homeless, the imprisoned, and victims of violence.

For all who have died, and for all the poor souls in purgatory, and for X. for whom this Mass is offered.

Grant, we pray, O Lord, that your people may turn to you with all their heart, so that whatever they dare to ask in fitting prayer they may receive by your mercy.

Ash Wednesday 2018 - The loss of the sense of sin

What is the greatest sin? Murder? Adultery? Sacrilege? Genocide? Back in 1946, speaking to a group of Catholic teachers, the Pope at the time, Pope Pius XII, said, “Perhaps the greatest sin in the world today is that men have begun to lose the sense of sin.”

“To lose the sense of sin.” What did the Pope mean by that?

The sense of sin is the awareness of the difference between right and wrong, it’s the consciousness that it’s wrong to violate God’s commandments, it certainly involves a consciousness that God has given us commandments in the first place.

Consider Adam and Eve in the garden. They knew that God had commanded them to not eat the forbidden fruit. But the more the dialogued with the serpent, the less they considered the wrongness of the act and the consequences of their sin.

Similarly, the loss of the sense of sin in our own life is the result of a continual and repeated lie one makes to oneself. When one tells oneself that “sin isn’t that bad.”

We lie to ourselves and we begin to believe the lie. “It doesn’t matter if I skip mass”, “it doesn’t matter if I cheat off my classmate or steal from my employer”, “it doesn’t matter If I visit the perverted internet website”, “it doesn’t matter if I gossip about my neighbor, or I’ll just make an exception this time”.

As we lose the sense of sin, sin takes root in our life. Soon, we don’t think twice about skipping mass, gossiping, contracepting, striking a sibling or a spouse. And when will the cycle end?

Today, Ash Wednesday, is such an important day because today is a day that we acknowledge that sin is real, that sin has a real effect in our life, that our sins keep us from being the people God made us to be, they keep us from living in harmony with our neighbor, and the joy of the Gospel.

Today we are marked with ashes, ashes which symbolize the spiritual death which occurs when we disobey God’s commandments. To be marked with ashes is to mark oneself as a sinner, but a sinner with hope. We are marked as sinners who desire God to intervene in our life to save us from our sins. As Pope St. John Paul taught, “Sin is an integral part of the truth about the human person. To recognize oneself as a sinner is the first and essential step in returning to the healing love of God,”

The Gospel warns us of marking our faces simply to appear to be fasting. Receiving ashes can be done vainly, wanting people to notice you simply for having gone to Church. We receive ashes rightly when we do so humbly, desiring with our whole hearts that with God’s help we will put an end to sin in our life.

The 40 days of Lent remind us that Jesus goes out into the desert for 40 days. He fasts and prays and does spiritual battle with the devil. We mark ourselves with ashes today, that we may be united with Jesus, in our fasting, in our prayer, in our own spiritual battle to remove sin and selfishness from our life.

May this great devotion which marks the beginning of Lent, also mark the end of the reign of sin in us, that we may know the life, the peace, the healing, and the joy that comes from faithfulness to God for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

Homily: Ash Wednesday 2017 - Why Ashes?

Today we begin the penitential season in the life of the Church known as Lent.  We bless ashes, have them imposed on our foreheads, and hear the words “remember, you are dust, and unto dust you shall return.”

Why Ashes? What do Ashes have to do with the Christian life? And why begin this Holy Season with this strange ritual?

For one, Ashes remind us of our humble beginnings. The first man, Adam, was fashioned by God from the dust—the dirt—of the ground. So, Ashes remind us not only that we were made by God, by why we were made by God: to know, love, and serve God. God made us to be faithful, to be full of life, to be full of love. So Ashes help us to reconnect to our beginnings and also our sacred purpose on this earth.

Ashes also remind us of that sad events which soon followed the creation of Adam and Eve—how Adam and Eve used their God given free will to act against their purpose. They were meant to be full of faith, full of life, full of love, but by eating the forbidden fruit, they poisoned their souls and the souls of all of their progeny. Disobeying God, they sought happiness not in God’s will, but in the empty promises of the devil. Because of original sin “to dust do we return”.

So Ashes remind us that we were made by God, but also how the poison of sin brings death. Sin always is a falling short of the people God made us to be.

So as a sign of humility and a sign of repentance, at the beginning of this Holy Season, we mark ourselves with ashes as sinners in need of a savior, sinners in need of mercy.

As the ashes are blessed today, listen very closely to the prayer of blessing. The prayer will recall how God does not desire the death of sinners, but their conversion, and how this act of imposing ashes on our foreheads is sign of our desire for the pardon of our sins and newness of life through Christ.

As you come forward for this beautiful and ancient sacramental, ask God to bring you to repentance for all of your sins, ask God to help you seek conversion, and to help you this Lent to remain steadfast in your Lenten practices of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, that you may be filled with the new life of Christ for the glory of God and salvation of souls.