Word to the Wise
Wednesday, March 5, 2014 - Ash Wednesday
[Joel 2:12-18 and 2 Cor 5:20-6:2 and Matt 6:1-6, 16-18]Working together, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For he says, "In an acceptable time I heard you, and on the day of salvation I helped you." Behold, now is a very acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.
The passage from St. Paul in today's second scripture sets the framework for reflecting on the other two scriptures! The prophet Joel challenges us to "rend our hearts, and not our garments." Jesus challenges us to bring integrity to any penitential practice that we undertake by not making a public spectacle of it. Fasting, prayer and almsgiving need to begin from the inside and not from the outside! These two challenges come together in St. Paul's challenge "not to receive the grace of God in vain."
Lent is an "acceptable time." It comes as a "grace" every year to confront us with the patterns in our lives that create obstacles to our relationship with the Lord. Can we "rend" our hearts by asking, "Do I pray? Do I fast? Do I give alms?" And if I do these practices, do I only do them in Lent? Can I make these traditional forms of piety more effective in my life? Are my prayers "automatic" without any real intention to them? Is my "fasting" simply a 40 day deprivation from something I'll just go back to at the end of Lent? Is my "almsgiving" only the "Rice Bowl" in Lent and not a year-round generosity not only of money, but also time and talent? At the end of Lent will we be able to say that we had an "intentional" Lent?
This acceptable time of grace can give us momentum not just for celebrating Easter but for celebrating all the other days till next Ash Wednesday! Taking hold of God's grace, we can have much more than a "vain Lent" and build a Christian life not just for ourselves alone but for all those whom we come into contact! AMEN