Everything Jesus tells us not to do in today’s gospel, we as Catholics tend to do. We put our alms into an envelope so both the parish and the IRS can keep track of our donations. We know that praying alone in our rooms is not enough so we also worship as a faith community. Today, we will leave church with a black smudge of ashes on our foreheads, not as a sign of virtue but a public declaration of our sinfulness, so that everyone else can see that we have begun our annual observance of Lent.
Are we ignoring the command of Christ to be discreet? Not really. Jesus is using rhetoric to get his point across. There must be more to our penitential observances, he tells us, than the externals. At the heart of every good action, there needs to be a certain detachment from the approval of others. The reward of a good Lent comes from the Father in Heaven, not from our admiring neighbor.
Lent is not about giving up desert or favorite foods and drink. It is not about doing something hard for the next six weeks. Lent is a time set apart for us to reflect in a special way on our lives, a time to arrive at a better understanding of our relationship with God. Whatever we do during this holy season ought to help us deepen our relationship with the God who made us and loves us unconditionally.
Ash Wednesday is the beginning of a process, the reliving of our baptism, our dying with Jesus Christ to sin, and rising with him to new life. Our extra works of charity, worship, and self-denial will be valid only insofar as they foster and demonstrate that process.
St. Paul tells us that now is the acceptable time to be reconciled with God. We cannot be at peace with God if we are not at peace with our neighbor. Whatever is keeping us from a complete relationship with God, whatever is spoiling our relationship with our family friends or coworkers is what we should address this Lent. Just as we now seek God’s forgiveness for our wrongdoing, God invites us to forgive others for when they have wronged us.
Since they assist us in saying no to self and yes to God, fasting, prayer, and almsgiving should foster reconciliation, not distract us from it.
The recognition that we are sinful is universal. All religions teach that when we have sinned, we are to reconcile with God and one another as part of the daily living out of our faith. We don’t wait for a special time to forgive and be forgiven, but each religion also sets apart a special time to focus on this very human need to be reconciled with God and with others.
For any number of reasons, many of you shy away from the sacrament of reconciliation, and if you are one who does, I urge you to reconsider what God is offering you in this sacramental encounter that allows you to hear his words of absolution.
In addition to Saturday afternoons before Mass, confessions will be heard at the Lenten Reconciliation service on Monday, March 5 from 3-4:30 and from 6-7 in the evening. On that day, Fr. Paul and Fr. Jerry will also be on hand to hear confessions. If none of these times work for you, remember that I will gladly celebrate the sacrament with you any time by appointment.
In the words of today’s psalm, we prayed, “a clean heart create for me, O God/ and a steadfast spirit renew within me.” This God desires to do but first we must seek to be cleansed. May this Lent restore to its former beauty the robe of grace first given us at our baptism. May these 40 days of Lent be a true springtime, a real rebirth for all of us.